How to Do an End of 2015 Blog Audit: Take Stock of What You’ve Achieved and Where You’re Headed

Hey you there, the one with the blog. Put down that wrapping paper (keep the eggnog, you’ll need sustenance), it’s time for you to take a quick look back at the year that was on your site, even though we’re heading into the busiest season of the year.

Why? Well, blog-wise it’s great to know what’s happened across 2015, give you an overview of your efforts, point you in the right direction for 2016, and give you a case of the warm and fuzzies when you see how far you’ve come in 12 short months.

Doing a blog audit can also help you create content for the months ahead and give you an advantage when it comes to your social media strategy. Who wouldn’t want to start the new year on the right foot (even if it does mean a few hard truths along the way – you don’t really want to hear that you’ve spent hours on Pinterest for little return, but it’s necessary hearing, right!)? Getting a sense of where you’re at is pretty important to help you know where you can expand next.

So where do you start? It’s such an overwhelming prospect when you think about going over every aspect of your blog with a fine-tooth comb, but as always, if you break it down into smaller tasks, it’s totally achievable. A pleasant beverage alongside wouldn’t hurt…

How to Do an End-of-2015 Blog Audit

Grab a pen and notebook, a fresh Google Doc, a spreadsheet if you’re into that sort of thing, or anything else you’re happy to take notes on or in, and go through each section of your blog thoroughly. What worked, what didn’t, what did you hate, what will you change for next year? As science historian James Burke said once “you can only know where you’re going if you know where you’ve been”. True dat.

“You can only know where you’re going if you know where you’ve been.” – James Burke

[Tweet That!]

So let’s get stuck in.

Content:

You’re going to have to look at some stats for this, so open your WordPress Jetpack or Google Analytics and be prepared to dive in. First though, a look through the posts themselves:

• How long were posts? Did you have a variety of word lengths? All long? All short? Which performed better? What would you say your average post word count would be?
• What were the most popular posts? Overall, and for each category of your blog?
• What type of posts worked? What resonated with your audience?
• What fell flat, or just quite didn’t make it?
• Did you write to your niche? Or did you branch out? Was that a wise choice?
• Were you helpful?
• What posts got the most comments/emails? Which one seemed to touch a nerve in your audience?
• What was shared most?
• What did you enjoy writing?
• Where are you sourcing images? Are you making or taking your own? Could you start? What other options are there (you can find a selection of places that have collections of free, no-attribution images here), what program are you using to create and personalise your images? Is it enough or should you try something new? What are your image sizes? Are they optimal? Have you changed blog layout and now some of them are poorly sized? Make a note of them so you can update later with a better image.
• Which day of the week got the most traffic? What were you publishing on those days? Was it consistent with your brand?
• Was your overarching theme this year consistent with your brand?
• What search terms got the most people to your blog? are you providing content for them?
• Does each post have a good image that’s formatted correctly, a keyword-rich headline, and is it pleasant to the eye? Is there enough white space, and are there calls to action where necessary?
• Were you providing enough value?

Back End

The nitty-gritty that we usually ignore unless something has gone wrong. Do a cleanout!

• Are your plugins still working for you? What can you delete? What needs updating?
• What do you have as a 404 error message? Can you make it more useful to the reader who finds themselves there?
• Do you have broken links? (one way to find out is to use a broken link checker, or install a plugin that will do it for you). Can you update them?
• What is your SEO plan? Are you inserting key words in all the right places? If you have Yoast installed, is there a green light on the majority of your posts? What can you do to improve in the new year? (Moz has a pretty comprehensive post here on doing a full SEO audit if you feel you need that much depth, and a content audit here).
• Have you filled out the alt-text field on all your images with keyword-rich descriptions? (remember, this is what Pinterest pulls so make it user-friendly)
• What have you been using to track metrics/traffic? Is it working?
• Create a Google Analytics report about what has happened on your site, and who is reading it (and on what device!) Darren has a great tutorial here on how to find the most useful stats in Google Analtyics and use that knowledge to set up your next year of blogging on the right foot.

Design

We eat with our eyes, as they say, and readers will make snap judgements about you and your blog based on how it looks when they get there. What does your design say?

