Make Them Fall In Love...

I would like to thank everyone for their input and comments about the mini blog series. I decided to bundle all the posts together to make it into an ebook. I have used a new service which means you can read the book on your iPad, kindle, computer - anything really. You get 3 formats so that it is compatible with whatever you want to read it on.

For now, I have set the minimum price for $0, yep, you can get it for free so all you need to do is set the sliders on 0.

BUT, if you want to pay for the book, maybe you think that over the years I have given you so many great ideas that you would like to reward all my hard work, *wink* then you can move the sliders. The top slider shows how much you actually pay and the bottom one is how much I get from the sale.

Now, maybe you have suddenly come into a lot of money, then you can take the slider right to the end, neat hey? The other thing I should mention, is that with it being an ebook if and when I update it you automatically get sent the updated version, clever stuff.

It is the first time I have used this software, so I haven't got my head around all the formatting yet. If you do download the book, I would love to know what it looks like on your reader, so I know how to improve it. So, what are you still here for? go and click on the green button and grab yourself a copy!

Make them fall in love part IV

Here we are, Part IV of this mini bloggy series. Here are Part I, Part II and Part III.

One of the questions I got which started these series was 'How can I increase my readership' and well, there isn't just one answer, hence the whole series! You need to have quality content, you need to share (don't just write about me, me, me), your blog needs to look good so that when a random person clicks through they are more likely to stay and if they like it so much, sign up for your email list/RSS feed there and then.

So, now you have your blog looking all fine and dandy you need to get readers to the blog, there are many ways to do this but here are a few to get you going...

Quality content
If you posts are badly written, irrelevant or just downright boring, no one is going to want to come back plus no one is going to want to share what you have written. I know I have said this before, but it is important!

Share, share, share
Share your knowledge, share your finds, share information, share your recipes, share your thoughts, share your hobbies, share what ever is relevant to the theme of your blog and encourage your blog readers to share your content too. Other bloggers are more likely to share your content if you are going to do the same for them.

Connect
Using social media tools such as Facebook or twitter, connect with other bloggers, leave useful comments of other peoples posts, if there is something you love, tell them, if something was helpful, tell them. Bloggers do read their comments and they do notice those who comment on a regular basis, use this to build up a relationship. Once you have a relationship it is much easier to ask about guest posting etc.

Listen to your readers
Sometimes you write what you think is an amazing post and you get no feedback, it is like a kick in the ribs, other times you put up a post that had no special content - or so you thought and the comments come flooding in. Listen to what your readers have to say and make a point to answer any questions or queries.

Keep it consistent
When I started out I blogged a couple of times a week and slowly it build up to everyday (I actually schedule some posts so I am not sitting here every day!). Last year, after the quake I was writing far more posts because I was putting information out there as I came across it but it was exhausting. Those big blogs that post 15 times a day - they do that with a team of writers and the recycle posts from their archives, us one-man shows can't keep up with that. So, decide how many times you will post a week and stick to it, I decided a while ago that I would try and post every day and here I am!

There are a lot of other ways to increase traffic to your blog, but it is not just traffic you want, you want people to hang about and come back for me, he is a list of ideas to get you going...

• share, share, share
• get featured (guest blog) on a bigger blog
• invite guests on your blog
• join blog hops
• join up with other bloggers and write a blog series between you (driving traffic from one blog to the next)
• if you still have a small blog join some weekly linkys. I usually join the Muffin Tin Meal linky. 
• once you have a following then run your own linky.
• run a contest or giveaway (great info on how to at Superlucky)
• organise a swap
• write useful comments on other peoples blogs
• build up relationships with other bloggers especially those at the same level & interest as your own.
• join online communities where you share the same audience.
• make sure your email tagline has your blog address in it
• make sure all your social media sites have a link to your blog
• make bloggy business cards to give to new people you meet.
• make good use of pinterest but don't just pin your own stuff pin lots of other peoples things too.
• when someone makes a comment be sure to reply
• use social media and spread your content around BUT make sure that your tweets for example are not all 'read my post' tweets or you will lose followers.
• install Google analytics and check where your readers are coming from. Pinterest drives the most traffic to my blog at the moment but it wouldn't if my photos were rubbish!
• give credit where credit is due and link to other peoples blogs and posts.
• survey your readers
• invite readers to comment and express their opinions
• be consistent, in your posts, in your social media networking, in answering questions and comments.

I think that just about wraps it up, if you have found this mini series helpful please share it with your friends, family, Facebook pals, twitter followers, next-door neighbours dog. I would love to hear your feedback, pop it in a comment below.

make them fall in love.. pt III blogging series

So, ready for part III? If you have missed the start of this series, here are parts I and part II. Today we will tackle writing and reading, let's get cracking...

Let's start with the writing...

