Twitter Remarketing: What It Is and How to Use It to Target Audiences

When Twitter remarketing is used alongside Twitter’s already familiar Twitter Ads and Cards, Twitter marketers gain a powerful new ally. Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Twitter Remarketing: What It Is and How to Use It to Target Audiences

Answer These 10 Questions to Build Your Twitter Brand

The best businesses on Twitter understand that they are building a brand with every tweet they send. The tone, content, timing, opinions, multimedia and more that make up their tweets impact how their audience perceives them.

Many SMBs, however, don’t have the time or resources to put together a branding document or hold multiple meetings with their marketing team to outline exactly what their brand is. If you are looking for a quick-and-dirty way to craft your Twitter brand, you can get a great head start by answering these ten questions.

(more…)

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Answer These 10 Questions to Build Your Twitter Brand

How to Fuel Your Sales Engine With Social Content [Infographic]

How can brands convert social content into sales? Here are some tips for getting started. Read the full article at MarketingProfs
How to Fuel Your Sales Engine With Social Content [Infographic]

Here Come the Men of Pinterest

Pinterest's first explosive growth was fueled by women, as suggested by early reports from women's magazines that their sites were suddenly getting more traffic from Pinterest than from Facebook.

But don't discount the growing group of men on the social pinboard, said Don Faul, head of operations at Pinterest, during an appearance at Ad Age's Digital Conference in San Francisco.

See more video from the conference right here, with Old Navy Global CMO Ivan Wicksteed talking about the value of outtakes from its TV campaign with Amy Poehler.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

Here Come the Men of Pinterest

Everything You Need To Know About YouTube Music Key and YouTube’s Evolution As A Social Video Channel

A revolution is underway in the music industry, and it will not be televised. It will be streamed on YouTube. Then, someone will write a song about it, leading to the subsequent creation of lyric videos, remixes, or maybe an acoustic cover.

The importance of YouTube in the distribution and discovery of music in the digital world is undeniable. Over half of top 50 YouTube channels with the highest view count are dedicated to music, mostly made up of official artist and record label channels. On Wednesday, YouTube made the network’s strong connection to the music industry and the listening habits of their users official: they launched a separate music streaming channel along with a beta version of their own music subscription service.

TL;DR

What: A standalone music streaming service
Why: Millions already get their music from YouTube
How much: $7.99/month
Where to get it: Currently invite-only

 

YouTube Music page, similar to the home page, shows users the music videos recommended for them, along with the most popular music videos and playlists by genre. YouTube’s official blog also promised full-length albums in high quality to be uploaded through YouTube Music for users’ listening pleasure. The page can be accessed through a web browser, as well as on YouTube’s mobile app for both Android and iPhone.

However, users wishing to enjoy free tunes on YouTube will run into a familiar inconvenience—advertisements, an expected trade-off for the video network to afford streaming rights for high-quality audio.

For those wishing to have an uninterrupted music-listening experience, YouTube has launched a beta version of a paid music subscription service called YouTube Music Key. A starting monthly fee of $7.99 (expected to rise to $9.99 after the initial promotion) guarantees users an ad-free listening experience, along with offline access and a subscription to Google Play Music store. The bad news? Currently, YouTube Music Key beta is only available to the network’s “biggest music fans” by invite only, as stated on the official blog, with the wider service later.

What Your Business Can Learn From YouTube’s Evolution as A Social Channel

So how is YouTube’s move significant to online marketers? Here are three lessons brands can take from the rise of YouTube as a music platform:

1. Young audiences can define a market

In 2012, a Nielsen survey identified YouTube as the most popular source of music for teenagers, with older media like radio and CDs trailing behind. For social media and online marketing, user engagement is everything. A critical mass of users signing up or leaving your service for your competitor can make or break your brand. And the one user group social media analysts watch the most are teenagers: their love of Instagram made the networks’ user base double in less than a year, and their preference for social media as a source of news put newsrooms around the world in a panic for their future. Behaviors and habits of the young and broke often shape a market, so don’t ignore the needs of a younger customer. Teens can make a single Target employee into a social media sensation overnight, so you should not ignore their needs and interests in your online marketing efforts.

2. Put your customer’s needs first, and profits will follow

Despite the copyright battles and numerous opportunities to monetize on their active users, YouTube remained free to use. And now, some say that if a fraction of YouTube Music users to convert to the paid streaming service, YouTube Music Key, the service will quickly outperform veterans such as Spotify and Rdio in the field. Nothing good is free for long, but you have to prove your worth to your clients before introducing a charge for your products or services. YouTube’s music offering is well-positioned to demonstrate how a freemium model can generate real profits.

3. Never underestimate Google

The 2006 acquisition of a one-year-old YouTube was one of Google’s biggest buys at the time. Now the video-sharing services reaches more US adults ages 18-34 than any cable network, according to YouTube’s official blog. If you’re in the streaming music business, you learned firsthand this week not to underestimate the search giant’s power. For the rest of us the lesson is simple: always keep one eye on Mountainview. For good measure, maybe also brush up on your SEO knowledge and update your Google+ profiles. And while you’re at it, why not learn a thing or two from Google’s new marketing training app, Google Primer.

Improve your social video strategy with Hootsuite’s YouTube app!

Make better social videos

The post Everything You Need To Know About YouTube Music Key and YouTube’s Evolution As A Social Video Channel appeared first on Hootsuite Social Media Management.

Everything You Need To Know About YouTube Music Key and YouTube’s Evolution As A Social Video Channel

Amazon and Google: Friends, Enemies or Frenemies?

Reports show Amazon is Google's biggest search advertiser, but the online retailer is reportedly developing its own ad program to rival Google AdWords.

Amazon and Google: Friends, Enemies or Frenemies?

Lenovo, Asustek bringing lower cost Chromebooks to market in 2015

Although Chromebooks have only grabbed a small part of the laptop computer market thus far, despite much success in the education sector, the race to bring out less expensive models to entice buyers appears to be heating up for 2015. A new report from Digitimes Research indicates both Lenovo and Asustek are preparing new Chromebooks equipped with Rockchip technology to hit the market at a $149 price point.

Thus far, most Chromebooks have been priced in the $200 – $300 range, so the products from Lenovo and Asustek could set new lows for notebook devices. Both devices are expected to come with 11.6-inch screens and the Rockchip processors, but other details are not yet known. Acer is currently the biggest Chromebook producer and these new devices would be priced 25% lower than the Acer C720 that runs $199. Digitimes Research indicated that in addition to the price pressure this move will create for other Chromebook producers like Acer, it will also put pressure on Microsoft which has been modifying license costs in an effort to stave off Chromebooks’ growth in the market.

Rockchip is a “first-tier tablet application processor (AP) designer” from China. They have worked with Intel on chip design and distribution. They are also a Google-certified solutions provider.

source: Digitimes

Come comment on this article: Lenovo, Asustek bringing lower cost Chromebooks to market in 2015

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Lenovo, Asustek bringing lower cost Chromebooks to market in 2015

User Experience and Persuasion

User Experience and Persuasion Roundtable

This event is now fully booked - if you would like to add you name to the waiting list please do so here. Should there be any cancellations we will be in touch.

Note: This event is exclusive to Econsultancy Enterprise subscribers.

The User Experience and Persuasion Roundtable is your chance to share knowledge, experience and best practice on the issues, trends and developments around User Experience and Persuasion.

Attendance is limited to 12 - 16 attendees, with discussion chaired and facilitated by Econsultancy to ensure all participants get the most from the session. 

Agenda

The agenda for the day is very much driven by those attending - your priority areas and pain points.

Potential topics on User Experience and Persuasion will be added to the website shortly.

User Experience and Persuasion

Webinar: Digital Excellence - What It Is and How to Get There

The speed of change in technology has never been faster. Twenty years ago, ecommerce didn’t exist: this year, consumers will spend $1.5 trillion online. It has only been seven years since the first iPhone was released; yet in many markets today, more than three quarters of the population has a smartphone, using this as their key device for connecting to the internet.

