Category:

Blogging

Amazon Q4 Earnings Live Blog Coming After the Close Thursday

by Loknath Das February 2, 2020

written by Loknath Das

TheStreet and RealMoney tech columnist Eric Jhonsa is live blogging Amazon’s (AMZN) – Get Report fourth-quarter earnings report after the close on Thursday, Jan. 30.

Among the things to watch for are e-commerce and AWS growth rates, how much Amazon is spending on shipping and those costs’ impact on gross margins and the company’s 2020 spending plans.

For the fourth quarter, analysts polled by FactSet are expecting revenue of $86.03 billion and GAAP EPS of $4.05, and Q1 guidance of revenue of $71.61 billion and GAAP operating income of $2.7 billion.

We’ll also be reporting on and analyzing Amazon’s earnings call with analysts, scheduled for 4:30 p.m. E.T.

[“source=thestreet”]

February 2, 2020 0 comment

Blogging

6 Top Bloggers Share Their Best Advice To Grow A Blog In 2020

by Loknath Das January 25, 2020

written by Loknath Das

6 Top Bloggers Share Their Best Advice To Grow A Blog In 2020

The year 2020 is going to be a big one for blogging. Just like the last several years, blogs are playing an increasing essential role in the overall content strategy for businesses of all types and sizes.

From individual bloggers all the way up to Fortune 500 marketing teams, it’s clear that both search engines and consumers alike, continue to crave helpful blog content that answers questions and solves reader challenges. If you want to build your business and grow your personal brand, you need to have a blog.

I’ve been blogging for over a decade now, and I remember how overwhelming it was looking for advice when I first got started. If anything, there’s even more advice floating around than ever before, so it can be difficult to sift through all the noise.

If you’re starting to feel overwhelmed by the wide range of blogging advice you see on the Internet, don’t be. I recently interviewed several of the world’s most prominent bloggers, to compile their best blogging tips, and here’s what I learned.

Today In: Leadership

1. Invest In Your Team

Jon Morrow of SmartBlogger has been one of the most consistently successful bloggers in the industry since 2012. His prolific, high-quality posts and writing advice have been a lifeline for many who are just getting into the field. But when I had him on my podcast a few months ago, he said one of the most impactful decisions he’s ever made, was is building a team around his blog.

Many bloggers outsource a portion of their content, but often do it through a loose network of low-wage contributors, never building a truly personal relationship with most of them. Morrow’s approach is different. He’s had one of his team members with him for nearly a decade, several others who’ve worked with him for years, and he says the difference is clear.

Morrow shares, “The amount of oversight that’s required is dramatically less with a great team, and the profit is dramatically higher for each of those people as well. So it’s a higher investment, but it’s a much higher reward. The amount of stress that it relieves—of knowing you have people around that are committed to your business growth over the long haul and that they’re genuinely doing a good job at their work—the sense of peace you get from that as an entrepreneur, is something that you just can’t put a price tag on. It’s a beautiful thing.”

2. Focus On How To Monetize First

It’s easy to go into blogging backwards if you’re not careful. You uncover a topic area or keyword opportunity you think will drive a ton of traffic to your site, and then figure out how to make a living from it—instead of purposefully choosing a niche that you both enjoy and has clear revenue potential. Just ask Tim Soulo, the CMO of Ahrefs, who previously built his own blog by focusing on traffic—not money.

“Traffic is a super vanity metric, because the number doesn’t mean anything until you try to monetize it. My advice for people who want to launch a blog as a business, is to go backward. Figure out how you’re going to make money from your blog first,” Soulo explains.

This is sound advice, because recent data suggests that 60% of people who read a blog post about a product will go on to eventually purchase it. So, whether it’s joining an affiliate program and writing product reviews, building your own digital product, soliciting sponsorships or otherwise—you need to have a viable plan for how your blog will soon turn a profit.

3. Build Your Email List

Alexis Grant has built media brands, grown her own content agency and was a critical player in expanding the popular personal finance site, The Penny Hoarder. Today, she runs a writing advice blog called The Write Life, where she draws on her experience as a former journalist for publications like the Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report.

Her advice for new bloggers is simple—build an email list. Grant notes, “An email list is more valuable than any social following, because you own the emails and can reach people directly in their own inbox, rather than hoping a network like Facebook or Twitter will display your content to your community. It’s also a very effective way to build trust, because you can add a personal touch.”

Email has been a successful channel for just about every blogger and marketing team, especially when it comes to driving consistent traffic to new articles and helping to better monetize a site.

4. Take Charge Of Your Promotion Efforts

Poornima Vijayashanker has been running the software engineering blog, Femgineer, since 2007, and she’s found that a passive strategy isn’t going to bring you success as a blogger.

As we head further into 2020, there are already more than 31.7 million bloggers competing for people’s attention in the U.S. alone. One of the best ways to stand out from the pack, is by competing directly for people’s attention, instead of standing around hoping to be discovered.

“You can’t expect people to automatically discover you, because there’s seven billion people on the planet—we’re all worth discovering,” says Vijayashanker. “You have to reach out and cultivate your own relationships with readers, and depending on the product or service you’re offering on your blog, how you do that can vary.”

Whether it’s through interacting with your email list, releasing an online course, speaking at in-person conferences or something else entirely, building a network is more important than ever. Find where your people spend their time online, and work hard to get in front of them.

5. Create Smart Habits

New York Times bestselling author and prolific blogger, James Clear, has risen to prominence largely because of his thought-provoking content and consistent publishing schedule.

