Update: What happened after a year of solid blogging?

Blog Like you Mean It! 

 After a year of solid blogging, about 600 posts, over 20 giveaways and even more product reviews, and over $2,000 for being paid to blog it is all starting to set in. My blog really works. 

 I learned one needs to blog every day. 

 Blog about what you know! 

 Keep up with the news (I feel behind in this area) 

 Don't be afraid of conflict!

 Back up your Blog ALL THE TIME. 

 Blogger can hold you back and wordpress has more options!

 Not all Server Hosts are the same. 

 Servers sometimes go down!

 Photos Matter! 

 Running Games on your Social Media is fun and helps your readers find your posts! 

 It is important to ask for what your worth! 

 Don't let companies take advantage of you! 

 Write because you love to write!

 Find ways to take vacations away from computers when you can! 

 Don't post free guest posts! Space on your blog has value, don't just give it away! 

 Page Rank? 

  Page rank for my main blog (Not this one) is now PR 3. 

  I went from having zero fans on facebook and twitter to having: 

  Facebook = 6,300

  

  Twitter = 4,700

   And another few thousand on google +, pinterest, and other social networks. 

    FUN! 

 I think I would call my first year really working on that blog a success don't you? You can do the same thing! Follow the posts I have made so far and please feel free to ask me any questions. You can also scold me for not working more on this blog! 

Bloggers, are you being taken advantage of?

    It is a sad fact that there are those out there who are knowingly taking advantage of others. One would think in such a great community like bloggers that this would not be the case, specially not from one of our own.

  I found myself on a blog, you the type, one promising great information about blogging with a catchy title, only to find the content really lacking. I thought maybe it was just one poor piece by the writer. Above the headline was a huge image talking about a blogging contest. Curiosity had me click, like many I am sure, the article I had initially been drawn in by seeming like a lure to the contest.

 What a smart way to get page rank and visibility I though as I read the contest. Enter to win $200! Write a blog review of this guys site, to enter you have to include two links to his site, talk about the contest (giving him further promotion) and so on. I would share his links here as he says he wants honest feedback but alas, that is not the case. So I will simply say, I wouldn't trust "dukeo.com" and here is why.

 I along with other bloggers commented on what a great idea the contest was and how much he was saving on doing it this way. Why? Because links and reviews like this from even small blogs normally cost about $50 a piece, be they sponsored posts or guest posts. It is about having content about a business and the links to that business. I would think a site all about SEO and traffic would know such things but instead the owner of the site acted as if he was clueless, that no blogger is paid for such things, and that he wasn't doing the contest for any other reason. Suddenly he changed the contest and added another prize, as if this would make up for it.

 He didn't believe I could make $60 for a piece like he was asking for. So I not only showed him a piece I was paid $120 for but also an important link to show how he taking advantage of bloggers, bloggers who go to his site expecting to be informed and helped. I shared this great link and he at first ignored it:

You can click on that image to go to a great article that can help you explain how much bloggers should charge for links and posts on their blog! 

  By my math, just assuming the bloggers are a basic PR2 that are entering his blog so far he has at least 10 reviews, and if he paid for them he would be paying over $500 so far. 

 He then goes and posts this: The rules for this contest are extremely simple, but it appears that some bloggers really like trying to mislead people and twist the rules… As a result, I have also received a couple of reviews which do not qualify for the contest. Here is why:

• the review can’t be included inside of a longer post about unrelated things, (you can’t have a “weekly recap” with just one paragraph about the contest)
• the review must clearly disclose that it’s part of a contest to win a prize. (don’t try misleading the reader, Dukeo doesn’t support misleading bloggers)

Making me think that he is upset people are not advertising his contest for him and are not giving him a full blog page about his blog, meaning less SEO for him. He knows what he is doing with this. I gave him the benefit of the doubt at first. But then when I posted valid information he stopped trying to act like he didn't know any better and then deleted ALL opinions on this matter, from me and others. 

 So much for wanting honest opinions about how he is doing and his site. He FAILED. Sté Kerwer stop being the big bad wolf in sheeps clothing! You will notice that I do not have any clickable links to his site on this post. I am not going to give him the SEO he so wants. Not that it would help too much though because I am using this tiny blog. It is a great platform though to show you what not to do. 

