New Client Shoutout: I'm a Tech Writer for MTV
mtv writer
During the past couple of weeks I have had an enjoyable time working with my new client, MTV. I write articles for them that focuses on tech from and for women. I can be a tech writer for you, too. Here are some clips from my first articles:
11 Reasons Polaroid Is Making a Comeback
When we heard that Polaroid is coming out with a digital camera that prints photos, we have to admit, we got a little giddy. Any kid born in the ’80s or ’90s kinda has a soft spot for Polaroid, and is awaiting its domination of photography once again. Here are 11 reasons why we think the company is primed for another moment in the sun with its new camera, the SNAP...
21 Tools For Classy Ladies Who Like To Code
Even though women make up around half of the workforce, they only occupy a little less than 25 percent of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) jobs. This statistic doesn’t mean that the guys are better at STEM jobs, it just means that more ladies need the skills to break up this huge sausage fest… And coding is a great way to get started...
These Sexy Emojis Have A Surprisingly Wonderful Purpose
Have you ever tried to flirt with a guy through a text, only to realize that the standard emojis are, well, lame. Kinda hard to get in the mood with an emoji of an eggplant. There’s got to be a better way, right?
That’s exactly what Amy Galland thought. “When flirting with a guy on my phone,” Galland told MTV News, “I was so disappointed that the options for ‘flirty’ emojis were not empowering to women that I drew on my background in art history and women’s studies and created an app with images that are sexy and empowering for people of different races, sizes, ages and sexual orientations...”
5 Reasons Why Your Best Employees Might Leave Your Business
So you’ve finally hired some other writers to take some of the client load off your shoulders. Everything is going great, at least you think it is…
So you’ve finally hired some other writers to take some of the client load off your shoulders. Everything is going great, at least you think it is…
Quitting a job is a big decision for any employee to make. It’s definitely one that none of them takes lightly. All employees have good and bad days, but when a member of your team begins seeing more and more of the latter, it could push them to leave your business behind. In the working world, improving staff retention is just as important, if not more so than attracting new talent or clients. With that in mind, here are five reasons why great employees might leave your business.
1. Inadequate Tools
All jobs require certain tools. Sometimes, these are as simple as a pen and paper, but in many circumstances, a big tool that is missing is guidance on how to complete work. As talented as your staff may be, they’re going to struggle to do their jobs properly if these essentials aren’t provided, which is sure to cause frustration. Whatever it is that your staff need for their jobs, make sure that that give it to them.
2. Unreasonably High Workload
While most entrepreneurs bring on staff to lighten their own workload, you shouldn’t pile theirs high. If you haven’t hired enough people to take on client work, you should try outsourcing some work. The managed IT services, which you can find at https://www.xbase.com/, for example, would free your IT staff from network support. We can only take so much before completely burning out, so avoid pushing your team to that limit.
3. Cluttered Work Environment
The environment in which we work is incredibly important if you have staff that work on-site with you. As well as having an effect on our moods, it plays a big part in creativity and productivity. If you give your staff a dirty and cluttered space to work, then it will begin to cause problems. Because of this, you should clear out any clutter the business no longer needs and hire a maid service to keep the space clean and tidy.
4. Outdated Staff Policies
Staff policies aren’t put in place for no reason. However, that doesn’t mean that the purpose of certain rules is a good one. While banning staff from using their phones might seem an effective way to keep them productive, it could cause more distractions. After all, most will want to check their phones even more. Regularly updating staff policies will help you keep up with the times.
5. Poor Compensation
Everyone deserves to be paid a fair salary or wage for the work they do. If your staff discover that they are being compensated less than the average, it will make them feel unappreciated. Because of this, you should always try to meet or exceed this figure. When you don’t have the funds to do this, there are other ways to provide compensation. Take a look at the ideas at https://hiring.workopolis.com
Hopefully, with the advice above, you can improve staff retention in your business.
Social Media Tip: How to Make Perfect Pinterest Inforgraphics
social media tips for pinterest
Recently, I posted an article called 10 Ways to Ace Marketing on Pinterest. A few days ago, Venngage sent me an infographic to share with my readers that goes well with that article. Here is how to create amazing Pinterest infographics with 6 easy formulas. Enjoy!
The Six Circles of Google Hell and How to Pull Your Site from the Fiery Depths
how to get better search engine results
Ah, hell is not reserved for the afterlife if you are a site owner that's displeased Google. Hell lies right in your website analytics. One day you're swimming along with plenty of site visitors pouring in from Google searches and the next day poof they're gone. I've seen this happen time and time again to businesses, especially after the Panda algorithm change. They lose a major amount of traffic and lose their sales.
Google doesn't send everyone to the deepest circle of hell, though. There are six circles reserved for people who displease the Google bots. The seven circles of Google hell are:
Google never liked you. Your site has never had great traffic from and you can't figure out why.
Your traffic is slowed to a trickle over time.
There is a sudden drop in traffic
Google stops all your traffic.
Your site isn't even being indexed anymore.
You've lost your AdSense account.