• Is it functional?
• Is it reader-friendly?
• Is it pleasing to the eye?
• Does it describe you and your blog at a glance?
• Have you stayed consistent with colours and fonts?
• Are there any widgets that need removing?
• How is your sidebar working? What can you shuffle around or delete entirely?
• Are you making the most of the bottom-of-the-blog real estate?
• Are the ads old? Can you write to the advertisers and offer them a new deal?
• Are you making the most of your design to point to where you could make an affiliate sale?
• Are there several points on the page where readers can follow you?
• Is your newsletter signup box prominent? Do you have more than one?
• Is that pop-up box worth it?
• Are your social media icons in the right order (you might want to put your most popular sites at the front). Are they linked to the right place? Are they the right size or colour?
• Do all the links on your homepage work?
• What can you remove from the design to enhance the look of your blog?
• What are you using for social sharing? Do you like it? are people using it? Can you find something that works better?
• Personal branding: is it recognisable? Have you been using the same branding techniques on your post images?

Pages/Topics

The umbrella of what you’re about. How’s that workin’ for ya?

• Are the pages and topics you’ve sorted your content into still relevant? Have you moved onto other things? Can you merge some? Nest them?
• Did you share content equally across all or did you find you wrote on a particular topic the most?
• Is the navigation streamlined and user-friendly?
• Are your pages and topics easily accessed?

Social Media

Our home away from home!

• On what platform did you see the biggest growth?
• Where was the most engagement?
• What did you enjoy the most?
• Have you changed profile pictures and bios lately? How current are they?
• What brought most return for your efforts?
• Where would you like try in the new year?
• Is it obvious on all of these platforms what you’re about? What you can offer people?
• Do all your platforms link to your blog, and are these options obvious and easy to find?

Your promotional strategy

You can’t just “build it and they will come”. Because they’re busy reading someone else.

• How did you get your blog in front of new readers?
• How successful was that?
• What wasn’t worth the time invested?
• Where will you invest your time next year?
• What have you got as an opt-in? Does it need upgrading?
• How are you offering your newsletter or mailing list? Have you been consistent with it, have you been tracking open rates etc?
• Did you guest post anywhere? Was that worth your time? Where could you try this year?
• Did you try to get some traditional media coverage?
• Did you try any collaborations or cross-promotions? Who could you work with in 2016?
• Did you do any giveaways? How did they work?

Monetisation

• What has been your strategy this year?
• What monetization models were you using?
• What has been the most lucrative?
• What hasn’t been worth your time?
• What will you spend your resources on next year?
• What programs, ebooks or courses need updating?
• Can you bundle them together and do a quick lead-up to christmas sale?
• Can you release something quick in time for christmas or new year?
• How has your audience reacted to each monetisation strategy?
• What model have you most enjoyed using?
• What would you consider for the future?

Your goals

• Did you create any? did you meet them?
• Were you too ambitious? Or not enough?
• What did you have in mind for next year?
• Have you written your future goals and a plan for how to get there?
• How could you learn from the mistakes you’ve made this year to help you reach your goals now?

Your feelings

• How did you feel overall?
• What did you excel at?
• Where did you feel you could have done better?
• Did you enjoy blogging?
• Do you still enjoy it?
• Have you thought about quitting, moving on to something else (like podcasting, for example), do you want to write a book, open an online store… did you think about expanding or moving on?
• What would you like to do on your blog for next year?
• What will you be leaving behind?

A big job, huh? But worthwhile. I hope you finished your audit feeling organized and motivated for a fantastic year ahead!

(if not, there’s always eggnog…)

Stacey Roberts is the Managing Editor of ProBlogger.net: a writer, blogger, and full-time word nerd balancing it all with being a stay-at-home mum. She writes about all this and more at Veggie Mama. Chat with her on Twitter @veggie_mama or be entertained on Facebook.

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Do it #TodayNotSomeday: Create an Autoresponder Series

Yes, it can seem like a lot of work on top of an already-overflowing to-do list, but creating an autoresponder series has huge potential to pay off for you in both the short and the long term. So this episode of the ProBlogger podcast is all about moving that “someday” plan to create a series onto your task list today.