 Of course you could do it, it is smart, but it isn't really fair and if your called out on doing such a thing, at least own up to it and not cowardly hide behind the delete button. I expected better of the person, alas, a blogging God he isn't, unless he is the god of fools or lies. 

 Be sure to do your research and value the work you have put into your blog. Find out what the going rate is for your blog PR level and views. Your worth it! 

The Blogging Block

It is 2013 and for a while now my blog has been a PR 3, and had around 10k followers between facebook and twitter. It seems to have stalled in growth and even dropped considerably since I moved from blogger to  wordpress with it. Needless to say, I will be keeping this little blog here to see what happens. While this blog has not gotten the attention of the other, it is a still a recording of a path and I think, or rather hope, that someday it might help other bloggers! 

Like a writer with writers block, I think there is such a thing as bloggers block. I am not sure if the deal and coupon bloggers get this feeling as most of their content is sharing deals set by companies. Blogging about life, about issues, about topics that reach down into you, that is a different kind of blogging. 

I feel like I have run into a wall with blogging. I love it, I love writing, but I am not feeling very organized, and not feeling very motivated. I am seaking to fix this of course, after a year of hard pushing to be a great blogger and making it farther than so many others, it is any wonder I am feeling a bit burnt out? 

So I started a few more blogs to follow some more interests and though to check back here and update. I don't have all the answers but I can say, if your a struggling blogger, find others who can inspire you! Don't give up! 

What is your Blog Worth

  Every now and then I get curious when other bloggers talk about how much their blog is worth and how they figure that out. Now that my little blog is bringing in income, I thought I would check a popular site to find out how much my site is worth. Color me shocked when it said this:

 170,000.00

Of course I am talking not about this blog, but my baby blog that I oh so love. I really should dedicate more time to this one but really this one is a log about how the other is doing and I hope a path to helping other new bloggers become blogging goddesses someday!

So maybe check out this site and see how much your blog is worth! Feel free to share the amount and a link in the comments!

http://www.blogcalculator.com

Blogging Tip - Get in the Group

One of the key things to blogging is social networking these days and one of the best ways to network and grow I have discovered is to make sure you know the right people and are in the right blogging groups. The best blogging groups I have found so far are organized not on forums but rather facebook groups. This could change in the future but for now this is how it is. 

I am in three that I check on multiple times of day. They provide different things. One is very exclusive and I couldn't get you into it if I tried. They find companies that need reviews and then make sure those in our group get them and do them well. Another group is all about support in social marketing and SEO, and the other is a group run by a blogger who gets us paid posts for a commission of her own and goodness she does she deserve it. All three groups save me a lot of time and help my blog grow and make sure I have a lot to do.

Remember Blogging Is Not Just About Readers!

It is also about your relationship to other bloggers and companies that count on you! 

Has GoDaddy Been Hacked

FACT: GoDaddy has many websites including it's own down! 

According to many sites including littlecrunchy.com godaddy is Hacked.

It is not yet confirmed though and as of 4:00pm EST no motive has been posted. 

WHY WOULD SOMEONE DO THIS? 

Because they can Might be the real answer

Just because one can do something doesn't mean one should however! 

Another theory is that it was hacked because of #SOPA support, only anyone who knows both GoDaddy and SOPA issues knows that GoDaddy listened to the people and stopped supporting SOPA last year! So what is the real deal with this? 

One thing is for certain, bloggers and businesses who have sites down right now from this ARE suffering for it. They are losing business and maybe minutes off their lives from the worry of it. 

Blogging Tip: Be Specific

Image Credit www.sxc.hu

 

 Dear Blogger,

         When you post to complain about how companies do not want to work with you as they are looking for Niche blogs, take that as a hint! Do not go trying to talk them into seeing that you post about what they are looking for too! Over all blogs are not what the market wants! I know it might be hard to find your Niche but you need to do just that. If your blessed with more then one Niche, make TWO blogs!

         This is not a new tip, but an important one to remember. If you want to blog about books and mommy life, make two blogs, else make a blog about Mommy Books or Children's Books!

         You can do this! You really can. Write about what you love and if you love many things, make more blogs! It is what readers want, it is what google wants, and it what clients who hire or work with bloggers want. If you want to make money blogging you need to be specific!

                                                                                                           All the best,
                                                                                                        Not Yet A Blogging Goddess