Don't lose hope if any of these Google penalties have happened to you. There are several things you can do to get back in Google's good graces.
how to get better page rank on google
Check Your Links
Some of the latest Google algorithm changes deal with linking. Google hates these types of links:
Broken links
Spam links in forums and comment sections
Redirects
An abundance of sponsored (paid) links
Sweeping your site clean of these linking offenses can really make a difference in your Google ranking. No need to go it alone. There are many websites and plugins that can make the task easier. I use the Broken Link Checker plugin for broken and redirecting links and it works great.
how to improve page rank
Stop Your Stuffing
Panda really put the smack down on sites that keyword stuff and yet I still see people doing it religiously. They didn't get the memo, so I'm leaving one here:
DON'T USE A KEYWORD MORE THAN TWO OR THREE TIMES IN ONE ARTICLE.
Better yet, just write the darn article and don't think about how many times you use a keyword. To get Google to love you again you will also need to go back and keyword de-louse old articles.
Beef Up
Once upon a time you could throw anything up on a site and it would get traffic. Not today, my friend. Your content needs to be chock full of useful information and interesting visuals. There has been a lot of research that points out that the longer your content is the better Google likes it. Of course, your readers will sometimes prefer shorter content because, well, no nobody has time to slog through a 2,000 word article. Just be sure to keep your article over 200 words because anything less is usually deemed as "thin" by Google bots.
If your traffic has slowed to a trickle over time, that usually means you need to beef up your content posting and keep it steady. It's simple. Your content slows down, you traffic slows down.
Cut Out the Stealing
If your site isn't even being searched by Google bots anymore or you've lost your AdSense account, you may have been pinged for plagiarism. Remove all of the content you got from somewhere else and apply to have your site re-indexed.
Start off with these tactics and I assure you that your site will start getting more traffic again. It will be slow, but have patience. This Google penalties hell is escapable.
Photos edited from these Creative Commons Images: Westboro Baptist Church Protest and Counterprotest via photopin(license)
Social Media Marketing Tips: 10 Ways to Ace Marketing on Pinterest
Marketing on Pinterest
Pinterest is often an overlooked social media site, but there's one big reason to implement a Pinterest social media marketing plan for your web content.
Money!
Hello Society found that purchases originating with Pinterest average around $168.83 per checkout. That's almost double the results from Facebook and Twitter!
Are you convinced, yet? If so, here are 10 ways to kill marketing on Pinterest.
Use the right image size. Posts that get the most attention use photos that are 735 x 1,102 pixels. Use a minimum width of no less than 600 pixels to get the best look.
Get the aspect ratio right. According to Pinterest, use aspect ratios of 2:3 to1:3.5.
Be creative with your product shots. Everyone has photos with white backgrounds. Get creative and place your product in fun places, then take the shot. For example, take a few photos of people enjoying your product.
Don't pin every single photo from your site. People will get bored. Only pin amazing images.
Don't pin all at once. Don't go pin crazy and pin a bunch of things all at once or your followers will be bombarded with a sea of images...and then they will unfollow your boards.
Use bright colors. Bright colors catch people's attention.
Don't just market. Don't just pin your products and call it a day. Create boards that will interest your target audience and incorporate your products. For example, I created this board for Goody hair products. Notice that the board is about creating hair styles, which is something their customers are interested in. I only pinned one of their products in the board to make it seem less commercial and more helpful.
Interact! Make sure that you take the time to reply to comments made on your pins. People like following companies that offer a personal touch.
Don't show everything. When pinning, make sure not to show everything. Make sure that people will click over to your site because they are curious.
Boost who sees your pins. Give Promoted Pins a try.
pinterest ads
Your Independent Shop Needs Web Access
Independent boutiques are coming back in force to prove big brands wrong. You can go far even if you’re not a chain. The Bishop district in Dallas, Texas, is renowned for being the home of over 60 independent boutiques, from restaurants to fashion shops. If there’s one thing the area demonstrates with success is that you don’t need to be big to get noticed. However, it doesn’t mean that your independent and unique shop will become a success overnight. Where big brands can rely on their established reputation to push new products and services, small entrepreneurs need to be creative to attract the attention of their audience group. Being visible and accessible to all is not just a strategic goal; it’s the very foundation of your growth. Of course, you might be able to rely on a target PR event such as a contest or sponsoring activities to get your brand name out. But ultimately nothing beats the ease and comfort of web access to appeal to your customers and spread the word about your offers.
independent boutique
Nobody pays cash anymore
The main difficulty that shoppers face when they visit an independent boutique is at the till. Nowadays, at an age where most people pay either with a plastic card or by using an app of their smartphones, the idea of having to pay cash can seem preposterous. However, too many small shops fail to meet the requirements of secured card and smartphone payment transactions – and have to turn away countless customers every day as a result. While it might be too expensive to set up a dedicated payment station that does all the digital extravaganza you can expect from big brands, you should consider choosing a mobile POS system which offers a cost-effective solution to the card payment dilemma. Additionally, it’s also a great add-on if you deliver services or products directly to your customers’ addresses. You can take payments on the go and access all data through your web-based software.