It can take as little as an hour of your time, but can really ramp up traffic (and potentially daily profit!) for your blog.

In the last couple of episodes of the #TodayNotSomeday series on the podcast, we discussed setting up an email list (and how to grow it), and creating an incentive for people to sign up to it. Now we move onto how you can deliver fantastic content to your readers through it, via an autoresponder.

In this episode I discuss everything you need to know from “ok but what is an autoresponder?!” to their (many) benefits, the variety of content you could send, the flow of emails, how often to send them, tips to create mailouts that get high engagement, and of course how create an autoresponder series that’s successful. I want you to think about the journey you want your readers to go on, and how you will provide them with useful, practical info along the way.

Don’t forget to share your progress on today’s challenge with the hashtag “TodayNotSomeday”, check out the show notes here, and sign up to get your free trial month with Edgar (the sponsor of this series) here. Now get mapping!

Further Reading:

• How to Tell if Your Idea for an eBook or Course Is a Profitable One
• 15 Quick and Easy Productivity Super-Hacks for Busy Bloggers
• Building Your Audience From Zero to Traction
• 10 Ways to Exponentially Grow Your Traffic in 30 Days
• We Have Smart Homes and Smart Phones – What About Smart Blogs?

 

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Build a Better Blog for 2016: Grab 50% Off Our Best Selling eBook This Week Only

Can you believe 2016 is only 24 sleeps away?

If you’ve been following along with the current series of ProBlogger podcasts, you’ll know this past few months for me has been all about getting things off my ‘someday list’ list and putting them onto my ‘today list’.

I’ve realised that there are a number of things in my own blogging here at ProBlogger that need to improve in 2016 and have spent the last couple of months preparing to make some big changes.

As I’ve shared that journey on the podcast I am really excited to see others joining in and getting serious about making similar preparations for a big year next year.

To assist in that journey I decided yesterday to do something that will hopefully help you get your blog in top shape for the new year.

As of today and for the next week only our best selling eBook – 31 Days to Build a Better Blog – is available for 50% off when you use the coupon code GOODBYE2015.

This eBook (and the free bonus week) is designed to help you get your blogging into gear and to work on some key areas of blogging including writing great content, getting off your blog to find new readers and to build engagement with the readers who come your way.

31 Days to Build a Better Blog Has Helped Tens Thousands of Bloggers

The idea behind 31DBBB is simple. Every day for 31 days I give you a little bit of teaching and a challenge to do something simple that has the potential to improve your blog.

31DBBB started its life back in 2005 as a series of blog posts here on ProBlogger. That first year several thousand bloggers took the challenge. I repeated the series in 2007 with another 5000 bloggers joining in and in 2009 we hit 13,000 participants.

In 2009 I turned the series into an eBook and it quickly became the most popular eBook (or book) I’ve ever written.

Since that time we’ve launched a 2nd edition of the eBook and it’s sold over 21,000 copies, and worked through it as a 31 part podcast series, which has been downloaded just over a quarter of a million times.

I pinch myself that something I’ve created has been used so many times but what excites me most is the feedback from those who use it send me. I’ve lost count of the messages, emails and reviews I’ve seen letting me know how the series of 31 daily challenges and teaching have helped bloggers improve their blogs.

I love that 31DBBB not only helps beginners but more experienced bloggers to find new energy and direction for their blogs – so it’s my pleasure to make it a little more accessible to more bloggers this week with a 50% discount.

To get the discount simply use the coupon code GOODBYE2015 in the checkout process. It’ll make the price $14.99 USD.

This discount lasts for this week only and will end on Monday 14 December. Get 31 Days to Build a Better Blog here, and don’t forget the coupon code to get your copy at half price!

The post Build a Better Blog for 2016: Grab 50% Off Our Best Selling eBook This Week Only appeared first on @ProBlogger.

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How to Be a Lucky Entrepreneur: Are You Developing These 7 Habits?

Image credit: Inbound

I was in the right place at the right time.

It was November 2002, and I received an email from a friend that changed my life in ways I could never have imagined.

Without receiving, reading, and taking action on that email, I would never have started blogging or built the business I have built.

