While those of us just linking up now are beyond late to the party (hey, many of us didn’t have kids ten years ago- it was easier to keep up!), we’re still joining in the fun of the Old School Blogging Meme. So when I was tagged by Nicole and then Shell, I figured I better hop to it! Such a fun and easy way to get to know fellow bloggers.

What were you doing 10 years ago?

Roaming the streets of Atlanta. Though not in a homeless way, more of the college student way, typically with a Starbucks cup in hand. I ditched a major and ended up confused about where I wanted to go next. But I did get to do it in a city that I loved.

What 5 things are on your to do list?

5 things? Can I even tell you that the day I get my to-do list down to five things will be a happy day indeed. I’ll pick the top 5:

1. Get organized for Blissdom. Since it’s in 2 days and all. 
2. Close on our house. First the one we’re selling, then the one we’re buying. (Almost there..)
3. Sign the kids up for swimming lessons. Even though my oldest can swim, we just bought a house with a pool. So while we’re installing a safety fence before we even move in, extra steps of safety people.
4. Get all the laundry done. For eternity if I could. But I’ll settle for the week.
5. Become two weeks ahead with my blog. Hey, if I’m going to dream, I’ll dream big. It’s a goal to be that far ahead, and I’d love to do it this week!

What are 5 snacks you enjoy?

Here’s another one that I could go long beyond five.

1. Cheese. Havartie, Brie, Camembert, Monterey Jack… I love me some cheese. 
2. Fruit. Grapes, strawberries, apples, raspberries, blackberries, wine.. (hey it counts)
3. Popcorn. Oh how I love popcorn. Bonus poins if it’s from the movie theater.
4. Chips. The salty goodness. The empty calories. The oh-so-bad-for-you deliciousness of some good ol’ potato chips.
5. Soft pretzel bites. And it has to be served with cream cheese.

Name some things you would do if you were a millionaire.

Oh the possibilities… The first thing would be giving some to family, and then supporting breast cancer and children’s healthcare charities. On the personal note, pay off student loans and kick my teeth disaster fixing into high gear. (side story- I had finally had my wisdom teeth removed, only to have my teeth shift out of place. After the trauma of childhood braces, I now have a gap in my teeth. Again. SIGH. Of course, I also have a 4 month old baby so dentist visits are tough.) And if I’m a really big millionaire, buy an island or a country or something.

Name some places you have lived.

Here’s another list that could get long! Let’s see.. Atlanta Georgia, Salt Lake City Utah, Panama City Florida, Hampton Roads Virginia, Anchorage, Alaska, and currently, the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas.

Name some bad habits you have.

I laugh at the end of sentences. I have very little patience. I overuse the word seriously. Seriously.

Name some jobs you have had.

Blogger. Social Media Associate. Social Media coordinator. Office Manager. Coordinator of Chaos.

Now instead of tagging bloggers since they will run this again next month with a different meme, I will just direct you back to The Miss Elaine-ous Life and Theta Mom to check it all out!

As each new year gets underway, so do the blogging resolutions. While your motivation is going strong, now is the perfect time to evaluate your blogging goals and get the year started off right. I like to list several goals for the year ahead and save it in my drafts so I can review them from time to time- and see where I need to get moving! Here are three tips to shake up your bloggy new year:

Start something new.

The new year is a perfect time to introduce new features on your blog. Perhaps you want to start highlighting some of your favorite blog posts each week or invite other bloggers to share their stories on your blog. Consider asking experts or well-known influencers on your blogging topics to guest post, or share tips from some of your favorite resources each week. Whatever your focus may be, now is the perfect time to start something new.

Expand your social media presence

Have you put off setting up a Facebook Fan Page? January is the perfect time to go ahead and take the plunge. Do you need help getting started? Is this is the year you want to take your blogging to the next level or search for a job? Then you should be sure to have your LinkedIn Profile set up and accurately updated. With so many social networks around the web, it can be hard to pick and choose which to concentrate on at which times. Spend the first month of the new year picking one of them to try and to see what might be your best fit.

Let go of things that didn’t work.

