Uncategorized Archives

How Did I Pitch Design Sponge?

April 4, 2013

You Can Do It
Doing PR in the music business taught me one of the most valuable skills I possess—how to pitch an editor. You need to know how much information to give, how to determine what details are important and how to package it all up nicely.

These are the skills I used when I pitched Design Sponge four months ago, right before Thanksgiving, and I want to share them with you, so you can go pitch that guest post that you know would be great for the Daily Muse, Forbes or whatever other HARO opportunity comes up and build your reputation in the process.

Included in the guide is the Perfect Pitch Checklist and a Worksheet for you to organize all the important details for your pitch that will help you become internet famous in no time.

You can get my guide to guest posts and pitching delivered to your inbox next Tuesday by signing up for my email list below. If you’re already on the list, you don’t need to sign up again, you’ll also get it next Tuesday.

Filed Under: Uncategorized // Tagged: Getting Started

In Which Truths Are Illusions Until They are Numbers

April 3, 2013

Beauty is Truth, Truth Beauty

St. Gertrude is a small Catholic school with about 300 kids, about 96% of whom are Mexican, located 8 miles southeast of Los Angeles. That’s where I went to school, from the age of 4 to 13. When you start school that young, you will be one of the youngest in your class and therefore probably one of the shortest compared to your older peers. I grew up thinking I wasn’t that tall. In my mind I was average, even when I defied gravity all the way up to 5’8″ (173cm).

I entertained this thought in my mind until I learned I’m actually in the 95th percentile for my height. That’s when the world made sense. No wonder my dresses leave about 2 inches too little to the imagination.

This is why I love numbers. They’re anchors grounded in fact to keep you from getting carried away. Numbers leave no room for imagination or creativity. Numbers leave no space for bullshit to squeeze in to alleviate your shame or guilt. Numbers leave you naked, vulnerable and in a position to make a change based on truth.

This month we’re playing the numbers game. We’re going to be talking about beating the odds and the competition. I’ll tell you how I got Design Sponge to accept my pitch so you can get some reputation-building guest posts under your belt. I’ll show you how to understand the Google Analytics reports that I taught you how to install last month. I also want to help you face down the numbers you’ve been ignoring in your life, whether they’re on the scale or if it’s your student loan total. I’ll even tell you how I paid down $10,000 in student loans last year so you can do the same.

So let’s play this game to win, ey? And may the odds be ever in your favor (sorry, I couldn’t help myself).

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Filed Under: Uncategorized // Tagged: Numbers

How to Install the Tracking Code for Google Analytics on Your Blogger or Self-Hosted WordPress Blog

March 13, 2013

This post is meant to go along with the extensive SEO for Bloggers eBook that will be ready very soon. To prepare yourself to take full advantage and get your SEO underway, you should install Google Analytics as soon as possible. This way, by the time you get around to implementing the valuable information in the eBook, you’ll have the data you need to understand what content you should optimize.

The first step is to sign up for a Google Analytics account. Select web site and universal analytics (see below) and fill out the remainder of the form to get your tracking ID.

Your tracking ID will begin with the letter U. There will also be a javascript code on the same page that you can use if you can install code in the head section of your site. To install Google Analytics on your Blogger or WordPress blog, you only need the tracking ID

Blogger

To install the tracking code in Blogger, go to SETTINGS > OTHER. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and enter your tracking ID. Then hit SAVE SETTINGS and you’re ready to go.

WordPress

There is currently not a way to install Google Analytics on a WordPress.com blog. These instructions will only work on a self-hosted WordPress blog.

You can install Google Analytics on a self-hosted WordPress blog two different ways. If you are using a premium theme such as Genesis that allows you to add lines of code in the <head> tag, then take the javascript code and paste it there. In Genesis, you can access this by going to GENESIS > THEME SETTINGS

If you are not using a premium theme, you can install the Google Analytics plugin. Once the plugin is installed, go to SETTINGS > GOOGLE ANALYTICS and enter the tracking ID in the only field on that page. Then save your settings and you’re done.

That’s it. After a few weeks you’ll have enough data to start making better choices when it comes to your design and marketing.

Don’t forget to sign up below to receive the SEO guide delivered to your inbox in a few weeks.

Filed Under: Uncategorized // Tagged: Getting Started

In Which We Climb Fences and Set Boundaries

March 1, 2013

Boundaries

Out of all my fence-climbing escapades, I only got in trouble for climbing one, and for good reason too. I almost cracked my head like an Easter egg because of that little three foot barrier. But it was only because I was trying to climb it like a girl, all ladylike in my little tropical pink chiffon dress. Had I gone over it with gusto, I would have gotten away with it.

Some boundaries are for safety and I get why they’re important, it’s the ones that are ridiculous that worry me. Why should I have to go all the way around just because I’m on the wrong side of the tracks? Or worse, because I’m a girl wearing a dress? Why should I have to do more to get to where I want?

I say fuck that. I don’t let fences or boundaries tell me how to live my life. If there is not a good reason why I should stay out, I’m going in. Watch me.

This month, I’m trying a new thing on the blog. All the posts are going to be in support of a singular theme and this month’s theme is boundaries. We’re going to be talking about how you can set the good kind of boundaries and abolish the ones that are holding you back.

I have some great stuff planned, including weekly quotes and a calendar, some wise words from some lady developers on how to succeed in a field dominated by men and some links to controversial articles, a worksheet to help you determine what matters so you can protect it and other articles to help you learn how to say no, how to get more of what you want and overcome the boundaries that you’ve created for yourself.

This month we’re climbing fences, in cute dresses and getting away with it. So what do you say, do you want to come?

P. S. By the way, if you have any thing to say on setting boundaries or overcoming them, I’d love to hear about it. Email me or leave a comment.

Filed Under: Uncategorized // Tagged: Boundaries

Give Your Site a Makeover

January 30, 2013

Just a little something for your blog to give it a nice little update for the new year. I’ve noticed that what separates an amateur blog from a professionally designed blog is not the quality of the elements, but they way they flow together.

Professionally designed sites have a clear big picture and everything is chosen accordingly. My aim with this is to help you not pick and choose a bunch of different elements from different sites, but give you the big picture so that everything will look cohesive.

I’ve given you most of what you need to lay a good groundwork and I’m happy to help if you want to build a custom site off of this look, just let me know.

I’ll be doing more of these so if you have any suggestions for mini-makeover themes, let me know in the comments.

Fonts

You can find the three fonts on Google Webfonts. You can use them on your site by following the steps in this Google Webfonts tutorial or you can download them so you can use them in Photoshop.

Background

Download the background below.

Download Background

You don’t have to use it for a website either, use it as your desktop background if you like!

Social Media Icons

I created 7 social media icons: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google+, Instagram, Flickr, Pinterest for you to use plus one blank one so you can create your own.

Download Icons

Enjoy!

Filed Under: Uncategorized //

The Easiest Way to Post Regularly

January 28, 2013

Consistency is key when building your brand and your blog. You already know you need to schedule posts ahead of time and keep an editorial calendar so you stay on top of your blog, even when life gets in the way, but what’s the best way to make sure you have enough content?

If you’re using WordPress, I suggest you install the editorial calendar plugin. It will allow you to drag and drop your posts so you can schedule everything ahead of time. You can have drafts on standby for when life gets crazy and then just drop them in when you need to.

Isn’t that nifty? It’s great for scheduling posts for when you’re on vacation too!

Filed Under: Uncategorized //