I often reflect on this serendipitous start to the current chapter of my life – what would have happened if I’d not opened that email?

I feel lucky that I did… but was it just ‘luck’?

Earlier this year I was asked to travel to Boston to deliver a 12-minute ‘Bold Talk’ at Hubspot’s Inbound conference.

I loved the challenge of doing a shorter form presentation – particularly because I was invited to speak on something other than my normal topic (that of blogging).

I decided that the focus of my talk would be ‘luck’ in entrepreneurship. It definitely seems to play a part for many successful entrepreneurs but what is behind that luck?

In this short talk, I identify 7 habits of lucky entrepreneurs and challenge us all to make time to fit them into the way we live our lives.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this talk. Please let me know what habits you’d add to my 7 (I had another three that I would have included if I had had more time).

I’d also appreciate if you would consider sharing this presentation if you find it helpful!

The post How to Be a Lucky Entrepreneur: Are You Developing These 7 Habits? appeared first on @ProBlogger.

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Create an Opt-In Incentive to Increase Your Email Subscriber Numbers

If you were listening to the previous ProBlogger podcast episode about my top tips for building your email subscriber list, you would have heard me talking about creating an opt-in as an incentive for people to sign up.

In this next instalment of the #TodayNotSomeday podcast, I’m going to talk you through exactly how to do that!

Creating an opt-in has the potential to significantly increase your subscriber numbers by offering something truly valuable in exchange for the reader’s email address. They are sometimes called lead magnets, and you’ll have seen them on plenty of other blogs and sites you visit.

Even though creating an opt-in and working on building your email list is one of the most important things you can do as a blogger, I know there are plenty of you who put it off to worry about another time. I know this, because I’ve done it myself! We’ve only recently started offering something similar on Digital Photography School despite being aware it is something I should have done much sooner.

You’ll also notice I don’t have a lead magnet or opt-in here on the ProBlogger blog, but you’ll hopefully see us get this task off our “someday” list in the new year.

Today’s challenge isn’t just for those of you without a lead magnet – if you’ve already got one on offer, you might want to consider upgrading or determining if it’s time to create another? Something more up-to-date, something that will appeal to a different audience, something specific to one of your site categories, or something that could boost your current list?

In today’s episode I also discuss why you should create an opt-in, and the potential it has to grow your blog. We go over how to deliver your opt-in, what format it could take, and how you can figure out something that incentivises your readers to sign up to your list and stay engaged. There is also the option of considering a longer-term strategy or offering as opposed to a one-off incentive, and I give a few ideas here. I also go through the purpose it needs to serve, how you can create your offering, tools and services I’ve used, and that all-important aspect: getting the signup!

So good luck with today’s challenge of creating an opt-in for your email list. What opt-in will you be creating? What will it be about, and how will you deliver it? Be sure to use the hashtag #TodayNotSomeday when you share your efforts to social media so we can see how you’re all doing.

Further Reading:

• 5 Pop-up Creation Mistakes You Have to Avoid for Better User Experience
• How to Use Quizzes and Facebook to Build Your List… Fast
• How Having a Strong Email List Can Land You Great Sponsorships
• 8 Reasons Why Your Email Open Rate is Nosediving
• How NOT to Send an Email: A Day We’d Rather Forget But a Story We Need to Tell

 

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Reading Roundup: What’s New in Blogging Lately?

Good morning! Welcome to your roundup of interesting titbits from around the web. Plenty to mull over here – tools, beta testing of our favourite social media sites, Google doing new Google things (who knew?!) and a cool script to help you tap into your blog audience’s personas. Enjoy!

5 Visual Content Tools to Boost Engagement // Social Media Examiner

If you’re on a tight budget (or let’s be honest: no budget) for graphics, these tools should help you up your visual content game. I love the Instagram collage idea.

Instagram Now Testing Support for Account Switching, No Logout Required // TechCrunch

Oh wouldn’t this be a boon for those of you who manage multiple accounts! Let’s cross our fingers that the choice proves popular in the beta testing and they keep it.

