What's The Trick? How Can I Grow My Blog?

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Marie LeBaron is a 30 something stay at home mom to 3 silly kids. Before life as a mother, she graduated with a teaching degree in Early Childhood & Elementary Education, after which she taught four years of Kindergarten. After her first child was born, she decided to read books and sing silly songs at home. She misses the classroom, but she now gets to bring the fun and learning into her home and ours. You can follow more of her projects at her parenting blog Make and Takes.


Here's a few tips and tricks to help increase traffic to your blog.
As I've been blogging for 2 years and currently have just over 4,100 daily subscribers, I know most of these tips have helped my own readership grow.


Niche Blogging - Find your passion and blog about it. It's much easier and comes more naturally if you blog about something you love. It could be food, parenting, photography, knitting, design etc. If you're genuine and real in your posts, people respond to that and want to read more.

Submitting Posts - There are some great sites that take submissions for related posts and can bring you new readers. Here's a few to check out:

• Stumble Upon - here you must submit other sites as well as your own.


• Kirtsy, Digg, Delightful


• Craftzine, Get Crafty, The Craft Crow, Tip Junkie
  


• Tastespotting, Foodgawker, FoodPhotoBlog

How-To Type Posts - A post with a recipe or directions to make something are very popular with sites like Stumble Upon or Kirsty. They tend to bring a lot of traffic, as people love to see how to make things for themselves.

Use Twitter as a Business Card - Twitter is great for building relationships with people, but it can also be great for sharing your site with others. Try to follow people who are in your area of interest. Chances are they will see your profile and click on your blog link, seeing who you are and maybe staying a while.

Responding to Comments - When someone leaves a comment on your blog, try to comment back or even email back to readers who may be new to your blog. It helps them feel welcome and you can say thanks for sharing their comment. Chances are they'll find you took the time to say hi and they'll come back to read more.

Leaving Comments - Visit other people's blogs and share a comment. Who doesn't love to get comments? Read their posts and comment with something relevant to add, letting them know you're genuine!

I hope these tips and tricks help. What else have you found to help increase traffic to your site?

Photo by flickr.

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How Can I Make My Blog Giveaways Better?

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Jessica is the founder of MomFuse.com a popular site for moms that features product reviews, awesome giveaways and so much more. When she started Mom Fuse she mainly wanted it to be a place where moms could come and get honest reviews on the products moms might use, this soon turned in to companies offering to host giveaways.

Giveaways are becoming very popular, especially with the way the economy is. Now, more than ever, people are getting online to find the best products for the lowest price or even for free.

Why do companies sponsor giveaways?
Companies sponsor contests and giveaways in order to get their products in the hands of consumers. Why? Because if you like a product you’ve tried, you are likely to tell someone you know. Hence, word of mouth marketing. This is also why companies want to get their products reviewed. Companies are seeking out more and more mom and family related blogs to do product reviews and giveaways.

If you’re hunting down companies to sponsor a giveaway or have been approached by a company that is interested in hosting a giveaway on your blog here are some simple tips to help make that giveaway a successful one.

1. Tell your readers why you would want the product.

Your readers trust you, if they didn’t, they wouldn’t read or subscribe to your blog. So, if the product you're giving away isn’t something you would want, why would they want it?

2. Make it easy to enter the giveaway.

I know when I visit blogs and enter giveaways, if the process of entering to win is too complicated or there is too much stuff to do, I won’t enter. —I am a stay at home mom to infant twins, I run MomFuse.com and the BartingMomsClub.com, and I like to spend time with my family. I don’t have the extra time to do a ton of extra stuff!

3. Promote, Promote, Promote

Promoting a giveaway is the only way people will know you have one. There are tons of free sites out there to list your giveaway (just do a Google search). There are also other blogs, like Mom Fuse, that allow you to list your giveaway. You would be surprised at how much extra traffic and giveaway entries you receive from these.

Twitter, which has become very popular, is also a good way to promote your giveaway or anything else terrific on your blog. Be sure not to come off as spammy. People don’t like spam or those who spam them.



Another great way to promote is to offer additional entries to those who post the contest info on their blogs. This not only helps spread the word about your giveaway but also gets people linking to your website and in turn getting you more visitors and better stats.

The bottom line, write a story, not just a review... companies will appreciate your creativity, and so will your readers!

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What Is A Virtual Bake Sale?

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Kate (@asimplewalk) is a foodie author and owner of Cooking During Stolen Moments. (Love the pot in the window in her header..!) We met Kate at BlissDom09, I talked her into playing some board games one evening in fact!


Teaming up with Share Our Strength; Kate tells her story.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have been passionate about helping children that were less fortunate than myself. When I was in fifth grade, I began sponsoring a child through Christian Children's Fund with my allowance money. I loved giving in that way - feeling like I was doing something important for other children. Never in my life did I imagine that someday I might have children on the receiving end of that cycle.

