Home » Business » Category: "Social Media Marketing"
blog-thumb-1 Read more
MAR
2020 16
Business, Social Media Marketing
0

ARE BLOGGING COURSES WORTH YOUR TIME AND MONEY?

Woman working on her laptop taking blogging courses while sitting on the couch

You’re a new business owner or entrepreneur who is looking for resources on how to start a blog, use marketing by social media to promote a new Etsy store, use social media platforms (Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter) to drive website traffic.

You don’t have a lot of money to spend initially, but to learn the art and science of everything about blogging on your own is a little overwhelming and could use a little help to lighten up the load.

Are blogging courses worth your time and money? The answer is yes. Let me explain why.

ARE BLOGGING COURSES WORTH YOUR TIME AND MONEY?

    Advantages Of Taking A Blogging For Beginners Course

    One benefit of taking an online course on social media marketing and blogging for beginners is saving yourself time spending hours online going down a rabbit hole reading multiple blogs and watching YouTube tutorials.

    Someone has gone and done the research, the leg work, and can provide you tips and practices, success, and failures so you don’t make the same mistakes they did when starting out.

    Did you know before starting a blog, it’s recommended to have 12-15 articles written? You might be scratching your head asking why.

    Imagine having a blog with just five articles on the site. For one, it’s a waste of time and money to pay for a theme and domain with very few articles.

    Second, once readers get through the five articles, one reader might return the week after to read a new post.

    If you are not posting at least one blog a week or gaining subscribers through an email list to provide updates to, readers will lose interest and go visit another site.

    An image of a laptop, smartphone, notebook sitting on a table.

    If you’re intent is to create a play by play journal for friends and family, that is fine, but I thought you were looking to turn your side hustle into a full-time job where you can work from anywhere and set your own hours?

    If you have at least 10 articles ready to publish and plan on writing one article a week, that is enough for readers to mull over while you work on writing new content.

    I write articles three months out. The time allows me to make tweaks to my articles before being published and to research new content ideas.

    It’s a nice cushion for when I experience writer’s block and need a break from my laptop to gain some inspiration from my other hobby of travel photography.

    Taking a beginning blogging course online will teach you techniques on how to drive traffic to your website.

    Website Navigation Design

    One pet peeve of mine that is directly from my days in sales/retail management is a website that is hard to navigate when shopping online.

    A second pet peeve is quickly building a site or a blog and not testing it before going live. This is a tell-tale sign of someone who lacks a technical background. What am I talking about you ask?

    Ever visited a site that takes more than three clicks to navigate only to find that the article or clothing item isn’t there, or no longer exists because you see a 404 code?

    The human attention span is short. Having dropdowns with no categories listed and no links are another example. Having a jacked website is a wonderful way to lose visitors.

    When I was finalizing what kind of site I wanted, the first thing I did was visit blogs and sites and navigated their sites. Next, I sketched out on paper what I wanted my home page to look like.

    I am not in the habit of throwing people under the bus and think it’s uncharitable to provide links to bad websites. We all have to start somewhere.

    Here is some homework for you. Visit a couple of retail sites like Dr. Bronner’s (and their blog site), The Body Shop, AVEDA, Amazon, Target and a couple of blogs you have pins saved to your Pinterest account and spend a minute of two navigating.

    Then ask yourself what you like or dislike about each site.

    I know how to get past broken links and pages in order to find an article, I will only go the extra mile if the information I am searching for is worth the effort which is rare.

    Beginner Blogging Mistakes

    Too many individuals are in a rush to start a blog with bad information from social media posts that they will become an overnight success and make money right away.

    While a blog site might look pretty and inviting, I don’t know about you, but I find writing articles a lot of work.

    In a sea of bloggers, the only way to stand out is to use social media marketing to promote your blog online so you can spend more time growing your business and write about topics that interest your readers.

    An image of a laptop with words in front

    Before you decide to go all in, I have one word of advice. Don’t quit your day job just yet! Taking your time to learn how to set up your website and blog will pay off in the long run.

    If the stuff I mentioned about issues with websites is new to you, have no ideas what I am talking about, no very tech-savvy, taking a blogging course teaches you step by step on how to navigate these problems with ease.

    There are a lot of free blogging courses out there, but a little investment can go a long way to get in-depth information that you wouldn’t get from a free online course.

    Online Blogging And Pinterest Marketing Courses

    If you’re into social media, taking an online marketing course can teach you how to leverage your existing social media platforms currently in use.

    I have two blogging courses that are worth investing in short-term for long-term gains on turning your start-up into a money-making business:

    One of the things I like about winter time is the natural slowing down that occurs and being able to play catch up on things that go on the back burner from spring until fall.