Your blog is your shop diary
Everyone has a blog. Why do you need one? Precisely because everyone else has one. As an independent shop owner, you can utilize your blog presence as an online journal to introduce your boutique news, offers, and ambitions. Additionally, your blog also serves as a platform to introduce your vision and personality to your community, making it easier for your audience to notice your brand. But with a million different ways of creating a blog, it can be tricky to figure out what you need. As a rule of the thumb, you want to display accessibility and professionalism at the same time. Your choice in layout, imagery and page design will affect your boutique reputation as much as your choice of words.
Start sharing your cool products online
Can you go big without a social media presence?
It’s a silly question in 2019. But, as you asked, the answer is NO. You need to develop your social media presence to reach out to your audience and showcase your best products. Fashion, restaurants and homeware shops share their worlds on platforms such as Instagram. You can also use Pinterest boards to create a mood around the launch of new items, for instance. Finally, combining different platforms helps you to connect with your customers, wherever and whoever they are. After all, social media versatility encourages customer acquisition.
Shine for your community
Do you have a special skill that is related to your independent boutique? Let’s say that you’ve got your hairdressing salon. Why not help customers to style their hair with a few Youtube tutorials? If you own a fashion boutique, you could help your customers to find the best wardrobe capsule for their lifestyle. Independent restaurant owners can give a handful of easy recipes or even show how the menu favorites are prepared in the kitchen. You’d be surprised to know that most independent brands tend to get discovered as the result of an online video.
Encourage your customers to share the experience
Last, but not least, once you’ve developed your online presence } and especially your social media platforms – you can leave it to your customers to shout out about the brand on your behalf. How so? By giving them something to talk about. Fashion boutiques, for instance, can create a cozy dressing room atmosphere in which customers can relax and share their selfies. Do you run an independent coffee shop? Why not use themed toppings, such as a Hello Kitty cocoa shape on cappuccino drinks or Disney characters on hot chocolates? One rule to remember: Let your customers know about your #hashtag for their selfies.
Visibility is crucial for independent boutiques. Aside from selecting the best location and decor for your business, you also need to make the most of the web facilities. From web-based payment solutions to creative selfie strategies, online access lets small brands reach out to new and existing customers.
Find customers
Once your site is up, it’s time to find customers. Adfully.com is a company that can help. They help customers see your ads on social media and online and then make their way to your website.
Make Your Site Content Better Instantly
Why You Need to Delegate Content Creation
There is one, surefire way to boost the quality of your site's content, enabling you to draw in more visitors and sale more product. Delegate it.
Yup, that's right, I'm telling you to let someone else handle your content creation.
Why Delegate Content Production?
There are two reasons why you should hand the reigns of content production over to someone else. One, you don't have time to run a business and:
Keep up with SEO trends
Research topics that will interest your customers
Write articles and blog posts
Search for visual content to go with the posts
Upload the posts to your site
Promote the posts
Two, you probably don't have the skills to write the post in the first place. Don't take that as an insult. Most people don't have the skills to write a great article that is engaging and insightful while avoiding spelling and grammar errors on top of adding cutting edge SEO techniques. That takes years of learning and practice to achieve.
[bctt tweet="A surefire way to boost the quality of your site's #content, drawing in more visitors and selling more product."]
Your Content Options
How to Delegate Content Creation
Okay, so you're convinced you need to delegate your content creation to someone else, but who? There are several options:
Hire an on-staff content writer. This can be really expensive since the writer will be an employee and require a certain number of hours per week of paid work time, a computer, printer, internet service, desk, etc. The upside is you will have someone creating content everyday for your site. The more you post fresh content the more search engines love you.
Hire a freelance writer, like me. Freelance writers aren't employees, so you don't need to buy us computers, desk and the like. You simply decide how often you want new posts to appear on your site and pay the freelance writer to do it. Typically, you pay us per post, though some writers like to be paid per word or per hour. To get a really good freelancer you need to pay good rates, but we're much more affordable than staff writers.
Sign up for a content syndication service. These sites provide you with fantastic content that has already been published on big sites. The benefit of this is that you get access to amazing writers who are creating up-to-the-minute news articles and stories.
There you go. Three ways to delegate to increase the quality of your content and save you time.
Are you ready to make your site awesome? Contact me and let's talk!
Interview by Global Media & Brochure Printing Company
Brochure Printing Robot
I was recently interviewed by Global Media & Brochure Printing Company for their website. If you would like to know some marketing secrets that I give my clients, head on over and check out the interview.
While you're clicking around, check out their video: "Brochure Printing Company Web Offset Printing LA, NY, Hawaii, Singapore and Qatar." It's a pretty fascinating insight into how those marketing brochures that we read from other companies, and that we design for our own business, is made.
They have one of the largest offset printing facilities in Asia and the world. This place is MASSIVE. They have all kinds of presses for different jobs. My favorite part is that they have a robotic arm as their packer (yep, that's it on the left). Can't get any cooler than that.
I didn't know it took all of that equipment to print brochures. Just goes to show, you learn something new every day.
Need someone to write your brochure? Don't just hire someone, hire me. I have almost two decades of marketing writing experience. Contact me!
Infographic: Social Media Hashtags Cheat Sheet
Social Media Hashtag Cheat Sheet
Need people to sit up and pay attention to your social media posts? Add hashtags. Hashtags increase viability and engagement. Give a few of these a try and feel free to share this infographic.