“Set a pace that you can sustain with publishing new articles,” Clear advises. “Don’t worry so much about the results in the short-term. In the beginning, it didn’t matter if I thought an article was good or bad, if the response to it was good or bad, if it was long or short—all that mattered was that I published an article every Monday and Thursday.”

This consistency has worked well for Clear, and it has for many others too. Studies show that when companies publish more than 16 blog posts a month, they see three and a half times the leads as those that publish only four each month. Consistent, strong content output will set you apart from most of your competitors.

6. Start Today

Web developer and designer by trade, Alex Williams of Hosting Data, has built a rapidly growing blog that teaches millions of readers how to navigate the complex process of getting their websites online. He’s well known for using consistent, high-quality content as a tool to bring new readers to his site, and he’s good at it.

When it comes to sharing his best advice to new bloggers, Williams says, “Just start. Stop over-thinking and carefully planning your entire approach to launching. Just get started today, and know that your site doesn’t have to be perfect. Even if it’s not the most visually appealing blog right now, what matters most is that you start taking steps in the right direction—and strive to solve meaningful problems in the best possible way for your future readers.”

If you can build a strong connection with a particular audience, based on your ability to help them successfully navigate a subject, then you’re well on your way to growing a profitable blog.

Like it or not, blogging is a crowded space. Whether you’re a solopreneur or a member of a large marketing team though, there are always ways to differentiate yourself and stand out from the crowd.

Follow the advice from these seasoned bloggers, and one day you may just be the person sharing your own experiences with future aspiring writers.

[“source=forbes”]

January 25, 2020 0 comment

Blogging

Could starting a blog or posting regularly to LinkedIn help or hurt my career?

by Loknath Das January 13, 2020

written by Loknath Das

Dear Sam: I enjoy writing, even though my job is more technical. Friends, who also are just starting in their careers, have recommended that I begin blogging or posting to LinkedIn. Is that a good idea or could it hurt my career as I look to climb the ladder? — Dan

Dear Dan: Blogging can undoubtedly lend credence to your areas of emerging expertise. I would perhaps question the ‘why’ behind the desire to blog or the suggestion by your friends to start publishing your thoughts. Are you trying to position yourself as a future consultant? Are you seeking to represent yourself with an increased presence for an upcoming job search? Blogging should be entered into with some forethought of who your audience is, what views you are expressing and what the purpose is behind your efforts.

Also, I would want to make sure that anything you publish is thoroughly reviewed and proofread as the strength of your written communications will be evaluated just as much as the content of your messages. Lastly, be sure you don’t mind your thoughts following you for your entire career. For instance, let’s say you use a specific software package at work or have a particular affinity for a certain technology tool, and, in your blog, you state your preference. Now, fast forward five years and that other company could come calling with an offer for an interview and, just maybe in their vetting process, they will find your brand preference from an earlier writing you forgot about; do you see the dilemma? I want you to be very thoughtful about what you publish, for obvious reasons.

If you are seeking to blog as a job seeker, that can be a great way to demonstrate subject mastery. I have seen lots of job seekers use LinkedIn’s post and article capabilities to share professional wisdom. Hence, don’t think you necessarily have to develop an entire platform exclusively for your thoughts; you might be able to do the same thing on an already existing platform with an embedded audience. If you don’t think blogging is the right direction for you at this juncture in your career, instead perhaps join groups and follow companies of interest on LinkedIn and be an active contributor to those digital discussions. Of course, you will want to follow the same rules in terms of representing your professional candidacy at all times with any comment that you make, but this can be a softer entry into the publishing arena.

In brief, a blog could help you in these five ways:

Establish you as a thought leader in your space.
Promote your candidacy for new opportunities.
Establish you as a teacher and as a possible team leader.
Expand your network and opportunities to connect with peers.
Build your presence on professional powerhouse platforms like LinkedIn.

Beware, however, as a poor blog could hurt you by illustrating what you don’t know, showing a lack of prowess when it comes to writing skills, alienating a potential company of interest if your views differ, and even, perhaps, showing an inconsistency of follow-through if your blogging is sporadic. Hence, I encourage you to start if you evaluate you have the expertise, time and knowledge to deliver thoughtful messages regularly. If not, then perhaps use comment features on other blogs and company posts as a way to reinforce your emerging expertise. Happy writing!

[“source=oregonlive”]

January 13, 2020 0 comment

Blogging

Blogging for Photographers in 2020: What Actually Works?

by Loknath Das January 4, 2020

written by Loknath Das

Image result for Blogging for Photographers in 2020: What Actually Works? When it comes to blogging, there are a lot of things that can help drive traffic to your site. Unfortunately, there are also a lot of things that you can spend tons of time on and be left with a minimal return. In this video, Corey and Dylan give photographers a solid game plan for going into 2020.

I know for me, my past blogging strategy has been to ignore blogging for six months, fill a few days with frantic blogging of past sessions, and follow with another six-month spree of ignorant bliss. What I didn’t realize was that blogging these sessions was giving me little to no return. I didn’t have a plan of action going into each post, so choosing keywords and optimizing for SEO was an afterthought when the post was done.

In this video, Corey and Dylan from Fuel Your Photos walk through some great examples of how to research blog post ideas as well as check those ideas for relevance. They also talk about the importance of checking your ideas and keywords against other sources of competition.

Once you have a list of ideas, they then give you some guidelines on how to make each post carry the most weight with search engines such as Google — things like the free Chrome extension Headingsmap, which can give you a great idea of how Google will process your site’s headings. Corey goes on to explain that if you can’t determine what your content is about from this heading map, then you probably have some work to do in order to clean things up.

