Why Buying My First Blog Theme Lead Me to a $445 Month
12:30 am on the eastern coast of Istanbul.
The whole family was asleep after some rowdy Apples to Apples, but me an my cappuccino sat wide awake.
My blogging was about to change forever.
Why It Was Time for a Change
I logged into one of my blogs that recently moved to WordPress. I was fuming.
What Chinatown NYC and My New eBooks Have in Common
You might know my life changed recently, in a really good way.
The change wasn’t fun at first – hunting down real estate in New York City is actually an energy draining pain in the #%& and a hard lesson in how to not get screwed over.
But when all the dust had settled, I had a new flat, and much more space I’m now converting into my first personal blogging studio.
I can’t wait to tell you about it in this post, and at the end, if you don’t mind, please share how “change” has affected your own blogging and line of work.
Sorry for the fuzzy pics, they come to you from my trusty Android – click to enlarge
10 Things to Do After Your Blog Goes Live
Your blog goes live and…now what?
You have a blank slate of a blog with nothing on it, yet all the potential in the world!
Lately I’ve been helping so many people with the setup part of blogging that I’ve sort of forgotten the post-launch period.
So welcome to Part III of the 5-Part series on starting your blog first try, on the right foot. You may want to read Part I and Part II.
Right here, we’ll cover 10 critical tasks for you and your newly launched blog.
Build a Brand: A Complete Guide to Domain Names, Logos, Social Media and More
Welcome to my First Blogging Bootcamp. Click the link to read more from this series.
Even wanted to take an ordinary blog, or online business, and covert it into a brand?
Have a knack for cooking, or travelling, and even an online presence, but don’t know where to go now?
In this (long overdue) post, I’d like to show you exactly how I used simple things at our disposal, like domain names, logos, social media, missions statements, and more, to convert a standard WordPress blog into a fairly recognized name in blogging.
If you’re ready, read on. This could change a lot.
How to Create SEO Friendly Links on Your Blog
Welcome to my First Blogging Bootcamp. Click the link to read more from this series.
I used to wonder…
What sort of links does Google prefer? What links are best for SEO? Is there some secret I’m missing out on? It was a lot of wondering…and trial and error, before I figured things out.
Truth is, despite Google’s idealistic view for a level playing field in SEO, there are still strategies you can take to get an advantage on organic SEO.
You’ll learn a few of them right here.
At the center of it all, is creating SEO friendly links that pull in Search traffic while you sit on the beach, at your desk, or sleep in (I’m usually the third one).
If you’re ready to see your view counts (↖) soar, read on, and make sure to ask a question for us in the discussion…
Blogger or WordPress: What’s The Best Place to Start a Blog?
Welcome to my First Blogging Bootcamp, where I publish 1 post/day for 1 week. Get involved by tweeting me your best ideas, joining the club, or just posting an old-fashioned comment.
Blogger or WordPress.org?
Where should you start? Which is best for blogging, SEO, traffic, and everything else we want?
It’s a hot debate, for sure. New bloggers love Blogger, experienced bloggers use WordPress…
Let’s settle this right here with a points system.
From you: Any experienced bloggers out there who have used both platforms, your expertise is needed here. Please post some advice in the comments.
High Standards: When is a Post Good Enough to Publish?
I have a confession to make. It’s why I don’t publish enough, despite how much you all inspire me each day.
Confession: My writing standards are way too high.
I want to publish more…I always do. But I constantly start a post, trash it, start over…
I thought I already found my confidence 
Plus, I love discussions that follow a new post. It’s a major reason I blog and a major reason I started this Community. So why not recreate this feeling again and again?
In this post I’d like to look at what makes bloggers self-critical to the point of insanity and discuss how this hurts our overall productivity.
As usual, your opinion will really help.
How to Use and Set Up Twitter
The SMS service of the internet…short bursts of unsequential information…chirps from a bird!”
“Twitter” has got a lot of meanings.
For us bloggers, Twitter = traffic. But also, interestingly, Twitter is microblogging.
I’ll show you how to do that a bit further down…
In this post, I’ll offer a little bit for everyone, beginners to advanced. As usual, post a comment with your 2c.
Social Proof: How to Pass the Popularity Test
Let me make a far-fetched assumption:
If you blog on WordPress you probably want to feel popular online.
You want the likes, tweets, and +1′s. Nearly all of us do.
In this post I’d like to break down something called social proof.
I actually don’t think anyone aside from Wikipedia has covered this to date so I’d really like to hear your thoughts on this in the comments.
Create an eBook: Everything You Need to Publish Your First eBook
What’s on your blogging agenda this week?
New post tomorrow? Post some more blog ads? Get a few more Likes?
Be serious. It’s time to finally publish your first eBook.
Success: What Bloggers Must Do
Anyone who frequents Dear Blogger knows I try to keep the focus of my blog posts niche narrow. Specific ways to master weird facets of blogging, like upsells or G+.
But every now and then I’ll come out with a piece of cornerstone content that seems to cover it all.
This post would definitely fall into that category…
Note: Don’t leave without dropping off your quick comment. See below.
Honest or Sketchy: Who Do You Think Sells More?
Does any of this sound familiar?
- “Instantly jack up your sales!”
- “Earn money the easy way!”
- “Lose weight overnight!”
I love that last one. Who wouldn’t want to wake up 5 pounds lighter?
It’s sad people still buy into this crap. But that doesn’t mean it has to spill over onto your blogs.
…Or does it?
Here’s the deal. It’s 2013. Readers are smart. They notice honesty and smell baloney 10 blog posts away.
As content creators it’s our duty to be transparent and deliver honest messages. Right?
But what if the above messages actually do sell??
In this post I’ll share some good…and some sketchy ways to sell online. You decide which route is better.
