Guest Blogger Guidelines

Some of you have commented to me that I seem to have a number of guest posts on this blog lately and wonder about how I chose guest bloggers. It's pretty simple.

Most potential guest bloggers contact me via email. If they can suggest a topic that is in line with the theme of this blog, and demonstrate that they can write decently, we proceed.

Any guest post has to be on topic and well written. I also allow a byline of course (one link please initially), something like these examples:

Joe Brooks is a blogger and businessman who can be found at Brochure Designing. He lives in Missoula and fly fishes in his spare time.

This post courtesy of Fred Flintstone, an expert in Champagne.

Henry Higgins writes on red wine, the formerly disgraced science of Phrenology, and Clams. He lives in downtown Chicago with his 37 cats.

When the post is done it is reviewed by a small group of my colleagues - basically I pass it by them. They decide whether it is good enough to publish. Most posts get published. The link must be to a high quality site or blog.

 

Top Tips for More Traffic

If you want to be a successful blogger, you must get targeted traffic. Otherwise, no one will ever read the thought-provoking and authoritative content you are writing. No one will ever buy the ground-breaking product or service you provide. No one will ever visit the useful, targeted ads that you display.

The goal of every Internet marketing campaign is to increase traffic and to increase conversion rates. There are many ways that you can get more traffic to your blog, and some strategies are more effective than others. Here are some of the top tips for getting more traffic to your blog:

Keyword Research and SEO

Finding out what your customers are searching for in Google is the best way to make sure your site is the one they find. Research keywords related to your niche to find out what your customers want, then use those keywords appropriately in your site. Use keywords in your page titles, blog content, meta descriptions, image descriptions, tags, and more. You can even use your keywords in choosing your domain name.

On-page search-engine optimization is the best foundation for any marketing strategy for boosting traffic.

Commenting

Comments are a great way to build community, generate back links, and drive traffic. On your own blog, creating an environment that promotes reader comments encourages a community. Readers who comment on your blog become engaged in the conversation, coming back to your blog to check for additional comments and to offer replies. The more they return to your site, the more likely they are to become regular visitors.

You can encourage commenting on your own site by installing plugins like CommentLuv that link back to their blogs, by including a call to action at the end of your posts, or by writing compelling content that encourages discussion.

Commenting on other blogs is a great way to build links back to your site. In addition, when you leave interesting and informative comments that further the discussion, you invite readers to learn more about the content on your blog, encouraging them to become visitors.

Guest Posting

Writing quality guest posts for top blogs in your niche is a great way to build quality back links to your blog. Showcase your best work to highlight the kind of quality that readers can expect from your blog. The link will drive traffic to your blog and help boost your SEO efforts.

Accepting guest posts on your blog is also a great way to encourage more traffic to your blog. Guest bloggers will promote their post for your blog on their own site and their social networks, encouraging their readers to check out their post and your blog.

Giveaways

Everyone loves to get something for free. Offering giveaways, contests, and other promotions on your blog is a great way to encourage visitors to your site. Leverage the traffic-generating potential of these promotions by utilizing all the methods you have available for entries. This can include becoming your fan on Facebook, following you on Twitter, pinning your content on Pinterest, or sharing your content on any of these social networks. Each of these actions can be an entry, encouraging readers to promote your content more and increasing your potential for new traffic.

E-Mail Marketing

Growing your opt-in e-mail list is key to not only promoting your products and services but also to growing the traffic on your blog. E-mail marketing keeps readers informed of new blog posts, reminding them to return to the blog to check out new content. It is also a great way of letting them know about special promotions, new products, and other features of the blog. Getting readers to sign up for e-mail is a great way to capture these readers and to avoid losing them to apathy or forgetfulness.

Building traffic to your blog is critical to its long-term success, and it's something that you have to continually work on. These tried-and-true strategies will help you get the traffic you need.

Are there any other tricks that you use to get more traffic to your blog? Tell us your ideas in the comments!

Carlina Yepinski is the primary researcher and writer for networkmonitoring.org. Her most recent accomplishments includes graduating from Kentucky State with a degree in communications and computer science. Her current focus for the site involves internet usage monitor and application monitoring tools.

Why Does the Internet Keep Going Down at the Office?

There is nothing more frustrating than an internet crash at the office. Just as you're about to shoot off that important email to your boss, everything crashes. Or, perhaps more accurately, just as you're about to check your Facebook page (just for a second!), it stops functioning. Here are a few reasons why the internet might keep going down at your office and some tips that may help solve the problem.

Faulty Router Settings

This is particularly common in small business offices that have a number of computer users, but don't necessarily need to have a full time IT staff to keep things running smoothly. Router settings can be a pain in the neck to properly configure for the uninitiated, but oftentimes these kinds of issues can be solved without having to call in outside help.

