Found some real gems this week. Some are from people you may have seen here before and a few are from new people who caught my eye and made me wish I had written that! Check them out, bookmark your favorites!
How I Quickly Got A 300% Increase In Traffic To A New Blog
Written by Brian Lang
Brian has been here before, when he let me know about an awesome resource he’d put together of blogging ideas. I thought it was worth a share and I hope you enjoyed it as well (here is it, in case you missed it – consider it a bonus). This new post might have a bit of a “yeah, right…” feel but I assure you it’s worth a read. I bet you think you’ve heard it all before – get more traffic, get more leads, followed by gigantic numbers and less-than-useful advice. But Brian goes through a step-by-step of what he did to research, create and promote his content to drive a big boost in traffic. And one of his secrets? Blogger outreach – to people like me! Who liked his stuff and shared it. So this roundup right here is proof that his methods worked. Read and learn!
Read the article at smallbusinessideasblog.com and follow Brian on Twitter @sbizideasblog
How to Do Your Own Social Media Audit: Social Media Audit Explained
Written by Roxanne Roark
This was not the post I originally intended to share. I actually came across Roxanne’s “Part 4” in this series and thought it had some food for thought worth your time. And then I backtracked through the rest of the series and realized it would be far better to start at the beginning and get a full, thorough picture of your social media accounts so you can really make some progress. So this is Part 1 and it’s a bit of homework, but if you’re serious about social media marketing then you’ll want to read all four. I promise they’re easy to read and each one is to-the-point. You may have to burn a few brain cells, though, so pay attention and ask yourself some serious questions!
Read the article at r3socialmedia.com and follow Roxanne on Twitter @r3socialmedia
The Four Biggest Content Marketing Pain Points
Written by Kathy Baughman
If you’re a content creator (and if you run a business these days, who isn’t?) then you probably struggle with one or more of the “pain points” that Kathy describes in this post. This post is all about YOU – and how content marketing can take its toll on your time, resources and even brainpower. Kathy’s post summarizes some of the challenges that businesses face when creating content with options for overcoming them. Even better, there’s a free downloadable eBook that expands on each of these and it doesn’t even require that you provide your email address. If you’re trying to put together a content team or if you’re struggling with the whats and whys, check out this post and the eBook and see if some of these insights can help.
Read the article at b2bmarketinginsider.com and follow Kathy’s company on Twitter @ComBlu
The Sad Truth About “Best Time To Post” Infographics
Written by Stephan Hovnanian
This is one of those “I should have written that!” posts. I’ve talked with Stephan before about marketing in general and we share some common ideas – one being that you can’t build a successful marketing strategy on someone else’s results. Sure, it’s nice to have pretty pictures, statistics and “rules” to tell you when to post your social content, how often to blog, how many characters to use in your next tweet. But ultimately, your results are up to you and there’s no one-size-fits-all marketing plan. So before you get too excited and think that you’ve nailed success down to a 2PM tweet, read Stephan’s post and enjoy his insights on this one. Plus, you’ll save a unicorn.
Read the article at websighthangouts.com and follow Stephan on Twitter @stephanhov
Competitions On Facebook Using Apps Are Dead, Or Are They?
Written by Ian Cleary
Ian hasn’t been here before but he should have been! I met him online recently and have been enjoying his blog since. This post is incredibly timely considering that Facebook just lifted its restriction on contests so that instead of requiring that you use an app, you can now host one of those “comment for a chance to win” deals that weren’t allowed before. Ian takes a good look at contests, apps, the pros and cons of running them with or without an app (with so much screenshot goodness that you’re going to enjoy and learn from this one). He also shares some insights into why Facebook might have done this in the first place (want to hazard a guess?) that I found interesting, too. Take a look and see if the changes will change how you do business on Facebook.
Read the article at razorsocial.com and follow Ian on Twitter @IanCleary
How about you? Have any great blogs to share?
Hi Carol,
Where have you been? I’m not talking about my blogs, I’m talking here on your own blog 🙂 really miss you.
Thank you for such great selection again. I will make a point to read them all and comment (if possible) on all of them as well. When I read such mouth watering titles it’s better than a fine French pastry to me. What a great day to start a Saturday!
Have a great weekend!
I know, I feel like I have been out of commission for a while! Everyone else is writing and I’m just sitting around eating cupcakes 🙂 I’m working on some stuff that will be done soon and then I’ll get back out full-force. I hope you enjoy some of these posts and find something good!
Thank you, again, Carol, for listing my article in your roundup! 🙂 I’m glad you found the series helpful on any level!
You’re quite welcome, I really enjoy your posts!
Excellent article! Entrepreneurs must be wiser and happier about it.
Thanks, I’m glad you liked them!
Thanks so much Carol, this is a wonderful collection of articles. I especially find the first one very useful and practical.
Thanks, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed them! That first one was pretty neat, I really like his approach.
Hi Carol. I just saw this – thanks for sharing my post! Happy Thanksgiving to you and Ralph.
Quite welcome! Hope you had a great holiday, too!