Did you try a new feature or series on your blog last year that did not turn out as planned? Perhaps there wasn’t as much interest as you had anticipated or you found yourself losing motivation with the topic. Whatever the case, this is the perfect time to reevaluate your content. What did people respond to the most on your blog last year? Can you take this and turn it into something new? For example, if you shared a couple of recipes on your savings or fashion blog and people were interested, find a way to incorporate recipes into a series. If you focus on coupons and discounts, offer great recipes that can be made for low prices. Do you focus on the latest trends? Translate the season’s new styles into a fashionable menu plan. No matter what your blog focuses on, there are always creative ways to expand your topics.

What are some of your blogging plans for this year?

Have you ever wanted to disallow commenting on a specific post you wrote?

Perhaps you are guest posting somewhere and don’t wish to have any comments on your entry so that your readers go and comment over there; maybe you want to make an announcement or share something, but you do not want to discuss it in detail. Or, perhaps you have information or pages you don’t want to receive comments on. Whichever the situation, it’s easy to turn off comments for individual posts, whether in Blogger or WordPress.

For self-hosted WordPress:

1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard.

2. Scroll to the “Posts” section and select “Add New”.

3. Important step- don’t miss! Make sure that on your Screen Options (which can be found at the very top of the screen, underneath your admin bar), that your discussions option is selected. There is a checkmark in the box next to “Discussion” on the options menu. (See the image below for help.)

4. After writing your post, scroll down beneath your post until you get to the section titled “Discussion”. Be sure to deselect the box next to “Allow comments” before publishing your post.

That’s it- the comments are off for that particular post in WordPress!

For Blogger:

1. Log in to your blogger account and select the appropriate blog, if you have more than one.

2. Click on “New Post”

3. After writing your post, select the “Options” under the “Post Settings” on the right-hand side.

4. Under “Reader Comments”, select “Don’t Allow”.

That’s it! Comments are disabled on that post.

Blogging problem: You spend hours creating the perfect post, adding in rich keywords, and loading a bunch of images that made it *just* right. Then, when you came back to the draft to make some changes, you deleted half of the post. Or, perhaps you shut the window before you were done saving. Panic attack time, right?

Not necessarily, especially if you were working on a saved draft of the post in WordPress!

To recover a draft in WordPress, follow these steps.

1. Navigate to Dashboard–> All Posts.

2. Select the post you want to restore and click “edit”.

3. On the top right of the screen, click the “Screen Options” arrow to show this menu.

4. Ensure that the “Revisions” checkbox is selected.

5. Once this box is selected, scroll all the way past your post entry box, past any seo options, etc underneath it until you see the revisions section on your post. The last revision may be by you, a collaborative author you work with, or even an auto save (which is the case in my example).

6. Click on the appropriate revision. If you want to compare two revisions, scroll down again to do select this. Once you select the appropriate copy, click Restore.

Once you land on the appropriate draft revision, hit publish or update, and you are good to go!

What other issues do you encounter blogging?

Fall is in full swing, and we’re heading back to school- well, blogging school!

Announcing our First Round of Fall Classes!

Learning to share your content for increased exposure. This course will take you through utilizing social media platforms to increase your blog’s presence. We’ll walk you through tips on how to make your blog social media-friendly, how to set up and leverage the various platforms, strategies for growing your presence on the platforms, and tips for ongoing engagement. Practical advice, to-do lists, and weekly tasks & assignments will be covered in this course. Our goal is to help you leverage social media for better blog exposure! Ready to Register? Sign up now!

This class will start on September 17 and will include three live video sessions where you can ask questions and include private forum access to work through assignments. Live sessions will be held on Sept 18, Sept 20, and Sept 25 at 8pm ET. If you can’t make a live session, video will be available the following day.

Ready to Register? Sign up now!

Encourage more comments, readers, and engagement. We’ll walk you through the must-haves(and must-not-haves!) for your blog as well as explain how to ensure your blog is user- and PR-Friendly. You’ll have access to a live online session as well as a private forum to ask questions. A checklist will be provided for self blog evaluation as well as evaluation from other group members, so you’ll have fresh eyes talking a look at your blog.  Less time consuming than our full courses but cooperative in nature, this mini-course will help you make sure you’re getting the most engagement from your blog.

