ProBlogger: 14 Bloggers Share Their Daily Blogging Routine

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14 Bloggers Share Their Daily Blogging Routine Posted: 25 Apr 2013 08:43 AM PDT Yesterday I shared some tips for busy bloggers on how to find time to blog based upon a lot of questions I’ve had of late on that topic. As part of that post I was intending on describing my own blogging routine – but on the spur of the moment decided to email a group of blogging friends to ask them to describe how they go about blogging. Each have graciously allowed me to share their responses. I hope you find them as fascinating as I do. My Question to these bloggers was: Can you give us a quick snapshot of your blogging schedule – when do you do it? Do you have a routine or is it more spontaneous? Tsh Oxenreider from Simple Mom I have a pretty set routine, simply because it is my job (that I also happen to love)—but that doesn’t mean I don’t also have lots of random things I need to do here and there, which I squeeze in with I can with three little kids. I typically write in the morning, since that’s my brain’s best time, and then I’ll fill in the gaps with tasks that don’t take as much brain power for me. Every day is different, to be honest, but here’s a typical day for me: 6 am—Wake up, personal time, coffee, writing time (if my toddler doesn't wake up). 7:30-9:00 am—Breakfast with the family, get the kids ready for the day and out to school. 9:00 am-1:00 pm—Work, work, work in my office at home while our babysitter is out in the rest of the house with the boys (my oldest is in school). 1:00 pm—My second goes to preschool and my youngest naps, so I either wrap up work or catch up on household stuff. 3:30 pm—Pick up kids from school, help with homework, start dinner, clean, and other typical mom stuff. 5:30 pm-8:30 pm—Dinner, baths, storytime, family time, bed. 8:30 pm-10:00 pm—Any combination of work catch-up (although I don't write, I do more brainless stuff, like photo editing, email processing, etc.), but I prefer to do things like watch a movie or read a book. Chris Garrett I used to have a routine, now I write when I have something to say, and when I find time (which never seems to happen recently). In the past I had a proper schedule because at one point I was writing for a dozen blogs and people depended on me to deliver (contractually and out of a feeling of obligation). Like many bloggers, I used an editorial calendar, and such. This makes me feel I should get back to that! Christina Butcher from Hair Romance My most productive time is the morning so I get up early and head straight to the computer to write. I just work on blog posts for 1-2 hours. I ban myself from checking emails or social media as it’s too distracting. I work to an editorial calendar which helps me plan my content, but it’s still flexible so I can add stories at the last minute. I have a waterproof notepad in the shower as I always get blogging ideas while I’m washing my hair! Leo Babauta from ZenHabits I write every morning, after I meditate upon waking. But just twice a week is for my actual blog (as opposed to writing for books/courses). So about an hour, twice a week, first thing in the morning. Sarah Wilson I tend to bang out some ideas and clip links as I go and keep about 20 “on the boil” posts in my drafts folder which I add to, patchwork, fiddle with over time. Each Monday I try to devote to getting my blogs sorted for the week (I post Tuesday – Friday…ish). I’ll write some afresh, or I pull one that inspires me from my drafts and tidy it up. My gorgeous assistant Jo will often add any links, caption pictures, do some extra research and run an extra eye over things. Invariably I get up on the morning of the post and tinker with it a little…often a bit of distance allows me to bring even more to it. Neil Patel from Quick Sprout I tend to schedule my blog posts, which means I blog in advance. The 2 main days I find myself writing each week is Sunday and Wednesday. Typically I blog when I am at home or on the airplane. As for my routine, I typically think of ideas to write on and then I just start writing. Nicole Avery from Planning with Kids I have a content plan spanning most of the year. Most of the time, I will write my posts on the weekend. This is when the kids have their dad home to look after them and I can work uninterrupted or at least that is the theory! As I have a plan for what I am writing, I can look at the topics earlier in the week. This lets ideas and often large chunks of the post, start formulating in my head, when I am doing other things like running. So when I actually sit down to do the task of writing the posts, it is much easier and quicker. I will schedule my posts in advance, so regardless of what happens in the week amongst family life, my posting schedule stays consistent. If I have extra time and have something I want to say, I will write and post spontaneously, but this would occur only a very small amount of the time. Tina Roth – Swiss Miss I blog in the mornings, mostly. I have multiple tabs that automatically open to my favorite online stores, specifically to their “new arrivals” pages to get an idea for new products. I am also so lucky to have loyal readers that send along wonderful things to my submissions email account! Jonathan Fields from Good Life Project For Good Life Project, we air a new show every Wednesday and often batch shoot 4 episodes in one-day. For my personal blog, I use a very disciplined methodology I call “When I’ve got something to say, I write.” lol. Chris Brogan I blog a lot more spontaneously than not. I often have a core question that the idea of the post bounces against, but the actual “typing it into WordPress” happens quite randomly. For instance, I decided to write a post about Google+ the other day, but I framed it against the “if I’m a business person looking to get my feet wet, here’s a recipe for starting.” That’s the idea (google+) against the core question (how would I get started). I do that. Crystal Paine from Money Saving Mom I try to get up at 5 a.m. every day and get in two hours of blogging and computer work before my kids get up (yes, they are late risers!). I then try to get in a few more hours in the afternoon, as well as a few hours on Saturday. I’ve found that I’m much more productive when I compartmentalise my blogging time and try to leave my laptop and phone in my office as much as is possible so that checking emails and social media is something that I do during blogging hours — instead of during family time or at the dinner table. Rand Fishkin from SEOMoz I blog almost exclusively very late at night on weekdays (between 10pm-2am) and on the weekends. My work schedule is such that these days, that’s the only time I have to quietly reflect, write, build graphics, etc. Trey Ratcliff from Stuck in Customs My daily blog post the sweet albatross around my neck. I do it every day before 5 PM in New Zealand so that it appears around midnight in the US, which is still the biggest target market for English-language blogs. I need to produce 365 unique pieces of photography art per year, so the production of the art actually takes much longer than the actual blog post. Maybe this is why I don’t mind the blog post. The blog post takes 5% of the time of the creation of the art. I write a short description of the photo and talk a bit about the art and the science behind it. Chris Guillebeau I have only two (main) posts a week, but they are rigidly scheduled and I’ve never missed one in five years of blogging. The streak helps to produce built-in accountability. As for the actual writing, that tends to happen more spontaneously. I have a general quota of 1,000 words a day, but that can include a variety of writing. If I’m working on a book manuscript or traveling overseas, sometimes I create the blog posts in advance. Stay Tuned for More Tomorrow I’ve got a followup post to this where I ask these 14 bloggers for their key tips for finding time to blog. Also – don’t forget to check out our eBook on the topic: BlogWise: Discover the Secrets of Productive Bloggers. Originally at: Blog Tips at ProBlogger 14 Bloggers Share Their Daily Blogging Routine