But that is exactly what happened a few years ago. A series of events led to our family relying on the kindness of strangers and food pantry donations to see us through. I saw first hand the work and compassion of organizations whose first priority is making sure children are fed.

Now that the tide has turned toward the better for our family, I feel that same passion I did as a child, except this time I'm armed with first-hand experience. A commercial on Food Network for Share Our Strength's Great American Bake Sale really got me thinking. I knew I wanted to get involved. I tried to figure out what I could do that would have the greatest impact. That's when the idea of the Virtual Great American Bake Sale occurred to me.

I emailed Share Our Strength with my plans. I was thrilled when they responded that they loved the idea and set up a conference call with me.I partnered with them to create the official Virtual Great American Bake Sale.

I can't wait to see the power of the blogosphere in action. I hope you’ll join me in my vision to make the Virtual Great American Bake Sale a success. Let’s support Share Our Strength’s work to make sure that no child goes hungry!

You can read all of the details and find out how to participate on my blog, Cooking During Stolen Moments. Click the button to find out more!




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Calling All Foodies! The virtual bake sale needs your recipes! Hurry, deadline is April 5th!

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#GNO Makes a Difference—Social Community & Responsibility

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One Person Can Make a Difference!

When: Tues., Mar. 31 from 9 pm to 1 a.m. EDT (8 CDT, 7 CDT, and 6 PDT)



What: Girl's Night Out (What's GNO? Click here to find out!)



Topic: Social community & responsibility—kicking off our Mom It Forward Moms Helping Moms charity (Yehu, BasaBody, Coast Coconut Farms)!



Where: Tweet Grid (use the #gno hashtag)



Who: @ChrisBrogan, @dannybrown, @briancarter, Catherine from @herbadmother, Rainee Baldwin from @basabody, Troy Holmberg from @yehu_africa!



RSVP: Visit our new site at http://momitforward.com to RSVP.

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Photo by flickr.

RSVP—Guy Kawasaki Joins #GNO This Week at Our Virtual Pajama Party Sponsored by My Mommy Manual

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What's a Pajama Party Without a GUY?

The fabulous Ria and Suzanne from My Mommy Manual and in partnership with Mom It Forward and the 12 for 12K team, are throwing the pajama party of all pajama parties and you're invited. In support of our 6-week focus on charity, service, and giving, they are raffling off a wide array of prizes with the proceeds going to Yehu Microfinance, Basa Body, and Coast Coconut Farms. Click here to enter to win!



What's more? Guy Kawasaki is joining in on the fun! After all, what's a pajama party without a GUY? Join us Tuesday, April 14 from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. eastern (8 CDT, 7 MDT, & 6 PDT) to chit and chat about tips for entrepreneurs—starting and running your own business and using social media to do it. Click here to RSVP for the party!

Guy Kawasaki is a managing director of Garage Technology Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm and a columnist for Entrepreneur Magazine. Previously, he was an Apple Fellow at Apple Computer, Inc. Guy is the author of nine books including Reality Check, The Art of the Start, Rules for Revolutionaries, How to Drive Your Competition Crazy, Selling the Dream, and The Macintosh Way. He has a BA from Stanford University and an MBA from UCLA as well as an honorary doctorate from Babson College.

When: Tues., Apr.14 from 9 pm to 1 a.m. EDT (8 CDT, 7 CDT, and 6 PDT)




What: Girl's Night Out (What's GNO? Click here to find out!)




Topic: Tips to Starting & Running Your Own Business—in conjunction with our charity to fight poverty in Kenya (Yehu, BasaBody, Coast Coconut Farms)




Where: Tweet Grid (use the #gno hashtag)and on UStream





Who: @guykawasaki, @riasharon, and @zenmommy




RSVP: Use Mr. Linky below (enter the twitter URL and your twitter ID (e.g., http://twitter.com/jyl_momIF). If you would like to include your blog, please enter it next to your name. Make sure to include your twitter URL in the URL line. Please do not enter your blog URL there.

How Do You Enter to Win the Giveaways?

My Mommy Manual has rounded up nearly $5,000 in prizes. Check out this short video below to see how to enter!


Click here to RSVP for this week's RSVP!!!

