“Finding Readers, Finding Ideas, Finding time to Blog: The Top ProBlogger Podcast Episodes of 2015” plus 19 more

Finding Readers, Finding Ideas, Finding time to Blog: The Top ProBlogger Podcast Episodes of 2015
Grow Your Blog’s Traffic and Income by Creating a Resources Page for Your Blog
Our Top General Blogging Tips: The Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015
Our Top Tips on Social Media: The Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015
How to Make Your Social Media Strategy More Effective for the New Year
Our Top Tips on Monetization: The Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015
Our Top Tips on Creating Content: the Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015
Discover How to Turn Your Passion into Profit: 70% Off our Online Marketing Kit
How to Make Money as an Affiliate with a Best Seller List
How to Increase your Amazon Affiliate Earnings for the Holidays
5 Ways I Use Habits to Stay Creative and Productive When Working From Home
Reading Roundup: What’s New in Blogging Lately?
How to Give Your Blog Design a Spring Clean
How to Do an End of 2015 Blog Audit: Take Stock of What You’ve Achieved and Where You’re Headed
Do it #TodayNotSomeday: Create an Autoresponder Series
Build a Better Blog for 2016: Grab 50% Off Our Best Selling eBook This Week Only
How to Be a Lucky Entrepreneur: Are You Developing These 7 Habits?
Create an Opt-In Incentive to Increase Your Email Subscriber Numbers
Reading Roundup: What’s New in Blogging Lately?
Top Tips to Boost Your Email List Subscribers Today

Finding Readers, Finding Ideas, Finding time to Blog: The Top ProBlogger Podcast Episodes of 2015

Posted: 18 Dec 2015 05:01 AM PST

We’re closing out this week looking back on the year that was with a bang today – the most popular ProBlogger Podcast episodes of 2015!

As you will remember, Darren kicked off his new venture in July with a podcast a day for 31 days, helping you grow a better blog in the meantime. Each episode had a new challenge for you to go away and implement on your own sites, which was the motivation many of you needed to take your blog to the next level.

Your favourite episodes of the ProBlogger Podcast were:

Episode 29: How to Develop a Plan to Grow Your Readership

You may write great content, but readers generally don’t just show up to read it. So what do you do? Darren takes us through a step-by-step plan to help you get your content out in front of a wider potential audience.

Episode 11: How to Come Up with Hundreds of Blog Post Ideas for Your Blog

One of Darren’s favourite days in the 31 Days to Build a Better Blog series, and one that will ensure you’ll never sit down again and go “soooooo what am I actually going to write?” and then give up and scroll Facebook. You will be or.ga.nised.

Episode 12: How to Create an Editorial Calendar for your Blog

With all those ideas you’d have come up with after listening to the previous podcast, you’ll then be guided into putting them into a calendar that will cover your content for a full year. With tips from Darren and a description of his own successful calendar, you’ll be armed with plenty of knowledge to help you create a workable editorial schedule.

Episode 18: How to Create a Page That Propels People Deep Within Your Blog

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You know the one – where a reader stumbles onto your site and finds, one one page, tons of links to other important and useful information they’re dying to read. Before they know it the’ve fallen down a click rabbit hole on your site and have been reading your archive for half an hour. Darren explains the best way to create such a page on your own site to help keep readers on your blog for longer.

Special Mentions:

Did you have a favourite? Which one was the episode that led to a breakthrough in your blogging?

You can also catch the rest of the series here:

Stacey Roberts is the Managing Editor of ProBlogger.net: a writer, blogger, and full-time word nerd balancing it all with being a stay-at-home mum. She writes about all this and more at Veggie Mama. Chat with her on Twitter @veggie_mama or be entertained on Facebook.

The post Finding Readers, Finding Ideas, Finding time to Blog: The Top ProBlogger Podcast Episodes of 2015 appeared first on ProBlogger.

Grow Your Blog’s Traffic and Income by Creating a Resources Page for Your Blog

Posted: 18 Dec 2015 12:45 AM PST

Today’s ProBlogger Podcast challenge is one of those I’ve had on my “someday” list for too long now: create a “resources” page for your blog. It’s an excellent way of grouping all your affiliate programs together, and also heading off some of the frequently asked questions about what you use and recommend.

You can see our (recently updated) Resources page here on ProBlogger, where I list useful tools, services, and training for bloggers, and in the show notes of today’s episode I also list a few more examples of how other bloggers in other niches have set theirs up.

Not only are pages on your blog dedicated to blogging resources good for affiliate income and to answer questions, but you’ll find they can also rank highly in search engines and has the capacity to do well on social if comprehensive enough and designed well.

This #TodayNotSomeday task is one that was sorely needed here on ProBlogger – the last time I had updated that page was six years ago! It was in a terrible state, with broken links, nonexistent offers, and out-of-date information. I still am so embarrassed by that, and I almost didn’t want to even mention it here or on the podcast.

But there’s always time to turn it around, and so I urge you to update your resources page, or create one, for today’s challenge. I’ve got some tips in the podcast to help you create a page that really works for you and I’d love to see a link to the finished product – make sure you use the #TodayNotSomeday hashtag so I can keep track!

Our Top General Blogging Tips: The Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015

Where to Find Free Images Online

It seems my bugbear was yours too, this year! There have been quite a few places to get quality, modern, free and no-attribution images online springing up since I wrote this post, but these are still my go-to sites. They never let me down.