This course will begin September 17th, with one live session on Sept 24th.

Ready to Register? Sign up now!

A significant part of blogging is establishing your brand. Many questions arise with this process. How do you come up with a name? What if you change your mind? How do you choose? With dozens of questions circling in your mind, determining a name and branding your blog can become downright stressful. Take a deep breath, think about your blog, and remember- it should be a reflection of you and/or your goals.

3 tips to determine your blog’s branding

1. Make a list! What do you WANT to write about? Do you want to cover specific topics and become a niche blog? Do you want to share tips, tutorials, and resources? Do you want to focus on your kids? Include something about parenting, mom, etc in your name. Consider how you want your blog to be known going forward. In addition, keep in mind that putting yourself in a specific niche now can limit you later, so be mindful of this detail when determining a name.

2. Decide on an end goal. If you are wanting to monetize your blog and see a source of revenue, then it is important to pay attention to the SEO (search engine optimization) of your blog title and tagline. Find terms that relate to what your blog will be about and try to incorporate them into your title and tagline. However, this may be less significant if you are wanting to use your blog as more of an outlet for your thoughts. While paying attention to SEO details never hurts, it will not be as significant if monetization is not a primary goal.

3. If you get stuck, start writing. One of my most common suggestions to people when they ask me about naming their blog is to tell them to get out their laptop (or a pen) and start writing. Make a list of ten blog posts you could write about right now- what is on your mind that you want to share with your readers? Did you find a great deal on shoes? Did you discover a fabulous antique dresser you just had to refinish- and want to document the steps? Do you just have to share a picture of your five year old’s artwork? Keep the ideas flowing- it will help you see where your blog is naturally heading and can make choosing a name a much simpler task.

How have you established your brand?

While all bloggers love to share their words, comments are the most exciting currency. Building up readers is an ongoing process and it can take time to create a network with fluent comments. The first question many newer bloggers have (and experienced ones for that matter) is how on earth did they get so many responses?

Unfortunately, there is not a quick and easy method that bypasses good, old-fashioned hard work. However, there are a few things you can do on a regular basis to generate replies (in addition to awesome, enticing content of course).

Ways to increase comments

1. Comment, comment, comment. I can not stress enough the importance of visiting other blogs as much as humanly possible and commenting on them. Blogging is so much about connecting and you get what you put out there. Seek out blogs that are similar to your own so that you enjoy the content as well as have the chance to make new connections with other bloggers.

2. Join communities. Communities are amazing resources for bloggers. A great example is the BlogFrog Communities, and the fabulous discussion forums over on SITS. Find relevant communities, whether business planning, blog writing, or any other niche that may fit your goals and become an active member. It’s a great way to find other blogs and increase your own’s visibility.

3. Ask a question at the end of your post. This is one of the most simple and most effective ways to engage your audience is to ask them a question at the end of your post. Did you share tips on how to frugally save and spend for the holidays? Ask readers to leave a tip they have used in the past. Was your article centered on creating a new look for a room in your home? Ask your readers to share their own design inspirations. The idea is to connect and engage.

What ways have you found to increase comments?

(P.S. Notice how I ended with a question? )

Do you ever find yourself at a point where you hit the dreaded writer’s block? Except, instead of a block it feels like an entire darn wall? Sure, you could share a story about your kid, or what aggravating work situation happened that week. However, the week was so draining/frustrating/dull you don’t want to share- but at the same time, you’re still struggling over what to blog about.

Yeah. Me too. After putting in a full work week with our clients, running the kids around for the end of summer activities (and now back to school) and growing a human being, sometimes my brain is just too overloaded to come up with fresh ideas. If you ever find yourself in a similar boat, here are several tips to work around it.

1. Review your Mission Statement. Whether a business or a blogger, chances are you have a mission statement. Write a post about how your mission statement was conceived, how you strive to live up to it, or what it means to you. The insights packed into that statement can provide immeasurable content.