    I like to take advantage to learn something new while being snowed in or too lazy to brave the cold in favor of warmth and relaxation.

    The brief stay indoors allows me to clean up my website, tweak a couple of articles, and learn how to maximize social media and online marketing.

    Being a tennis fan, for two weeks, I sit glued to my tv watching the Australian Open wondering why I haven’t made the 17-hour trek out there yet to experience Melbourne in person.

    Watching tennis balls fly back and forth for three to five sets makes me dizzy.

    Watching, I mean listening to tennis balls and sneakers skid back and forth on the court for me is a great time to write three months out and knock out 12 articles while sipping on a glass of vino.

    Online Course On Blogging

    When it came time to start my blog, I felt like I had nothing to lose by signing up for an online course on blogging for beginners by one of New York Times best-selling authors with years of travel experience.

    Nomadic Matt’s Superstar Blogging Course was within my budget compared to others that were asking for $200 or more and lacked the reputation Matt has built over the past 10 years.

    The course takes you through the technical aspects step by step of getting your blog up and running, ways to monetize your blog through affiliate marketing, tips, and ideas on using social media to drive traffic to your site, and what mistakes to avoid.

    How To Use Pinterest For Blogging

    Pinterest is not only fun, free to use, but it’s an underutilized social media platform that is worth learning more about when it comes to Pinterest marketing.

    The potential for steady and constant traffic from pins remaining searchable over time is huge. Check out these demographics of Pinterest users:

    • 300 million people are active on Pinterest every month
    • 40% of New Signups are Men; 60% New Signups are Women
    • Half of Pinterest users earn $50K or higher per year
    • Pinterest users are under the age of 49
    • 70% of users are female
    • 50% of pinners live outside the United States
    • Millennials use Pinterest as much as Instagram
    • 80% of US mothers who use the internet uses Pinterest

    Learning the ins and outs of Pinterest and gaining an introduction to automated scheduling of pins are two reasons to invest in taking a Pinterest course.

    The second online course I recommend is Pinterest Traffic Avalanche by Create and Go bloggers Lauren and Alex.

    Free Pinterest Scheduler

    If you are a Pinterest user who is still manually pinning, it’s time to start automating your pinning process.

    To increase traffic to your website, you have to post multiple times a day on social media. The recommendation is to pin 10-15 times a day on Pinterest. Who has time to manually pin every day?

    Tailwind banner

    At first, it sounds easy, but what about when you go on vacation or go to a location with no cell reception or wifi? Automating the pinning process with simple Pinterest scheduling using an app like Tailwind will save time doing it yourself for free.

    Why Schedule Pins On Pinterest

    Scheduling pins allows you to focus on growing your fan base and learning new skills to build up your brand over time so you CAN transition from part-time side hustler into a full-time digital nomad.

    What is $100 for a blogging or social media course compared to going from making no money from your blog to six figures?

    Are blogging courses worth your time and money? The answer is yes if you’re willing to take the time to learn how to draw readers back over and over again to your site.

    Check out this video on how one user went from 121 to 86,000 views on her blog in 5 months with Pinterest.

    blog-thumb-1 Read more
    DEC
    2019     09
    Business, Social Media Marketing
    0

    5 SMART WAYS TO PROMOTE YOUR BLOG ONLINE PART 4

    A woman staring at a laptop biting a pencil.

    Alright, we are in the home stretch here. I have a couple more tips before I set you free to go take on society with your soon to be an impressive social media marketing strategy.

    While Pinterest marketing will drive traffic to your website, blog, or online store, another resource to add to your toolbox is email marketing.

    Remember, when I mentioned how I use an automation scheduler to post new content to my social media accounts and new blog posts on my website?

    Email Marketing

    Email marketing is another tool to help promote your business with email and social media. You have to be careful with automated tools.

    I like MailChimp because it is free up to 2K contacts. What do you get with the free plan?

    One-click automation, basic templates to create a landing page on your site to signup new users, and email notifications to subscribers when a new blog post shows up on your website.

    After 2K subscribers, there is a monthly fee starting at $9.99.

    Another reason I went with MailChimp over another competitor is I tend to go with companies who give back to the community.

    When doing research, the first thing I do is visit the ‘About’ page.

    MailChimp’s focus on corporate citizenship, working to tackle intergenerational poverty and promote creative expression through the arts was the make-or-break moment.

    Another popular email marketing application that is popular among bloggers is ConvertKit.

    I will talk about ConvertKit in a little bit here as I need to go over plug-in and compatibility issues in a bit more depth.