A Powerful Exercise Inside Google Analytics to Set You Up for a Successful Year of Blogging

The one where Darren takes us on a tutorial trip through Google Analytics to drill down into your audience, how they arrive at your blog, and what they do when they are there. He uses the data gleaned from this exercise at the end of every year to figure out what to re-share on social, what gets shared most, what headlines worked, what content fell flat, and what posts could be optimised or upgraded in the new year. It’s a long one – take a drink!

10 Simple Hacks that Will Increase Your Blog Traffic

We love simple, we love hacks, and we love traffic. No wonder this post resonated with many of you in 2015!

How to Write Brilliant Blog Posts: 5 Tips from Psychology

It seemed you all were “ready to rock a brilliant blog post? Do you want to write faster, think more creatively, just do it all better?”, as this post really hit it out of the park with readers. Five really simple but effective tips to create an environment where success is inevitable.

Top 15 Free Internet Marketing Tools to Boost Your Online Business

Free! Tools! 15 of them! From content generation to social scheduling tools to testing the speed your site loads, there’ll be something here that will help you find a shortcut in blogging. Which brings me to my next point:

5 Ways to Make Your Blogging Life Easier

When you feel a little bit overwhelmed, and like the to-do list of your blog is longer than the years you’ll ever be alive, here are five ways to slash the stress and breathe a bit more. Put some of them into place before the end of the year and start 2016 off on the right path.

Special Mentions:

What was your favourite?

The post Our Top General Blogging Tips: The Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015 appeared first on ProBlogger.

Our Top Tips on Social Media: The Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015

Posted: 16 Dec 2015 05:15 AM PST

With the ever-changing Facebook algorithm, nothing but crickets on Twitter, and Instagram being a slow-moving feast, we’ve seen a huge response to our posts on the topic of social media this year. It’s like a beast we’re all desperate to tame. In this roundup there are a couple of videos and a few step-by-step tutorials showing how the experts do it – I hope you find them useful.

Check back tomorrow for the most popular general blogging tips we’ve published (think productivity, traffic, engagement), and catch up on our most popular posts on creating content and monetization.

Our Top Tips on Social Media 2015

7 Effective tips to Grow Your Social Media the Right Way

This thorough post covers everything from measuring audience demographics to tools to help you get an advantage. Bring a pen and notepad and take notes!

How to Build an Effective Social Media Workflow to Increase Your Traffic

In this video, Darren shared his own personal social media strategy for Digital Photography School, and in only 20 minutes a day! No wonder it was popular.

3 Steps to Saving Time by Writing Social Media Updates in Batches

I love this: “Scheduling updates in advance solves a number of social media's most frustrating problems. It gives your routine newfound flexibility, and it can even make you a better blogger. But there's one hurdle that scheduling alone doesn't take care of for you: those updates still have to come from somewhere, and that means you have to write them.” – it’s so true! So Tom takes us through a bunch of ways we can cut down on the work for maximum social media results.

How I Use Edgar to Increase the Effectiveness of my Social Media Strategy

An update of sorts to the above article on Darren’s social media schedule – including ProBlogger’s social media (mostly Twitter) and a video tutorial to help you through creating a similar winning strategy.

The Step-by-Step Method of Making Your Content Shareable on Social Media

Another fantastic tutorial on helping you get your content social-share ready. Includes ways to get around common mistakes bloggers make – don’t miss it.

Special Mentions:

What did you find most useful? Do you have a solid social media schedule? What are your favourite tips?

The post Our Top Tips on Social Media: The Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015 appeared first on ProBlogger.

How to Make Your Social Media Strategy More Effective for the New Year

Posted: 16 Dec 2015 12:45 AM PST

Today’s episode of the ProBlogger podcast is number 7 in our list of 10 tasks that I’m urging you to do #TodayNotSomeday (because let’s face it – someday usually turns into never!), and it’s a great one: get your social strategy nailed before the year starts.

In this day and age, bloggers really can’t get ahead unless they’re active on social media. While it’s not nice to think that if your blog is out of sight, you’re out of mind, but unfortunately, that is the case! Your work only gets in front of the people who need to see it if you put it there. Social media has the power to drive a lot of traffic to your blog, help you build community with readers, and is a fantastic secondary point of connection after your email list.

If you’re like many of your fellow bloggers, you’ve fallen into a social media rut. It can be very easy to get disillusioned at this point and give up – and if you don’t, you find yourself doing the same things in the same way because you’re busy, or you can’t think of any other way of doing it.

It’s very easy to get distracted and just dial in your socials, and of course, even easier to get overwhelmed.

It was around this time last year when I realised my own approach to social media sorely needed a shakeup. Across the board, my ProBlogger accounts had become boring, with no visuals, no personality, no engagement, and too much selling. If I was bored, imagine how the readers felt?

There were reasons for this, as there are reasons we all get complacent when we’ve been blogging for some time. But once I decided to make some changes, of course the obvious happened – traffic and engagement grew.

While I can’t possibly share everything I’ve tried and done in this podcast, I do go through some of the strategies I’ve used to boost my involvement with my social media accounts. I give a list of things I recommend you really think about as you analyse your own social strategy, and my tips for managing them well, what kind of schedule you should adhere to, building systems, and tools you can use to help you manage what can be an insurmountable task.

you can find the show notes to episode 73 of the ProBlogger podcast here, and as always, I’ll be looking out for the #TodayNotSomeday hashtag on Twitter and Instagram to see how you’re all doing.