• Obviously, what you write about is an important part of your blog post and writing isn't as easy as it sounds, but with time you will discover your own style and your voice. Whatever you write about do it because you are passionate about it, it will show in your writing.
• Write quality posts, ones that will be interesting or useful to your readers. I am rarely stuck for something to write about, my secret... I keep a notebook with possible blog post topics, they might be those 'in the bath genius ideas' to answers to questions from readers or something that I have suddenly discovered and can't wait to share.
• Before you hit publish, spell and grammar check at least once.
• If you only have time, say once a week, to write your blog posts then make good use of the schedule function, write three or four posts then schedule them to publish over the course of the week, your digest readers will love you for it. This may backfire if you have scheduled happy posts about rainbows then you have an almighty earthquake and a full on national disaster - I am hoping that won't happen again.
• Another time to use the schedule function is when you know you are going to be away for any length of time.
• Also use the draft function, sometimes you get half way through a post and it just doesn't feel right. Don't delete and don't publish it, keep it as a draft and go back to it in a few days time. Looking at it with fresh eyes will really help you decide exactly what to do with it.

Now, I want you to make life easier for your reader...

• If you use a sidebar, keep it neat and tidy.
• If you have badges or banners, keep them all the same size, it looks much neater.
• Keep moving, flashy, blink things to a minimum, it is really distracting if you are trying to read and half a dozen flashy things are going off at you.
• Make it easy for a reader to contact you, having your email address above the fold or on your 'about' page or better still both. If you don't want your email address out there then set one up specifically for your blog or public use. I have several email accounts but they all get forwarded to one, one of the reasons I love gmail is because this is so easy to set up.
• Make sure you have a search box, so many times I revisit a blog looking for something specific but there is no search and I have no joy with labels or tags, I end up giving up.
• Tags and labels, I discovered recently that with blogger you can pick which tags to use as labels, so when I tag my posts I use as many as possible to help when someone does a search but I have a limit of 15 labels that are in my sidebar. I tried to get it down to 10 but I blog about such a wide variety of subjects, it wasn't going to happen.
• Social media - this blogging thing is all about sharing and creating a community and as social media has taken off in an insane way in the last couple of years you need to have those social media share buttons available.
• Make it easy to subscribe to your RSS feed or email list, not everyone actually clicks over to your blog to read it, I read most of mine in google reader, I know some of my readers are reading this through Facebook *wave* and I know other prefer to get it delivered to their inbox.

Finally, this weeks big NO-NO is...

Music. Never Ever have a widget set to auto play music on your blog, you will scare readers away in their droves. Think of your readers, I am a punk chick myself but I appreciate that it is not every ones cup of tea and not only that I know that, there is probably a mom or two reading this whilst their little one is down for  a nap and I am pretty sure they would be using some not-so-nice words if they clicked through to my blog and got blasted with some Rancid which woke sleeping baby and spoilt mama's quiet time.

I like to listen to music or a podcast as I am reading blogs, I don't need no Celine Dion upsetting my vibe! And of course, there are those who are surfing the web when they should be working, you don't want them getting in trouble with their manager do you?

So, what I want to know today is...What is your number one pet peeve when you go to a blog, please share below, I am sure there is something I haven't mentioned! 

If you are enjoying the series then please share with your friends and why not hop onto the mailing list while you are at it.

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make them fall in love.. pt II blogging series

Some great feedback and reasons for blogging in the comments after the last post, thank you. 

Today I want to talk about images or more specifically photos. Now, one of the reasons I started this mini series is because I was asked how to get more traffic/readers and as I said last week, first impressions are everything! I believe there is a simple formula here...

Obviously, it isn't as simple as that but if your blogging content is something you are sharing whether it be a recipe for apple pie, a new gadget you have bought, a craft you did with your kids or your latest garden exploits then good photos are an important part of the equation. Reader and other bloggers are more likely to share your content if you have a great image.

I always try and put up the best images I have but sometimes, especially with kids it doesn't always work out as planned, so I say, keep it realistic. Don't post a rubbish photo just because... unless it is essential to the story you are telling. There are hundreds if not thousands of websites giving information on how to take better pictures and I am not a professional photographer so I am not even going there but I will share these tips...

• When you are taking photo's of something you know you will be blogging about, more is less. Professional photographers shoot hundreds of shots yet only one or two will make the final cut.
• If you are taking photos of something such as step by step for a craft, make sure the area is well lit, natural light from a window works best.
• Don't be afraid to edit your images. There are a lot of free editing software packages out there, I personally use Photoshop. Adjusting the lighting or contrast can make all the difference.
• Add a watermark with your blog or business name to all your images. Having a watermark reduces the chance of your image being stolen as passed off as someone else's. People who steal others work are not likely to be the type to sit as remove a watermark. Also, some sites such as Facebook and Pinterest strip all the meta data from the image so there is no way of knowing where the image came from.
• Keep the sizes of your images consistent, when I use the frames I stick to 600px wide. Just plain photos are 5x7 or 7x5.
• If you use someone else's image for whatever reason CREDIT them and link back to where you found it, it is good practice to ask first too.
• Cropping an image can completely change and improve it. Give it a go! 
• Reduce your image size, this will make the page load faster, better for your readers. Depending what your images are of go for anything from 72dpi to 150dpi - anything bigger than that is wasted.
• Use templates  - I tried this several times before and have only just found a way of doing it that is both quick and easy. The recent templates are from Pugly Pixel, if you use photoshop, get yourself over there, she shares loads of great things and does some fab tutorials. Although I basically know my way around photoshop, I have learnt a lot of new tricks from her.