Embed this infographic on your site: <iframe width="737" height="2406" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="overflow-y:hidden;" src="http://www.easel.ly/index/embedFrame/easel/2225528"></iframe>
Infographic: How to Use Twitter for Recruiting
Using social media for recruiting
I've worked for several recruiting companies, writing copy for their bait emails. Twitter was one of the sites I used to research potential recruits. Do you use Twitter for recruiting? Maybe you should. Here are some tips for finding the best new employees using one of the world's biggest social media sites via my friends over at AkkenCloud.
Click To Enlarge
Via AkkenCloud
Elance is Closing Its Doors
Elance is closing
It looks like Elance is closing its doors and evolving into something else.
I know many of my readers use Elance as a way to find freelancers or as a way to find freelance work, so I thought I'd share this email I just received:
Hi Alina,
I’m writing to share that we will soon wind down the Elance platform and invite you to join the community on Upwork. As we shared earlier this year, the decision to focus on a single platform was difficult but ultimately proved to be the best way to give freelancers access to the greatest jobs, and clients access to the greatest talent.
Elance companies are incredibly important to us and we are committed to helping you succeed on Upwork. We will send you an invitation that allows you to copy over your Elance profile including work history, reputation and any team member accounts to Upwork. Also, when you work on Upwork with clients you already worked with on Elance, we’ll honor the same fee you paid before.
You will receive your invitation to join Upwork within the next 1-2 months. In the meantime, please attend a webinar with information on how agencies work on Upwork and how we can help you make a smooth transition. You can also refer to this overview to learn more.
Important dates for Elance companies:
In early August, new customers will no longer be able to register for Elance.Starting in September, we’ll begin to limit the ability to post new jobs on Elance.Through early 2016, you can continue your current projects on Elance. However, we encourage you to begin all new contracts on Upwork and move existing contracts to Upwork when possible.Through mid-2016, you will still be able to access your messages, contacts, and files on Elance.
Upwork has already proven to be a rewarding marketplace for companies, with more contracts resulting in higher earnings than on Elance. We’re also working to deliver innovations to boost your productivity: mobile apps are now available for iOS and Android and a new messaging tool enables real-time collaboration.
Thank you for your business on Elance. We appreciate your patience during this transition and look forward to welcoming you to the Upwork community. You can read more about this announcement on our blog.
Best regards, Stephane Kasriel CEO, Upwork
[bctt tweet="It looks like Elance is closing its doors and evolving into something else. "]
Will be giving Upwork a try?
Pros and Cons of Hiring a Ghostwriter
Pros and Cons of Hiring a Ghostwriter Infographic
Should you have someone ghostwrite content for your site? Here are some pros and cons from my point-of-view as a freelance writer.
Pros of Hiring a Ghostwriter
You can spend your time doing something else for your business
Your blog's content will always be professional and error-free
A ghostwriter can come up with topics or angles you may not think of
Cons of Hiring a Ghostwriter
You must spend time searching for the perfect ghostwriter
You must take the time to explain to the ghostwriter what you want
You may select a ghostwriter with poor writing skills
Should I Get the Ghostwriter to Write a Test Paper?
Many people think that they should test a writer by having them write a sample. A lot of professional ghostwriters (including myself) don’t do test papers. There are several reasons why. 1. We writers get burned often by people who want something for nothing. There are people that ask for “test” papers as a way to get writers to do free work for them. I’m sure you’re not one of those people, but a ghostwriter doesn't know you and most won't take the chance. 2. The writer’s credentials, clips and testimonies from past clients should tell you what you need to know about the writer without the need for a test. If the writer doesn't have any of these you don't want to work with him anyway. 3. For professional writers that have years in the business, and all of the credentials to back up their expertise, asking them to take a test is somewhat demeaning. You're starting a professional relationship out on the wrong foot. Trust your writer! 4. Writing a test paper takes time. Time is money. If writers wrote test papers for every client that asked, that would equal out to be hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, in lost time.
Need a ghostwriter with no cons? One that can get things done fast and professionally? One that has testimonials and a long track record of great work? You're on her website right now! Contact me and let's get to taking.
How Not to Run a Facebook Ad Campaign, and a Few Other Tidbits
How not to run your social media campaigns
This post is going to be controversial, so hold on to your hat. One Facebook ad that keeps popping up in my feed is by Boost Blog Traffic, which is run by Jon Morrow. Now, I love just about everything about Jon and I am a big fan, but this ad was a stinker.
I mean skunk quality stink.
In the ad, Jon is promoting a guide on how to write for Huffington Post. The ad is clearly targeted towards writers and not marketing professionals. As a professional writer, the ad rubbed me the wrong way.
No Pay, No Way
Does Huffington Post pay writers?
Let's get one thing straight: Huffington Post does not pay writers.
Promoting a site that doesn't pay writers is wrong. If he were simply targeting marketers that wanted nothing but free publicity it would be okay, but he wasn't. He was targeting writers, people who pay their rent and buy groceries by writing. Spending writing for "exposure" leaves you homeless and hungry.
Huffington Post has made a killing off of free content and it's places like this that ruins it for writers. People expect us to write for free for "exposure." Do people who post there get exposure? Sure. Robbing a bank can get me exposure, too, but it's not the kind I want.