LinkedIn’s New Facebook-like App Arrives on iOS and Android // Mashable Australia

A much easier (and more eye-pleasing!) way to see who is sharing what on LinkedIn. I can imagine it would promote more engagement, which I’m all for. I have to admit, I don’t do much with my LinkedIn but I may be swayed by this!

How to Figure Out What Keywords Your Potential Customers are Using // Hubspot

And what your potential readers are searching for! This is a super-detailed piece – Bridget has taken a step back and started at SEO right from the start before launching into what tools you can use so you can be armed with all the knowledge to create a super campaign or tailored blog content.

How to Become a Virtual Assistant // Amy Lynn Andrews

I know plenty of us have “virtual assistant” on our Christmas lists, but for those of you who would like to be one (can be a great supplement to your blog income), Amy has recently updated her guide. Check it out!

Google Turns Image Search Into Pinterest with New Collections Feature // TechCrunch

It’s only for mobile (and those of you in the US), and it looks as though it’s a part of the sort-of-revamped Google+, but now when you find an image you want to keep for later in Google search, you can organise your own personal collections. Search results are filterable and it appears quite intuitive.

“Don’t Pursue Something That Someone Said You Should Want”: Derek Sivers at WDS // Chris Gillebeau

I loved attending the World Domination Summit in Portland this year, and Chris Gillebeau, master of it all, has started releasing videos from the amazing speakers across the weekend. This video is from one of my favourite speakers – Derek Sivers – who delivered kick-ass, no-bullshit business advice. I took SO MUCH away from his philosophy. Watch it, you won’t be sorry!

Persona Research in Under 5 Minutes // Moz

You know how much we love a reader profile around these parts. Who are you speaking to? What kind of people make up your core audience? More importantly – where are they hanging out? I love this script for nailing all this info in under 5 minutes.

8 Creative Ways to Add Christmas Spirit to Your Social Media // Jeff Bullas

I just spent 10 minutes trying to find the best christmas photo for my Facebook profile. It’s that time of year!

From YouTube to Persicope: The Evolution of Web Video [Infographic] // AdWeek

Crazy to see how far it’s come (and how much I suck at all of them). I wonder where web video (and indeed, how audiences consume it) is headed next. Any ideas?

Have you Christmasified your social media yet?!

Stacey Roberts is the Managing Editor of ProBlogger.net: a writer, blogger, and full-time word nerd balancing it all with being a stay-at-home mum. She writes about all this and more at Veggie Mama. Chat with her on Twitter @veggie_mama or be entertained on Facebook.

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Top Tips to Boost Your Email List Subscribers Today

Welcome to the second episode of the #TodayNotSomeday podcast series, where today’s challenge is one I would prioritise above all others: getting people to subscribe to your email list.

I started using email as a way to communicate with my readers back in 2007 when I started Digital Photography School and my dad, an aspiring photographer, didn’t use RSS (which was the popular way of getting your content out to readers at the time). I realised he would be better off having posts sent to his email address, so I set that up and kept it on the site as a secondary subscription option for readers. Pretty soon the email list overtook our RSS subscriber numbers – today we have close to 900,000 subscribers.

But why worry about email? Why is it more important to grow than say, the number of people following you across your social media channels?

Mostly because it’s familiar, and used regularly by most. Nothing has come close to killing off email, and you don’t have to worry about algorithms, news feeds, and the fleeting nature of social media. It’s an incredibly successful traffic-driver, exceptional for selling (either affiliate sales or your own products), it’s good for building community, and it helps build your brand.

In today’s episode of the #TodayNotSomeday series on the ProBlogger podcast, I want to share what I think the three keys are to a successful email list so you can finally get going on building that thriving email subscriber community you’ve always wanted!

You’ll also find today’s challenge (don’t forget to use the hashtag across social media so we can support and keep each other accountable!), and also some of the email providers I recommend (including a couple of freebies), and tips on how to optimise your email list if you’ve already got one set up.

There are plenty of different ways to entice people to sign up, and you will find each of them will convert differently. This all depends on what calls to action you use, where you use them, and how you use them.

There are diverse opinions on this, but a few things I’ve tested really have significantly improved my signup levels, and I discuss all of those in today’s episode. I’ll cover everything from colours, benefits, incentives, and where we’ve had the most success putting our sign-up box and calls to action.