Toward the end, they also give some great advice on how to best leverage some of this long-form content on your site. Instead of simply posting to your blog, you can also create a section to feature these posts on your main homepage. Not only does this lead clients directly to the content you want them to see, but you also give the new post more authority by having it linked on your main page.

The video is a solid hour-plus in length, but I feel it was absolutely worth the time.

[“source=fstoppers”]

January 4, 2020 0 comment

Blogging

How to Update Your Blogging Strategy for 2020

by Loknath Das December 30, 2019

written by Loknath Das

Taking the time to update your approach to blogging for 2020 will keep your strategy fresh and effective! After all, each new year brings its own set of new blogging trends as digital media and consumer preferences evolve. Updates to search engines like Google and Bing also influence how search terms, or keywords, are used in blog posts.

Altering how you write blog posts based on changing expectations and technological advancements as they arise can seem nerve-wracking. However, each new parameter provides multiple opportunities for your company’s bloggers, including the chance to master new skills as a writer.

In the coming year, quality, relevance and consistency are set to be more essential for a successful strategy than ever, which means that it’s a good time to brush up your core writing and editing skills while re-evaluating your audience’s preferences. By embracing a return to fundamentals, from search engine optimization to consumer trends, you can continue pushing the success of your blogging strategy forward as we enter 2020.

Why Change Up Your Blogging Strategy for 2020?

It’s important to review your blogging strategy each year.

Blogging for business is a well-studied art form in terms of content and strategy. Through trial and error, content creators have discovered that the formula for a successful blog combines strong content, consistent posting and search engine optimization (SEO). But the specifics of what draws an audience to particular content continues to evolve as society and technology become more intertwined.

Between changes in content trends and search engine algorithms, 2020 may mark the start of a new era in digital publication. High-quality, long-form content designed with a skimmable layout and interactive media components is predicted to outperform the formats that dominated the 2010s, like short blurbs and photo-based listicles.

According to content marketer Charlene Boutin, 2020 will place long-form blog posts in the spotlight. Bloggers who pay special attention to formal elements like editing, fact-checking, composition and eye movement should see an uptick in website traffic and audience retention. There are two main reasons for this prediction:

A recent update to Google’s algorithm, called BERT, which prioritizes originality and accuracy
An ongoing shift in consumer preferences toward thoughtful, in-depth content

As a result, best practices for a successful blogging strategy are returning to the basics of media design, with a new emphasis on thoroughness, accessibility and professionalism. The biggest content trends predicted for 2020, according to ContentFly, are:

Long-form posts
Reliable facts and references
Thoughtful, developed content
Frequent, consistent posting
High-quality snippets to draw in traffic (from social media)
Video and interactive media
Professional-level copywriting

Design your new blogging strategy around user experience and collaboration for best results.

In the New Year, SEO and user experience (UI) practices in blogging will require one all-purpose toolkit of considerations rather than two overlapping skill sets. To prepare for 2020, take advantage of the opportunity to streamline your blogging strategy, and adopt changes that make your posts more appealing to search engines and readers alike.

SEO Considerations for Your 2020 Blogging Strategy

The two hottest topics in SEO for blogging anticipated next year are the integration of BERT into Google’s search algorithm and the ongoing optimization of web pages for mobile users.

According to Search Engine Roundtable, BERT will impact roughly 10 percent of search queries, although the sum of its global effects on search results and ranking may be greater than that. BERT was rolled out on December 9, 2019, while Google introduced Mobile-first Indexing, which prioritizes mobile-friendly pages, in 2016. Over half of website traffic was from users on mobile devices in the third quarter of 2019, according to Statista.

Understanding How Google’s BERT Update Affects Blogging in 2020

Work originality and creativity into your blogging strategy this year to raise SEO.

According to the Search Engine Journal, “The BERT algorithm (Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers) is a deep learning algorithm related to natural language processing. It helps a machine to understand what words in a sentence mean, but with all the nuances of context.” The “bidirectional” part of its name means that BERT looks at the individual words in a sentence for the parts of a search query, rather than for strands of words in perfect sequence. This frees writers up to use the components of a long-tail keyword phrase throughout a headline or sentence.

In 2020, bloggers will be able to focus on naturalistic word flow rather than the precise repetition of a high-ranking phrase without losing out on SEO value. BERT is moving SEO for Google into a more user experience-focused territory, where audience-based considerations also boost search engine rankings. By understanding language more like a human, BERT alters Google results to boost written resources with logical language flow, robust supporting context and thorough editing.

Continue To Make Mobile Optimization Part of Your Strategy

Aside from designing your website for mobile viewing and navigation, as recommended by Leaving Work Behind, it’s important to account for mobile visitors when formatting blog posts. Small images wrapped into text rather than large ones that interrupt text can make lengthy posts more convenient to scroll through on mobile. Using bulleted lists and other formatting decisions that accommodate skimming can also make blog posts more hospitable to mobile users.

Increasing visitor access to your blog posts, through improved SEO and mobile-friendly formatting, will increase potential traffic to your entire website. This makes it more likely for your website and associated brand to get both backlinks and linkless mentions on other websites, which in turn boosts its SEO even more!

Reframing Your Blogging Strategy for the New Year

Make reworking your blogging strategy a top priority. The New Year is just around the corner!

Although blogging is in a state of flux, some best practices never change. Reviewing and improving a marketing strategy at the end of each fiscal year is a long-standing tradition in the business and advertising worlds. Many periodical publications, like newspapers and magazines, review their past progress and future goals once a year as well. Looking at current blogging trends merely tells us what’s succeeding on a large scale. However, examining the response to your posts published throughout 2019 can outfit you with a custom set of clues about how to proceed into 2020.