Iffy Reputation, Too
On top of the no pay, it is well known that Huffington Post is losing its credibility. One look at some of the latest posts will tell you how far it has fallen. It already has a pretty crappy reputation in many circles. A prime example? Well, just take a look at all of the people who dislike Huffington Post in the comments of any Huffington Post article. Or in the comments of this ad.
Writer Backlash
Writers made their feeling heard in the ad comments. There were dozens and dozens of writers expressing their displeasure with the ad. Now, at this point, Boost Blog Traffic could have tapped some good customer service techniques. That wasn't the route they took. This was the reply:
A lot of freelancers make good money writing for them. The idea is to write a post and then link to your own website at the end so people can find you. Works well for promoting any type of service. Or even products.
Okay, like I said, writing for exposure is NOT a good way for WRITERS to make money. It's a marketer's tactic, but I digress. The reason why this was such a horrible response is because whoever posted it (since the Facebook user photo is of Jon, we'll say it's him, but it is more than likely someone running their ads department), copy and pasted this answer over and over again to reply to other's concerns. #FAIL
How not to run your social media accounts
Peter also makes a great point:
Facebook ad customer service
If there are so many writers making great money from this tactic, give us some examples.
John makes another great point:
example of bad social media customer service
No doubt.
What You Can Learn From This Facebook Ad
The moral of this tragic story?
If you are going to create a lead magnet, make sure it doesn't offend the group of people you're targeting.
If the target group complains, don't reply with the same canned answer over and over.
Be sure to back up your claims with proof.
Make sure that your tips can actually be incorporated by your target audience.
Poll: Biggest Problems Businesses Have When It Comes to Content Marketing and How to Fix Them
Recently, I decided to poll business professionals about their greatest content marketing challenges and I got some surprises.
How Often Do You Post Fresh Content to Your Site?
fresh content poll
My very first question was pretty simple: How often do you post fresh content to your site? You know what was surprising? Out of the 109 business owners polled, most didn't know that they needed to post fresh content on their site on a regular basis.
How often should you post?
It is better to post no content than post thin or shabby content that search engines and visitors hate, but if you want to increase your page rank, fresh content is key. The general rule is to post content only when you have good content and do it on a regular basis, whether that be once a month, once a week or once per day. Search engines and people like it when a site is consistent.
website content poll
Do You Ever Think About SEO?
The next question I asked is if they ever thought about SEO. Out of the 137 business professionals that answered, 24% never consider their content and how it affects search engines. 52% think about it all the time and 51% thought about it sometimes.
How Important is SEO?
Umm, well, you want people to find your website, don't you? Unless you use social media 100% for attracting new business or website visitors, then you need SEO optimized content.
What Is Your Biggest Content Posting Problem?
For this question, overwhelmingly, people said they just didn't have time to post. This is what one respondent had to say:
how to have time to post content
The biggest surprise was how many people answered that they didn't even have a website. Back in the early 2000s I would have expected this answer, but today you need a website. No question. A whopping 85% of consumers use the internet to find businesses, according to Yelp. If you don't have a website, chances are, customers will find a competitor that does have a website.
Problems when posting content
How to Get on Top of Content Posting
There were a lot of respondents that had their act together, though. They post fresh, engaging content on a regular basis. Many were able to do this because they hired a freelance writer, like me.
content writer
Others had systems in place that made posting a priority. One respondent said, "It's called keeping on top of things."
Ideal Media
Another solution that none of my respondents had thought of was using syndicated content from providers such as Ideal Media. This way, a business wouldn't need to create content from scratch. They would simply use content provided by other publishers. This takes a lot less time and is much easier to manage than creating brand new content.
So what did I learn from my polls? A lot of people don't think that content marketing should be a big part of their business. That's too bad, since those that actively use content marketing find that they have a steadier stream of customers than those who don't. If you aren't using content marketing, I urge you to start, today. Hey, hire me if you need help.
Big SEO Change for 2016? Voice Search
voice search SEO
The other day I was reading Jeff Bullas' article on the newest SEO trends for 2016 and one thing stood out above all the rest: voice search. I use Google voice search on my mobile phone constantly. I bet you've never considered optimizing specifically for voice search.
Google and other search engines look for different things when doing voice searches as opposed to a typed search. This can mean some big things for your website.
What Voice Searches Look For in Content
Remember in English class when you learned the five Ws? If English class was a long time ago for you (I'm not telling you how long ago it was for me), then I'll list the five Ws for you:
Who
What
When
Where
Why
Just about any voice search question starts with one of these five words. So, it makes sense that voice searches will look for content that has the answers to these questions.
How to Optimize SEO for Voice Search
Google search
Basically, the five Ws are five words used in good writing to describe something to the fullest. If your content is great, it should already be answering at least half of the questions that could be asked in voice search. If your site doesn't have content that answers these questions, you're losing business.
Here are some five W questions that you should already be answering on your website:
"Where is (your business name) located?
"What is (your business name)'s phone number?
"Who owns (your business name)?"
"What does (your business name) sell?"
"When is (your business name) open?"
Once you have the basics covered, it's time to create a go-to area for questions. Write down a list of all the questions your customers have asked you or that you think they may ask. Now, create a Q&A page that answers these questions. That's SEM for voice search gold.