You can find today’s show notes here, and I look forward to seeing what you all share with #TodayNotSomeday!

Further Reading:

• 9 World-class Bloggers Share Their #1 Email List Building Tip
• Email Lists: Make them a Priority in 2015 with These Tips
• Four Ways to Crush Your Email Challenge and Build the List
• How to Write Successful Emails (and Improve Open Rates)
• Online Marketing: Why Email is a Richer Cousin to Social Media

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10 Ways to Prepare Your Holiday Blogging Schedule

This is a guest contribution from Julia McCoy.

For bloggers, “rest” and “time off” are not familiar words.

The nature of blogging requires that bloggers be willing to dedicate themselves to it at all times, at all hours of the day, and at all points throughout the year. While this nose-to-the-grindstone work style may be great for getting things done and building your blog following, it’s not exactly ideal for kicking back over the holidays and enjoying some well-earned time off with the people you love.

Even if you don’t actually “take a vacation” over the holidays (most of us marketers and entrepreneurs don’t), there are many ways to plan ahead so that you don’t wind up hunched over your computer screen while everyone else is passing the gravy boat.

Here are a few tips to help you get started.

10 Tips for a Holiday Blogging Schedule So You Stay Sane & Published (At the Same Time)

If you’ve never developed a seasonal blogging schedule before, take a deep breath. It doesn’t have to be nearly as tough as it sounds. In fact, planning a seasonal blogging schedule in advance can actually help you cut down on stress and produce great content all throughout the holiday season. Here are 10 tips to help you get started.

1) Start early.

Ideally, you should start planning your seasonal blogging schedule about 2-3 weeks before the holiday season rolls around. If you want to get really ambitious (give this a try next year) you can start in the beginning of October and plan out content that takes you from Halloween to New Year’s.

The first step is to sit down with your planning platform of choice (be it a paper schedule or a web-based platform like Evernote) and dedicate some time to looking over your content. If you have an editorial calendar, now is the time to consult it.

Think about how many posts you generally publish during a week and then schedule those things into your “To do” for the weeks before the holidays. While it may be stressful to push yourself to write 4 or 5 extra blog posts ahead of time, planning them in advance and spreading them out over the weeks leading up to the holidays can be a fantastic way to get your work done and afford yourself some well-earned time off.

2) Get creative with content forms.

Easy content is a blogger’s best friend over the holiday season. If you can’t bring yourself to not blog at all during the holidays, aim to post content that is easy and doesn’t take a great deal of effort to create and distribute.

Pictures, for example, are fantastic and bloggers in the lifestyle or dining industries can post appealing snapshots of holiday meals or special moments. Polls (“What is your favorite holiday tradition?” for example) are great, as are all forms of user-generated content. Create a Twitter hashtag or a Pinterest board where people can submit snaps of how they spend their holidays or what they love to cook for a special day and make each submission an entry to win a fun promotional product or freebie. In addition to being an exciting way to shake your up blog content, these easy and creative forms of content are also interesting for your customers.

3) Use your holiday blogs as a vessel for good.

No matter what you celebrate, the holidays are a time of giving and it’s important to tap into that throughout your blog content. Not only does this serve the important purpose of giving back, but holiday-centric blogs can also drive huge traffic numbers.

When you’re planning your topics ahead of time, consider how you can use your blog content as a vessel to make people feel happy. Maybe you can tell a story about the nicest thing someone has ever done for you or how you used to spend the holidays as a child. If you’re an e-commerce company, you can take it a step further and give your customers exclusive deals or coupons toward holiday gifts or shopping. If you have a physical presence you can draw upon, consider driving your readers to donate to or get involved with a specific charity. While blogging is a vessel for many things, it can easily become a vessel for giving and inspiration over the holidays.

4) Branch out.

Maybe you run an e-commerce company that sells clothing and maybe your blog content is generally about new products and developments in the fashion industry. To branch out a bit over the holidays and get your readers excited, use the holidays to theme your blog. For example, when Christmas draws near, you could write a post titled “The 5 Best Holiday Party Looks to Make You Sparkle.” People love the holidays and using each one to theme your content is a great way to grab more readers.