Be responsive in your blogging strategy: Responsive strategies incorporate specific insights from how your audience interacts with published content. At the end of 2019, you likely have a whole year of engagement data at your fingertips. Consult your website’s Google Analytics as well as any social media insights from updates with links to your blog. Ask yourself the following questions:
1. What posts received the most traffic?
2. What received the least traffic?
3. What internal links embedded in posts performed the best?
4. Which posts were most widely shared?
5. Overall, what subjects, keywords, length and accompanying media did your audience seem to get the most out of?
6. How can you replicate the success of your most popular posts with fresh, original content?
Plan to spend more time on your writing process: According to ContentFly, more businesses will outsource blogging to ensure professional quality. Additionally, BERT is built to rank carefully-edited, original content with well-supported information on query topics. Combined with a move toward long-form content, these factors mean that bloggers who dedicate time and attention to brainstorming, researching, drafting and editing in-depth blog posts are more likely to grow their audience in 2020. Aside from conforming to shifts in best practices, keep in mind that it may take time to incorporate specific insights gained from reviewing your blog’s 2019 analytics. In order to keep up with new demands in blogging, consider your own writing speed and technical flexibility when writing blog calendars and setting internal deadlines.
Identify the trends that work best for your audience: Not every blogging trend is worth chasing, just like not every social media platform is right for every business. Review the goals for your blogging strategy with new analytic information and general trends in mind. What trends are most likely to benefit your relationship with your audience? For blogs that receive a large chunk of traffic from social media, creating shareable short-form posts (“snippets”) with interactive content and well-labeled links to long-form content may be the smartest approach. However, for blogs that receive a high volume of organic traffic from search engines, meticulously crafted long-form content should take priority.
Promote audience interaction within posts: As digital media becomes an accepted part of our lives, consumers are more eager to participate rather than merely observe. Quizzes, maps, games/activities and clickable infographics all invite readers to delve deeper into the subject matter of a blog post while internalizing its information. Embedding or hyperlinking interactive resources in a post encourages readers to explore your website more thoroughly, with the added bonus of making your site a richer resource for future visitors.

[“source=business2community”]

December 30, 2019 0 comment

Blogging

Anthony Joshua Vs. Andy Ruiz Live Blog, Round-By-Round Analysis, Scorecards And Results

by Loknath Das December 8, 2019

written by Loknath Das

Andy Ruiz Jr v Anthony Joshua 2 - Weigh In

WBO, WBA and IBF Heavyweight Champion Andy Ruiz will rematch Anthony Joshua tonight in Saudi Arabia. I’ll be live blogging the fight covering and scoring each round as it happens. The undercard is complete with a variety of interesting results. Be sure to check those out below as well.

Refresh and scroll down to see the latest results and developments at the Diriyah Arena, in Diriyah.

Programming Note

Expected Start Time: 4:30 pm ET

Undercard Results

Dillian Whyte def. Mariusz Wach (UD)
Filip Hrgovic def. Eric Molina (KO3)
Michael Hunter vs. Alexander Povetkin (Draw)
Diego Pacheco def. Selemani Saidi (KO1)

Ruiz Claims He Had Massive Weight Gain on Weigh-In Day

According to a pre-fight interview with DAZN’s Chris Mannix, Ruiz said he weighed in at 268 for his own personal weigh-in on Friday, but he gained 15 pounds ahead of the official particulars later that day. OK, Andy.

The Walkouts Have Begun!!!

“Sweet Caroline” begins blaring over the sound system in the stadium ahead of Joshua making his walk. The response is not as spirited as it is when the iconic song is played ahead of a major bout in the United Kingdom. Still, it’s nice to see such a great boxing tradition going all over the globe.

“Anthony Joshua” chants have begun and Michael Buffer has the Brit’s fans prepped.

Joshua has emerged from the back, walking in as the challenger, by himself with no team or entourage. He looks serious, focused, unmanicured and seemingly ready for the challenge.

Ruiz follows him with a more glitzy version of his signature furry hoodie. The champion is luminous with gold trunks and top. He walks to the ring amid some beautiful special effects and an ode to his Mexican heritage playing on the sound system.

The big fight feel is in place.

The national anthems for the United States and the United Kingdom go over through the loud speaker as a symphony without any performers. The Mexican national anthem was sung live.

This will likely get the action going quicker, but it’s a departure from what we’re used to seeing in big fights.

This is a major Joshua crowd. The former champion is getting an ovation upon every mention, and the response is drastically different for Ruiz.

Ruiz-Joshua Round-by-Round Results

Round 1

Very good first round for Joshua. He boxed effectively at range and worked behind his jab. Joshua looks so much leaner and quicker. Joshua claimed the round definitively with a hard and fast right hand that opened a cut over Ruiz’s left eye. Ruiz looks much heavier with visible flab.