So how do companies need to adapt to this rapid pace of change?

Join senior research analyst Andrew Warren-Payne, as he talks about the significance for companies in achieving digital excellence to get ahead. Using case studies and examples of best practice from around the world, he will explain the four key ingredients to achieving digital excellence and show that companies that get there outperform their peers on a number of fronts.

Time & Date:

Wednesday, 5 November 2014

1pm – 2pm GMT +8 (Singapore, Hong Kong, China) / 4pm – 5pm GMT +10 (Australia) / 12pm – 1pm GMT +7 (Bangkok, Jakarta) / 2pm – 3pm GMT +9 (Japan, Korea) 

Webinar: Digital Excellence - What It Is and How to Get There

Funding Daily: Today’s tech funding news, in one place

Image Credit: Shutterstock

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Here’s a list of today’s tech funding stories, updated as the day unfolds. Tip us here if you have a deal to share.

League raises $4M

League, a service for people to discover, manage, and store information and data about their health, health care providers, and from wearable devices, announced that it has raised $4 million in seed funding. The company will launch its service in 2015, and is based in Toronto, Canada. OMERS Ventures led the round, with Infinite Potential Technologies LP, Foundation Capital, and Real Ventures also participating.

Read more: Press release

Google Glass rival LaForge Optical nabs $1.1M for its prescription smart glasses

While Google Glass is cool and all, you still have to double up if your eyesight is bad. Not so with LaForge Optical’s stylish smart glasses, which feature prescription lenses. And today the startup announced that it’s raising a fresh $1.1 million in seed funding to further develop its technology and future product lines. As you’ll recall, we first heard from LaForge last year when it launched a very successful Indiegogo campaign that it yanked prior to its funding goal date after securing seed funding. (Because no one wants to pull a Zach Braff.)

Read more

This list will be updated with breaking funding news all day. Check back for more.

 

Funding Daily: Today’s tech funding news, in one place

The Case For Ditching Your Helmet

We always preach the importance of wearing a helmet while cycling. But new research suggests that the brain buckets aren’t keeping us any safer — and one Olympian argues we should do away with them altogether.

The Case For Ditching Your Helmet

Big Mayo Wants You To Know There's Only One Way to Make Mayo

I, however, wasn’t so sure. So I had myself a little mayo taste test.

Big Mayo Wants You To Know There's Only One Way to Make Mayo

Officer Darren Wilson Can Remain A Ferguson Cop If Not Indicted

Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson was also quoted by NBC station KSDK on Friday as saying that it was unclear whether Officer Darren Wilson would want to return to the St. Louis suburb’s force. If the grand jury does return an indictment, Jackson said Wilson would most likely be fired. Wilson is currently on paid leave.

Officer Darren Wilson Can Remain A Ferguson Cop If Not Indicted

Mobile Marketing: The Week in Review

In case you missed it, here are some of the top stories in mobile marketing and advertising we’ve been following this week.

• Marketers Walk Thin Line Between Relevancy Demand and Privacy Concerns

Marketers must find the challenge daunting. As data flow on smartphones continues to lap voice usage, they need to understand the medium and how to motivate via mobile.

• It’s All Just Bits and Bytes, Unless the Data Is Comprehensive and Meaningful

Data. It’s what every marketer needs, but how can he judge what he’s getting? In an interview with a BizReport writer, Martin Hayward, Director of Marketing at Mirror Image, shed some light.

• Forget Black Friday! Digital Marketers Have Already Moved on to Superbowl XLIX

There’s still a lot of Halloween candy in the house — and the holiday tree isn’t even up — but that hasn’t stopped Madison Avenue marketers from moving on to the next big thing: Superbowl XLIX.

• Paid Search Advertising Continues to Go Mobile

Regardless of the search engine in question, pay-per-click and paid search advertising has long been an effective method of online advertising.

• MMW Op-Ed: Mobile Marketing Trends to Look Out for in 2015

The mobile audiences of 2015 are not robots – in fact, they demand more control over what they interact with than ever before. In order to be prepared for the consumers of tomorrow, you need to have a mobile marketing plan ready for what the future holds. Never fear – we’ve used our expertise to bring you the top marketing trends to look out for in 2015.

Want to get the latest MMW news and insight delivered straight to you inbox every morning? Click here to sign up for our free newsletter.

Mobile Marketing: The Week in Review

Sell to Large and Enterprise Businesses Using This 16 Point Checklist

Selling your service or software to large and enterprise sized businesses requires a different approach than selling to small and medium sized businesses.

As a founder and CEO, I’ve spent my career selling to medium, large, and enterprise banks, credit unions, and lenders nationwide. The average deal size was $500,000 annually, the smallest was $25,000 annually, and the largest was $7,000,000 annually.

I’ve spent time on the ground as the only sales person at a startup. I’ve hired and managed senior sales people. And, I’ve overseen sales through monthly reporting only. My goal is to humbly share with you my perspectives on what I’ve seen work and how I think you can apply it to your business.

Let’s jump right in.

What’s the Difference?

There are approximately 6,064,000 businesses (firms with payroll) in the U.S. according to the United States Census Bureau, and of that only 0.32% qualify as large or enterprise sized businesses. Here are estimates derived from that data:

Relationships Are Everything

Covet relationships.

Let’s be clear. You never actually sell anything to a business. You sell to people who work inside a business. The relationship you hold with your potential customer is what tips the scale, either in your favor or against.

Assuming you offer a product of value, people buy from those they trust, have confidence in, and like. There’s no shortcut to this; it just takes time. That’s why average sales cycles can range from 6 to 24 months, and that’s why there are some deals you will never close.

Selling to a business is a very rewarding experience. Over time, you’ll develop personal relationships with your customers, many of whom you will consider good friends.

Know How Decisions Are Made

In order to close a deal, you need to understand how decisions are made. If you don’t understand the process, your sale will be delayed, or worse, you won’t have a sale to delay at all!

Every organization is different, but there are three common structures you should be aware of:

1. The first is the sole decision maker. This person makes the final decision. Period. This person is usually the CEO, President, or Division President, but they could also be a department head or special projects director depending on the company’s organizational structure. This is typical in both large and enterprise sized companies.


2. The second is the sole decision maker who requires board approval. Once you get a commitment, you will need to wait for the next board meeting or business cycle, and depending on other priorities, you may have to wait multiple cycles. This is particularly apparent in compliance heavy businesses such as banking and insurance, or in cyclical businesses like plant products.


3. The third is multiple decision makers. Even though there may be one person who approves the final decision, this person relies heavily on the decisions made by a team, or in some cases, group consensus.

As you can see, it’s not always about the CEO or President. In a large company, there could be many people who have the scope of authority to influence and get your deal inked. You just need to identify that person or persons.

So, this naturally begs the question, “How do you get to the right decision maker in the first place?”

That, my friend, is literally the million dollar question we’ll cover in the next 16 sections.

1. Start with the People You Know

When selling to a business, start with the relationships you already have with people you know personally.

If you’re new and have never sold anything to anyone, your #1 goal is to find a warm referral to the organization you’re trying to get into. Your contact could be a college friend who works as an account manager who in turn services that potential client, or it could be another vendor who doesn’t directly compete against you.

Exhaust your relationships.

Your goal is to get an appointment with your contact, share your business with them, and get a warm referral to others. What you’re trying to do is meet champions for your business. People who believe in what you’re selling and who can help you get inside your target businesses.

Of course, if you already have experience and contacts, start with those you’ve sold to in the past, or have tried to sell to. Tap your industry contacts. Everyone should know what your new venture is.

2. Get Your First Customer

Your very first paying customer likely will be a small or medium sized business that will help you step up to the larger and enterprise sized businesses. Once you get your first customer, and assuming they’re actually a happy customer, you’ll have an advocate for your business who will be your customer testimonial for your second client and maybe even your two-hundredth client.

