Posts Tagged ‘ blogging ’

Subscriber Milestones: A total head fake!

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Subscriber Milestones: A total head fake!

Yesterday I was tickled to death to see I had reached 300 subscribers on my blog. Daily I am getting about 200 new views (wait until I tell you the most popular search term!) on my blog so this is exciting! Finally, after nearly four years, I’m seeing what appears to be some real movement. But look at that image!  I was actually DELETING the 300th subscriber from this blog! Why you may ask? Can you read that name? No me either.  I have a plugin called Ban Hammer on my site and when I added it I added this…

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Content Mills: Like it or not they are valuable

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Content Mills: Like it or not they are valuable

I recently read a very well written blog post from a freelance writer who made the argument that freelancers should not start off their careers using a content mill. The theory is these sites encourage poor writing, encourage writers to accept lower rates of pay and stunt the growth of most writers. However, in my personal experience, this is simply false in many ways. Experience matters For many freelance writers who are just getting started (myself included), they may have not written anything since their school days. While there is some truth to the fact that many graduates who have…

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Six or Seven Figure Income: Save your money!

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Six or Seven Figure Income: Save your money!

I just love running into things that smack of schemes that are designed to separate people from their hard earned money. This morning, I was “cleaning” my Twitter account (which is a disaster looking for a place to happen!) and ran across a site that promised me I could have multiple six-figure months in the next twelve months by investing in their program. Unfortunately, while I was doing my homework (which I’m wont to doing) I found another site that is promoting one section of this “worthy” program promising me a potential of multiple seven-figure months.  Go figure. Before you…

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Evaluating Online Business Opportunities

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Evaluating Online Business Opportunities

The Internet has opened up several online business opportunities that can turn into full-time income generators. While there are many legitimate online business opportunities, many more are frauds. When researching opportunities, research will help ensure the opportunity is legitimate. Some of these include: Contact information Numerous companies offer affiliate marketing opportunities as well as the potential to start e-commerce businesses.  All too frequently, these sites are shadow companies that are set up for the specific reason of collecting fees from unsuspecting entrepreneurs. One way to avoid this problem is to review the website and look for the companies contact information.…

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An Update on Textbroker

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An Update on Textbroker

I have to admit that I’ve been a bit skeptical about Textbroker because too often, I feel that the ratings by the editors (or whoever does them) is far too subjective.  While I am well aware of my propensity to either over or under use commas, I feel that for the most part, my writing is good enough to pass most editors.  For the past several months, I’ve continued to work at TB even though I am squeamish about some of the rates. However, with that said, I am fairly confident that going into 2013, that TB will work well…

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Year drawing to a close

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Year drawing to a close

Who would have thunk it? 2012 is drawing to a close and I’ve gotten around to reviewing what my plans were for 2012. While some of my plans came to fruition, it appears that they got somewhat thwarted around mid-year meaning I had to change course!  Last year at this time I was planning on starting my new website, No Scam Work at Home to help identify and call out scams. For several months, this worked out pretty well. The problem of course came in that my site was hacked around mid-year and I had to rethink what to do…

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The best way to market your company

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The best way to market your company

Marketing for growth One of the many challenges of owning a business is marketing. Without a successful marketing plan, chances are that your business will stagnate and over time, you will see a decline in sales. When sales begin declining, it may be too late to start a new marketing campaign to revive your business. That means that you must have a plan in place when you begin your business and one that is flexible over time. To determine your best options for marketing you must have some basic knowledge including: Your customer base – you need to know who…

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Twitter – How effective is it for marketing?

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Twitter – How effective is it for marketing?

Maximizing Twitter’s effectiveness Freelance writers, online marketing professionals and bloggers may be overlooking the potential for a great Twitter advertising campaign for their products or services. Learning how to use Twitter effectively is one of the most important steps that must be taken to get the most out of Twitter. While Twitter is free to use, it is important to understand that it is a tool that can be most effectively used when reaching out to an audience. Interaction and information are the two primary things that are required to be effective when using Twitter. The art of interaction It…

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How do you select great writing topics

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How do you select great writing topics

Defining your niche market For many writers, the biggest obstacle to writing is selecting a worthy topic. For some, this is a fairly straightforward process while others struggle to come up with the right ideas. There are some things that may determine how a writer prepares to create new work. Interest, political leanings and even educational levels may limit a writer’s ability to find work they want. Some writers have identified niche areas that work best for them. For example, a writer with a good grasp of law or medicine may focus on these topics exclusively. Oftentimes, education and life…

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Essential elements of a successful blog

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Essential elements of a successful blog

Never overlook the importance of small things It’s easy to set up a blog, and with the variety of social media sites that are available, it’s easier than ever to find a group of readers who are interested in your site. Of course setting up your blog well and getting readers is crucial to long-term blogging success, there are some things that can make or break your blog regardless of how many readers you may have. Here are some of the components that make up a successful blog. Interlocking pieces There are pieces that all work together that can help…

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How to create an effective social marketing plan

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How to create an effective social marketing plan

Common social media plan issues Frequently, social media specialists think that opening an account on popular social media sites and throwing a bunch of information into the feed is the best way to attract attention. Nothing could be further from the truth. Social media marketing requires a well thought out plan that provides solid information to followers, and offers relevant information while promoting. Social media marketing involves sending a positive message to potential customers. An effective social media plan can help improve credibility, increase sales and reach out to new customers. However, a poorly designed social media marketing plan can…

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Online Writing: Pleasure or practicality

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Online Writing: Pleasure or practicality

Motivation for writing Many of us envy those writers who write for the sheer joy of writing. While many writers are motivated by the sheer pleasure of writing and sharing knowledge, many more are motivated by the money they can earn writing. However, this does not mean that the person who is motivated by cold, hard cash does not take any pleasure in their writing, it merely means their motivation is different. Here’s how you can determine your final motivation for writing: If you could not earn money online from writing would you stop? Answering for myself only, I would…

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The dangers of multi-tasking

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The dangers of multi-tasking

Too much work too little time We have nearly all done it. We take on one thing after another then try to get them all done, oftentimes with set deadlines. While some people boast about their multi-tasking skills, the problem is that if we are trying to do too many things at one time, something is bound to suffer. Some of the common problems with multi-tasking include: Stress levels increase – if we are trying to do too many things at once, chances are that we are putting ourselves under high levels of stress. While some people may work well…

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The basics of business blogging

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The basics of business blogging

Blogging as part of freelancing One of the many opportunities that freelance writers can take advantage of is blogging for money. Setting up a blog is easy, maintaining a blog and promoting it well is not as easy. Blogging can be fun and rewarding, but also requires a fair amount of dedication and work. Blogging as a way of earning money or even making a living can be a rewarding career choice. Even on those days when you find that you are not entirely sure how to approach your blog posts, there are always ways to come up with new…

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Work at Home: Freelance Writing

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Work at Home: Freelance Writing

Great option for working at home If you are considering entering the freelance writing market, there are some things that you will have to understand first. Freelance writing professionals are not created overnight, they work hard at their trade. Understanding freelance writing is part of the battle you will face to get started. There are many paths that you can take to become a successful freelance writer. Each writer will have to decide what is right for them. In order to find success writing online however, you will need to understand your audience. Writing with the reader in mind all…

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