Go a Step Further
content marketing SEO for business
Once you have a great Q&A page up, now you can further optimize your site by adding blog posts that dig deep to really answer each question in detail. Use the question as the title of the post and be sure that your post is more than 200 words to draw in search engines. The longer the better, in fact.
To make the post even juicer to search engines, add graphs, photos, video or any other kind of media to really drive your point home. Not only will search engines love all the extras, but your visitors will, too. When visitors are happy they become customers, so when optimizing your content, keep that in mind.
How to Optimize SEO for Voice Search Infographic
Make Your Site Stand Out in Search Results
Even if your site makes it onto first page mobile results, there's no guarantee it will get clicked on. So, you need to make your search result stand out. To do this, use structured data to help Google add more information to your search result. Google has a great tutorial for optimizing your site with structured data.
SEO is always changing and evolving, but if you get a jump on next year's trends today, your business will be prepared and have an edge over your competitors.
Need help with your content? I'm available.
Share this infographic: <iframe width="769" height="2592" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="overflow-y:hidden;" src="http://alinabradford.com/big-seo-change-for-2016-voice-search"></iframe>
What is Branding?
While researching an article for Content Groove (I'm the editor over there), I realized people are confused about what branding actually is. If you are one of those people, I'll explain it.
What is Branding: Branding Definition
Branding definition
Here is my branding definition: Making your brand stand out from competitors with marketing that is consistent and recognizable as belonging to only your company.
It's pretty much that simple. You want everything, from your website copy to your logo to your images, to mesh together to create a cohesive message that people can remember. What people remember about you is called your branding image.
What Branding Encompasses
Branding encompasses any type of media that represents your business, including:
Visual content such as videos, photos, illustrations, infographics, web design and logos
Text including articles, web copy, blog posts, social media posts, newsletters, flyers, etc.
Audio content such as podcasts, radio ads, etc.
All of these content types need to carry a similar theme throughout. Visual content should use similar colors and stylistic choices. For example, if you typically use drawn images for your content, don't switch over to live subjects.
Audio content can be cohesive by using the same voice actor in all of your audio recordings or by using the same jingle in ads.
Text should have the same tone from piece to piece. For example, if your brand usually has a fun, irreverent tone, using a formal tone in your blog posts would be jarring to your customer.
where to use branding
Examples of Brands that are Nailing Branding
You see branding every single day. It's everywhere. One of the biggest examples of brands nailing branding is Coke. What did you think of when you read the word "Coke?" I bet the color red and wavy white lines came to mind. Coke uses white and red in all of their ads, on products and on their site. Even the Coca-cola winter mascots, the polar bears, are white with red scarves. Thier use of consistent color usage is part of their branding.
In content marketing, there is no more brilliant branding tactic than Yoast's memorable use of staff caricatures. No matter what, when I think of Yoast, I think of their caricatures.
So, there you go. Your 101 course on branding. Have any questions? Ask away!
Photo credit: Closed Branding Iron Cookhouse in Mentor, Ohio via photopin(license)
Get Your SEO on Point with 37 Must-Have Ingredients
SearchEngineLand-Periodic-Table-of-SEO-2015
Recently, Search Engine Land released its Periodic Table Of SEO Success Factors. This table consists of 37 factors that you need to create the ultimate SEO cocktail in 2015. Here's a look at the table, then I'll jump into each element and what it means.
Breaking Down the Elements of Fantastic SEO
Here the 37 elements of great SEO. I'm going to break each one down and tell you why they matter to your site.
Here are the answers to your SEO questions.
SEO Elements in Content
To start off with, you always want to use great content. I'm a content specialist. Trust me on this one.
Here are the elements of great content.
Quality: Provide well-written, interesting text that doesn't include errors. Also, make sure your content gives readers what they want.
Research: Make sure to research keywords for your content. Use Google Adwords Keyword Planner for
Words: Include those words and search phrases that you researched into your content.
Fresh: Use fresh content that people are looking for.
Vertical: Add images, video and other vertical content to your text.
Answers: Always answer the question that the person is searching for.
Thin: Avoid "thin" content. This is content that doesn't fully answer a question. Google also considers content under 200 words to be "thin."
Architecture and SEO
Architecture is the effect that your site has on your SEO. You can create great content, but if your site lacks proper SEO, then you'll fail. Here are the elements of good site architecture.
Crawl: Make sure that search engine bots can easily crawl your site and find what you want them to find. You can do this by adding page, media and post meta, fixing re-directs and broken links, etc.
Duplicate: Putting duplicate content on your site is a big no-no. Having one page that says the same thing as another on your site tells search engines that your site is crap.
Mobile: This is a new requirement and it's BIG! Make sure that your site is optimized for mobile devices. If you have a WordPress site, this can be as easy as using the Jetpack feature "Mobile Theme."
Speed: Your site should load in a couple of seconds. Do a site speed test and then optimize for faster loading times. One good way to speed up your site is to reduce the size of your images.
URLs: Don't let your URLs be a string of numbers and call it a day. All of your URLs should include keywords or phrases. Click around my site to get an idea of what your URLs should look like.
HTTPs: Provide a secure site connection for your visitors. It's that simple.
