October 12, 2013

Hi there! This week I was hardly online at all except to work on a project that seems to be all-consuming and never-ending (sneak peek in tip #4 below). Raise your hand if you suffer from end-of-project-poop-out too! :)

Please note that some of the links below are my referral links, which means I may get a small commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you of course. Thank you for your support in this way. Enjoy!

1. How to use podcasts to get more traffic, no mad technical skills required

Being interviewed on a podcast could be a great way to get exposure to a new audience and get more traffic. A lot of podcasters are looking for interesting people to interview. Search iTunes for some podcasts you like with readers in your target audience. Podcasts with some comments and good reviews signal some active listeners and are good to start with. Then, pitch the host in a brief email describing what you could talk about and how their listeners could benefit.

2. The email I got from an aspiring author...

I got an email from a writer a while back that went something like this:

I found a publisher who loves my manuscript but won't consider it until I have a blog. So I'm on your site to set up a blog.

I've heard this idea (i.e. that you must have a blog if you want to get published) from authors, publishers and literary agents alike. In this post, author Anne R. Allen offers practical tips that made it work for her. (I love personal stories, don't you?) If you're apprehensive about starting a blog, it's not hard. Seriously, you can do it in 15 minutes.

3. How to access WordPress faster

One of the most common ways of logging into a WordPress site is to type yourdomain.com/wp-login.php into your address bar. However, did you know you can simply type yourdomain.com/login and it works too? Same thing goes for yourdomain.com/admin instead of yourdomain.com/wp-admin.php. I know there are plenty of ways to get there quickly, but for those of you who login that way, it's always worth it to shave off a few keystrokes where you can. They add up!

4. A sneak peek, a tip revisited and an odd request...

If you've been a subscriber to my useletter for a while, you may remember a tip I shared back in June. It's worth revisiting. Here it is:

Unsubscribers got you down?

When was the last time you did a little spring cleaning of your list and deleted (gasp!) some non-engaged email subscribers? Does a little part of you die every time you see that someone unsubscribed from your email list? Don't fret! There's a silver lining to a smaller, more engaged list. You know why it's not so bad? Because it's cheaper, and your open rate will be higher. (And if I was an advertiser, I'd be a lot more interested in open rates than I would subscriber numbers.)

Which leads me to...

4a. How to keep getting my useletters

So, per the tip mentioned above and as I mentioned on FB, I'm doing some spring cleaning of this useletter list. I'll be deleting the subscribers who haven't opened any of my emails since they signed up (no hard feelings here, just a fact of lists!). :)

If you'd like to keep getting my useletters, all you have to do is make sure you can see the images in this email. (I tried to give you something that is worthwhile, thus the sneak peek of my project below.) If you don't see the images, click the "Display images below" link or the "Show all images" link that should be near the top of this email message. Here's what it looks like in Gmail (and it should be similar for other email clients):

Click here to view larger.

Being able to see the images means Mad Mimi counted you as a viewer and you'll therefore not be added to the "hasn't viewed any emails since signing up" list and be deleted.

4b. A word about the sneak peek

I have been hard at work behind the scenes because, well, I'm basically redoing Blogging with Amy entirely. I am literally going through all 400+ posts one by one, extracting the relevant and up-to-date tips and putting them in a more organized and easy-to-get-to format. The project is not nearly done and what you see here may not be the final, but it's where I'm at currently. (Of course your feedback is always welcome.)

Click here to view larger.

This is just a snapshot which gives you an idea of the general design. Scrolling down would reveal the main topics and will be a one-stop-shop access point to all my blogging tips. No more random blog posts in the archives that are lost, buried or outdated. That's the goal!

Liked these tips? Feel free to share this useletter (links above) or forward it to a friend (link below).

Have a great weekend!

Amy

Want even more tips? You can find a gazillion more on my blog.
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