Particularly for startups, it’s critical to get this first customer under your belt because it proves you are a real business to future customers, helps slow the cash burn, and attracts investors.

The good news is your first customer probably knows they are your first. Anyone who picks your brand new company wants to help you grow.

3. Be a Connector

“You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help enough other people get what they want.” – Zig Ziglar

In business, people do business with other people. Your goal is to make meaningful and mutually beneficial connections between your contacts. Be open in making introductions to people you know, and help your contacts develop new relationships with each another.

Of course, when you make a referral, you’re putting your own name on the line. Be sure to make quality connections, not just any connection for the sake of just making a connection. A bad introduction is much worse than no introduction at all.

Don’t forget to look beyond just your customers. Look to connect vendors, partners, and even competitors as well.

4. Solve Problems

Don’t be a sales person, be a consultant and resource.

You never sell a product; you sell a solution to a problem. This means that your product itself is never the primary focal point. The focal point is what value your software actually provides. What real world pain point do you make unpainful?

For example, you don’t sell CRM software. You sell a way to never lose opportunities.

If you focus on your customers’ issues, you can help them solve their problems. But, you’ll need to be an expert in your space. Your aim is to become a valuable addition to the company, not just a vendor. You want to be the person they call when issues relating to your expertise unfold. And, if you really want to be a valuable resource, be the one who helps them identify issues they don’t even know they have yet.

You can’t fake expertise. You’ll have to actually deeply embed yourself in their world. Understand industry cycles, pain points, opportunities, and the shifting landscape.

But offering solutions does not imply talking and talking and talking. Listen and understand so you can help offer a better solution. Ask more questions than you answer.

5. Participate in Industry Events

If you serve a particular industry, participating in industry functions such as associations and trade organizations is a great way to learn and meet people within the industry. Consistency is everything. Your aim is to become an active participant, become a regular contributor, and essentially become a fixture at industry events.

There are many different organizations throughout the country. Some are regional in scope while others focus on national concerns. You don’t need to go to all of them. Pick a few to start with and plan on attending for years to come.

Your first few shows can be lonely since you may not know many people. However, there are endless opportunities everywhere, such as the trade show floor, booths, lobby, parties/mixers, and educational seminars.

6. Join a Committee

Take your participation with industry trade organizations a step beyond the semiannual events and get involved with their committees. Business associations are always looking for assistance in organizing membership drives, planning for events, bringing on sponsors, or all of the above.

Being a part of a committee that is well respected in your industry goes a long way in developing your credibility, contacts, and industry knowledge. It also shows that you’re not just there trying to make a buck, but that you’re there trying to further your customer’s industry and success.

7. Partner with Non-Competing Vendors

The easiest place to find a warm introduction into a company is via those who already sell to that company! Seek out these relationships and share your solution with them.

Vendors who are already inside a company, especially if they are consultative (see Section 4, above), have a keen perspective on the company’s needs. If they can identify a need you can solve, many are willing to make referrals without compensation.

For example, let’s say you sell employment screening technology. Team up with a payroll provider and share with them what makes your product unique. As they come across current clients who express this very pain point, they’ll make a direct introduction.

You can even take this one step further and do joint sales calls and marketing campaigns.

At a company I advised years ago that sold a business networking platform, my business was able to distribute our offering through various partners’ email lists. Of course, we did the same and exposed them to our customers, too.

8. Write for Industry Publications and Press

Industry specific publications are one of the best ways to deliver a message to your potential customers. Because the channel is specific and trusted, your brand will develop, and opportunities will emerge.

Pitch the appropriate editorial staff to be featured and to be called on when the reporters need quotes or content contributions. If you don’t have the time and can afford the cost, use a PR firm that specializes in your particular space.

9. Use Email Campaigns

For businesses, email is still very much alive and remains one of the best ways to reach your target audience. If you don’t have your own list, you can rent lists from industry associations and industry publications. You’ll have to pay a fee, but your emails will be targeted and will reach the eyeballs of the decision makers you need to speak with.

We won’t go into how to craft an email campaign, but we’ll cover a few approaches I’ve seen work well. Click here for a great article about B2B email campaigns.

Refrain from speaking about your product and features. Instead use a direct approach where you identify the company’s problem and offer a solution. Ask them to take action, and make it easy for them to get in touch with you. Offer a phone number or suggest that they simply “reply back” to engage.

Another approach is to offer industry updates that help convince them you’re an expert and one who can help them solve problems and generate results. If your potential customers learn from you, they’ll naturally identify you and your company as a solution.

10. Reach Out through Cold Calls and Emails

I’m betting I’ll get some arguments about this claim, but let me tell you, it still works! If you’re selling a $100 per month widget, don’t bother. But if your sales can be tens of thousands to millions annually, cold calling is a strategy you simply cannot ignore.

Don’t get me wrong, I strongly believe in inbound marketing. All I’m saying is cold calls still work and deserve your consideration.

As the world and your competitors are focused on inbound marketing, you’ll be one of the few doing outbound calls. The first person who builds a relationship with a business has a much higher chance of winning the deal. Combine this with a consultative sales approach, and you’ll be ahead of the curve.

But, be sure to do research first. Understand the customer’s problem, how they currently solve it, how your platform will help them reach their goals, and how they’ll implement your solution. For example, before I cold call or email someone, I already understand how they currently do what they do. Therefore, when I craft my pitch, I focus on how our company can solve their problem and what it’ll take to implement our solution within their infrastructure.

Click here for an excellent article on cold emails and calls.

11. Publish White Papers

White papers are a solid way to showcase your solution, industry knowledge, and case studies of how you have already helped customers. It builds credibility and deal flow.

Think of a white paper as a blog post on steroids. White papers are usually authoritative, technical in nature, and contain supported research and real world customer use cases. They should not be sales pitches. You want to make sure your white paper helps the reader identify their own problem and helps them visualize a solution.

Who will read your white paper? At many companies, management will designate a person to perform research, seek out new solutions, do product demos, and kick recommendations up to a team or manager. So, expect your white papers to be read by an entry-level employee, but anticipate that they may get kicked up throughout an organization as well.

Here are some great examples of white papers.

12. Advertise on LinkedIn

LinkedIn Advertising is a natural channel for a B2B company. One of the easy things about selling to businesses is that you know your target demographic very well. Use LinkedIn to target specific regions, companies, titles, and groups.

When you consider the cost of acquisition for a 6-to-24-month sales cycle, LinkedIn is cheap. Spending hundreds and even thousands of dollars on a prospect that may generate hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue is a good ROI.

LinkedIn has great resources and analytics to test your campaigns and ensure your message and call-to-action is effective. In fact, LinkedIn won’t let you proceed if it isn’t. LinkedIn will shut down your campaign if it doesn’t receive a minimum conversion. Makes sense, right? For LinkedIn, there’s no point in displaying your brand for free if it doesn’t convert into dollars.

13. Hire Sales Reps

Hiring sales reps is a must. You’re able to capitalize on the relationships they’ve spent years developing and open up doors quicker than you can on your own.

Be sure to differentiate between finders and miners.

A finder is someone who can find business. They’re the ones who shake hands and kiss babies. They’re already part of the good ole boy network. Finders are usually high priced and difficult to manage. Attention to detail isn’t always their strong point, so be sure you know how to support finders properly.

A miner, on the other hand, is someone who knows how to mine for business from existing customers and marketing campaigns. These are usually the people who make great internal sales people and account managers. They develop deep relationships through day-to-day interaction with customers. Unlike finders, miners are usually more technical and detailed oriented.

Develop a good strategy for finders and miners to work together, and you’ll have an amazing one-two combination.

14. Recruit Rainmakers

The best rainmakers usually aren’t looking for a job at the moment, but those are precisely the ones you want. Hire a headhunter, and offer your prospect a better package selling a better product.

