How to Create An Effective Call To Action For Your Blog Posts

call to actionOne of the things that often escapes bloggers is adding a call to action to their blog posts.  To get the most out of each blog post you write is should have a purposeful and effective call to action enticing your reader to do something every time.

Typically we think of a call to action as asking for a sale, but your call to action could be anything you want it to be.  For most bloggers it’s things like asking for a newsletter opt-in, a request to make a comment, to share your post on social media, grab a free guide or click a specific link.

It really doesn’t matter what your call to action is, what matters is that you have one.

“A call to action answers the [unspoken] question, ‘That’s interesting. Now what?” Read More →

8 Examples For How To Write A Magnetic Blog Post Introduction

blog post introductionI’m always amused when I have a harder time writing my blog post introduction than I do writing the blog post itself.

Do you ever have that problem?

Your post introduction is key to keeping your readers reading, so it’s important to use a magnetic lead in,  but I struggle with what to write.

If you struggle with introductions too, here are 8 blog post introduction ideas with examples that will equip you with irresistible post introductions every time you write a post. Read More →

How To Become A Productive & Profitable Freelance Writer

profitable freelance writerThinking about becoming a freelance writer?

Starting a freelance writing career is a smart move, but there can be challenges that interfere with your productivity.  I’m sure you know that the less productive you are the less profitable you’ll be, so meeting these challenges head on is an important part of the process.

A busy freelance writer herself, Leslie Truex discusses a few of these challenges and offers remedies to help you move past them and become the productive and profitable freelance writer you aspire to be. Read More →

Ways To Create Compelling Content When You Don’t Have A Clue


As bloggers we need new and creative ways to create compelling content.  I don’t about you, but I get bored with the same old content, so I appreciate ideas that can spark my creativity.

Here’s a handy infographic I found at Copyblogger that gave me a few unusual content ideas.  You’ll find some of the traditional ways to create content but there are a few creative ones like #7, #11 and #15.  I also liked #10 and #21 where you can get a little more personal with your content ;-)

What about you, what are your favorites?

Enjoy!

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Helpful Exercise For Writing Reader Focused Content

focused content

Stuart Miles freedigitalphotos.net

If I had to offer just one piece of advice to writers, bloggers and digital publishers it would be to deliver more reader focused content.  In fact, I’ve made changes within my own business because of that very notion.

So what’s ‘reader focused content’?

It’s content that narrows its focus to specific reader with specific interests avoiding generalities.  

People don’t look for general information anymore.  If we’re looking for cooking, we want vegan cooking.  If we’re looking for shoes, we want running shoes. If we’re looking for exercise, we’re looking for Pilates.  Your readers want specific information that speaks directly to them and their needs.  The more specific your content the more you can convince potential customers that you have exactly what they are looking for.

Here’s a helpful exercise for writing reader focused content that will help you steer clear of generalities and drill down to the specifics that will attract the very readers you’re targeting and provide them with the information they expect. Read More →

5 Things That Make Writing Blog Posts Easier and Faster

writing blog posts

Photo courtesy of adamr and freedigitalphotos.net

Writing blog posts can be a demanding job.  If you have your own blog you know what I mean.

Thankfully you can make writing blog posts easier and faster if you can do just 5 things.  These are things I learned simply from studying other successful bloggers. I know these things work because I do them myself, which has significantly improved my own blogging skills.

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Wordtracker vs Google Keyword Tool & How Google Falls Way Short

wordtracker vs google keyword toolIf you understand that a single keyword can generate more traffic, more customers and more sales for your online business, you wouldn’t guess about what keywords to use.  Instead you’d use a keyword tool that can generate the best keywords for your web pages, right?  That just makes good sense.

So what keyword tool should you use?

There are lots of keyword research tools available, the most popular being the Google keyword tool, primarily because it’s free.  However, as popular as Google’s free tool is, it falls short when it comes to helping me generate more traffic, perform keyword competitor analysis, and increase my profits.

After almost ten years on the web, 3 blogs and 4 websites later, I felt compelled to evaluate Wordtracker vs Google keyword tool.  It was actually on the recommendation of my admired and hugely successful friend Karon Thackston, that Wordtracker would perform much better for me.

I’m now a loyal Wordtracker user and so glad I am because Wordtracker gives me more of what I need to be found online, something I couldn’t squeeze out of Google.

But I know what you’re thinking… Read More →

Using Keywords For SEO – Copywriting Strategy Straight From Matt Cutts

keywords for seoIf you’re still a little, or maybe a lot, confused about how to use keywords for SEO and copywriting, I thought this article by Karon Thackston covering an interview she did with Matt Cutts clarifies pretty well how we should be using keywords and key phrases within in our copy.

What I love most about the article is that Matt is telling us exactly what Karon has been saying all along… Read More →