Mazique’s Score: Joshua 10-9

Round 2

Joshua opening up a bit more with some power shots. At this pace, Joshua can hit Ruiz at will. If he stays disciplined, he will win an easy decision or stop Ruiz in the middle to late rounds. The two men exchanged left hooks, but this was another Joshua round.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (20-18)

Round 3

Joshua’s jab and movement are still ruling the day. Ruiz is pursuing, but he is unable to close the distance at the moment. Joshua takes another round by controlling the action in a quiet round.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (30-27)

Round 4

This was another Joshua round on the strength of his jab, but there is some cause for concern. His movement appeared to be a bit slowed, and Ruiz is getting closer with some of his shots. Joshua is also fighting a little less disciplined. His corner needs to get him back on track and in control.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (40-36)

Round 5

Joshua is putting on a boxing clinic. He was a little more calm and composed in the fifth. He re-established the jab he somewhat abandoned in the fourth round. I agree with DAZN’s Mannix. Joshua needs to start jabbing the body. Changing levels could open up a KO.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (50-45)

Round 6

More dominant jab work from Joshua as Ruiz’s offense is sparse in this fight. Joshua almost got caught in a fire fight when he was hit with a left hook, but he quickly regained control of the round. It’s a shutout on my card so far.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (60-54)

Round 7

Joshua is definitely slowing down. He is trying to maintain a difficult pace. This is leading to him throwing harder shots and fighting more flat footed. Ruiz hasn’t been able to make him pay, but he is now getting more opportunities to throw his combinations. Joshua still takes the round, but it could be getting interesting.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (70-63)

Round 8

Ruiz is beginning to get inside Joshua’s head. The little inside, borderline dirty shots are frustrating Joshua. They’re also getting him to fight outside his gameplan. Mix that in with some fatigue and Ruiz claims the first round of the fight on my card.

Mazique Score: Ruiz 10-9 (79-73 for Joshua)

Round 9

Joshua regained control of the momentum with a more controlled and smart approach. He also appeared to have more spring in his step. The jab and a few well-placed power shots gave him the round without question.

Joshua was aware enough to avoid wild exchanges. This was a great comeback after a shaky eighth round.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (89-82 for Joshua)

Round 10

Chalk up another round for Joshua again working behind the jab. Ruiz is running out of time to get the KO he needs to get this victory and maintain his championships.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (99-91 for Joshua)

Round 11

The 11th round was very quiet. Joshua’s movement and jab were still in effect, but Ruiz did land a few left hooks. Still, Joshua dictated the identity of the round as he has throughout the entire fight. If he is smart in the 12th, he’ll regain his belts.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (109-100)

Round 12

Joshua stayed smart as a visibly frustrated Ruiz begged him to trade on the inside of the ring. This is a boxing match, and not a fight. Ruiz wanted and needed the latter, Joshua insisted upon the former and should skate to a redeeming victory.

Mazique Score: Joshua 10-9 (119-109)

Official Scorecards

Glen Feldman and Benoit Roussel: 118-110
Steve Gray 119-109

The right decision was delivered with this result and now Ruiz has some questions to answer about his seriousness and professionalism. Wilder looks like a weight of 1,000 pounds has been lifted off him.

There should be no disrespect for this victory. Joshua did what he needed to do to win.

[“source=forbes”]

December 8, 2019 0 comment

Blogging

DISCOVER THE KEY TIPS FOR GUEST BLOGGING

by Loknath Das September 30, 2019

written by Loknath Das

Image result for DISCOVER THE KEY TIPS FOR GUEST BLOGGING Lets put the bitter facts first so as you chew or go further down, things become sweeter. If you think you are in business for over 3 months and have still not managed to bag 250 visitors to your blog on a daily basis, it is time you should consider guest blogging. Simply put, you should write for other sites than spending time on your own, with the ultimate aim of getting visitors to your site.

Suppose you start with a new blog about a new idea and start writing on it. Soon you have over 100 posts all full of awesome content. Now what? You also managed to get some likes and visitors with your referrals and social media friends. But then again, now what next? Is that it? All your friends and referrals may have liked or have cared to visit your page once as a mark of encouragement but then again, they do are not actually into the topic you are writing about. And wait, they do not even have to. Even if they do, the number of people actually visiting your blog will not go up and in fact, will gradually dip.

So, here is the catch. You will ultimately be left putting all those efforts for no one but yourself and your core group of friends who just in solidarity will always care to like your posts without even digging into it. This is not business but merely a hobby that you are pursuing for non-monetary gains. But, if that is not what you intended to do then you should consider guest blogging.

What is Guest Blogging?

The Internet is huge and growing by the day. Its an ocean of websites that are trying to bag their share of sunshine from the audience and be known. Alas, 90% of startups fail and meet with a tragic end due to lack of vision, funding, business model and a clear strategy. So, the need for guest blogging becomes even more pronounced for a startup blog to become known. You cannot just continue to write for your own indefinitely. Before going further, let us try and define it.

Guest blogging is a business strategy used by bloggers to increase traffic to their own blogs and websites. As a guest blogger, you write blogs for other blogs that operate in your niche as guests. The guest blogging trend has gone up over the years and has emerged as the most sought-after strategy for marketers to get more traffic.

How to do Guest Posting?

Like every game, this also has a rule book which not only makes the game easier but also beneficial. Here are some of the most notable rules or tips that will guide you through and help you get the maximum benefits of guest blogging.

Have a Clear Aim

You should have a clear vision of why are you opting for guest blogging. Determining the goal will help you identify the right blogs on which to blog for posting. Guest bloggers often come with prominently three goals- brand positioning of their own blogs in the niche, getting the right traffic and definitely building backlinks to their website. It is possible and okay to aim for all three and even more, but if in case you are betting at only first two then you will have to look for large blogs that have an established audience while if you are aiming at the third option, then you may look for blogs that have a strong root domain authority.