    An image of a nord vpn banner

    If you haven’t noticed, many of these platforms promote content on multiple social media platforms. You don’t want to get spammy and lose customers.

    I recommend starting small, so you can learn how these platforms complement and sometimes cause problems with one another due to coding.

    One thing I didn’t mention is WordPress has stunning templates you can choose from to create your website. It saves on learning how to code.

    Learn a little code to make minor changes to your website that doesn’t come with your theme. While a lot of the themes are free, pursuing customized options is something to consider.

    I decided to go with a customized theme through Theme Forest. It wasn’t that expensive and came with 12 months of technical assistance from the developer for a couple of bucks more instead of the standard six to help me in case I have issues with my site.

    Sure enough, two months after my website went live, I started experiencing technical issues.

    ConvertKit

    Ok, let’s talk about ConvertKit. First off, I love their marketing package but ran into a compatibility issue with my WordPress site.

    As you search for more ideas to create a rock star website, a lot of plug-ins will get recommended.

    While the plug-ins do a lot of cool things to save you time, compatibility issues can cause your site not to work correctly.

    Maybe the compatibility issue is because I went with a different theme. I don’t know.

    I love how my website works, so if I have to choose between changing my theme or disabling a plug-in, I am going to get rid of the plug-in and apply some code.

    An image of share a sale banner

    Even though a site marketing a plug-in says it is compatible with WordPress, for the reasons I mentioned earlier, I still recommend learning a little bit of code.

    You can easily add a simple string of code to the backend of a page in place of a plug-in.

    These types of problems, just like at your place of work, seem to occur when a security update occurs, and something ends up breaking. In my case, the images and logo on my site looked larger than life and were misaligned.

    As I was adding plug-ins, I experienced compatibility issues with ConvertKit.

    After turning on and off plug-ins to find the problem and conversing with my developer, I had enough. After the 30-day trial; I decided a trial run with MailChimp.

    MailChimp

    For up to 2K subscribers, it’s free through MailChimp. After the 30-day trial, ConvertKit pricing for 0-1K subscribers is $29/month. Start with the free option for now.

    As your business grows and you make money, invest the profits in upgrading to another flexible plan for more bells and whistles. Setting up the email portion is smooth.

    This tutorial I found on YouTube is all I needed to get my email campaign set up and add a free e-book of 10 recipes I created as a free thank you gift for my subscribers.

    Even with all the best online marketing, the best way to get the word out when attending in-person workshops and networking sessions is to have a business card on you.

    For less than $20, you can design and get 100 business cards shipped to you for free from Vista Print, Moo, or print your own using Avery template 27883 and a ream of cardstock. You never know who you will meet on that next plane ride!

    Deciding When To Register A Business

    Creating multiple streams to make money through ads and affiliate marketing doesn’t stop there.

    Creating an e-course, e-book, or a product or service can be a game-changer. If you plan on selling something on your site, you will need an EIN.

    LLC and EIN can be accomplished separately. Legal Zoom has an excellent package that includes both for a good price.

    I see registering a business the start as getting it out of the way, so you don’t have to do it later and is one less thing to remember.

    When the time is right for you to register your business name, it is a good idea to look into separating your finances from your business and the tax advantages of doing so.

    Stock Photography

    The last money-saving tip I will recommend is instead of paying for images or risking legal action of copyright infringement by taking a screenshot, using a snipping tool to gather an image on the internet without the owner’s permission, go with free to use images for online marketing called ‘stock photography’.

    Here are some examples of companies offering free stock photos:

    • Canva
    • Pixaby
    • PXhere
    • Flickr
    • Freepik
    • Unsplash
    • Pexels

    Protecting Your Privacy Online

    In part 1 of this article, I mentioned the importance of picking a hosting site that provides 24/7 customer service and a constant scanning of vulnerabilities and protection from hackers.

    My favorite place to go to when writing a blog post is a coffee shop. While it is free, accessing public Wi-Fi at a coffee shop or a hotel puts you at risk for hackers gaining access to your information through malicious means.

    A layered security approach for your devices (smartphone, laptops, desktop) that includes Windows, Android, macOS, iOS, Linux, Blackberry, and Windows Phone combined with a virtual private network (VPN) reduces the threat from online threats of cyberattacks.

    Hackers take advantage of an unsecured connection to obtain sensitive data such as your personally identifiable information, usernames, and passwords to gain access to your bank accounts.

    Adversaries can trick you into using a rogue Wi-Fi network, intercept your data from a man-in-the-middle attack, and distribute malware on your computer.

    If you travel to some of the developing countries, you will notice that the internet connection is slow and the same people visit that location every day. The owner has likely not changed the password so anyone can get online.