The Full Blog Monetization Menu: 60 Ways to Make Money with Your Blog

Yes, sixty. Sixty whole ways of making money on or because of your blog. If standard affiliate/ad/sponsored post fare is not for you, you are almost guaranteed to find something on this list you’d rather do to earn some cash with your blog. So comprehensive! It’s a must-see.

Make Money Blogging For Real: 3 Must-Know Factors

How do you make money online?
How does AdSense work?
Should I attend this "make money online" course?

I’m sure you’ve asked or been asked these questions at some point in your blogging career. And while we can’t all be raking in millions of dollars every year, the fact remains you can make good money on your blog… if you heed these three tips.

5 Advanced Techniques I use to Make Money on My Blog

The wonderful Erin from Travel With Bender pulled back the curtain to show us all that there is money to be made on travel blogs, and exactly how she does it.

Make Money Blogging: Start the New Year by Increasing Your Income Streams

Well, it is that time of year! Darren outlined tons of great advice on how to make a legitimate, sustainable income on your blog by diversifying. Check it out if you haven’t already.

Top Tips for Getting the Most out of Monetizing Brand-Blog Relationships

Louisa Claire stopped by ProBlogger HQ to spill all the secrets she’s learned from being both a blogger and the conduit between bloggers and brands. What are brands looking for? What kind of blog do you need? How do you get on a brand’s radar? What’s the first step when you think you might want to work with brands in a sponsored or ambassadorship capacity? Louisa tells all.

Special Mention:

So what do you think? Are you inspired now? Were you surprised by any of these? Which monetization model works best for you?

The post Our Top Tips on Monetization: The Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015 appeared first on ProBlogger.

Our Top Tips on Creating Content: the Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015

Posted: 15 Dec 2015 01:11 AM PST

It’s been a great year here on ProBlogger, and as I advised (bullied you into?!) the other day – it’s time to look back on the year that was on your blog. I’ve been having a scroll through our analytics to dig out what posts you guys found most useful this year and I’ll be publishing the top five in the categories of content, monetization, social media, and the general tips we’ve shared across the rest of this week. Check back tomorrow for the next instalment!

Our Top Tips on Creating Content: The Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015

Four Blogging Tools to Make Your Content Go Further

Tools! You guys love tools. This post has four recommendations – on the subject of visual content, how to keep tabs on those blogging in your industry, how to manage your social media, and growing your influence. They’re pretty solid tips that will help you make the most of the content you create to make more of a mark in the blogging world.

3 Content Tweaks to Increase Your Blog Traffic Without Spending a Penny

Oh how we adore a bargain! And nothing is cheaper than free. Guest contributor Jawad Khan shared three changes you can make to your existing and future blog content, without spending tons of money, to immediately start getting more traffic from search engines and social media websites. All that reward for very little work.

How to Get Top Bloggers to Share Your Content and Boost Your Traffic

This is a solid, lengthy post with great ideas on how to get your content in front of the right people – people with enough influence to send tons of traffic your way.

How to Build Your Blog’s Audience with Longform Evergreen Content

Pulling from some fantastic Tim Ferriss advice, this post reminded you all to get back to basics if you want to increase your traffic. Is your content full of useful, evergreen advice? Are you strong on who your audience is and who you are writing to? Why long form anyway? All the answers are revealed…

Google’s Mobilegeddon: The Best Excuse to Repurpose Old Content

Google Mobilegeddon (the algorithm change that penalised websites that didn’t have mobile capabilities) frightened many of you into action. It was also the perfect time to reformat your content and publish it in varying ways. Mike gives a few pointers on how to breathe new life into old content.

Special Mentions:

So what worked for you? Which tips did you find most useful? Have you had an extra-good year on your blog content-wise? I’d love to chat in the comments!

I’m also taking bets on what you think were the most popular posts on monetisation, which will be revealed in tomorrow’s post!

The post Our Top Tips on Creating Content: the Most Popular ProBlogger Posts of 2015 appeared first on ProBlogger.

Discover How to Turn Your Passion into Profit: 70% Off our Online Marketing Kit

Posted: 14 Dec 2015 05:15 AM PST

Last week here on ProBlogger I put together a rather impulsive sale on the 31 Days to Build a Better Blog eBook and was overwhelmed by people taking up the offer and shooting me messages of thanks.

So this week we’ve decided to put another of our resources on sale with another week long sale and we’ve made the discount bigger!

The Blogger’s Guide to Online Marketing was written with the purpose of helping bloggers who start blogging for ‘passion’ to turn their blogs into profitable businesses.

This week only it’s yours for $14.99 USD – a 70% saving when you use the coupon code BYE2015 during the check out.

Written by the Web Marketing Ninja (a friend who had to keep his identity secret at the time due to working in a pretty high profile position) – this resource is much more than an eBook – it’s a whole ‘kit’ for bloggers which includes:

1. A 31 Chapter eBook

This clear, practical ebook includes 31 chapters focused on practical profit-generating strategies. Each detailed, insightful chapter encapsulates the Web Marketing Ninja's wisdom, honesty, and extensive experience creating profitable and sustainable online brands. There's also plenty of examples and activities for you to tackle.

Learn more about what each of the 31 chapters covers here.

2. A Comprehensive Resource Library

A downloadable, practical resource library which contains more than 21 documents, templates, worksheets, and examples to help you put the Ninja's advice into practice immediately.

3. Bonus: 1 Hour Webinar Recording

Early buyers of this kit were invited to a Q&A webinar with Chris Garrett, Darren Rowse and the Web Marketing Ninja where they answered frequently asked questions on the topic of making money blogging.