Remember that top sales people already make a ton of money, so offering more money isn’t good enough. You’ll need to help support their growth. You need to identify their professional and personal goals and be the one to make it come to life. It could be anything from the need for ownership through stock options or equity buy-in to new responsibilities to a work-life balance.

15. Acquire or Partner with Competitors

Remember Section 3, Be a Connector, above? You must network with competitors as well.

There are two things you’re looking for: a partnership or an acquisition.

For example, let’s say you sell a stand-alone functional software system that services smaller volume customers better, while your competitor, who you’re friendly with, concentrates on mid-tier larger volume clients where integration is required. Bingo! This is a great opportunity to serve one another.

In regard to acquisitions, the question is how do you acquire if you don’t have a large amount of cash or credit? Easy! Be creative.

In my last company, we acquired two companies with no upfront cash through a creative use of salary, sales incentives, bonuses, and an employment agreement with a golden parachute. I’ve also advised a company that would pay out a small amount of cash in addition to stock with dividend payouts. They did this a total of 8 times, growing to a point where they paid out $1 million per month in dividends.

These opportunities don’t just pop out of the blue. They require that you build relationships with competitors. When the opportunity presents itself, such as when a competitor is struggling financially, they’ll reach out to you for help.

16. Prepare a Response to Requests for Proposal

A request for proposal (RFP) is a document that an organization posts to solicit bids from potential vendors. It’s essentially an advertisement to come sell to them. You, as the vendor, will usually put together a formal package (and it’s a big one) based on the issuer’s preferred format.

I highly recommend putting together a standard RFP package, which you update quarterly, so when RFPs come up, you can easily reformat it to fit the entity’s requirements.

The RFP process is meant to create structure and provide transparency to a vendor provider decision. RFPs are almost always issued by governments. Large and enterprise sized companies do the same under varying degrees, with the biggest difference being that they are not required to post publicly.

Your relationships and industry contacts will be the ones to open doors and inform you when RFP opportunities arise.

In Closing…

As you can see, there are many different ways to approach B2B sales, but they ultimately all boil down to just a few key takeaways…

Relationships are everything. Be trustworthy, be confident, and hope they like you!

What do you think? What other strategies have worked for you?

About the Author: Tim Nguyen is co-founder and CEO at BeSmartee, a new way of getting a home loan that’s as easy as booking a plane ticket online. Visit their website to sign up for their exclusive private launch.

Sell to Large and Enterprise Businesses Using This 16 Point Checklist

What We Learned This Week

This week, we learned about the secret life of the "Goosebumps" illustrator, the going rate for a Moscow mistress and why we like the smell of our own farts.
What We Learned This Week

Weekend Favs November Fifteen

Weekend Favs November Fifteen written by John Jantsch read more at Small Business Marketing Blog from Duct Tape Marketing

My weekend blog post routine includes posting links to a handful of tools or great content I ran across during the week.

I don’t go into depth about the finds, but encourage you check them out if they sound interesting. The photo in the post is a favorite for the week from Flickr or one that I took out there on the road.

photo credit: blmiers2 via photopin cc

Good stuff I found this week:

Megalytic – One of my favorite reporting tools now offers a done for you analytics reporting service

transcribe – software that turns your audio recordings into text

directr – simple, intuitive online video creation and editing

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3. Weekend Favs June Fifteen My weekend blog post routine includes posting links to a…

Weekend Favs November Fifteen

Hong Kong activists denied permit to go to Beijing

HONG KONG — Three Hong Kong students who have led protests for greater democracy in the former British colony were denied in their attempt Saturday to go to Beijing to meet with top Chinese officials.

Alex Chow, Nathan Law and Eason Chung — members of a student group that played a main role in organizing massive street protests that started nearly two months ago — arrived at the Hong Kong airport greeted by dozens of well-wishers. But they were denied boarding passes for a Cathay Pacific flight when they were told their documents that would allow them to travel to Beijing were invalid.

See also: Out of the spotlight, Hong Kong protesters still in the streets Read more...

More about China, Beijing, Protests, Hong Kong, and Us World
Hong Kong activists denied permit to go to Beijing

Twitter Remarketing: What It Is and How to Use It to Target Audiences

When Twitter remarketing is used alongside Twitter’s already familiar Twitter Ads and Cards, Twitter marketers gain a powerful new ally. Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Twitter Remarketing: What It Is and How to Use It to Target Audiences

How to Fuel Your Sales Engine With Social Content [Infographic]

How can brands convert social content into sales? Here are some tips for getting started. Read the full article at MarketingProfs
How to Fuel Your Sales Engine With Social Content [Infographic]

15 simple DIY holiday gifts to make with your kids

This year, your kid is hoping to give you a gift that is way better than a run-of-the-mill tie or scented candle.

Children of all ages love to craft, especially over the holidays. While not all projects are exactly kid-friendly, there are still plenty of creative ways for your little artists to get into the spirit of giving in easy and fun ways — with some adult supervision, of course.

See also: 10 Simple DIY Gift Ideas on Pinterest

Your kid gets to be a crafty DIY elf over the holiday season, and you'll probably get an awesome gift. Everybody wins. Read more...

More about Holidays, Gifts, Lists, Kids, and Diy
15 simple DIY holiday gifts to make with your kids

If Black People Said The Things My Doctor Says

As usual, Clickhole finds a way to lampoon dumb trends without being didactic. Your move, Internet.
If Black People Said The Things My Doctor Says

The Death Of The Private Eye

Now that we have Facebook and the NSA, who needs a gumshoe?
The Death Of The Private Eye

7 Popular Travel Bloggers Share Their Best Blogging Tips

The people behind seven popular travel blogs share their personal insights and best blogging tips in this post. Their stories and experiences showcase the path you can follow in order to become a great blogger. I hope their words inspire you. The post is long and full of practical advice so let’s get started. First a quick introduction to our guests:

• Earl Baron (EB): Wandering Earl is a permanent nomad and an experienced traveler.

• Matthew Kepnes (MK): Matt explores the world and collects his traveling experiences at Nomadic Matt.

• Dalene & Peter Heck (DH): Hecktic Travels have left everything behind to live with no possessions, no plans and just travel.

• Andrea Spirov (AS): A travel lover with the ambitious goal of inspiring you to take a trip through Inspiring Travellers.

• Cameron & Nicole Wears (CW): Traveling Canucks have been to over 50 countries on 6 continents.

• Christy Woodrow & Scott Calafiore (SC): Two entrepreneurs who run Ordinary Traveler.

• Mary Gabbett & Bret Love (BL): Co-founders of Green Global Travel, dedicated to ecotourism.

How and why did you start your blog?

EB: I wanted to know if the experiences I was having during my travels would be of interest to anyone else. And so I figured that a blog would be the best platform for me to test that idea out.

MK: I started my site as a way to create an online resume for writing. I wanted to write guidebooks for Lonely Planet and figured if I had a website with posts as well as some writing on other websites then it would have been easier for me to do so.

DH: When we first started our travels, we fired up a Blogspot page to keep our family and friends informed on our whereabouts and activities. We stumbled upon the vast community of travel writers online and realized that we could perhaps take our site to the next level and even make some income off of it. We then bought our own domain, focused more heavily on providing quality content, and began to engage in social media.

AS: When my husband and I decided to take a year off for a sabbatical I thought it might be nice to start blogging about our experiences. Originally I wanted to interview other travelers, in particular those that we would meet in hostels who were doing really interesting things while on the road. But eventually we also decided to write about our own experiences and the site just evolved from there.

CW: We started our travel site before embarking on an around the world adventure. Originally the page was designed to update family and friends and to share our travel stories. As our travels continued, we found that our readership was growing. People were actually interested in our adventures, stories and photos. This inspired us to take our travel blogging seriously and write for a much wider audience.

SC: We wanted to share our stories with family and friends while we were away. It also seemed like a great way to keep track of our photos since photography is a huge part of not only our personal lives, but our professional lives as well.