Look for Best Guest Blogging Sites

Once you have earmarked your primary goal, you should now be actively looking at various opportunities that are present in the market. Remember, to limit yourself only to your own niche as only then you will get the right audience. A good blog option will have a sound and engaged following and also a reasonable social media presence. Once you know the criteria, now you should be all set to conduct the much-needed searches on Google, social searches, in order to find the best platform to blog for. You may also look for the bloggers who are highly active in your niche and check out where they have done guest blogs. Alternatively, you may even take up an analysis of the backlinks by your competitors. This will help you know on which sites they have done guest blogging.

Pitching it Right

This is one major step forward. There are a few considerations that have to be kept in mind while you contact the blogs for guest blogging. First and foremost, the content of the blog is supreme and has to be screened minutely. This will also tell you the audience they are looking like businesses, intellectuals, individuals, startups, etc. Next, you should also see the profiles of other guest bloggers on the site to have an idea what is the general preference of the blog owner when he or she picks a guest blogger. You may be able to find this information from the bios of the guest blogger on the blog itself.

Another vital consideration is that what are blog posts generally perform better than the rest. Before you actually make your pitch you can actually start commenting on their best performing and latest guest posts. Again this gives the much-needed recognition from the blog owner, usually considered as a giant leap forward. Finally, the pitch should adhere to the basic guidelines of the guest posting and make your pitches more personalized by including the name of the blog owner in the post. You may also include the name of your own blog in the pitch as most blog owners only allow those guest bloggers who themselves own a blog.

The benefits of guest blogging are obvious but it is not an easy entry into the world. You will have to try multiple options in order to break into the realm. Relationships building, making yourself known to the blog owner is of primary importance. Once you gain entry, another vital consideration is the blog topic. Remember it is not about you or your passion when you do a guest blog, It is all about the preferences and audience of the blog owner for whom you will make the guest post. The bottom line is, delete yourself from the equation as it will let you get to a more focussed topic. The idea of the topic will not lie in the popular keywords of the niche but instead in the most popular posts on the blog, or the most-read posts. This will lead you to the pain point which you should be addressing in your guest post.

Lastly, it is important to seek and engage with comments on your blogs to ensure people are reading and caring to leave a word. Even in terms of metrics, it is a vital stat that Google algorithm takes into account before ranking your pages. Remember most comments are ways to express appreciation and strike a relationship and hence you should be able to maintain the tone of the comment, in your reply. Guest blogging is a great way forward for introducing yourself to a new audience in your niche to spread your reach. It takes depthful and streamlined research to write a guest blog to ensure the audience finds value in it and takes time to reach your own blog for more such insights.

All these points outlined above will help you give shape to a great guest post. Try yours now and do share your experiences.

[“source=bbntimes”]

September 30, 2019 0 comment

Blogging

14 Dos and Don’ts of Blogging You Need to Know

by Loknath Das August 31, 2019

written by Loknath Das

Blogging is one of the most cost-effective and efficient marketing tools available for business owners and entrepreneurs. In order to use blogging to communicate with your audience and drive traffic to your website, you need to understand some important do’s and don’ts. Keep reading to discover what they are and how you can get the most out of your business’ blog.

The Benefits Of Blogging For Your Business

image: https://cdn.business2community.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/55775978_l-600×400.jpg

There are some important do’s and don’ts to consider while blogging. Keep reading to learn what they are!

Blogging has many powerful benefits for your company and will help your brand in tremendous ways, from boosting visibility to establishing credibility. Here are some great reasons why your business should have an active blog.

Boosts your visibility. Search engines love fresh, new content that is relevant to the people searching the web. Making sure you add new posts on a consistent schedule will help your odds of being found through an internet search.
Positions your business as the go-to expert in your field. Knowledge is power. Show your audience and competitors you know what you’re talking about and have a vast amount of expertise in your industry.
Gives you access to an audience on a national platform. Blogging is a great way to reach people outside of your local region on a national, and even international, level. Anyone who has access to a computer or mobile device can find you!
Establishes credibility. Sharing information from other industry leaders and collaborating with them establishes the credibility of your business as a strong force in your field.
Amplifies awareness and recognition of your brand. Publishing a blog post is quick and easy! This ability to share posts on multiple different channels increases your brand’s awareness.
Increases traffic to your website and social media profiles. Since your blog should be on your website, people have to visit it to read your posts and will be more likely to explore other areas of your site.

If your business isn’t blogging and building a social media presence, your potential customers will be wondering why they don’t see you on the web and may go with your competitor instead.

Valuable Blogging Statistics

Numbers don’t lie. These statistics back up how valuable blogging is for businesses and how you can benefit from it.

image: https://cdn.business2community.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/38514120_l-600×413.jpg

There are many positive benefits from blogging, including increased sales leads and web traffic.

Lead Generation: Companies see at least 67 percent more leads from blogging.
Increased Return On Investment: Businesses that blog see a 13 percent return on their investment.
Lower Cost: Blogging as a marketing tool costs 60 percent less than traditional outbound methods.
Back Linking: Businesses who blog receive 97 percent more links back to their website than those who don’t.
Higher Search Engine Results: Businesses who post regularly and consistently with keywords in mind are more likely to be on the first page of Google search results, and 75 percent of people do not go beyond the first page of results.
Improved Customer Acquisition: 57 percent of businesses blogging at least once a month gain a new customer; the stat jumps to 82 percent when they blog daily.
Increased Time Spent Reading: People spend three times longer reading blog posts than reading emails.
Stronger Buying Influence: 61 percent of consumers state they have been influenced to purchase from a company based on a blog post.
Become A Trusted Source: Blogs are the fifth most trusted source of information for consumers.

It is amazing how effective blogging can be! The ability to share news, photos and opinions in one place is one of the greatest technological advances in the public relations industry to date. Surprisingly though, many businesses are still not taking advantage of the benefits and proven results.