5) Schedule the posts.

If you’re working in WordPress or any of the other popular blogging platforms, you should have access to a “schedule” feature from your dashboard. This “Schedule” feature is a lifesaver for the busy blogger because once your advance posts are brainstormed and written, you can schedule them all at once to appear throughout the week or weeks that you would like to take off. This affords you the luxury of not having to worry about being anywhere specific to press “publish” and ensures that your content stays on schedule and gets to your readers on time.

6) Link your posts with email automation.

One great way to grab some extra traffic during the holiday season is to use an automated email service to further your reach with your customers. MailChimp is a favorite of many bloggers because it offers easy drag-and-drop building features, a fully automated schedule, and the ability for bloggers to check on their open and click rates.

If automated email isn’t already a part of your digital marketing plan, use it over the holidays to offer a special giveaway to your customers or to promote your new blog posts. Because automated emails can be created and scheduled ahead of time, they’re yet another great way to stay on schedule even when you’re taking some much-needed time away from the computer.

7) Consider offering seasonal products.

Whether or not you typically use your blog to sell things, the holidays can be a great time to offer a seasonal product. Whether you create it yourself or team up with another business, seasonal products are exciting to customers and can be a source of passive holiday income for you.

8) Focus on quality rather than quantity.

During the holidays, it can be especially easy to get stressed and feel like you have to hammer out a blog post right now. This is especially true if you haven’t exactly aced your planning beforehand. Doing this, however, can easily wreak havoc on your blog readership and can harm your reputation.

Instead of waiting until the 11^th hour to publish something, focus on creating content in advance. If life gets in the way and you absolutely can’t fulfill your editorial calendar for a week, tell your readers and provide one of the easy forms of content mentioned earlier in place of your normal blog post. The holidays are a time of goodwill and as long as you communicate with your readers, all will be well.

9) Speak directly to your fans.

People love to be appreciated and the holidays are a perfect time to let your fans know how much your blog has grown, how much you appreciate their readership, and what steps you’re planning on taking in the upcoming year. Often, people who read blogs don’t hear about how they’ve helped further your business (but they have and you know it) and they love the feeling of being involved when bloggers begin speaking directly to them. For some unique content this holiday season, consider reaching out to your customers and giving them a personalized, unequivocal thank you.

10) Have fun!

Last but not least – have fun! The holidays are an exciting time and it’s important not to take them too seriously. Focus on providing high-quality, valuable content as always to your readers, but accept that you need a break too! Spend some time with the people you love and come back to blogging post-holiday refreshed, excited, and ready to get back to work.

Conclusion

While maintaining regular blog content over the holidays can be tough, simple steps like planning posts in advance, scheduling posts and emails, and creating simple, unique, holiday-focused content can go a long way toward making your holidays less stressful and more enjoyable.

How do you manage the silly season on your blog?

Julia McCoy is a serial entrepreneur and content marketer, and the founder of Express Writers; she loves to blog and is a soon-to-be published author.

The post 10 Ways to Prepare Your Holiday Blogging Schedule appeared first on @ProBlogger.

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How to Overcome Fear of Speaking, Podcasting, Live Streaming, Webinars and More

Is fear holding you back from engaging in mediums like Live streaming, Podcasting, webinars, talking-head videos or even speaking at live events?

Over the last couple of years we’ve seen amazing opportunities open up to bloggers who are willing to embrace some of these mediums – but alongside the opportunities, I’ve noticed a rising tide of anxiety among some bloggers who while comfortable to put themselves out there on the internet through the written word are reluctant to jump in front of a camera or microphone.

For some the reluctance comes from lack of experience or skills, but for many of us it is fear that holds us back.

Speaking in public is often cited as the #1 fear that people have and this extends to many of these mediums.

Like to Watch and Not Read?

A few days ago I jumped onto my Periscope account to talk about how to overcome this type of fear so if you’re the kind of person who likes to watch rather than read – the first 10 or so minutes of this video is for you.

If you’re more of a reader…. read on below!