2. Share your first job, your first client, your first date, etc stories. The first time we all do things tends to carry a story- whether amusing, heartwarming, or just plain embarrassing. Still, whatever the emotion, sharing your first experiences is a great way to let your readers connect with you- and are usually pretty easy to write!

3. Call your mom. Or a friend, client, etc. The secret is to call someone who you know will say something a little crazy. Now, you do not want to be sharing your detailed conversations (necessarily), but an off-the-wall exchange or two can stir up all kinds of creative juices. (Or maybe this is just me.)

4. Read Facebook. Do you ever skim through Facebook and then rant to your husband about the things you read on there? (No? Just me again?) Take some of that indignation or aggravation and craft a well-thought out blog post based on something you’ve read. (Tip: try to avoid personal attacks and stick to the topics in general. Particularly if the person reads your blog!)

5. Call a friend and have the friend tell you what to write.If you are really stick and just aren’t sure what to write about,  make someone else choose for you. The results of giving someone else control (somewhat) of your content can be surprising- but in a really good way.

What are some of your go-to’s for generating content?

How many social media networks do you spend time on? If you have been around this space for awhile, it’s probably quite a few. If you’re new to it all, maybe it’s just one or two. Or, if you’re like me, you spend an insane amount of time looking at them all and drive yourself crazy trying to learn and figure out the most useful.

An insane amount of time. Truly. Learning in social media really never ends.

Whichever your case, you may be wondering how to choose where to spend your time. One of the most frequent questions I hear from newer bloggers or those who want to get started is just that- where do I begin?

The answer is simple: Facebook.

Understanding social platforms

While there are a variety of benefits to existing platforms, you have to be able to leverage them well for them to pay off. Simply having an account somewhere and sharing your own information is not the best use of your time- or of social media.

Twitter

What it is: A platform in which rapid conversations fly in a maximum of 140 characters.

Why you should use it: Twitter is a great way to connect with others- friends, bloggers, brands. Twitter allows you to jump into a conversation without having to have an established relationship- though following some etiquette rules is never a bad thing, either.

Why it’s okay to wait: While you can grow your exposure with Twitter, the longevity of tweets is limited. You need to tweet out your links throughout the day to reach the most people, and in return, you need to engage- reply to tweets, follow other users, tweet out useful content. The time investment can be tough when figuring out how to navigate so many spaces at once.

Pinterest

What it is: A visually-driven platform where users provide & share content they love- and one that everyone jumped on quickly.

Why you should use it: Pinterest is one of the fastest growing social media networks in existence. Strong in its user-friendly interface, ability to save useful daily tips like DIY Projects and recipes, and filled with amazing pictures, Pinterest takes everyone’s hobbies, represents them with a photo, and shares them with the world- just like you should do with your pin-worthy blog posts.

Why it’s okay to wait: While visual content is extremely valuable and more prone to go viral, not all content is pin-worthy. Some posts do not contain the visual components needed to successful leverage Pinterest traffic- which can be worked around, but takes time. Strong photos and clever titles reign supreme on Pinterest, and you have to spend the time making your content pin-worthy to see a return.

Facebook

What it is: It’s Facebook. The place to share your thoughts, photos, games… any aspect of your life you can think of, there’s probably a way to share it on Facbook.

Why you should use it: EVERYONE is on Facebook. Everyone. You’re on Facebook. Your high school friends are on Facebook. Your mom is on Facebook. Your teenage niece is on Facebook. Brands are on Facebook. EVERYONE is on Facebook and they like to talk. People share great content, and with more than 900,000 MILLION active users, it’s a resource just waiting to be tapped into- now.

Why it’s okay to wait: It’s not. Facebook is a platform you should start leveraging right away. Build up engagement, whether its through your personal page or your Fan Page. Ask questions to draw in responses, share great photos, and make it easy to connect with you (more Facebook tips to come!). Put in some effort to engage with others and you will see a great return- on engagement, fans, and referral traffic.

Ultimately, you will see the most success in leveraging mutltiple social media platforms by learning them and utilizing them well. But, the key is to focus your efforts on one thing at a time, and do it well- then, you can move on to the next big thing.

What do you think of the various social media networks? Which platforms do you leverage and which do you leave alone?