8 Do’s Of Blogging

Hopefully, after seeing the benefits and the numbers backing them up, you’re ready to jump on the blogging train. As you start to put together your business’s blog there are some important do’s you should know in order to get the greatest results. These eight suggestions will help you reach your blogging goals.

Recommended for YouWebcast, September 17th: 10X Growth & Relationships with Community Building

Use Strong Headlines: Your headline is the first thing a reader sees and helps them determine if your content is worth reading. There are numerous tools on the web that will help you generate strong, attention-grabbing blog titles based on your topic. CoSchedule has a terrific headline analyzer that scores your titles on many different criteria.
Post Often: The more frequently you post, the greater the results you will see. Updating your blog at least once a week with new content is a great target but posting more often is even better. Whatever you decide for your posting schedule, make sure to be consistent with it.
Use Keywords Strategically: Gone are the days of keyword stuffing, which can appear spammy. Stick to one or two specific keywords and use them strategically through your post. They should flow naturally in your writing and appear in your title, subheadings and first sentence.
Stick With It: Blogging, like all other inbound marketing techniques, takes time – at least 12-18. Don’t give up if you do not see the results you want immediately. Your patience will be rewarded in the end.
Use Graphics: Graphics are a great way to catch the reader’s attention and bring them down the page to keep reading. Make sure they are relevant to your post and add to what you’re saying. Images with faces in them receive an extra SEO boost, too.
Write At length: Typically, long-form blog posts of at least 1500 words do better in the search results than short-form posts. They provide more value and information for your audience and showcase your expertise. Short-form posts of 300-500 words also hold value and are a great addition providing a quick resource for readers; however, the meat of your blogging efforts should focus on the longer posts.
Proofread: Proofreading is a vital part of successful blogging but is often overlooked. If editing isn’t your strength, set aside your post for a few hours and come back with fresh eyes; it’s easier to see mistakes and typos after giving yourself a break. Before you publish your post, ask someone on your team to give it a once over to make sure you didn’t miss anything obvious.
Share On Social Media: After you publish your blog posts, don’t forget to share them on all of your social media platforms! This cross-channel communication is a great way to gain visibility, acquire new readers and reach potential new customers.

image: https://cdn.business2community.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/3G.BloggingConsistentcy.7.23.2017-600×400.jpg

Successful blogging takes patience and consistency; don’t give up!

6 Don’ts of Blogging

Now that you know what you should do, it’s important to also understand what you need to avoid. When planning your blogging strategy and outlining your posts, these six mistakes can have a negative impact on your efforts.

Inconsistent Posting: Publishing blogs on a regular basis is important to keeping readers engaged and returning back for more. Have a set day of the month or week designated for publishing new blog posts. This will keep you on track and your readers effectively engaged and knowing when they can expect your next post (plus it’s really good for SEO).
Irrelevant Topics: Readers stick with blogs they read on a regular basis because they can depend on the content to be reliably informative. While it’s important to have diverse content within your specific set of topics, straying too far might deter your audience from staying loyal readers.
Negative Posts: Content that is positive in nature is more likely to be shared by readers than negative content. Blogs are a great way to convey your thoughts and opinions, but keep it upbeat and positive to increase your chance of a post getting shared on different channels.
Poor Design: Blogs that are outdated or unorganized, could be losing readers simply because they find the site difficult to navigate. A clean and simple design is better than a complicated set up that can hinder the audience’s ability to find information.
It’s Unreadable: Your audience is just as mobile as you are, meaning they might attempt to read blogs while they’re on-the-go via a mobile device or smartphone. Ensure your blog is optimized for both desktop and mobile viewing to reach out to everyone in your target audience.
You Ramble On: Your blog should not be treated as a diary for posting your random thoughts on different matters. Make sure that what you write adds value for your audience and is relevant to your brand. Keep your posts on topic and to the point rather than going off on tangents.

With time and effort, blogging will be one of the biggest game-changers for your company, and at a fraction of the cost of other techniques. Avoid simple errors while putting into practice the effective tips I have offered to allow your blog to flourish and reach new heights.

[“source=business2community”]

August 31, 2019 0 comment

Blogging

Amar Sirohi: The Stand Out Food Blogger in the Crowded Blogging World in India

by Loknath Das August 27, 2019

written by Loknath Das

Amar Sirohi

Blogging has become quite a rage as of late. In every niche there are countless bloggers. To make a name for yourself amongst this crowded field is a massive job. Amar Sirohi has done it in food blogging through his Instagram page: @foodie_incarnate . When we talk of the best food bloggers in India, his name definitely pops up in the mind and when it comes to vegetarian food bloggers in India, he is right there at the very top of the mountain.

In his own words, ” You have to be different to stand out from the crowd. I never followed any trend of the blogging industry, i set up my own trends. When bloggers were only posting restaurnat food on their pages, i covered the streets of Delhi and started posting street food delicacies. When everyone started posting street food of Delhi, i moved on to explore Mumbai & other Indian cities. People do not wanna see the same content over and over again. It’s ad nauseam. I work really hard to bring new content to my followers, something that people have not seen before. Fresh content keeps people attached. Having said that, unlike other pages where people see the same content over and over again, people out there know that I shall post something new. Another thing i do is, i do all my posts with proper details in the caption. Posting a picture and just writing the name of the dish without any info, i don’t consider it blogging. A lot of people are doing this, i always write meaningful captions with all the details about the picture that i post. It takes extra efforts but it also creates a connection between me and those who read the caption.”

