Song of My Heart Demonstrators

Back by demand! Blog Bounce boot camp in February 2019

Ready to boost your craft blogging to another level? Join us on a "Blog Bounce" as we spend 2 weeks improving our existing blogs to better serve our customers, reduce the time it takes to create posts, and further develop our personal brand. Everything's more fun when we do it together. Let's take what could be a chore and turn it into a challenge! 

DATES: February 1st through 15th, 2019

We'll be covering topics such as:

• maximizing our posts for sales and upselling
• consistency in posting habits
• building and advertising our library of resources
• ways to incorporate personality and theme
• increasing visits to our online stores
• optimizing pictures for sales and shares

This boot camp may be for you IF:

• you already have an existing craft blog and can function at least at a basic level within it (making posts with pictures)
• you want to increase your online presence and are willing to put in the time it takes
• you are the type of person who works proactively towards obtaining the information you need
• you already have a well-thought-out brand name, color scheme or general theme to work within

This boot camp is NOT for you IF:

• you are not an active Stampin' Up Demonstrator over the age of 18
• you do not have an existing craft blog or can't get into or function basically in the one you have
• you have not decided on a theme, color scheme and name brand for your online presence
• you want step by step information or "how to's" relating to your specific blog platform (I don't provide that service)

How my boot camps work: after payment, you will be invited to join a private Facebook group right before opening day. There will be a blend of posts with training in PDF form (so you can print and save as needed), a daily challenge for specific areas of the blog, and informational threads covering different topics. The group will stay open until the end of the month for you to work on exercises you missed, encourage each other, and copy any resources you want to keep.

This is a short-term 2-week boot camp: work at your own pace. If you need to skip a day, that's life. But remember, those who invest time and money into their businesses will be the ones seeing the results. This is a two-week high-speed Blog Bounce boot camp designed to energize, revive and enliven existing craft bloggers, providing encouragement in an environment of motivation, with a focus on achieving our business goals in the online world.

Please Note: we will not be taking questions relating to specific blog platforms (Typepad, Wordpress, Blogger, etc) during this week. I would never dream to present myself as qualified to do that. We will, however, discuss helpful sites, search topics, videos and other ways to find any platform-specific information you find you need.

All of the information offered in my training, groups and website is purely my 10+-year blogging and personal direct-sales experience, not endorsed by any other company or entitity, including Stampin' Up; however, I run every aspect of my business in accordance with Stampin' Up policies. Unless noted, all materials are written 100% by myself and are copyright Song of My Heart Demonstrators. Take any business advice at your own risk, after carefully considering whether or not it is appropriate to your own situation and goals.

Payment: admission to Song of My Heart's Blog Bounce private training group is $30 USD per person. Please sign up by sending the fee to http://paypal.me/songofmyheart with your name, email and existing craft blog address in the message area. You will be contacted with the invitation at the end of January 2019 to begin on February 1st.

Please feel free to email me if you are not sure this boot camp is for you or you have questions about joining. This boot camp got RAVE reviews last May with the caveat that there was so much great information shared that it needed to be two weeks long instead of one week. I am confident you will be 100% satisfied with your experience during our intense 2 weeks of training.

I hope you can join us for the Blog Bounce! I'm excited to put a spotlight on an area that has become so amazingly crucial for direct sellers in the last decade.

Business follows where we focus. Let's work together on getting our blogs where we want them to be!

9 reasons to rethink private Facebook groups for customers

A recent trend among direct sellers is to create a private Facebook group for customers. Those who promote this strategy point to increasingly small views on Facebook business pages. That is true; however, in order to do business on Facebook you are required to have a Facebook business page no matter what.

There are also many reasons not to try to do both. I've compiled a list of concerns I have and why it's crucial not to keep adding things to our workload as demonstrators. The following are my opinion based on both personal experience with a group, ten years doing business on Facebook, and general social media practices and advice.

Please note two things:

IF a Facebook private group for customers is currently working for you, then you should listen to your gut. I do hope you'll read through the article, however, and make sure it really IS working for you and not against you in the long-term.

