Time to Blog!
I have had several blog ideas for some weeks now, and I decided to sit down today to put at least one idea to use.
I am on a mailing list for updates and info from Michele Scism (see below).
Are you joining us for the final Ultimate Blog Challenge in July? Get signed up now, totally free, at www.UltimateBlogChallenge.com
I looked at the email, and “flagged” it for later attention. Honestly, I am not certain I have the time to participate in this challenge, but I am willing to schedule a block of time to get it done. She did indicate that participants can work ahead, but a blog needs to be posted every day from July 1 through July 31. Here are the rules participants need to follow:
* To complete the challenge, you need to post once for every day of the challenge month. This can mean you post twice one day and not at all the next, or you may choose to write in batches and schedule posts. Choose your own strategy, but you’ve got to have 30 or 31 posts by the end of the month (31 in January, July, and October; 30 in April). I can tell you from experience that posting throughout the month will get you a lot more traffic.
* Each post must have text (so don’t just grab a video–you have to add your own pithy thoughts).
* No adult blogs, please, keep it PG.
* After you post, tweet your post and tag it with #blogboost so we can all find it, read it, comment on it, and re-tweet it! Please share it on the Facebook group, too.
* As often as possible, please go to the #blogboost page and the Facebook group and take time to read and comment on the posts of others who are participating in the challenge.
* Have FUN!
Getting myself prepared
So now that I have committed, I decided to write this post today as a pre-challenge set up. Originally I thought we would be out of town for a week or so during July but our plans changed and I no longer have a legitimate excuse!
I have some preconceived ideas for subjects, and we’ll be spending a few days with two of our grandchildren between July 8 and July 15, and I’m certain I’ll have lots of ideas to draw from just from those dates.
In any case, I’m really looking forward to spending time with our grandkids. They live in Florida, we live in Pennsylvania, and there is usually a week in July when they get to travel to spend time with the Pennsylvania grandparents. We will share the time with my son’s dad and his lovely wife; lucky for us we live in the same town and get along well. (Divorce can sometimes provide perks you never expect, but you do need to make an effort.)
A Word From My "Sponsors" aka A Few of My Favorites
Before I end today’s post there are a few web sites and people to whom I want to give a “shout out”.
For those SAHMs (and Dads) out there, I came across a really fun blog and accompanying website that should provide cool in-house activities for those rainy summer days, or just plain old “I’m bored, Mom; there’s nothing to do” days. You can read all about them here; it’s a great post written by Louise Julig and found on the SocialMedia Examiner site. (By the way, if you do any social media marketing, do please check them out!
Alison Prince and Pick Your Plum
Alison Prince and two of her SAHM friends got together to devise crafts and fun things for kids to do. They shared what they did with other SAHMs via their blog How Does She. Once people found their instructions, Alison and her friends were inundated with requests for the materials, and so www.PickYourPlum was born! It’s a super online store!
New deals are posted each morning and are available until they sell out. You can sign up for an account, and even receive notifications of upcoming items for sale. It’s a sweet site! I highly encourage everyone reading this blog (especially SAHMs, dads and grandparents) to learn more about Alison, the blog and Pick Your Plum. You can connect with them via Facebook , LinkedIn and Pinterest.
Social Media Examiner
Here’s another site I love, and mentioned above: www.socialmediaexaminer.com. It’s a fun way to obtain all sorts of interesting and useful information about the Social Media Jungle, a very good way to describe how it feels sometimes when you are in the midst of promoting your business.
Authors/Books/Blogs
If you are looking for some great business and self-development books to help you, I’ve listed a few of my favorite authors (their books can be found on Amazon.com and via Kindle): Monte Taylor, Eric Worre, Michael Oliver, John Maxwell, Brian Tracy, Brian Klemmer, Ron Marks, Ivan Misner, Napoleon Hill, Linda Leigh Francis, Michael S. Clouse, Jack Canfield, Dale Carnegie, Deepak Chopra, Brent Riggs, Michael Dlouhy, and Wayne Dyer just to name a few.
You cannot go wrong reading any of these authors or following them online, and you can often follow their blogs as well as connect with them on Facebook and LinkedIn.
There is never an excuse for being uninformed when you are an Independent Business Owner. There is so much valuable material available, and much of it is free. No knowing is NOT an excuse.
Social Media
Everyone is familiar with Facebook, but Facebook is most definitely not the only game in town. I always recommend LinkedIn. I have made some amazing connections, and the best way to do that is to join a few groups as soon as you can. Just visit your groups, post your value-filled comments, and enjoy. LinkedIn is not as social on the surface, and less casual by far than Facebook. You want to remember that LinkedIn is a business related social media site. Conduct yourself accordingly.
I mentioned Facebook, but neglected to mention the Facebook Fan Page, which is easy to set up and can be a source for promoting your business.
If you are a Google user, you can have your Google+ circles and hangouts. I happen to also be partial to Pinterest (I have a personal Board and a Business Board) and I am learning about how Instagram can help your business.
Instagram is kind of its own animal in that it is more social than business, but is used to promote your brand. If you want followers, be careful to not spam your followers with links! One thing about Instagram, tie your user name in with your branded names on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. It will facilitate your being found. This is one area that I know requires my personal attention; branding is all important in social media.
Last but not least is Twitter. I have a Twitter account (@WorkxAtHome), but I don't tweet that often. I do use Buffer to schedule posts. (Posting to social media is a topic for another day).
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