Before you start searching the web for what could possibly be wrong with your particular office's brand of router, there's a simple test that anyone with a laptop or desktop computer close enough to the modem and router can conduct. Disconnect the Ethernet cable running from the modem to the router, and plug it directly into a nearby computer. If the internet connection works without any issues, chances are the problem is the router settings.

Take a look at InformationWeek's 7 Wireless Router Problems and How to Solve Them for more ideas, especially if you use a wireless router.

Computer Settings

Internet connectivity issues may be caused by any number of problems on the computer that's trying to connect. If your coworkers aren't experiencing any difficulties, it's likely that your Internet troubles are caused by your specific computer. Common connectivity problems can often be solved by running your operating system's inbuilt troubleshooting system, whether you're working on a PC or a Mac. If you just can't seem to get online, it might be time to have a local techie check out your machine.

Reconsider Your ISP

If you're positive that the Internet in your office continually goes down through no fault of your local hardware, it might be time to consider seeking out a more suitable ISP (Internet Service Provider). If the entire office is sharing a residential DSL line, you or the higher-ups would do well to consider having a T1 internet line installed.

Check the Cables

Faulty or disconnected cables are rarely the actual cause of Internet problems, which oftentimes leads to this complication being overlooked. Don't be the one guy or gal in the office that didn't check to make sure their Ethernet cable was plugged in before storming into the IT department with a bulging forehead vein. Always check your cables.

Want the Best Business Card Ever? Write a Book

(Ted's Note - I'm enjoying reading Marsha's new book, Celebritize Yourself and you might too)

Nearly every day, someone asks my advice on the best way to promote their business or themselves. I get the question at speaking engagements, at the office and, yes, sometimes at home. I don’t mind at all, because I’ve always got a good answer:

Write a book.

“A book?” some say -- with obvious horror. “I’ve never written a book!”

Precisely my point. But let me back up a bit.

When I started EMSI 22 years ago, I soon realized the clients who got the attention of the media most quickly were those who’d written a book. Not just any book, mind you, but one that aligned with what they were promoting. The apple salesmen who wrote about apples were far more successful getting media coverage than those who wrote about oranges – and those who hadn’t written anything at all.

Why? Because yesterday’s business cards are today’s books. They give their authors immediate credibility, establishing them as experts in their fields. Credibility opens the door to journalists, talk show hosts, bloggers and anyone else creating content for hungry audiences. Who will they turn to as an expert source of information when a mysterious apple worm is destroying orchards? Johnny Appleseed, author of Red All Over – The Core of the Apple Industry.

There are some caveats. A poorly conceived, poorly designed, poorly written or poorly promoted book is worse than no book at all. Your book must capably and professionally represent your unique message – and you.

Not a writer? Not a problem. There are thousands of talented freelance writers and editors out there – especially in the wake of all the newspaper layoffs in recent years – who can help. So don’t worry about that just yet. The first step is planning, and that’s up to you whether or not you will actually do the writing. 

    • Decide on your book’s main idea. The central focus will be what drives the entire project, so it must match the message you want to convey and it must excite you. If you’re bored from the get-go, you’ll likely never see your project through to the end. A great way to test ideas is by running them through these five questions:

        1. What message am I enthusiastic about that I want to convey?
        2. Who can benefit from it?
        3. How will it help them?
        4. Why am I the one bringing this idea to them?
        5. How can I make my points unique and different from what has already been said on the topic?

    • Pay attention to your own reactions as you test-drive your ideas. Which idea makes you smile? Which excites you creatively? Which hits the essence of what you’re about – what you enjoy, think about and create every day? It may be an idea you never even realized inspired such passion in you.

    • Consider what you really want to achieve by promoting yourself or your business. Business owners obviously want to grow their business and see it flourish; some people want to build careers as speakers. But often, there’s something deeper driving us and we may not even be aware of it. Taking the time to do some soul-searching to identify your real motivation can help you clarify your message and find your book’s focus.

A real-life example: When I sat down to write Celebritize Yourself, I planned a how-to book on commonly asked publicity questions.  But, when I ran that idea through the five-question test, I had trouble with No. 5.  So, I asked myself, “What do I most enjoy about my professional life?” The answer was easy: helping people identify and value what’s unique about them and their message.  In writing a book about how to get publicity, I realized I needed to explain why everyone has an expertise that should be shared.

It’s never too late to write your book. I know it seems daunting, but remember, the first time you do anything, it’s often a challenge. Remember how hard it was wobbling down the sidewalk on your first bicycle? You may have crashed a few times, skinned your knees and bumped your head, but you got back on and kept trying.

Call on that brave 6-year-old you and start planning your book!

About Marsha Friedman:
Marsha Friedman is a 22-year veteran of the public relations industry. She is the CEO of EMSI Public Relations (www.emsincorporated.com), a national firm that provides PR strategy and publicity services to corporations, entertainers, authors and professional firms. She also co-hosts "The News and Experts Radio Show with Alex and Marsha" on Sirius/XM Channel 131 on Saturdays at 5:00 PM EST.