You'll get access to a recording of this webinar which goes for around 70 minutes to listen to in your own time.

The Ninja is a friend who helped me to start thinking more strategically about my own blogging. He helped me launch my first eBooks and taught me exactly how to get products from idea to launch.

This kit puts it into a system for you to follow!

Grab it Today for 70% Off

The Blogger’s Guide to Online Marketing is normally $49.99 USD. This week only you can get it for $14.99 USD – a price we’ve never offered before.

My hope is that you’ll use it to create a profitable blog in 2016!

Get yours here but make sure you use the coupon code BYE2015.

The post Discover How to Turn Your Passion into Profit: 70% Off our Online Marketing Kit appeared first on ProBlogger.

How to Make Money as an Affiliate with a Best Seller List

Posted: 14 Dec 2015 12:45 AM PST

A quick one today, and something that has helped me earn over half a million dollars with the Amazon Affiliate Program – so let’s get stuck in!

This #TodayNotSomeday task is one I’ve used numerous times and is easily adaptable to other affiliate programs or even your own products, if that’s your monetisation model. The concept of a “Best Seller List” is simple, but effective, and something you can definitely do today to start seeing results.

In this episode I tell you how I came up with the idea, why it works so well, and how you can do it too, right now! I’ll explain how often you can create best seller lists, the different sources from where you can pull together the information, and also a few examples in the show notes of some of the ones that have been successful for me.

You can share your ideas on Twitter or Instagram with the hashtag #TodayNotSomeday. Good luck!

5 Ways I Use Habits to Stay Creative and Productive When Working From Home

In Better Than Before, my book about how to master habits, I identify the 21 strategies we can use to make or break our habits. I use many of these strategies on myself, to keep myself on track as a blogger.

1. I use the Strategy of Safeguards to put myself out of the reach of temptation.

To do the serious work of original writing—my most challenging kind of work—I take my laptop to a library that's a block from my apartment, and there, I don't connect to the internet. It's easier physically to remove myself from the lure of my three monitors than to use self-control. Many people accomplish the same thing by using software to shut down the internet for certain intervals every day. Look for stumbling blocks, plan for failure!

2. I use the Strategy of Scheduling to do certain tasks at certain times.

It turns out that working is one of the most dangerous forms of procrastination. So when I tell myself, "at 10:00 a.m., I'm going to write that blog post," at 10:00 I don't allow myself to think that while I'm writing, I can also clean my desk, check email, post on Twitter, go over my calendar, or indulge in my personal favorite, do "research." At the designated time, I do the task that I've identified, or I stare at the ceiling. Even when I don't feel like working, I soon buckle down, out of sheer boredom.

3. I use the Strategy of Foundation to make sure that I move around a lot during the day.

Some days I go to the gym, or take a yoga class, or have a strength-training session. We also just got a new puppy, so I'm going for many more short walks during the day. Research shows that exercise helps me stay energized and focused—and for me, it also helps me keep my rear in the chair when I'm working, because otherwise I get very restless. Plus, as Nietzsche wrote, "All truly great thoughts are conceived by walking." I often find that I get a big insight or make an important connection when I'm out for a walk.

4. I use the Strategy of Monitoring to keep track of how much I'm posting.

How many posts am I really doing each week? We do a better job with just about everything (exercise, diet, spending, etc.) when we keep close track of what we're doing.

Weirdly, I've found, it's easier to post just about every day than to post some days. I usually post 5-6 times a week, so it's part of my ordinary day. I don't agonize, "Should I write something? I wrote yesterday and the day befofre, shouldn't I get today off? I have a good idea for tomorrow, so should I take today off? I didn't sleep well last night, I'll write better tomorrow”, etc. But if I posted, say, three times a week, I'd go through that every time, I'm sure.

As it is, I just have to post. If you want a daily time log, to help you monitor how you're spending your time each day, download it here.

5. I use the Strategy of Treats to make plenty of time to read.

The Strategy of Treats is the most fun We should load ourselves with healthy treats, because when we give more to ourselves, we can ask more from ourselves. Reading is my favorite thing to do, and when I give myself plenty of time to read for fun, I feel energized and cared for. Also, my reading gives me new ideas, illustrations, and insights, so it makes blogging easier, too. But I spend a good amount of time each week reading exactly what I want to read, not what I think I "should" read.

BONUS

Here's a strategy that I don't need, but many people do: the Strategy of Accountability. In Better Than Before, I divide people into four categories: Upholders, Questioners, Obligers, and Rebels. (Take the quiz here.) For people who are "Obligers" (which is the largest category, by the way), the Strategy of Accountability is crucial. Key. Essential!

If you're really good at meeting other people's expectations, but find it hard to meet your expectations for yourself, you must give yourself outer accountability. Start an accountability group (starter kit here, if you want to start one) where people hold each other accountable. Work with a coach. Find a client. Report to a buddy. Do whatever it takes—because for many people, writing regularly on a blog is something that just won't happen, no matter how much they want to do it, if there's no external accountability. Know yourself, and plan accordingly!

If you'd like to read more about how to use habits to make your life happier, healthier, and more productive, check out my book, Better Than Before. It turns out that it's not too hard to change your habits—when you know what to do.

Bonus Bonus!

The paperback of Better Than Before goes on sale on December 15. To say thanks to people who pre-order before that date, I'll give you my "21 Days, 21 Strategies for Habit Change" email series for free. Lots of ideas about how to keep those New Year's resolutions! But it's only free until December 15. Info here.