BL: We’re insatiably curious about traveling to new places, meeting new people, seeking out new experiences and new ideas, and love sharing those things with other people in a way that will hopefully inform and inspire them to travel.

How much time do you spend working on your site?

EB: These days, I spend about 30 hours per week working on my blog and that involves writing posts, adding new pages, promoting the blog on social media platforms and general maintenance of the site.

MK: I spend all of waking time blogging if I am not doing anything else. After years of blogging, my site is a full time business and like any business it takes up most of my time. I have people working for me now – I have a part time assistant, PR agent, and designer. I spend my days writing posts, networking with other authors, writing articles for other websites, answering email, and overseeing a few other websites. It’s very time consuming.

DH: Between the two of us, we spend about 40 to 50 hours a week total. We each have our responsibilities: I do the writing, keep up on Twitter and Facebook, as well as handling all our ‘business’. Pete does most of the photography, all photo editing and handles StumbleUpon and Pinterest. We have outsourced our technical support as neither of us are WordPress gurus.

AS: On average I spend at least 40 hours a week on the site – it’s a full-time job. Researching and writing takes up the vast majority of my time with social media at a close second. Other tasks include responding to queries via email, including advertisers, advertisement maintenance (renewals, billing, updates, etc.). I also correspond with contributors and deal with the technical aspects of the website.

CW: About 25 hours per week. I spend time editing and tagging photos, which is very tedious and time consuming. Tasks include responding to comments, answering emails, and sharing our articles through social media. I also spend a lot of time sharing other travel bloggers’ work. Every day I leave about 10 comments on travel sites and I promote articles from travel bloggers through social media – what goes around comes around!

SC: I would say at least 15-20 hours a week on the actual site, but starting out we probably spent more like 30-40 hours a week getting things set up. The most time consuming tasks are writing, editing photos and uploading them to our site. These are daily tasks, otherwise we can easily get behind on our posting schedule. Lately we have spent a good deal of time optimizing old posts to rank better in search results and staying on top of social media.

BL: Between the two of us, I’d say we average well over 40 hours a week, usually working on it at least 4-5 hours a day. Tasks include writing, assigning and editing stories; editing photos and video; reaching out to potential advertisers and PR representatives; managing our team of interns; doing copious social media tasks; strategizing ideas for business growth; and then of course there’s the actual travel itself. We stay very, very busy!

What is the best lesson you have learned?

EB: Growing an engaged audience takes time, but in the end, as long as you stay focused and are willing to constantly learn, you will succeed. Those who don’t achieve their goals are generally those who eventually give up because they haven’t seen the results they were hoping for. Stick with it, push through the tough times and suddenly, one day, progress will be made and all of your efforts will have paid off.

MK: Learn website code. You don’t need to be a master at building websites or anything like that but being able to understand how your website works and how everything under the hood fits together will make your life a lot easier when there is a small problem that needs to be fixed, when you want to change a font color, or when you want to expand your website. Knowing how your website functions will make your life a lot easier.

DH: Be yourself. At the beginning we struggled a bit with what kind of website we were and what we wanted to write. A few months in we found our groove and our voice and have stuck with it. There’s no point trying to ‘force’ a certain kind of style onto yourself, it will show in the writing and will more easily wear you down. Do what you love and the rewards will come.

AS: Start networking and spend a lot of time on it. We regularly guest post and give interviews. We belong to a variety of online groups and forums for meeting other bloggers. You also need to be creative to think of new ways to promote yourself, with cross-promotion in other niches being a very important way to expand your reach. And don’t underestimate search, which can bring you significant amounts of traffic if you pay attention to SEO best practices.

CW: Don’t underestimate the time commitment that is required. Pay attention to the details. Don’t add too much sizzle that will slow down your site and frustrate your readers. Be clear with your message. Don’t be afraid to experiment with your site design. Stick with it! There will be weeks where it feels like nobody cares about your site. Stay the course. It takes time. Be patient.

SC: Running a successful site is not a cake walk, but if you are aware of this, hopefully you won’t get discouraged as easily. There will be plenty of times where you will consider giving up. The web is full of all different types of people. Some people will lift you up and others will try to tear you down. Do your best not to let the haters get to you. Learning how to separate constructive criticism from negativity is extremely important.

BL: The sooner you treat your site like a business, the faster it will grow. If I’d known how quickly we could grow this business by giving it everything we had, I’d have done it right from the get-go! Also? Don’t listen to anyone who tells you that you can’t do it.

What is your best advice on how to attract readers?

EB: Create high-quality content. No matter how well you do with SEO, no matter how attractive your website or how catchy the titles of your posts, or even how visible you are on Twitter and Facebook, it means nothing if you don’t create content that is useful to your readers.

MK: Market outside your niche. Find similar topics and guest post on those websites. You can always market in your own niche but finding success outside your niche will lead to the greatest audience growth. I always post on lifehacking and finance sites because their audiences and missions align well with my budget travel tips. There is a lot of overlap.

DH: Do lots of guest posts. And I mean, LOTS, especially at the start. Right now we try to keep it to one guest post a month to control our workload, but we did many more in the beginning to reach a wider audience. Also, and this should go without saying, focus on producing high quality content. You want readers to come back and to also tell their friends about it.

AS: Building consistent, quality content is the best way to develop a successful site. Networking and promotion on social media is also very important, but if you don’t have great content, no one will care. Find your voice and don’t try to copy what others have done – you are what will engage readers and keep them coming back. People tend to follow personalities that they can relate to.

CW: Dedicate more time to social media. You can have the best content on the planet, but if nobody knows about it then you’re not going to get the recognition you deserve. Be everywhere. Join networking groups and connect with other bloggers. Leave comments and share their posts. Engage with your readers and followers. Respond to comments and emails. Be helpful and give before taking. Your time will come, but you have to earn it first.

SC: Network. Relationships are key. Start out by helping other bloggers and most of them will be happy to return the favor by sharing your articles, commenting or offering guest posts on their site. Guest posts are a great way to get your content in front of a different audience. It’s also important to stick with it, even through the tough times. Keep putting out great content while sharing it through all of your social media channels and eventually the readers will come.

BL: The brief version is to blaze your own trail, focus on killer content, set concrete (and attainable) business goals, work social media like a beast, treat others the way you want to be treated, and try not to focus too much on stats or monetization, especially for the first year. It takes a lot of time, patience, energy and talent to build a successful site.

What has been your biggest success?

EB: My biggest success has been creating a travel blog that has become my main business, one that can support my current lifestyle of constant world travel.

MK: My biggest success as a blogger came when I got a book deal from Penguin Books to turn my ebook into a print edition book.

DH: The success we are most proud of is building the great fan base we have. We love the interaction we see on our Facebook page and the great comments and emails we get every day. That is the number one thing that keeps us going!

AS: Our biggest success has been the steady increase in traffic over the last two years. We also meet a lot of fascinating people through our site and I consider that to be as much of a success as any numbers or advertising revenue that we generate.

CW: You always want more page views, followers and advertising dollars – it’s never enough! We love to travel, so a big success for us has been attending press trips to fantastic destinations. We’ll always remember the first time we were offered an “all expenses paid trip” to the Dominican Republic in exchange for some posts and social media loving. We had one of those “we finally made it” moments.

SC: I would say that our biggest success is the relationships that we have formed with other bloggers. This may not be a success to some people, but for us it is extremely empowering to meet other people who have the same passion and drive as we do. I won’t lie though, seeing our monthly reader numbers grow gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling and makes me feel successful as well.

BL: Our biggest success has been in getting big-name companies to approach us before we really even knew what we were doing as afar as running a site. Several companies approached us about working together back when we were barely getting 10,000 page views a month. Working with such high-caliber companies DEFINITELY elevated our profile considerably.

What has been your biggest mistake?

EB: Not starting a blog earlier in my travels. I’ve been traveling for 12 years but have only had the the blog for 2 years… it would have been excellent to have been writing and interacting with the community from the beginning!