    I hope this four-part blog post has given you the confidence to take the steps to ditch the 9-5 cubicle farm and become your boss!

    Just think how much you will save in time and stress from not having to make the daily commute. Winning!

    Curious about what motivates a person to want to become an entrepreneur? Click here to learn about these ten factors and see if your reasons are the same.

    blog-thumb-1 Read more
    DEC
    2019     09
    Business, Social Media Marketing
    0

    5 SMART WAYS TO PROMOTE YOUR BLOG ONLINE PART 2

    An image of a woman looking at a laptop.

    Starting a business and establishing a website domain doesn’t have to be overwhelming.

    The biggest challenge you will face is learning how to market to your target audience using Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube to drive traffic to your website.

    There are plenty of resources on YouTube that explains how these platforms work.

    Pick your resources wisely when searching for videos on Pinterest marketing, affiliate marketing, social media, blogging, and how to make money online.

    I will share some throughout this four-part post that helped me at the beginning to get over the learning curve of blogging tools, email, and online marketing.

    Take The Time To Learn About Blogging

    Take the time to learn the process of growing a start-up, blogging, and online marketing from start to finish, so that you don’t have to spend time fixing costly mistakes later.

    There is no reason your blog and social media sites can’t be up and running in less than a month.

    Sure, you can get everything done in a week, but putting all your eggs in one basket will cause confusion and frustration, especially when it comes to posting on multiple social media platforms.

    Grammarly Writing Support

    If you’re working a full-time job in which you are looking to leave in the future, taking small chunks to learn the process, start to finish, will pay off in the long run.

    Seek Knowledge, Not Information

    There is no need to reinvent the wheel here. That is where online blogging and social media courses come in.

    If you don’t have an information technology (IT) background or know very little about social media marketing, I have two courses I recommend completing before starting your website and online marketing campaigns.

    No, they don’t cost thousands of dollars. It’s a small short-term investment with big returns.

    Best Blogging Course For New Bloggers

    Nomadic Matt’s Superstar Blogging Course guides you step by step on the technical aspects of getting your blog up and running, ways to monetize your blog through affiliate marketing, tips and ideas on using social media to drive traffic to your site, and what mistakes to avoid.

    Matt’s courses were within my budget compared to others that were asking for $200 or more that lacked the reputation he has built over the past ten years.

    I have followed his travel blog for many years on best practices to stretch my travel dollars.

    The online course can be completed at your own pace. After taking the course, the next step is to find a website hosting service.

    WordPress And Website Hosting

    After searching around comparing different companies, the hosting company that made the WordPress set-up a painless process was Bluehost.

    WordPress sites are a frequent target for hackers due to its immense popularity at being one of the world’s most popular website builders.

    A blogger I follow talked about her experience in having her website hacked due to a lack of security and a weak password.

    With 24/7 customer support, continually identifying vulnerabilities while protecting my site against cyber threats, the 30-day free trial is the reason why I committed to a three-year plan.

    I sleep well at night. Enough said.

    The Power of Social Media

    After selecting a domain, the next step is learning how to use social media for marketing your business.

    I will be honest this was a learning curve for me. Why?

    If you want to get your name out there, you have to post to social media multiple times throughout a day. Who has time for that while working full-time?

    Social media, digital marketing, and artificial intelligence (AI) are the perfect marriage.

    Remember, when I mentioned earlier that social media is a big driver of traffic to my website? What I didn’t say was which platform it was. Here is my website traffic breakdown for the last 30 days:

    • Social: 88.00%
    • Organic Search: 9.50%
    • Referral: 1.50%
    • Direct: 1.00%

    The top traffic source driving visitors to my website is Pinterest. Are you surprised by that?

    I am sure you were thinking of Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter as the top visitor traffic driver.

    Traffic is free on Pinterest. Before signing up for a business account, I was already using Pinterest as my favorite go-to for easy recipes and workout tips.

    If you already have an account, it’s easy to switch to a business account on Pinterest in a few minutes.

    Pinterest Marketing

    Pinterest is not only fun, but the potential for steady and constant traffic is right for you from pins remaining searchable over time. The demographics of who uses Pinterest is interesting as well:

    • 300 million people are active on Pinterest every month
    • 40% of New Signups are Men; 60% New Signups are Women
    • Half of Pinterest users earn $50K or higher per year
    • Pinterest users are under the age of 49
    • 70% of users are female
    • 50% of pinners live outside the United States
    • Millennials use Pinterest as much as Instagram
    • 80% of US mothers who use the internet uses Pinterest

    One of the keys to building a robust online presence is knowing your target audience!

    Remember earlier in the post why I shared that little info about internet users broken down by country?