The post 5 Ways I Use Habits to Stay Creative and Productive When Working From Home appeared first on ProBlogger.

Reading Roundup: What’s New in Blogging Lately?

Posted: 11 Dec 2015 05:15 AM PST

I don’t know about you, but I’m getting excited about the end of the year. I love Christmas, and I love a new year with its promise of a fresh start and new beginnings! If you have started your end-of-2015 blog audit to help you find your focus for 2016, maybe put it on pause for a bit and get stuck into this week’s inspiring links.

Subject Line Comparison: The Best and Worst Open Rates on Mailchimp // Mailchimp

This blew my mind. Everything I thought I knew is wrong!

The 5 Best Google Chrome Extensions for Content Marketing // Social Media Today

I definitely checked out RiteTag and DrumUp… I already use the Great Suspender for suspending open browser tabs to save battery, but these extensions are pretty bang-on.

How to Better Prepare Your Social Media for 2016 // Hootsuite

Don’t just dial in the dying weeks of 2015, go out with a bang!

How to Create Instagram Ads Using Facebook Ads Manager // Social Media Examiner

I noticed this the other day, the ability to create an Instagram ad from my Facebook dashboard. Kristi runs you step-by-step exactly how to do it. Have you created one there before?

Can Christmas Lights Really Play Havoc with Your WiFi? // News.com.au

Apparently yes, they can. But never mind, because…

Google’s AMP Will Make the Mobile Internet Faster Early next Year // Wired

In part an answer to Facebook’s Instant Articles, Google will be integrating Accelerated Mobile Pages into search results at the start of 2016. And pages will load faster – because we are ALL on our phones, and we want answers now.

Google+ Changes: What Marketers Need to Know // Social Media Examiner

Are you still on it? I can think of only a handful of people that are still making it work. But as Google is phasing it out, here’s what you should be aware of.

12 Awesome Instagram Features You’re Probably Not Using // Mashable

Upload > crop > brighten > filter. Not anymore! I think my favourite feature is the option to straighten your images. I am always taking photos on the fly and they are never as straight as they should be! Does anyone still use Hyperlapse?

Watch This! Video Dominates Social Media in 2015 // CNet

So what does this mean for 2016? What does it mean for bloggers who are writers and aren’t drawn to video? How do we compete? Have you embraced video or is it just that one more thing you can’t afford to spend your time on?

Why No-One is Reading Your Marketing Content // Harvard Business Review

We all know how much advertising has changed, and content, real-life content written by real-life people has become such a powerful way of connecting with a consumer. But people do tune out (hey, we’re only human), and HBR have nailed the reason why! Really foolproof tips here, I love that one about the value exchange.

After that, I hope you’re still reading this! Can you see where your content might be falling down? Are you going to start editing your Instagram images more? How about those Chrome extensions? Would love to hear what’s sparked something for you this week.

The post Reading Roundup: What’s New in Blogging Lately? appeared first on ProBlogger.

How to Give Your Blog Design a Spring Clean

Posted: 11 Dec 2015 12:45 AM PST

In this next instalment of the #TodayNotSomeday series on the podcast, we’re moving away from creating email lists, optimising signups, and creating autoresponder mailouts, and focusing on the first thing people see when they come to your blog: the design.

As you know, the series is working through challenges that help you do things today that you’ve been putting off, even though they have huge benefits for your blog in the long term. One of those things is design tweaks. You know the things that niggle at you that you never get around to – the font isn’t quite right, the sidebar needs work, your header could do with an upgrade – but you’ll sort them out one day. Except that day is today!

The way your blog looks, what it makes people feel, what it calls people to do is vital, and it has a huge impact on your blog and how it’s seen.

Today, with a little work on re-optimizing your design, you have the potential to turn more first-time visitors into long-term readers, you invite the reader to stick around longer, you up the chance of them clicking on affiliate links or advertising, comment more, investigate your ebooks, and have a higher chance of them seeing your offered services. All from just a few minutes’ work on your part!

In this episode I discuss the things you should do today that will help you achieve these gains. Of course it depends on what your aims are for the site, so the advice will be slightly different for everyone, but in general, we go through actual steps to optimise your sidebar, navigation, calls to action, and decisions about your entire design. I also share the top 5 things I think every blog should have to make their design eye-catching and user-friendly.

What changes will you make? Share your progress with the #TodayNotSomeday hashtag, and find the show notes for this episode here.

How to Do an End-of-2015 Blog Audit

Grab a pen and notebook, a fresh Google Doc, a spreadsheet if you’re into that sort of thing, or anything else you’re happy to take notes on or in, and go through each section of your blog thoroughly. What worked, what didn’t, what did you hate, what will you change for next year? As science historian James Burke said once “you can only know where you’re going if you know where you’ve been”. True dat.

“You can only know where you’re going if you know where you’ve been.” – James Burke

[Tweet That!]

So let’s get stuck in.