MK: I think it was failing to recognize how important design is to a website. I had a bad design in the beginning. Moreover, I also didn’t make it easy for people to be able to sign up for my website. I think that lost me a lot of readers and now I can’t help but stress the importance of design to people.

DH: Our biggest mistake was to not start sooner! When we first started traveling, we wish we had known that there was this big, crazy, travel blogging world out there, and to make a real ‘go’ of our travel site right from the start.

AS: The biggest mistake has been not having a more well-defined niche as I think those sites that have one tend to have a lot more success than general interest sites in a genre.

CW: We focused on quantity not quality – big mistake. If you want people to share your story, make it memorable and provide value. I’m embarrassed by some posts that were published years ago. The writing was sloppy and disorganized. But that’s just a part of the creative process. Another mistake was ignoring the importance of SEO tactics. If you want to increase traffic and readership, search engines need to find your work.

SC: Our biggest mistake has probably been not starting sooner. I know, that’s a stupid thing to say because it’s never too late to start. This is a tough question though. It is really hard for me to think about life and business in terms of mistakes. I like to look at things as a learning experience rather than a mistake, otherwise I might drive myself mad.

BL: In our first year we weren’t focused, had no clue what we were doing on social media, and weren’t even on WordPress. In some ways, our relaunch when we moved to WordPress was like starting all over again.

Loved the advice? Inspired to start you own blog? Check out my start guide here.

The post 7 Popular Travel Bloggers Share Their Best Blogging Tips appeared first on How To Make My Blog.

7 Popular Travel Bloggers Share Their Best Blogging Tips

13 Food Bloggers Share Their Best Advice For Newbies

Food is one of the most popular blogging topics. In this post thirteen popular food bloggers share their best tips, advice and stories for newbies who want to enter the field. First a quick introduction to our foodies:

• Deeba Rajpal (DR): The author of Passionate About Baking.

• Lori Popkewitz Alper (LP): Groovy Green Livin inspires readers to live a healthier, greener and more sustainable lifestyle.

• Dori Story (DO) is a very passionate writer at Riches to Rags.

• Peef and Lo (PL) are two food lovers from Milwaukee writing about seasonal cooking and local eating.

• Debi Wayland (DW) is a food blogger at Life Currents.

• Michael Natkin (MN): Herbivoracious presents vegetarian cuisine through flavored recipes, techniques and mouth-watering images.

• Christine Chitnis (CC): Rural life, farmers markets, art events, good food, crafts and photography are some of her favourite topics.

• Anne-Marie Nichols (AM): This Mama Cooks! On a Diet where she inspire families to live healthier with a minimum of fuss.

• Sophia Breene (SN): Greatist is focused on health and fitness advice for “young, savvy and social”.

• Catherine McCord (CM): Weelicious features a prominent search bar that gives easy access to recipes tailored to family needs.

• Jenny McGruther (JM): Nourished Kitchen promotes sustainable agriculture and nutrient-dense, whole foods in everyday kitchens.

• Kiersten Frase (KO): Oh My Veggies is a vegetarian food blog with focus on easy recipes.

• Sarah Zinkel (SZ): She shares her experiences on how to balance healthy living with a grad school and a newlywed life.

• Thanks to Daniela from Food Recipes HQ for doing the interviews.

How and why did you start?

DR: Armed with a new digital camera, I began blogging in 2007 in an attempt to record recipes I was trying at home. At the time, it was just a personal site, something I was too intimidated to share. A handful of beautiful food sites were my constant source of inspiration.

LP: My passion for natural, non-toxic living began after seeing first hand how living an organic, non-toxic lifestyle can directly affect your health and well being. I began sharing information with my family and friends. I decided to learn everything I could about blogging and what it meant to have an online presence. I started off knowing nothing. I took a leap of faith and decided to trade in my day job as an attorney and dive head first into creating a site.

DO: I started my site at a time in my life where we had been going through a very difficult time for years. I was depressed and my sister told me that I needed to find a passion and do something that I loved. I LOVED social media, cooking and food so I started the site and I have been doing it ever since.

PL: I’ve always had a passion for cooking and creating new recipes in the kitchen. I’ve always been passionate about writing. Blogging brought those two worlds together. We really didn’t expect that we’d have any readers beyond a few curious family and friends. But, as our readership started growing, I realized that there was a market for our story – and it opened up a whole new way to create community with not only local Milwaukee foodies, but also foodies from across the world.

DW: I started my site because so many people would ask me for recipes of things I make. Whole foods. Real foods. No trans-fats. Less high fructose corn syrup. I didn’t want my recipes to be too out of reach or weird for most people. Despite how healthy I think most people are trying to be, I know that some people still rely on processed convenience foods and fast food restaurants that can be high in bad fats, calories, or sodium.

MN: It was literally a snap decision. I was sitting on my couch, lamenting the fact that I wanted to switch to a cooking as a career but not sure how to leave the software world, with its predictable paycheck and reasonable work hours. You can’t start without a name, so I launched that same night as “The Vegetarian Foodie”, but I hated it. A friend texted me the single word: “Herbivoracious”, and I knew that was it. It captures both the idea of being vegetarian, and my insatiable, voracious appetite for everything related to food.

CC: I started my site by taking a free class at my local library that taught the basics of using Blogger. I had left my job behind and I was looking for a creative outlet. I had worked in the non-profit sector and in working 50-60 hours a week I had lost my creative spark. Blogging was a way to get it back.

AM: I started my blog eight years ago to document my Thanksgiving plans. Since then it’s morphed into a healthy lifestyle and food blog.

How did you choose the name for your blog?

CM: I sat for 6 hours with a friend trying to think of names that made you just get it from the title. After trying 50 plus names my best friend called me and said “aren’t kids just wee ones.” Weelicious was available so I got it!

JM: Nourishment calls to mind a sort of fuller and rounder expression of health than other keywords. I also knew “Nourished Kitchen” is short enough to be memorable.

KO: Before my site was called The Type A Housewife. It was a joke, but no one understood that. The name had nothing to do with vegetarian cooking – it was confusing. Other writers told me that changing the name was the worst thing I could do, but I did it anyway and my site has only grown since. I brainstormed and came up with several different names and asked around to see what people thought of them. Definitely get feedback on your domain name before you commit to anything!

SZ: I always joke that I’m a professional student. I’m finishing up my 4th year of graduate school now, but even if I don’t have any more formal education after my Ph.D., I don’t think learning ever stops. I learn something new every day!

What are the usual tasks you do?

DR: I spent 2-3 hours on my site on good days. Ideally would be happy to spend a couple more, but home, kids etc all demand their share of time. My usual tasks are the birth of a food idea, making it with substitutions which are almost always the norm, photographs along the way, recipe notes, then a draft in place as my thoughts are fresh at the time. Then it is scheduled for posting and I return to ‘pretty up the post’ a day before posting date.

LP: I spend 20-25 hours a week working. That doesn’t necessarily mean I’m blogging on my site during those hours. I am running a business and my site is the platform. I am very active in social media and devote a chunk of my day to Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and Pinterest. I spend time working with advertisers, brands and PR agencies trying to find products that my readership would enjoy learning about.

DO: I started out as part time. I was having to work full time because my husband was injured at work so I would work on the content while cooking dinner and then after the kids went to bed I would work in the evenings. Now I am fortunate to be able to stay home and work full time on these two sites.

PL: We spend 5-10 hours on the site every week. The most time goes into creating and testing recipes. There is the time spent setting up and photographing the food. It’s as much about timing as anything. We depend almost entirely on natural light, so have to make sure to leave enough daylight time to get a good shot of the finished product. Then it’s all about sitting down, choosing photos and writing the post. It’s quite possibly the part I enjoy most – as it’s the mechanism by which we connect with our readers.