My Own Struggle with Fear of Speaking in Public

As a 16-year-old, I took a class in public speaking that taught me a lot of the skills needed to construct and deliver a good talk. I learned that I could do it and that I even enjoyed parts of the process – but nothing in that class taught me how to deal with fear.

So for the next 10 years, whenever I needed to speak in public (which was a regular occurrence as I worked for a decade as a youth worker and minister in a church) I would feel a growing sense of dread as the time to present approached.

Fear would gradually creep in and would usually raise its head in the form of questions like:

• what if they don’t like me
• what if I look stupid
• what if I forget what I’m supposed to say
• what if they think I don’t know what I’m talking about
• what if I’m boring

I could go on… but I think you get the picture.

For a while there I tried to use this growing ‘fear’ as a motivating factor. It drove me to prepare extra well. I would spend days preparing even for a short talk so that:

• they did like me
• I didn’t I look stupid
• I didn’t forget what I’m supposed to say
• I did look like I knew what I was talking about
• I wasn’t boring

It got to the point that when I had to give a talk I would become consumed by it for days and even weeks. I would practice it 10, 20, 30 times over and over again – trying to perfect it – all driven by not looking stupid.

My talks ended up being ‘good’…. but the fear didn’t go away. In fact, at times it got worse and when I started to get asked to speak at bigger events I would sometimes say no simply because it got too much.

Something needed to change.

How I Reframed It

One day as I worked myself into a frenzy of fear in the days before another talk it dawned on me that I was being incredibly selfish.

All the ‘what if’ statements that I dwelt on were all about me and how I looked.

All of that preparation that I did for each talk was also all about me and how I would be received.

While on some levels this motivated me to prepare it was actually a massive destruction from what my focus should have been on: my audience.

I decided to combat the selfish negative questions I’d been asking myself with questions that forced me to think about my audience.

Questions like:

• Who will be in the audience as I speak
• How will they be feeling?
• What are their needs and struggles?
• What are their dreams?
• What is their pain?

Lastly I began to ask myself ‘how could this talk change their life for the better?’

A number of things immediately changed as I began to prepare for talks this way:

Firstly – the Fear started to Slip Away

I crowded out the negative self talk with talk that focused me in other directions.

Where I’d previously been focused upon myself and how I looked – I was now focused upon others.

Where I’d previously been focused upon ‘what if’ statements (things I couldn’t really control by the way), I had started focusing upon ‘what are’ and ‘what is’ statements.

Secondly – I prepared with different Intent

Previously I would spend many days on each talk preparing – but my preparation was all about looking polished, perfecting my delivery and finding the perfect words.

With the change of mindset I began to prepare with a whole different motivation. It became all about finding the best way to serve the audience.

I still put as much effort into the preparation process, but it became less about how it came across and more about how useful the information was, and how to craft it in a way to bring as many of the audience on the journey towards transformation as I could.

The preparation was less about getting a standing ovation or words of affirmation after the talk – and more about seeing people walk away ready to change their life in some way.

Thirdly – My Presentation came from a Different Place

As I began to think differently and then prepare differently I noticed that I also began to present differently.

As I let go of how I looked and focused more upon transformation in my audience I found myself speaking with more compassion and passion.

I would get up to speak not hoping to be polished and professional but hoping that what I had to say would change someone’s life.

Of course not every talk that I gave (or give) hits the mark – but I began to notice the way that my audiences responded to me changed. I got less ‘great talk’ comments and more ‘I felt like you were talking to me’ comments.

Audience members seemed to notice the shift.

Don’t Focus Upon What You’ll Get…. Focus on What You can Give

It’s so easy in the space we’re engaging in to focus upon the affirmation we’ll get from doing a Periscope or Youtube Video or Podcast or Blog post.

The ‘likes’, ‘shares’, ‘hearts’, smiley emoji’s and comments are all there staring in the face.

But as much as you possibly can – attempt to look past them to the fingertips behind the keystrokes and the human beings to whom those fingertips belong. Imagine their face and more so imagine who they are, what they feel, what they dream of, what they struggle with and who they are becoming.

Make that your starting place and I truely believer the content that you create will go to a whole new level.

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