His unique approach reflects in his Instagram feed which is so properly organized and has so many dishes from different parts of the country. Doing new things, bringing new content and good content has made him a force to be reckon with in the food blogging world. One of the most popular food blogger of India already, he looks set to carry the baton of food blogging in India for a long time to come.

IBT does not endorse any of the above content.

[“source=ibtimes”]

August 27, 2019 0 comment

Blogging

Five Proven Blogging Tips To Earn Loyal Clients And Higher ROI

by Loknath Das August 19, 2019

written by Loknath Das

uncaptioned Multiple companies, from small-to-midsize businesses (SMBs) to multimillion-dollar corporations, tend to put their blogs on the proverbial backburner as they spend — and often times waste — money on other forms of marketing. One of the biggest culprits, in my experience, is Google Ads. This is a very valuable service when starting out, but once your spend is gone, that ad disappears. You have to continue fueling it for more leads, and I find it doesn’t do much for building brand awareness.

I believe this type of advertising is for a short-term mindset. As searchers steadily go against the status quo of advertising, they ignore these ads. Organic search results are more trusted and can provide endless lead generation. And this is where the blog rules. Creating a successful blog is not that simple, though.

First, you must have an SEO-friendly website with a strong technical platform — quick speed, mobile-friendly, image optimization, etc. You must also have a blogging strategy that’s built around target keywords.

The blog helps more than just increasing SEO value. It also builds what I call ART: a company’s authority, reputation and trust. When a business excels at ART, sustained growth will naturally follow.

I previously provided tips in “Starting A Business Blog Is A Must For Success: Eight Tips.” I’m going to take things a step deeper here, and provide additional tips that will help you garner ART, which leads to loyal clients and a higher return on investment (ROI).

Strike a 50/25/25 blend.

I once explained this by telling clients to create a blend of content that speaks to prospects in different phases of the traditional sales funnel. After reading Smash the Funnel by Eric Kieles and Mike Lieberman, I no longer refer to the sales funnel, but rather, as Smash the Funnel calls it, the “cyclonic buyer journey.”

This “journey” has eight cyclones, beginning with “pre-awareness” and ending with “ongoing delivery.” For success, you must create blog content that talks to each step of the cyclone.

I’ve had success creating blog calendar’s that feature a 50/25/25 blend of content:

• 50% for newbies seeking education about their problems and solutions.

• 25% for intermediate readers who know the problems, but want better solutions

• 25% for experts (think CMOs) who are fully educated and seeking better solutions. This 25% also talks to existing customers to further create loyalty.

It’s all about appealing and building ART from a large but targeted audience. Speak to all. The reason to put half of the focus on the newbies is simple — you want to be, as John Hall says in his book of the same name, “Top of Mind” for readers throughout their buyer’s journey, from awareness to post-client/customer status.

Blog from different company perspectives.

Another way to build ART within readers in various cyclones of the buyer’s journey? Create blogs from different perspectives throughout the company: CEO, marketing, sales, technicians, finance, etc.

Each perspective will offer a unique perspective that will naturally attract those in similar positions. Due to my position, I love reading inspiring pieces from fellow CEOs or heads of marketing departments. Well before I launched my own business, most of my time was spent reading content from people of similar stature — writers on writing, SEOs on SEO, etc.

The following is a quick example of diverse authorship from an investing firm:

• CEO blogs to inspire prospects and current customers to invest, projecting a long-term overall vision view.

• CMO blogs about finance project management advice.

• Finance team blogs about various tools that ease the investing process.

• Technician team blogs about investing techniques. They get super granular on details.

Create a quarterly calendar loaded with evergreen content.

Blogging without a strategy is like riding a motorcycle with bald tires. You’ll get somewhere, but it’ll be a horrible and dangerous ride. Same for blogging, though that horrible ride equates to lack of authority, reputation and trust. And this equates to zero readership and zero ROI.

A plan is needed, and the most successful route I’ve witnessed is through a blogging calendar that is, at minimum, a quarter out. This calendar should also feature mostly evergreen content — education that will stick around for years to come. Build out your calendar using the points above, and also remember the importance of keyword research that I talked about in my last article.

Post consistently and frequently.

Posting consistently and frequently is crucial for success from both the search engine and user perspectives. In regards to users, this type of posting shows how dedicated your company is to providing valuable information in an orderly manner. And if an internal team can get it organized, imagine how organized they will be with clients. This fact will even weigh on some prospects from a subconscious level.

It also shows search engines that you care about constantly creating new content, which aids in SEO.

Review quarterly.

Stale content gets noticed. What if a prospect landed on a blog and it was loaded with outdated resources and dead hyperlinks? This will show that the business doesn’t put quality first — even if this occurs on a subconscious level.

My agency recommends quarterly reviews when the team freshens the content (tweak headlines, newer factual info/statistics), and updates the blog with hyperlinks that point to newer blog posts or service pages. This process is relatively easy within the 12-18 months, depending on how much content is created, but can get laborious afterward. The results are worth every effort, and your prospects and current clients/customers will put higher levels of ART on your business.

If you’re using an agency, ask about this. Many agencies pump out content and forget about it. This is not optimal for long-term results.

Blogging with the goal of establishing authority, reputation and trust (ART) will help your business achieve long-term success. Again, this is no short-term play. Sometimes it can take up to a year for results to be observed. If you’re dedicated to the long-term vision of your company, the ROI will arrive. And once things start rolling, this ROI compounds over time. Who thought ART could be this cool in the business world?

[“source=forbes”]

August 19, 2019 0 comment