A few other points, your header - keep it to a reasonable size. Think of a newspaper, folded and face up, across the top is the name of the paper, big and bold, underneath is the 'grabbing headline' and the most important story. Your blog is the same, if your header is too big then the reader has to scroll down to get to that very important post you wrote, so in effect you are pushing your important content down the screen or 'beneath the fold'.

Finally, NEVER EVER post pictures of naked or semi-naked children on your blog. No matter what your do, your images can be taken off your blog one way or another. There are a lot of sick and twisted people out there who trade and share stolen images of children. Would you leave your naked child alone with a bloke you have never met before? OF COURSE NOT, so don't share your adorable naked kids pics online whether it be Facebook, flickr, instagram or your blog. Keep them in an album, at home to be pulled out when they bring their first girl/boyfriend home :o)

Have I missed anything? Possibly. Now, I don't know much about the free photo editing software out there so if you use something please share in the comments section and let us all know what you think of it or if there is anything else you want to share please do. 

Part III coming next week and if you have found this useful, please share with your friends.

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make them fall in love - blogging guide pt1

This week it was my fifth year blogaversay! Whoo-hoo, doesn't time fly?

I usually do something special for it but this year I thought I would do something a little different. I have had a few of emails recently asking for advice on blogging and I know when you first start out it is really hard to keep the momentum going. So I thought I would share what I do and why and maybe it will help those of you who are blogging or want to start a blog.

Once upon a time...
I started this blog initially for friends and family back home, I wanted to share what Ebi-kun was up to and we were just starting to build a house so that was my goal when I started out. But, the blog seemed to take a life of it's own, soon I was getting people I didn't know leaving comments or emailing me, it freaked me out somewhat at first but I realised I loved sharing what we do.

I have a lot of blogs in my reader, some are purely eye-candy, some I read if I have time and a handful are the must reads. Looking at the must reads I would say these are mostly blogs I have been reading for a long time, I feel connected to the writer, we probably comment on each others blogs or tweet each other. They almost always have something interesting to say and have a good sense of humour.

I would like to think that the same goes for my readers but I do know a chunk of my traffic just come for the free tutorials or Montessori posts and that is fine by me, if they come often enough they will start to hang around for every post.

When I started writing this and realised it would end up being an epic post, 3 miles long so I have broken it down into bit sized chunks and it will run as a mini series. So welcome to....

First and foremost you need to know WHY you are blogging or WHY you want to start a blog.

If you checked the last box maybe you need to have a re-think.
Why do I do it? Because I love it! I love sharing the crafts we do, the recipes, the crazy ideas I have, our sometimes surreal life in Japan, my love of Montessori and helping kids develop their imagination. 

Once you have your why, the rest is just a technicality.

Next you need a platform something like blogger or wordpress, you don't need to go out and buy a fancy website site since many of them are free. I started off with blogger and on a whole very happy with it. We have occasional hiccups where I assume the little google umpa-lumpas are tinkering in the background but generally I am happy with it. I have recently started using wordpress (for my soon to be revealed new project) and found that pretty straight forward and easy to use too.

Now, when someone new clicks through to your blog you have 3 seconds, yes 3 seconds to make a good impression. That means first impressions count for a lot so let's start by taking a look at design...

Think carefully about your blog design, template and colors. 

• Take a look at your favourite blogs and at some of the big blogs out there, take note of their design, I think you will find that all the biggies all have a clean and simple look.
• A light background with dark text is much easier to read than the other way round and green or pink text on a black background? Please leave that to Emo teenagers!
• Limit your colour palette, you don't want your reader to feel like they are on an acid trip when they visit you blog! All the top brands have a limited palette and they do so for a reason, they also pick colours that compliment each other. Now, colour theory is a BIG topic, if you want to learn more google will turn up a lot of info for you. If not, stick with the colours in the templates on your blogging platform, or if you do change them then make a note of the colour you used and stick with it, for example the hex code for 'my' blue is #8FDCEC
• Limit the use of fonts, pick a couple and stick with them. Use the 'fancy' font for the titles but the main bulk of your text use a nice, ease to read font. The standard fonts offered are the ones that most of us are used to, they are easy on the eyes and will keep attention for longer.
• There are a lot of arguments for and against justified text which I am not going to get bogged down in, I would say pick either fully justified or left justified text and stick with it. I use fully justified just because I feel it makes the blog look neater and I find it easier to read. Having text centred is good for image credits but reading a lot of text like that makes you want to go cross-eyed because it is difficult for your eyes to scan the text.
• Remember to break long pieces of text up with paragraphs.
• Finally, keep it consistent, when a reader returns you want them to feel at home. Think about your local supermarket, doesn't it just drive you nuts when they start moving the shelves around? Readers want to know where everything is so they feel secure and nice and cozy.

That just about wraps it up for today, I will have part II ready for you next week. If you found this useful please share it with your friends and before you go, I would like to know WHY you blog or if you are thinking about starting one WHY you want to start one. Pop it in a comment down below!

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