DW: I only post about things that we actually eat, so it is time that I would spend cooking anyway. Some posts just flow out and I’m done in a matter of minutes. Some take much more time and effort. I do a little processing on the picture, like sharpen it or brighten the colors. I write out the post in Word first so that I have a backup of the recipe as well as my thoughts about it. Then, I copy it into my site, and add in the links: links to Amazon, other sites or for recipe links. Then, it’s off to share it on social media sites like Facebook, Pinterest, Punk Domestics, etc.

MN: I’ve never kept track, but I’d say I spend at least 10 hours a week on it. There are a lot of tasks – developing recipes, photographing them and processing the photos, writing up the recipe steps and headnotes, submitting my posts to sites like Tastespotting and Foodgawker, hanging out on Twitter and Facebook, maintaining the site itself and so on.

CC: I plan photo shoots around crafts and recipes which can take a few hours. I photograph my daily life and travels. I post around two times a week, and usually spend about an hour per post editing pictures and writing content. I don’t have to spend time on the back-end of my site thanks to my web designer. It was so time consuming and frustrating to try and figure it all out myself. It was a small investment but well worth it.

AM: I have a terrific team, so I spend very little time doing anything more technical than adding ad code in my sidebars. I spend most of my time cooking, writing, photographing, posting, promoting my content and being active in various online communities that fit my niche (mom bloggers, foodies, healthy folks, etc.) Blogging is a full time job for me, but that also includes social media consulting work I do with agencies and brands outside of my blog.

SN: It is my full-time, 9-to-5 job. That sounds pretty basic, but I do way more than just cranking out content. In addition to writing, I brainstorm with the rest of the editorial team during meetings, do tons of research, edit photos, hunt down recipes for roundups, test out workouts from trainers, and help work on larger editorial projects.

Which qualities make you a good blogger?

CM: I’m a homebody at heart, so that helps because you’re definitely in front of your computer a lot. I also love the social interaction with readers and fellow bloggers. Thank goodness I’m typing, though, because as much as I like to write my throat would really hurt if I was talking that much.

JM: I was able to delve into my niche early, and was one of the first few blogs covering the topic when I started in 2007 so that helps. I also research my subjects impeccably and seek to provide real, workable solutions for my readers.

KO: I think being determined and focused are two qualities necessary for all bloggers, no matter what genre you’re writing in. When I want to accomplish something, I let nothing stand in my way. I’ve been this way with everything I do, but it’s especially served me well in the competitive world of blogging.

SZ: I think that a lot of people can relate to me. I’m just a normal, busy woman, trying to balance all of my responsibilities with having a life and staying healthy. I think it’s really important to have something in common with your readers and target audience. A lot of people can relate with my struggles.

What is the lesson you’d like to share with people starting out?

DR: Be original and find your niche. Take inspiration yet build your own style, and do add photographs. Nothing holds the reader more captivated. Good pictures must connect to well written prose. Please respect copyright. There is no room in the world for plagiarism.

LP: Set boundaries and stick to them. If you have 2 hours to write a post devote those two hours to writing and be careful not to get sucked into social media. I’m going to have to reread this one myself. I’m still not very good at setting boundaries and sticking to them! Work in progress.

DO: It is very rewarding, it has taught me that I have a lot more to offer people and has become a therapy. Don’t do it for the money. Start out doing something you are passionate about and love because that passion will come out in your writing. Be patient, it doesn’t happen over night. There are so many people that need what we as bloggers have to offer. There are people who need this connection and many friendships have been made.

PL: Write about something for which you have a deep-rooted passion, and recognize that it’s something that takes work to maintain. We didn’t anticipate experiencing periods during which we didn’t feel like cooking anything, or the writing just didn’t come easily. Have a back-up plan – maybe a cache of recipes or posts that you can use when you get busy, go on vacation, or aren’t feeling particularly inspired.

DW: Do what makes you happy. Write about things that interest you. If you’re just doing what “sells” it isn’t you, and people can tell. Writing about healthy food isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it works for me, and it makes me happy. I see other bloggers struggle with the concept of keeping the followers happy. They talk about how they lost followers because of something they said or something they did. But, you can’t make everyone happy, and above all else, it’s really important to be true to what you love.

MN: That is a big topic! A few things that I think are really important when starting out:

• Choose your platform wisely; moving is a non-trivial exercise! I’ve moved to self-hosted WordPress now and I’m super happy with it. But whatever you choose, realize it has a big impact on what will be easy or hard to do.

• Be patient. Those first few months are hard, when you are lucky if you can get your brother-in-law to read and comment. You have to be in it for the long haul, be consistent about posting, and don’t be in a rush to monetize. The money you can make with 300 or even 1k page views per day isn’t going to buy you much more than a few cappucinos a month anyhow, so don’t even bother until you’ve got an audience.

• Focus on quality. There are lots of things you can do to bring people to your site once. But if you want them to keep coming back, they have to think that they will find something wonderful and relevant to them whenever they visit.

AM: Sit down and figure out if your blog is a business venture or a hobby. Once you’ve figured that out, everything else from goals to what email address you’ll use will fall into place.

CM: Find your passion and niche and stick with it. Keep your interest narrow at first and build an audience. After that you can venture out and those who love reading your blog will follow as you branch out.

JM: Make your work meaningful. Before you write about random things in your life, focus on how it might sincerely help and support someone else. Take the time to write well and grow your audience before jumping ahead of yourself to monetization strategies.

What is your best advice on how to grow traffic?

DR: Once you’ve established your niche, find ways to improve the content. Listen to your readers and build that most important relationship. Read other related sites, blogs, magazines, look at trends, or set a trend. Innovate and post regularly.

LP: When I first began blogging a well-respected blogger gave me some good advice which has stuck with me: “write from your heart”. When I’m writing I always think about what I like to read or what catches my attention and try to apply that to the piece that I’m working on. Also, form community. Visit other websites, comment, compliment and be sincere. Add your powerful and important voice to the discussion.

DO: Constantly feed it. Use Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter. Everyone loves a giveaway and it doesn’t have to be expensive. Be real and answer questions from the visitors and they will become loyal followers. Be kind, honest and don’t allow any negativity on your site.

PL: Think hard about what you can bring to your site and then put everything into making it happen. Blogging doesn’t work if it doesn’t contain a piece of you. Readers want to know there’s a human being at the other end. Engage your readers on Facebook and Twitter. Join a Triberr tribe or create a Pinterest page. Keep in mind that being an active part of a food blogger community is always key when you’re looking to expand your influence.

DW: When I first started blogging I would post and no one would see it. I got some traffic from search engines, but I didn’t really understand what being involved in the community would do for me. Play around on Facebook and get to know other bloggers; they’ll be the ones who help you grow your site the most. Go to linky parties. Submit to websites like FoodGawker. Make comments on other people’s pages. Link to others bloggers. Share.

MN: Time, patience and quality are the biggest factors, as is developing your unique voice. That is what will bring people back to you. You need to learn about SEO, but don’t spend too much time chasing it. Build relationships. Through social media and commenting on people’s sites. Try to find ways to get out and physically meet other bloggers and readers. That will lead to deeper and more gratifying relationships, and maybe even opportunities like speaking engagements.

CC: Write about what excited you, and what is authentic. Don’t try to be someone else. People will appreciate your honesty and come back for more. Building my site has been a ton of work. Some sites are overnight hits, with tons of commenters and readers, mine is not one of those. I have built it through hard work, time and effort. I am constantly striving to make it better and more original. Here are a few ways that I have managed to get the word out about my site:

• Link – you should always include your link in your email signature

• Comment – the more you comment on others sites, the better your chance that someone will like your comment and click over to your page. Think of links to your content as breadcrumbs. You want to create a trail of breadcrumbs all across the internet, so that people from all over will find their way to your contnet.

• Flickr – If you take good pictures, join Flickr, once there, link your pictures back to the post where you posted them, join groups, get your pictures out into the Flickr world. Again, leaving a trail of breadcrumbs. And finally, keep at it….building an audience takes time.