Also, remember we're discussing CUSTOMER groups here, not team groups or a private hostess club or some other sub-group of your main customer base. FB groups DO have a purpose. I just don't personally recommend them for your customer base at large.

 

1. Private is just that—something that cannot be seen. New customers won’t be able to find you in a group like they can on a business page. They can’t send you a message you will be certain to see. They won’t join something they don’t even know exists, or that they cannot see inside to know what it is like. People prefer to try before they buy, and you just removed the possibility of trying you out to see if you’re a good fit. Don't build walls!
2. Chatting should be done in public!!! How many of us learn something by reading thread responses or other people’s questions we were also wondering about. Camaraderie and enthusiasm that is contained to a private group will never be contagious. We want the fun to spread, not be boxed in. Your personality and brand is meant to be seen in your public responses so people can decide they like you. Chatting and relationship-building in public is free, priceless advertising.
3. Groups cannot do advertising or boosting. ONLY business pages can do that. Facebook’s magic for small businesses lies in the ability to advertise targetedly and very inexpensively. You just stole FB’s main super-power when you focus on a group rather than a biz page. Facebook still won’t show all your posts to your group members. That’s a myth. Facebook still manages what we see in our feeds no matter what we think we’ve selected to be notified about. Short of advertising, there is no concrete way to get posts in front of eyes.
4. You are investing a huge amount of time into something that you ultimately do not own. This time would be much better spent maintaining your biz page and building your blog and newsletter. If anything happens to Facebook, or their policies change again like they do every two months, you’re completely and 100% at their mercy. You should never ever rely on one platform, especially one that is FREE. Focus your time on what you OWN, or someday you may come to deeply regret it.
5. The more you ask of customer, the LESS LIKELY they are to do it. Don’t ever make them click twice when once will do.You don’t want to be directing customers to a Facebook group when where they need to go is your blog, which should be your home base on the web. Facebook hates links away from FB. It wants to keep you there (makes sense). So you’re in the position of sending people multiple places for information.
6. It’s just one more thing to manage. It may not seem like a big deal, but every time you add something you have to maintain and moderate, you are committing yourself long-term. Don’t set yourself up for failure if you’re already trying to juggle it all. Consistency is the NUMBER ONE problem demonstrators quote as to why they have trouble with managing social media. Some say they’ll just manage both. Realistically, you probably won’t. And you’ll be left wondering why neither thrive.
7. You should never EVER add people to groups without permission. I instantly unfollow anyone who does this because it’s SO annoying. So now you’re asking them to join multiple things again and trying to chase people down. Some will join, but most won’t. LESS is more. Your professional email list, with its double-opt-in, is the ONLY thing that should be exclusive. Separating people just makes for more work.
8. Private groups can’t be linked to Instagram. One of the best partnerships out there is the ability to run posts simultaneously on FB biz pages and Instagram. That is a powerhouse move every time you promote it on both. Again, that’s an ability of only business pages, not groups. This is likely to be true of ANY FUTURE PLATFORMS that partner with Facebook for business reasons. Why? because that's how Facebook makes their money. They are not a charity. This is reality for business owners. You get what you pay for, and if you don't pay for it, you are lucky you get ANYthing.
9. Groups can’t go viral!!!! Someday, if it has not already happened to you, one of your business page posts will unexpectedly garner a huge amount of interaction and engagement. That can never happen in a private group. We need to be putting our attention and resources into things that can spread, not stagnate.

Bottom line: have ALL the pros and cons in mind before you add anything to your workload. If you want to start one, set a probationary period, after which you will quit without guilt, if it’s not working for you.

I quietly deleted my VIP group after just two months when it was obvious I was working harder than ever and still not having interaction and increased sales. Not a soul noticed!!! That tells you how ineffective the customer group concept was for me. "Forced" social media interaction is, in my opinion, unsustainable.

Conversations that occur naturally, in the moment, without walls or hurdles, are the best feature of social media. Paid, targeted advertising is the second. And viral contagion potential is the third. Remember those three things and you can't go wrong when deciding what types of social media platforms are going to work best for YOU.