Content:

You’re going to have to look at some stats for this, so open your WordPress Jetpack or Google Analytics and be prepared to dive in. First though, a look through the posts themselves:

How long were posts? Did you have a variety of word lengths? All long? All short? Which performed better? What would you say your average post word count would be?
What were the most popular posts? Overall, and for each category of your blog?
What type of posts worked? What resonated with your audience?
What fell flat, or just quite didn’t make it?
Did you write to your niche? Or did you branch out? Was that a wise choice?
Were you helpful?
What posts got the most comments/emails? Which one seemed to touch a nerve in your audience?
What was shared most?
What did you enjoy writing?
Where are you sourcing images? Are you making or taking your own? Could you start? What other options are there (you can find a selection of places that have collections of free, no-attribution images here), what program are you using to create and personalise your images? Is it enough or should you try something new? What are your image sizes? Are they optimal? Have you changed blog layout and now some of them are poorly sized? Make a note of them so you can update later with a better image.
Which day of the week got the most traffic? What were you publishing on those days? Was it consistent with your brand?
Was your overarching theme this year consistent with your brand?
What search terms got the most people to your blog? are you providing content for them?
Does each post have a good image that’s formatted correctly, a keyword-rich headline, and is it pleasant to the eye? Is there enough white space, and are there calls to action where necessary?
Were you providing enough value?

Back End

The nitty-gritty that we usually ignore unless something has gone wrong. Do a cleanout!

Are your plugins still working for you? What can you delete? What needs updating?
What do you have as a 404 error message? Can you make it more useful to the reader who finds themselves there?
Do you have broken links? (one way to find out is to use a broken link checker, or install a plugin that will do it for you). Can you update them?
What is your SEO plan? Are you inserting key words in all the right places? If you have Yoast installed, is there a green light on the majority of your posts? What can you do to improve in the new year? (Moz has a pretty comprehensive post here on doing a full SEO audit if you feel you need that much depth, and a content audit here).
Have you filled out the alt-text field on all your images with keyword-rich descriptions? (remember, this is what Pinterest pulls so make it user-friendly)
What have you been using to track metrics/traffic? Is it working?
Create a Google Analytics report about what has happened on your site, and who is reading it (and on what device!) Darren has a great tutorial here on how to find the most useful stats in Google Analtyics and use that knowledge to set up your next year of blogging on the right foot.

Design

We eat with our eyes, as they say, and readers will make snap judgements about you and your blog based on how it looks when they get there. What does your design say?

Is it functional?
Is it reader-friendly?
Is it pleasing to the eye?
Does it describe you and your blog at a glance?
Have you stayed consistent with colours and fonts?
Are there any widgets that need removing?
How is your sidebar working? What can you shuffle around or delete entirely?
Are you making the most of the bottom-of-the-blog real estate?
Are the ads old? Can you write to the advertisers and offer them a new deal?
Are you making the most of your design to point to where you could make an affiliate sale?
Are there several points on the page where readers can follow you?
Is your newsletter signup box prominent? Do you have more than one?
Is that pop-up box worth it?
Are your social media icons in the right order (you might want to put your most popular sites at the front). Are they linked to the right place? Are they the right size or colour?
Do all the links on your homepage work?
What can you remove from the design to enhance the look of your blog?
What are you using for social sharing? Do you like it? are people using it? Can you find something that works better?
Personal branding: is it recognisable? Have you been using the same branding techniques on your post images?

Pages/Topics

The umbrella of what you’re about. How’s that workin’ for ya?

Are the pages and topics you’ve sorted your content into still relevant? Have you moved onto other things? Can you merge some? Nest them?
Did you share content equally across all or did you find you wrote on a particular topic the most?
Is the navigation streamlined and user-friendly?
Are your pages and topics easily accessed?

Social Media

Our home away from home!

On what platform did you see the biggest growth?
Where was the most engagement?
What did you enjoy the most?
Have you changed profile pictures and bios lately? How current are they?
What brought most return for your efforts?
Where would you like try in the new year?
Is it obvious on all of these platforms what you’re about? What you can offer people?
Do all your platforms link to your blog, and are these options obvious and easy to find?

Your promotional strategy

You can’t just “build it and they will come”. Because they’re busy reading someone else.

How did you get your blog in front of new readers?
How successful was that?
What wasn’t worth the time invested?
Where will you invest your time next year?
What have you got as an opt-in? Does it need upgrading?
How are you offering your newsletter or mailing list? Have you been consistent with it, have you been tracking open rates etc?
Did you guest post anywhere? Was that worth your time? Where could you try this year?
Did you try to get some traditional media coverage?
Did you try any collaborations or cross-promotions? Who could you work with in 2016?
Did you do any giveaways? How did they work?

Monetisation

What has been your strategy this year?
What monetization models were you using?
What has been the most lucrative?
What hasn’t been worth your time?
What will you spend your resources on next year?
What programs, ebooks or courses need updating?
Can you bundle them together and do a quick lead-up to christmas sale?
Can you release something quick in time for christmas or new year?
How has your audience reacted to each monetisation strategy?
What model have you most enjoyed using?
What would you consider for the future?

Your goals

Did you create any? did you meet them?
Were you too ambitious? Or not enough?
What did you have in mind for next year?
Have you written your future goals and a plan for how to get there?
How could you learn from the mistakes you’ve made this year to help you reach your goals now?

Your feelings

How did you feel overall?
What did you excel at?
Where did you feel you could have done better?
Did you enjoy blogging?
Do you still enjoy it?
Have you thought about quitting, moving on to something else (like podcasting, for example), do you want to write a book, open an online store… did you think about expanding or moving on?
What would you like to do on your blog for next year?
What will you be leaving behind?

A big job, huh? But worthwhile. I hope you finished your audit feeling organized and motivated for a fantastic year ahead!

(if not, there’s always eggnog…)

The post How to Do an End of 2015 Blog Audit: Take Stock of What You’ve Achieved and Where You’re Headed appeared first on ProBlogger.