Cloaking: Don't try to trick search engines. It's just a bad idea.
Your SEO Depends on HTML
html coding and seo
Search engine optimization includes how your site is coded. I know, I know. You picked a template for your site because you didn't want to learn coding. Don't worry, this is pretty simple.
Titles: Your title HTML tags should include keywords. Hint- Use a plugin that can help.
Description: Add meta descriptions to your pages, media and posts. You can do this will a simple plugin like Yoast.
Structure: Use a page structure that is helpful and makes sense. Adding bulleted or numbered lists really helps.
Headers: Use headers with HTML tags and keywords. This isn't hard. Write a keyword rich title or sub-title, and then click the H1, H2, H3 or H4 button in your post or page editor. It will add the code you need.
Stuffing: Stop keyword stuffing!
Hidden: Make sure that your design doesn't hide words you want search engines to find. For example, if your page background is gray, don't use a gray font. Duh!
Off-the-Page SEO Factors
There are some SEO factors that are called off-page. Here is what they are and why they are important.
Authority: Authority makes your site look like the hip, cool, influencer on the block. How many shares your content gets is a big part of this.
Engage: If your site has a high bounce rate then a search engine will see it as a crappy site that doesn't interest the people who go there.
History: Search engines check to see how long a site has been up. The longer, the better.
Identity: Have you taken steps to verify your site and its users? You might want to.
Piracy: If your site has been flagged for piracy, it may drop off of search results all-together. Let this be a lesson to never steal content, folks.
Ads: Search engines hate sites that have tons of ads, especially above the fold. Google likes sites that have no more than three ads per page.
Linking for SEO
Links are a huge factor when it comes to good SEO. Forget these elements and you can kiss your rank goodbye.
Quality: Search engines like it if you only link to other high-quality sites. If a site has a good reputation, you can be pretty sure that search engines will like the link.
Text: The pages you link to should contain keywords you want your page to rank for. Your link text should also contain keywords.
Number: You want other sites to link to your page by the dozens. A lot of links make your site look like a content boss.
Paid: Let's get one thing straight. Paying for links to your site isn't doing you any favors. Search engines are wise to these tricks.
Spam: There's nothing search engines hate more than spam. Stop spamming your links in forums, blog comments and the like. That little scheme was nixed from SEO tactics years ago. It's like wearing a polyester suit. It was popular once, but now it just makes you look tacky.
Personal Information can Affect SEO
Search engines also look at the personal information of people who have visited your site before. They look at:
What country a person is located in.
What city they're located in.
If a person regularly visited your site and/or shared it.
Has a person favorite your site? Has their friends?
Social Media and How it Affects SEO
There are two final factors that search engines consider when ranking your site. First, they look to see if experts or trusted social media accounts have shared your site or content. Getting the right people to share your content is key to search engine marketing (SEM). Second, search engines check to see how many people share your content. The more shares, the better.
All of these elements come together to produce your ranking for certain keywords and phrases. Getting your SEO on point is the best way to raise your ranking.
In-Depth Infographic Guide to Growth-Hacking
Want your business to grow more quickly? Try using these growth hacks.
Overcoming Differences To Remain Business Partners and Friends
A Shared Goal Can Be Achieved With The Right Outlook,Book Co-Authors Say
Please enjoy today's guest post.
getting along with your business partner
Good business partnerships can lead to great things, whether it’s Ben and Jerry dishing up ice cream or Penn and Teller dishing up magic.
But sometimes partners aren’t well matched. Their personalities fail to mesh, their differing visions lead to a clash of wills and what seemed like a good idea at the beginning disintegrates quickly in a flurry of angry words and ill will.
It doesn’t have to be that way, though. A business partnership – like any relationship – can thrive if the right ingredients are in place.
“You can be friends and business partners at the same time,” says writer Gail Harris, whose latest project involved a partnership that brought difficult, but not insurmountable, challenges.
Harris is co-author with Brandi Rarus of the book “Finding Zoe: A Deaf Woman’s Story of Identity, Love and Adoption.” The book tells the story of how Rarus, who became deaf at age 6, faced the challenges of her disability and later adopted a daughter who also is deaf.
Like many good partnerships, the one between Rarus and Harris began because each had something to contribute. Rarus had a story to tell, but she is not a writer.
“I decided to find someone who would work with me to write the book, so I advertised for a writer and Gail was one of the people who responded,” Rarus says. About five years passed from the time they began working on “Finding Zoe” to the day the book was published.
Every moment was not smooth, and there were disagreements along the way, but eventually they made their shared dream a reality. Harris and Rarus offer a few tips on what makes a partnership work.
• Communicate. Communication is paramount in any relationship. It’s what unites us. Communication was a challenge at times for Rarus and Harris because they couldn’t hash things out in a quick phone call the way many people might. “We needed a sign-language interpreter and one wasn’t always available,” Harris says. Video calls were much easier because Harris could see Rarus and the interpreter. They also were able to do some video calls without an interpreter since Rarus is a good lip reader and she can speak, though Harris said it took awhile to get used to the way she talked. “We understood each other about 85 percent of the time. But there definitely were a couple of important miscommunications, once about the book’s front cover design,” Harris says.