Handout: Five FAQ when Jumpstarting a Dead Blog

Is your blog dead? Experts estimate that 95% of those who begin a blog abandon it sooner or later.  Forget past failure: that was then, this is now. There is no reason you cannot make a success of your blog this time.

1. Should I start over completely?

Depends. If your last significant blog post is more than a year in the past, or you only had a few posts to begin with, you may choose to start fresh with a new name, new header, and new attitude. If you have been posting off and on (more off than on), just start posting again. You can turn over a new leaf any time.

If you don’t want to delete past posts and remove the “evidence” entirely, just leave them there. They are part of your journey. Anyone who judges you for not finishing something you started is obviously an alien from outer space, because everybody does that.

2. What do I say in my first post?

Don’t make a big deal out of a spotty posting record. Drawing attention to it will just make new readers feel like it’s a waste of time following someone who might quit again any moment. I’ve seen blogs with multiple posts promising the turning over a new leaf… six months from the last post in which they promised to turn over a new leaf. Just begin as you mean to go on.

3. How do I make sure I stay consistent this time?

First, figure out what the problem was before. Was it lack of things to post? Do you hate photographing and editing? Was it the writing part that bothered you? Was it simply remembering to do it? Were you only blogging because you thought you “had” to? Did you get discouraged with lack of sales? You’ll want to nail down what it was that messed with your first attempt.

Then, look for resources, tutorials and accountability groups to help you overcome whatever the issue was. Implement a strict schedule and make it a priority. If you don’t fix what started the decline in the first place, get ready to repeat your pattern.

4. What if the problem was a confusing blog platform?

There’s no getting around it—blogs involve tech. And tech can be pretty confusing. If that was the main issue, definitely try an easier platform like TAMS or Typepad. There’s almost no learning curve, and the cost is reasonable. Remember, though, most of us bloggers are self taught. There’s almost nothing you can’t learn by Googling or watching YouTube tutorials. You just have to take it one chunk at a time—and keep taking chunks. Never quit learning.

5. How do I promote my blog better than I did in the past?

A very common mistake bloggers make is to remain passively sitting there, waiting for visitors to discover them. You’ll have lots better luck if you create your posts and then spend some time telling people about it. Pin it to Pinterest. Share on Instagram. Tweet it out. Post it to Facebook. Link to it in your newsletters. And link back to yourself, mentioning old posts in new ones. Think of yourself like the Public Relations exec for a client. Get the word out!

 

Get this article in PDF form and use as a handout at your next team meeting! Download 5 FAQ jumpstarting dead blogs

Do I need an online presence to be successful in direct sales?

Short Answer: No. I believe with all my heart that you do not have to do anything you do not want to do, and there is still a path to success.

However, it might be harder or take longer to get there. And it will be increasingly difficult to manage  your success long-term. If you truly want to build your business in the modern world, growing or sustaining it for the future, you’re going to want to have your own slice of the internet.

Here’s why:

A business run in-person only is limited to your personal circles of influence. There is only one physical you. You live in one physical town and state, have one set of co-workers and family members. You are limited to a certain number of nights/weekends in a month. You have real-life obstacles, responsibilities and parameters to work around. If you take a break, or can’t hold events for a while, your business comes to a complete halt.

Online, your business runs 24/7. It never stops working for you. Pins that are years old keep bringing traffic to a blog. People access Facebook and Instagram all hours of the day and night. The library of tutorials you’ve created or the gallery of cards you’ve amassed only becomes larger. Your audience has grown from 12 to 120 or 1200. Your “reach” is limited only to what you’re willing to spend to get your content in front of people’s eyes.

Once things are rolling (which can take quite a while) orders come in when you’re asleep, on vacation, at church, kids’ games, etc. You work an online business during hours that suit you and actually DO set your own schedule, like direct sales companies always say we do : )

You still are only one person, working around the realities of your life. But instead of your efforts being seen and appreciated once, by a small audience, and then gone forever, they are positioned where they can be seen and used over and over again, by a virtually unlimited audience around the globe.

Don’t be deceived—it’s still WORK.

In fact, it can potentially be more work than it was previously. It’s just different work.

