Author Archive
Thanks for visiting my little home base on the web. This is where I live blog from events, share my thoughts on blogging and post about anything that doesn't fit on one of my niche sites. If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed.
What is digital media?
Beyond the blogging platform – video, audio and anything outside of type-written blogs.
You can take your niche and launch it to the next level. It’s not as easy to capture a niche anymore – there’s tons of blogs in every niche. We have to find a way to capture attention.
How is the game changing?
Flip, iPods, podcast tools are making it easy for everyday people to approach digital media.
Everybody can be a radio voice now!
iTunes & YouTube give you the ability to deliver your message quickly & easily.
Capture a larger audience through a new format.
Think of content way beyond the written posts.
How are we consuming our media?
Smart Phones, iPod, Kindle, iPad
Be sure you are optimizing your blog for mobile use.
Podcasting Plugins
PowerPress, PodPress, Buzsprout
Consider partnering with someone to create a more engaging back & forth.
Live podcasts can be great for engagement because people participate & share later once the recorded version is posted.
Video Player Plugins
TubePress, Longtail Video, Projekktor
WordPress TV
Content from WordCamp, tips on blogging, SEO, etc
What about transcribing your audio or video into a blog post?
A direct transcript is not good (poor content & experience for users), but repurposing ideas into other mediums is a great way to expand your reach.
Tips for Digital Media Blogging
SEO – be sure to tag everything & include show notes since audio & video are not searchable
Distribute to Every Possible Channel – YouTube, Blip, iTunes, Vimeo etc
Find & Use your community – Twitter, Facebook, etc
Build Your Brand – put your url on every video or podcast – tell them every time you get a chance, who you are.
Companies are looking for ways to get ahead with digital media
They’ve figured out blogs, they’re figuring out social media; next they’ll be searching for ways to leverage digital media.
It’s a way to get your company, your blog, noticed.
Speaker: Jim Turner, One by One Media
This is a live blog (well, sort of—crappy wifi mean I couldn’t publish it live). It is an unedited version of my notes during the session. It is not meant as an exact transcript but I try to capture the highlights along the way.
Tags: live blogging, podcasts, video, Word Camp Chicago
Posted in Live Blogging | No Comments »
Why WordPress?
- Easy to use & teach anyone.
- Open Source software – always updating & advancing
- Easy to design once you know the code.
- Flexible for most projects.
- Great community & support.
- SEO ready
- Useful plugins to optimize & make your site dynamioc.
WordPress is not just a blog platform. You can create:
- Web directory
- Forum
- Social bookmarking site
- Photo Gallery
- Wiki
- Magazine
- Auction site
- E-Commerce
- Site Showcase
Key Factors on your site: Content & Design
Content Tips
Unique information—you want to dig deeper than similar sites & give your readers something to find
Give readers a way to provide feedback—if you have something that really sucks, your readers will tell you. They need a way to feel like they have a way to do it.
Have a focus—keep your site on topic! If you have a blog about blogging, we don’t need to hear about your dog.
YARPP—awesome plugin to direct visitors to other related articles
Subscriptions & Social network options
Design Tips
Offer clear ways of navigating your site—breadcrumb navigation, top or bottom navigation menus (Yoast Breadcrumb plugin)
Graphics—SEO techniques say not to go heavy on graphics, but you don’t have to sacrifice design. CSS can do wonders.
Use your page space (white space) wisely, but don’t overdo it. Too much looks chaotic.
Color Scheme—if you aren’t sure, check out Colour Lovers has palette options to choose from.
Plugins that involve database processes slow your site.
Browser differences—check how your site looks in other resolutions & browsers (Browser Shots).
W3C coding standards—keep up to cut differences in your design from one browser to the next. Check your site.
Your content needs an audience
Social Network sites
Forum
Twitter—Twitter Tools plugin
Facebook—RSS Graffiti Facebook Application (grabs your site’s RSS feed & publishes posts to your profile or company’s page)
Converting Visitors
Above the Fold
In the Sidebar
Before Comments—related posts, author profile
In Blog Updates—meat & potatoes
Attention Grabbing Elements
Banners—this is not 3rd party banners—use graphics to direct people to certain aspects of your website
Specially designed widgets
jQuery content sliders
Related posts plugins (YARPP)—lead your visitors where you want them to go
Great WordPress Resouces
Codex
Support Forums
WordPress for Dummies
WPHacks.com
WeblogToolsCollection.com
Yoast.com
WPRecipes.com
WPEngineer.com
WPBeginner.com
WPAddict.net
Speaker: Nile Flores, Blondish.net @Blondishnet
This is a live blog—an unedited version of my notes. It is not meant as an exact transcript but I try to capture the highlights along the way.
Tags: live blogging, website design, WordCamp Chicago
Posted in Live Blogging | No Comments »
With the end of school & squeezing in final Girl Scout activities for 2 different troops, I was a bit of a slacker on guest posting. We’re paying my oldest to “mother’s helper” through the summer so I’m actually hoping I’ll be a bit more productive over the next few weeks. I figure she’ll be excited & on top of things at first! The slacking will come later in the summer—on both sides!
I did get a few things submitted at the end of the month, but they’ll be on my June list by the time they get posted. Here are my articles that were published around the web in May:
When the sweet Katie from Frugal Femina asked me earlier this year to guest post, I was more than happy to help out. She was finishing up her nursing degree, and I remember how hard it was last December right before my own graduation. As a result, I chose to write about how I juggle it all!
When Shelly from My Coupon Teacher heard that I frequently send the hubby to the grocery store (We’re duking it out to stay Foursquare mayor of our local Kroger.), she was convinced it would never work for her. So, I offered to guest post my tips & tricks for training him!
I’m a regular contributor to Blissfully Domestic, but I usually hang out in the Green Living section. Last month, however, the Relationships editor put out a call for posts. I answered with details on the alphabet dating project I share with the hubby.
Beating Broke & Inexpensively are side by side through the Yakezie challenge. We’ve decided to band together to increase both are rankings! The first step was a guest post exchange. Since his blog is more personal finance, less deals & coupons, I decided to throw my two cents in on how valuable coupons can really be. His guest post, turned out to be a rebuttal of sorts. Watch for Confessions of a Reformed Coupon-a-phobe later this week!
Fave articles on my other sites
Of course, I’ve been busy with my own projects. The latest project doesn’t require me to blog at all—the girls have their own site! We’re hoping Our Kids. True Story. will provide a fun way to keep their minds sharp this summer. The girls are excited to practice their writing skills even now that school has ended. Still, I have 4 other blogs which require my time on a regular basis. Here are my favorites from May:
My favorite fan gear for summer vacation
In which Lorelai swallows a plastic cherry.
My favorite money saving books—I’ll likely be re-reading many of them again this summer.
The latest on our alphabet dating project
This one was hard to write—Lorelai is challenging, but I’ve got to be more diligent.
Tags: Blissfully Domestic, guest posting, my blogs
Posted in Guest Blogger | No Comments »
I have been creating websites since 1996 and blogging since 2002. Over the years, my family has expanded, my interests have changed and I have grown (I hope). My personal blog ended up all over the map, depending on who I was or what I was doing at the time. Clearly, I cannot be contained on just one blog!
My different hobbies & parts of me have been divvied up into niche blogs & guest posts all over the web. I needed something to pull it all together. Something that says “This is Me,” thus my newest site was born. I’m not sure how often I’ll blog here—it was created to pull all my other projects into one place—but the option is here if I ever want it.
You just never know what I’ll come up with next!
Tags: my blogs
Posted in Niche Blogging | No Comments »