• Be committed. Both people must be committed to the end goal. It doesn’t work if one person is passionate and the other lukewarm. The two co-authors of “Finding Zoe” early on had to work out some differences about just what the end goal was. Rarus saw the proposed book as strictly a story about Zoe’s adoption. But Harris convinced her that the book should be Rarus’ memoir and lead up to the adoption. It was through such give and take that the story, and the book, began to take shape.
• Avoid being judgmental. We all judge other people and other people judge us. You need to put yourself in the other persons’ shoes – in this case your partner’s – and try to understand what they are going through or where they are coming from. “We live in a world where people are quick to blame and judge others,” Rarus says. That’s actually a theme “Finding Zoe” touches on, showing the fruitlessness of assigning blame, she says. In a partnership, it’s important to try to understand and respect the other person’s point of view, the co-authors say. Having opposing ideas about how some things should be handled is inevitable, and can spark even better solutions. What’s important is to be respectful as you work through disputes.
Whether it’s a disability or personality trait, everyone is different in some way, but those differences need not become obstacles when two people work together for a common goal, Harris and Rarus say.
“Our differences are minuscule compared with how we are alike,” Harris says. “Just look at the way Brandi and I came together to write this book. Language was not a barrier. Different lifestyles were not a barrier. We became friends and worked together to produce something wonderful.”
About Brandi Rarus and Gail Harris
Brandi Rarus, who lost her hearing at age 6, has traveled the country speaking out for deaf children and building awareness of what it means to be deaf. She was Miss Deaf America in 1988. She and her husband live in Austin, Texas, with their three sons and adopted daughter.
Gail Harris is an award-winning writer and teacher of the intuitive process who also adopted a child. In addition to co-writing “Finding Zoe,” she is the author of “Your Heart Knows the Answer.” She lives with her husband and son in Framingham, Mass.
Photo credit: The Argument via photopin(license)
The Big Jerks! How to Deal with Content Theft
prevent people from stealing content
If you've posted content on the web, you've probably had your articles stolen and posted on another site. Often, the thief will claim that he wrote the brilliant article you paid for or wrote. The gall of these people!
I've had it happen to me so many times I can't count them all. Time to fight back, everybody! There are some ways that you can thwart content thieves and even get their sites shut down.
The No Copy Code
The No Copy Code keeps people from being able to copy and paste your articles or blogs. Simply copy and paste this code into your site's HTML and you're golden:
[bctt tweet="Here are ways you can thwart content thieves and even get their sites shut down."]
<script language="JavaScript1.2">
//Disable select-text script (IE4+, NS6+)- By Andy Scott
//Exclusive permission granted to Dynamic Drive to feature script
//Visit http://www.dynamicdrive.com for this script
function disableselect(e){
return false
}
function reEnable(){
return true
}
//if IE4+
document.onselectstart=new Function ("return false")
//if NS6
if (window.sidebar){
document.onmousedown=disableselect
document.onclick=reEnable
}
</script>
<script language=JavaScript> <!-- //Disable right mouse click Script //By Maximus (maximus@nsimail.com) w/ mods by DynamicDrive //For full source code, visit http://www.dynamicdrive.com var message="Function Disabled!"; /////////////////////////////////// function clickIE4(){ if (event.button==2){ alert(message); return false; } } function clickNS4(e){ if (document.layers||document.getElementById&&!document.all){ if (e.which==2||e.which==3){ alert(message); return false; } } } if (document.layers){ document.captureEvents(Event.MOUSEDOWN); document.onmousedown=clickNS4; } else if (document.all&&!document.getElementById) document.oncontextmenu=new Function("alert(message);return false") // --> </script>
how to stop article theives
Anti-Content Theft PlugIns
An easier thing to do is to simply install a plugin that will prevent content theft. Ther are several good anti-theft plugins out there. Here are a just a few:
What to Do if Your Content has Already Been Stolen?
This first thing you should do when you find out your content has been stolen is to write an email to the website's owner. Here is a sample email template you can use:
Dear (Site's Name) Owner,
It has come to my attention that my article (Name of the article and a link to the article on your site) is posted on your site. You can find it here: (Insert link to the article.)
In accordance with US copyright law, I own all rights to this article. By posting the article without my permission, you are breaking the law. I am sure this is a mistunderstanding. Please, remove my article by (give a deadline.) If the article is not removed by this deadline, I will be filing a complaint with Google and I will be contacting your site host to have your site removed for copyright infringment.
Thank you for your compliance in the matter.
(Signature)
Now, that's the letter that I use and it works pretty well. If you want something a little more intimidating and formal you can use this template by IPWatchdog. This is called a DMCA ( which stands for the Digital Millennium Copyright Act) letter.
Next, follow through with your threats if your article isn't removed. File a copyright complaint with Google. Then, contact the site's host to have the site taken down. To file a complaint with the host, go to WhoIs Lookup to find out details about the site. Then send the details, your information and a DMCA letter, in writing, to the host. Many hosting platforms will have a specific protocol for handling copyright issues, so call or live chat with their customer service to find out what you must do to get the offending site taken down.
I know it sounds like a lot of work, but if more people went after content thieves more people would understand that they can't get away with content theft.