Do it #TodayNotSomeday: Create an Autoresponder Series

Posted: 09 Dec 2015 12:45 AM PST

Yes, it can seem like a lot of work on top of an already-overflowing to-do list, but creating an autoresponder series has huge potential to pay off for you in both the short and the long term. So this episode of the ProBlogger podcast is all about moving that “someday” plan to create a series onto your task list today.

It can take as little as an hour of your time, but can really ramp up traffic (and potentially daily profit!) for your blog.

In the last couple of episodes of the #TodayNotSomeday series on the podcast, we discussed setting up an email list (and how to grow it), and creating an incentive for people to sign up to it. Now we move onto how you can deliver fantastic content to your readers through it, via an autoresponder.

In this episode I discuss everything you need to know from “ok but what is an autoresponder?!” to their (many) benefits, the variety of content you could send, the flow of emails, how often to send them, tips to create mailouts that get high engagement, and of course how create an autoresponder series that’s successful. I want you to think about the journey you want your readers to go on, and how you will provide them with useful, practical info along the way.

Don’t forget to share your progress on today’s challenge with the hashtag “TodayNotSomeday”, check out the show notes here, and sign up to get your free trial month with Edgar (the sponsor of this series) here. Now get mapping!

31 Days to Build a Better Blog Has Helped Tens Thousands of Bloggers

The idea behind 31DBBB is simple. Every day for 31 days I give you a little bit of teaching and a challenge to do something simple that has the potential to improve your blog.

31DBBB started its life back in 2005 as a series of blog posts here on ProBlogger. That first year several thousand bloggers took the challenge. I repeated the series in 2007 with another 5000 bloggers joining in and in 2009 we hit 13,000 participants.

In 2009 I turned the series into an eBook and it quickly became the most popular eBook (or book) I’ve ever written.

Since that time we’ve launched a 2nd edition of the eBook and it’s sold over 21,000 copies, and worked through it as a 31 part podcast series, which has been downloaded just over a quarter of a million times.

I pinch myself that something I’ve created has been used so many times but what excites me most is the feedback from those who use it send me. I’ve lost count of the messages, emails and reviews I’ve seen letting me know how the series of 31 daily challenges and teaching have helped bloggers improve their blogs.

Screen Shot 2015 12 08 at 10 29 08 AM

I love that 31DBBB not only helps beginners but more experienced bloggers to find new energy and direction for their blogs – so it’s my pleasure to make it a little more accessible to more bloggers this week with a 50% discount.

To get the discount simply use the coupon code GOODBYE2015 in the checkout process. It’ll make the price $14.99 USD.

This discount lasts for this week only and will end on Monday 14 December. Get 31 Days to Build a Better Blog here, and don’t forget the coupon code to get your copy at half price!

The post Build a Better Blog for 2016: Grab 50% Off Our Best Selling eBook This Week Only appeared first on ProBlogger.

How to Be a Lucky Entrepreneur: Are You Developing These 7 Habits?

Posted: 07 Dec 2015 05:01 AM PST

Darren Rowse speaks at HubSpot's Inbound conference on the topic of "lucky" entrepreneurs and their 7 habits.

Image credit: Inbound

I was in the right place at the right time.

It was November 2002, and I received an email from a friend that changed my life in ways I could never have imagined.

Without receiving, reading, and taking action on that email, I would never have started blogging or built the business I have built.

I often reflect on this serendipitous start to the current chapter of my life – what would have happened if I’d not opened that email?

I feel lucky that I did… but was it just ‘luck’?

Earlier this year I was asked to travel to Boston to deliver a 12-minute ‘Bold Talk’ at Hubspot’s Inbound conference.

I loved the challenge of doing a shorter form presentation – particularly because I was invited to speak on something other than my normal topic (that of blogging).

I decided that the focus of my talk would be ‘luck’ in entrepreneurship. It definitely seems to play a part for many successful entrepreneurs but what is behind that luck?

In this short talk, I identify 7 habits of lucky entrepreneurs and challenge us all to make time to fit them into the way we live our lives.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this talk. Please let me know what habits you’d add to my 7 (I had another three that I would have included if I had had more time).

I’d also appreciate if you would consider sharing this presentation if you find it helpful!

The post How to Be a Lucky Entrepreneur: Are You Developing These 7 Habits? appeared first on ProBlogger.

Create an Opt-In Incentive to Increase Your Email Subscriber Numbers

Posted: 07 Dec 2015 12:45 AM PST

If you were listening to the previous ProBlogger podcast episode about my top tips for building your email subscriber list, you would have heard me talking about creating an opt-in as an incentive for people to sign up.

In this next instalment of the #TodayNotSomeday podcast, I’m going to talk you through exactly how to do that!

Creating an opt-in has the potential to significantly increase your subscriber numbers by offering something truly valuable in exchange for the reader’s email address. They are sometimes called lead magnets, and you’ll have seen them on plenty of other blogs and sites you visit.

Even though creating an opt-in and working on building your email list is one of the most important things you can do as a blogger, I know there are plenty of you who put it off to worry about another time. I know this, because I’ve done it myself! We’ve only recently started offering something similar on Digital Photography School despite being aware it is something I should have done much sooner.

You’ll also notice I don’t have a lead magnet or opt-in here on the ProBlogger blog, but you’ll hopefully see us get this task off our “someday” list in the new year.

Today’s challenge isn’t just for those of you without a lead magnet – if you’ve already got one on offer, you might want to consider upgrading or determining if it’s time to create another? Something more up-to-date, something that will appeal to a different audience, something specific to one of your site categories, or something that could boost your current list?