Vans partneres with PLUS Compound Technologies to create sandal made of 100% recyclable material

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[via transworld biz]Vans Inc. has partnered with PLUS Compound Technologies in creating a sandal made of 100% recyclable material. The collab comes in four colors, and is set to hit stores for Summer 2012, with the “Nexpa” sandal already available at certain retailers in the US.
“We couldn’t be more excited to partner with such a well-established and well respected brand like Vans,” said Brett Ritter, CEO and Co-Founder of PLUS. “It’s been great working with the team at Vans and we look forward to expanding the use of our materials into more sandal styles and other collections as well. We’re also really enthusiastic about the marketing opportunities this will create for both companies”.NEWPORT BEACH, CA (June 19, 2012) – By using PLUSfoam® to make the Nexpa sandal, Vans is virtually eliminating the post-manufacturing waste that is typically associated with footwear production.
“A project like this will typically yield approximately 30% scrap for each pair of sandals produced”, said Michael Carr, Associate General Manager at PLUS.
“For the Vans production order this translated into approximately 3.5 kilos. Because PLUSfoam® is 100% recyclable, we are able to regrind, reconstitute and reuse this scrap for other products”.
Using PLUSfoam® in just one product can make a huge difference at the manufacturing level. “Anyone that’s been to a manufacturing facility in China within the last 20 years has seen the piles of post-manufacturing scrap first-hand”, says Ritter.
“Our goal at PLUS is to eliminate these piles while producing the best possible performance-based products. With Vans getting on board, we’re making a difference”.
As consumers become more socially and environmentally aware, their buying habits are affecting the way brands approach new products. Many brands are searching for eco-friendly solutions to help minimize waste and decrease their carbon footprint without sacrificing performance.
“Working with PLUS was an easy decision,” says Ryan Quinn, Product Category Manager at Vans, “their material performed great and this is key for our consumers. The fact that we’re essentially eliminating waste and doing something good for the world is icing on the cake.”
PLUS Compound Technologies operates reclaim facilities in the US and Asia where any products made with PLUS Compounds can be returned and recycled.
“The reclaim service we offer is simply a value add that comes with our material”, says Carr, “while the biggest environmental impact will occur at the factory level, the fact that consumers can get involved and close the loop on these products is something we are extremely proud of”.

Protect Our Winters And Callan Chythlook-Sifsof Work To Save Bristol Bay

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Story by Tetongravity.com

Olympic snowboarder Callan Chythlook-Sifsof is taking on one of the toughest challenges she's ever faced. A lifetime resident of Bristol Bay, Alaska, Callan is fighting to prevent the construction of the Pebble Mine, a massive copper and gold strip mine threatening the headwaters that are home to one of the largest salmon runs in the world.Bristol Bay supports thousands of local jobs and generates over $100 million dollars in revenue for the Alaska economy. Callan's family members are commercial fisherman in Bristol Bay, so this issue hits very close to home.A new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency study has already confirmed that this will be an incredibly destructive project. This scientific assessment of Alaska's Bristol Bay watershed shows that without a doubt, large-scale mining would jeopardize the area's legendary salmon runs. The effects on the entire ecosystem, the local economy and Native communities would be catastrophic.Yet, despite that, the mining companies, with huge financial interests are mounting campaign after campaign to discredit it and move forward.Thankfully, under the Clean Water Act, the EPA has the authority to block destructive projects like the Pebble Mine. But the EPA needs to hear from us immediately.Tell EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson to save Bristol Bay by banning the Pebble Mine.The EPA study is grounded in sound science. And it confirms what Callan and everyone in the area know: there's no way to dig a massive mine and generate billions of tons of contaminated waste and not have a dramatic impact on the environment.Please take a minute and send an email directly to Ms. Jackson at the EPA to help stop this mine. To make it easier, Protect Our Winters has provided a sample email and Lisa Jackson's email address below.To further inspire you to send this email, watch this Felt Soul video titled Red Gold about the Pebble Mine issue.SAMPLE EMAIL COPYMAIL TO: ORD.Docket@epa.govMUST PLACE IN THE SUBJECT LINE: Docket # EPA-HQ-ORD-2012-0276

Dear Ms. Jackson,
Thank you for your attention to the proposed Pebble Mine in Bristol Bay Alaska.I am writing today to urge you to use your authority under the Clean Water Act to consider how this proposed mine will impact our nation's biggest wild salmon fishery and untouched ecosystem, the commercial fishermen and Alaska Natives who depend on it, and the local businesses who make their living off of this wild landscape in Southwestern Alaska.The Bristol Bay ecosystem is the cornerstone on which Alaskan Native cultures have subsisted for thousands of years. Building a mine of this scale in this location would jeopardize one of the largest salmon runs in the world which provides over $100 million in revenue to the local economy and supports thousands of Alaskan jobs.There are no examples of successful, long-term collection and treatment systems for mines. However, if built, Pebble Mine will produce between 2 and 10 billion tons of toxic waste that would degrade water quality downstream with virtual certainty, and there is a 98 percent likelihood of pipeline failure per 25 years of operation. So, no matter how extensive the environmental review or how comprehensive the mitigation plans may be, any short term and unsustainable financial gain is not worth the environmental damage and economic loss that will certainly take place.I understand that you're under pressure from global mining companies to open up this extraordinary ecosystem to large-scale mining for the sake of corporate profits. But I urge you to use your authority under the Clean Water Act to proactively protect the Bristol Bay watershed and the communities that depend on it for survival.

Thank you,