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Shoemoney - Skills To Pay The Bills

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New FTC Disclosure Guidelines For Social and Digital Advertisers Posted: 25 Apr 2013 05:16 AM PDT Last month, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) finally gave the digital advertising world what it's been waiting for and badly needed for years: "Dot-com Disclosures: How to Make Effective Disclosures in Digital Advertising," to replace the sorely outdated guidelines from 2000. The revised guidelines make clear that FTC truth-in-advertising principles apply to any medium, platform or device – no matter how new or small – and attempt to offer practical advice for complying with FTC disclosure requirements in online, social media and mobile advertising. Two bedrock FTC advertising axioms underlay the new guidelines: 1) disclosure is required where necessary to prevent an ad from being deceptive or unfair; and 2) where disclosure is necessary, it must be "clear and conspicuous." The updated guidance makes abundantly "clear and conspicuous" that these requirements apply without exception to any device. If a disclosure is required to make an ad on the smallest tablet or smartphone non-misleading, it must be made and has to be easy to see and understand. If space constraints make that impossible and the claim can't be modified to moot the need for disclosure, then the ad shouldn't run on the device. What will make a disclosure "clear and conspicuous" in a digital ad? The FTC's criteria are: Placement and prominence of the disclosure and how close it is to the related claim Whether the disclosure is unavoidable Whether other parts of the ad distract from the disclosure Whether the disclosure needs to be repeated to ensure it's seen Whether the language is understandable The disclosure must be as close as possible to the relevant claim. Key information (i.e., price, health, safety) must always appear with the claim and hyperlinks are disfavored. If hyperlinks are necessary for space reasons, they can be used so long as they satisfy the tenets of "clear and conspicuous," namely: The link is obvious and placed as close as possible to the relevant information It's labeled to convey the nature and significance of the linked information ("see details" is not okay) It takes consumers directly to the disclosure on the click-through page The disclosure on the click-through page itself is noticeable and understandable The revamped guide also strongly discourages scrolling to find a disclosure, especially horizontal scrolling on smaller screens which consumers rarely do (any need to scroll horizontally can be solved by having a mobile-optimized site). When scrolling can't be avoided, effective text or visual cues need to lead consumers to the disclosure. Pop-ups are another FTC disclosure non-favorite since they can be easily blocked and are often ignored. Where space constraints are acute, such as in tweets, the revised guidance encourages repetition of disclosures (such as republishing in "re-tweets") and allows abbreviated disclosures as long as consumers understand them. For example, "Ad" should be adequate to indicate a tweet is sponsored, but not necessarily "#spon." Since mobile and social media ads are still so new, the FTC expects advertisers to monitor the effectiveness of disclosure techniques, keeping what works and improving what doesn't. Over time, FTC "test cases" will further illuminate the meaning of "clear and conspicuous" in digital advertising. In the meantime, it behooves digital advertisers to study the whole 53-page document (including its 22 mock ads), located at www.ftc.gov. Looking for an SEO service that won’t get you banned?

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