    For one entrepreneur, one single pin drove over 80K views a day. I say again that is free traffic, my friend!

    The second course I recommend is Pinterest Traffic Avalanche. You could spend all day searching online on how to use popular social media platforms, but what is missing in a lot of online posts and YouTube tutorials is the AI integration piece.

    To drive traffic to your website, you have to post multiple times a day on social media and create 10-15 pins a day if you’re on Pinterest.

    Automating the process saves time in doing it yourself, so you can focus on growing your fan base and say adios to the cubical farm for good!

    In part 3 of 5 Smart Ways to Promote Your Blog Online, I will explore more about the power of artificial intelligence, why every new blogger needs a scheduling tool for Pinterest and Instagram, and the importance of creating engaging and exciting content for your customers and readers.

    blog-thumb-1 Read more
    DEC
    2019     09
    Business, Social Media Marketing
    0

    5 SMART WAYS TO PROMOTE YOUR BLOG ONLINE

    An image of a pinterest pin

    So, you have decided to take the plunge and go to the dark side of becoming your boss to sell a product, service, or start a blog that you want to share with the world.

    Your website is up and running, but in a sea of online businesses and bloggers, in today’s digital environment, you have to find a way to stand out and get noticed fast.

    In this four-part post, I will discuss the power of imagery, social media marketing, and artificial intelligence.

    The return on investment taking a blogging or Pinterest marketing course, affiliate marketing, and the benefits of selling a product or service.

    I will share the basics of online marketing solutions I have tried and recommend adding to your visual marketing strategy toolbox.

    If you put in the work, these platforms will increase traffic to your website, build brand loyalty, and increase e-commerce revenue streams. The best part is most of them are free.

    You’re likely already using one or two social media platforms, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook daily to keep in touch with friends and family.

    Note To The Reader

    A note to the reader, this isn’t a thirty second around the world get rich quick scheme using social media platforms and fake online profiles to trick people into buying a product or service to make a quick buck.

    In learning about blogging and social media marketing, I have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly online and on YouTube. If that is what you are looking for, this blog post is not for you.

    I wish you the best of luck and thank you for visiting my site. You have a good one now.

    Woman flexing her muscles with the word "startup" behind her.

    If you are serious about starting a blog, online business to sell a product, service, or to share information, reading this post won’t be a waste of your time.

    In the long run, the information I will share will help to lessen or avoid the mistakes most entrepreneurs experience and serve as a milestone checklist every once in a while during your journey to digital business.

    If anything, you will have the strength to remain focused and keep going when facing roadblocks.

    When I mean roadblocks, I mean technical learning curves about WordPress, website hosting, The Power Of Imagery In Marketing

    Having worked in retail and customer service for many years, I know the power of visual marketing using colorful imagery accompanied by a good sales pitch.

    Ever heard of Victoria’s Secret and Express?

    For many years, it was my job to overcome sales rejection and convert visitors into customers. That was then.

    More and more customers are choosing to do their shopping online from their smartphones while on the go and not from their PCs at home versus shopping at brick and mortar stores.

    Internet Users In The World

    According to broadbrandsearch.net, the estimated world population is 7,634,758,428. Out of that population, 55.1% have access and use the internet frequently.

    Internet usage broken down by country shows that Asia accounts for the majority of internet users in the world:

    • Asia: 49%
    • Europe: 16.8%
    • Africa: 11%
    • Latin America/Carribean: 10.4%
    • North America: 8.2%
    • Middle East: 3.9%
    • Australia: 0.7%

    Learning how to use social media to grow your online store, blog, or website has a couple of advantages.

    Social Media Platforms

    Promoting your products using one or more of these popular social media platforms, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram can help attract new customers, increase brand awareness, and grow your startup.

    Knowing who your target audience is will help in determining communication objectives when promoting online.

    Man using touchscreen function on the ipad.

    Integrating a blog to your website will further strengthen your brand, product, or service and help you get organic traffic from consumers searching online. That is free traffic! Who can say no to that?

    The majority of my traffic comes from social media, followed by organic searches, and lastly, direct referrals.

    Now I am sure you are asking how expensive this process is. Well, it depends on your goals, objectives, and how much in funding you have available or are willing to spend on start-up expenses.

    Once all said and done, the cost to register a website domain, an LLC (Limited Liability Corporation), automate social media marketing processes and take two online blogging courses can be done for less than $500.

    In part 2 of 5 Smart Ways to Promote Your Blog Online, I will share the best blogging course for new bloggers to grow your blog and explain how the power of social media and leveraging Pinterest marketing is your best friend in driving visitors to your website.

    google.com, pub-9065360763637364, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0