In today’s episode I also discuss why you should create an opt-in, and the potential it has to grow your blog. We go over how to deliver your opt-in, what format it could take, and how you can figure out something that incentivises your readers to sign up to your list and stay engaged. There is also the option of considering a longer-term strategy or offering as opposed to a one-off incentive, and I give a few ideas here. I also go through the purpose it needs to serve, how you can create your offering, tools and services I’ve used, and that all-important aspect: getting the signup!

So good luck with today’s challenge of creating an opt-in for your email list. What opt-in will you be creating? What will it be about, and how will you deliver it? Be sure to use the hashtag #TodayNotSomeday when you share your efforts to social media so we can see how you’re all doing.

5 Visual Content Tools to Boost Engagement // Social Media Examiner

If you’re on a tight budget (or let’s be honest: no budget) for graphics, these tools should help you up your visual content game. I love the Instagram collage idea.

Instagram Now Testing Support for Account Switching, No Logout Required // TechCrunch

Oh wouldn’t this be a boon for those of you who manage multiple accounts! Let’s cross our fingers that the choice proves popular in the beta testing and they keep it.

LinkedIn’s New Facebook-like App Arrives on iOS and Android // Mashable Australia

A much easier (and more eye-pleasing!) way to see who is sharing what on LinkedIn. I can imagine it would promote more engagement, which I’m all for. I have to admit, I don’t do much with my LinkedIn but I may be swayed by this!

How to Figure Out What Keywords Your Potential Customers are Using // Hubspot

And what your potential readers are searching for! This is a super-detailed piece – Bridget has taken a step back and started at SEO right from the start before launching into what tools you can use so you can be armed with all the knowledge to create a super campaign or tailored blog content.

How to Become a Virtual Assistant // Amy Lynn Andrews

I know plenty of us have “virtual assistant” on our Christmas lists, but for those of you who would like to be one (can be a great supplement to your blog income), Amy has recently updated her guide. Check it out!

Google Turns Image Search Into Pinterest with New Collections Feature // TechCrunch

It’s only for mobile (and those of you in the US), and it looks as though it’s a part of the sort-of-revamped Google+, but now when you find an image you want to keep for later in Google search, you can organise your own personal collections. Search results are filterable and it appears quite intuitive.

“Don’t Pursue Something That Someone Said You Should Want”: Derek Sivers at WDS // Chris Gillebeau

I loved attending the World Domination Summit in Portland this year, and Chris Gillebeau, master of it all, has started releasing videos from the amazing speakers across the weekend. This video is from one of my favourite speakers – Derek Sivers – who delivered kick-ass, no-bullshit business advice. I took SO MUCH away from his philosophy. Watch it, you won’t be sorry!

Persona Research in Under 5 Minutes // Moz

You know how much we love a reader profile around these parts. Who are you speaking to? What kind of people make up your core audience? More importantly – where are they hanging out? I love this script for nailing all this info in under 5 minutes.

8 Creative Ways to Add Christmas Spirit to Your Social Media // Jeff Bullas

I just spent 10 minutes trying to find the best christmas photo for my Facebook profile. It’s that time of year!

From YouTube to Persicope: The Evolution of Web Video [Infographic] // AdWeek

Crazy to see how far it’s come (and how much I suck at all of them). I wonder where web video (and indeed, how audiences consume it) is headed next. Any ideas?

Have you Christmasified your social media yet?!

The post Reading Roundup: What’s New in Blogging Lately? appeared first on ProBlogger.

Top Tips to Boost Your Email List Subscribers Today

Posted: 04 Dec 2015 12:45 AM PST

Welcome to the second episode of the #TodayNotSomeday podcast series, where today’s challenge is one I would prioritise above all others: getting people to subscribe to your email list.

I started using email as a way to communicate with my readers back in 2007 when I started Digital Photography School and my dad, an aspiring photographer, didn’t use RSS (which was the popular way of getting your content out to readers at the time). I realised he would be better off having posts sent to his email address, so I set that up and kept it on the site as a secondary subscription option for readers. Pretty soon the email list overtook our RSS subscriber numbers – today we have close to 900,000 subscribers.

But why worry about email? Why is it more important to grow than say, the number of people following you across your social media channels?

Mostly because it’s familiar, and used regularly by most. Nothing has come close to killing off email, and you don’t have to worry about algorithms, news feeds, and the fleeting nature of social media. It’s an incredibly successful traffic-driver, exceptional for selling (either affiliate sales or your own products), it’s good for building community, and it helps build your brand.

In today’s episode of the #TodayNotSomeday series on the ProBlogger podcast, I want to share what I think the three keys are to a successful email list so you can finally get going on building that thriving email subscriber community you’ve always wanted!

You’ll also find today’s challenge (don’t forget to use the hashtag across social media so we can support and keep each other accountable!), and also some of the email providers I recommend (including a couple of freebies), and tips on how to optimise your email list if you’ve already got one set up.

There are plenty of different ways to entice people to sign up, and you will find each of them will convert differently. This all depends on what calls to action you use, where you use them, and how you use them.

There are diverse opinions on this, but a few things I’ve tested really have significantly improved my signup levels, and I discuss all of those in today’s episode. I’ll cover everything from colours, benefits, incentives, and where we’ve had the most success putting our sign-up box and calls to action.

You can find today’s show notes here, and I look forward to seeing what you all share with #TodayNotSomeday!

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