AM: Spend time creating great content and knowing SEO, of course. Then find time to promote content on social media sites like Pinterest, Twitter and Facebook by being active in those communities as a helpful person, not a promoter. If people like you and what you’re saying, they’ll come to your blog for more.

SN: Stay in touch with your readers. Keep your finger on the pulse of what they want to see more of and what they love/hate/need/want. It’s always good to read opinions other than your own! Have your own message and don’t be swayed by what’s trendy or popular at the moment. These two pieces of advice seem to be in opposition, and that’s pretty much correct. Maintaining a successful site is all about balancing between writing what you are passionate about and making content that’s interesting and accessible to all kinds of people.

KO: Trust your gut. Most of the missteps I’ve made were because I went against my instincts; you’ll find that as a writer, you’ll get a lot of well-meaning advice from your fellow writers, but ultimately you need to decide what’s right for you. Never publish something on your site that you wouldn’t read yourself. You need to be willing to look at your site with a critical eye. You need to offer your readers something unique and compelling that will make them want to come back again and again.

SZ: Be true to yourself. There are so many blogs and bloggers out there and it’s easy to try to imitate someone’s style. Really listen to your gut and do what feels right to you. That’s how you will get the most out of your blog and so will others!

What are best and most challenging aspects of your lifestyle?

CM: The most challenging part is keeping up with everything. When I started there was really only my site and the comments. Now with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and more there’s just a lot more ground to cover in a day. The best part is meeting incredible people (mostly women) who I’ve met over the internet. Some I’ve gotten to meet and become true friends with which has been a gift.

JM: It’s a struggle for me to manage the needs of readers. Blogging is my full time job and it supports my family, but it’s a constant struggle to write the posts, prepare the premium content that supports my family, answer emails, manage social media outlets, forge friendships with other bloggers and still maintain a semblance of a personal life.

KO: I love being my own boss. The flexibility of working from home has completely spoiled me too – if I’m sick, I take the day off. If I want to go on vacation, I schedule posts ahead of time. When I worked as a librarian, I used to spend the entire weekend dreading Monday morning; now I can’t wait to dive in. The biggest downside is that it can be difficult to find that all-important work / life balance. This is something I’m working on – I’d like to get to the point where I can turn off the computer at 5pm and be done for the day.

SZ: It has definitely been the community of readers and other bloggers that I’ve met through my blog. It’s funny how quickly you can begin to “know” someone through their blog. The most challenging aspect of blogging for me is achieving a balance. Blogging and the social media that comes with it can be very time- and energy-consuming. Not everything needs to be documented for my blog or posted on Twitter. It’s refreshing to take a step back (or a weekend off) and just unplug for a bit.

What is your biggest success?

DR: My proudest moment was when my site began to get noticed and got it’s very first blogging award from Abby – ‘Best Kept Secret’! I was elated!

LP: The incredible connections I’ve made through blogging. From brands to bloggers, there is such an amazing group of men and women out there filled with humor, intelligence and passion.

DO: All the wonderful friendships that I have built. Wonderful people all over the world. I would have never had a chance to talk to these people without the site. My site has connected me with families that have and are in need of the same thing as I was. The fact that I am able to stay home with my children and still work from home has been priceless as well as the confidence I now have in myself because of something I created.

PL: We’ve made an amazing number of connections and been able to share our expertise with others through presentations at area festivals and libraries. We’ve found our place in a community of individuals who really care about great food, local eating, and sustainable living. One of the best things that came from blogging is a wealth of freelancing opportunities.

DW: It’s how much I’ve learned about photography. I love taking pictures. I look back on my early pictures and I can see right away how much better they are now. I still learn all the time. I read other posts and watch tutorials. It takes a lot of time. It takes commitment. But, it’s worth it to share your passion, your art. And, yes, I consider food to be my art. Whatever your passion, go for it.

MN: Well, I guess my biggest achievement is being asked to write a book. That would have never happened without the site, and it actually got me over the hump to quitting my day job.

CC: My site has been instrumental in building my career as a writer and photographer. It has helped me find my voice, and pushed me to take better pictures. I believe that my first book deal came about because of the confidence I found through blogging – so I count that as a big success.

AM: My biggest success was being hired to write a blog. When the call went out to the mom blogging community about the gig, many of us realized that blogging had become way of making a living and was no longer just a hobby.

SN: I always love hearing back from readers who loved (or even who didn’t love) my articles via comments or twitter. Knowing that something I wrote can help somebody make a healthier choice is always a huge plus, too.

CM: In the first year a mother wrote to tell me that her family hated the food she cooked and never said anything positive. The first time she made my recipe for dinner her husband leaned over and told her “dinner is delicious tonight” and she cried. I realized how powerful food can be and how thankless a job it is for moms.

JM: I loved it when I was featured on CNN, but my fondest memory is meeting a reader at a festival where I was speaking and conducting a demo on fermented foods. She came up to me and told me personally how important the content was to her and to her family and beautiful baby girl, and that meant a lot. Sometimes you feel like you’re a voice in the dark, and it’s nice to know your work means something to someone.

KO: My first press trip! I was terrified. I had no idea what to expect, but it ended up being a fantastic time. And I think that was one of the points where I realized just how influential bloggers can be and how many opportunities are out there for us.

SZ: My favorite blogging memories all involve meeting and hanging out with fellow bloggers in person! I feel so lucky to have made some awesome friends through my blog and getting to meet them in real life and instantly connect is very cool. It’s great finding other people out there with similar interests!

What is your biggest mistake or the biggest mistake to avoid?

DR: Not sure if I made any big ones as I am always careful of etiquette etc. Personally I regret that I do not always have time to visit or reply to each reader that takes the time to leave a comment on my page. I do hope I can manage that better soon.

LP: The list of mistakes is long. As I tell my kids, it’s how we learn. The biggest mistake I have made is letting blogging take away from family time. Sometimes when I am kissing my kids goodnight I’m also thinking about that long list of “to-dos” waiting for me. I let it get in the way of time with my kids and that’s not OK in my book. Everything else can wait.

DO: Not being consistent. People want results and money overnight and it doesn’t happen like that. It takes time to build a following, but when you do they will help you and share your content with others. Giving up too early on your site before it has had a chance to shine is a common mistake. There are going to be hard times, slow times, etc. but you charge through it and keep going.

PL: Don’t accept too many freebies. Taking every sample that someone offers you feels like a great idea. But, you often end up in a situation where your page looks more like an advertisement for products than a great place to go read about food. I don’t love pages that do too many product promotions, as I don’t find that they seem very genuine. It’s actually quite a bit of a turn-off. We have a pretty strict policy about what types of products we will write about. They have to be a good fit for the site, or we won’t take them.

DW: Don’t try to take someone else’s material and use it as your own. Give credit where credit is due. When people come along and crop my photos so that my watermark is no longer there, or they copy my recipe and photo without giving me any credit, it’s not cool. It’s stealing. Bloggers work really hard and they don’t make much money, so it hurts even more when people aren’t nice.

MN: I don’t really have too many regrets. In my very early days I wrote some pretty bad posts and took some pretty bad pictures, and I’ve left them all up there in the archive for hilarity purposes. Beyond that, blogging has been a whole lot of fun!

CC: As far as mistakes, I’m not sure I’ve made any mistakes. I certainly look back and cringe at my early posts, the pictures are terrible, and I had yet to develop a writing style. But it was all a part of the learning process. I guess my only real mistake, and this is something I work on still, is being envious of other bloggers that might have more readers, better pictures, or more achievements. I am learning to be proud of all that I have done, and stop the comparisons.

AM: My biggest mistake was not switching over to a self-hosted WordPress blog sooner! Once I did that, my traffic and opportunities grew.

Inspired to start your own food blog? See my step-by-step instructions here.

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13 Food Bloggers Share Their Best Advice For Newbies