It’s still you in the stamp room regularly, but it’s more often you at the light box, on the editing software, typing away at a blog post. It’s still managing orders, but instead of inputting them, receiving the shipment and driving around delivering them, it’s emailing a thank you, mailing a thank you, and following up. It’s still going out on a limb to distribute catalogs, but you’re giving out five times as many by being willing to mail them across the country.  

It’s still a newsletter, it’s just a weekly electronic one that signs up people by itself, year-round, instead of a paper one you mailed out once a quarter at great time and expense. It’s still creating tutorials, it’s just packaging them in a consumer-friendly, DIY PDF format people can do in their jammies at home without you there over their shoulder.

Most of all, it’s still about connecting with the customer. People want to do business with people, not products. We’re increasingly brand-loyal and willing to be a walking advertisement for companies and brands we enjoy. The more personal touches you can include, the better.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking online equals cold and impersonal. I’ve found just the opposite. I have health boundaries for my time and family now, while enjoying dozens of new friendships with people I never would have met in real life. I still enjoy connecting with my “real life” customers, but having most of my business come in online means I can actually have a life, in person.

Time to Proceed:

I hope this article has given you some serious food for thought. I don’t blame you one bit for hesitating on the cusp of something you know is going to take a time and money investment. Maybe you’ve tried one or two platforms and got discouraged by lack of visible progress.

• If you’re afraid, that’s ok. Do it afraid. Trust those who’ve come out on the other side and already know it was worth it. Don’t obsess over which platform is the best. Just pick one and go for it. Google anything you can’t figure out. It’s easier than it’s ever been to get online and start connecting. The worst thing that can happen is you lose a little time and maybe a few dollars. The best thing that can happen is you discover a whole new world of friends and a way of business that truly works for you and your family.
• If you’re excited, great! Just don’t get carried away and tackle too many new areas at once. Slow and steady wins the race. Learn one platform or practice, then move to the next. Fully utilize the features and advice available from each. Focus on building your brand consistently and creatively, to stick out from the crowd of voices shouting for attention online. Don’t allow yourself to get discouraged until you’ve sincerely, consistently tried something for six months to one year.
• If you’re still feeling this is not for you, that’s ok. Just realize you are always going to be working within a pretty small world, recreating your efforts over and over again. Don’t resent people who’ve decided the future lies online. There is room for us all. And you can definitely still have success (perhaps defined differently) as an in-person only demonstrator, especially if your circles of influence are expansive. Keep an open mind and reevaluate if you feel like you’re working too hard for too little payoff.
• If you’re feeling late to the party, you are. But that’s not a good enough reason not to go to the party! And you’re only a little bit late to the existing platforms. You’re not late at all for the many incredible, unimaginable online platforms and programs that haven’t even been dreamed up yet. It’s never too late to teach an old doggie new tricks. The doggie just needs to be willing to work for the treat!

Final Thoughts:

 If you see some big-time successful demo doing something online, don’t automatically think you have to do it, too. She or he may be working just like you—seeking out new platforms, giving them a good trial before deciding if they are a good fit or not. If it turns out its a path to success for many, it will come to the top repeatedly and you can investigate it for yourself. I’ve tried many an idea I decided wasn’t worth sharing. What actually works will float to the surface and define itself, soon enough. Good luck!

UPLINES: want to use this information in your next team meeting?

Here it is in PDF format: Download Do I need an online presence to be successful

What's your problem?

My dear friend Lori Brausen brought an excellent business tip to our local meeting last month, and I knew right away I wanted to share it with you all. The main concept comes from Kim Roach through Zentreprenuer.

Kim shared how your customers' biggest problems can become a goldmine of opportunities and ideas. She believes that problems can be your best friend, especially when it comes to ideas for generating content.

Kim Roach's sure-fire copy-writing formula is called PAS: Problem, Agitate, Solve. Let's look at each one of those steps.

• Problem: describe the problem your customer is experiencing. In our industry, this could be anything from trouble getting stamps to stick to the block, to difficulties with storage space, or even just the main annoyance most crafters feel cranky about--not having enough time.
• Agitate: talk about the problem. "Rub salt in the wound," Kim says. Does this problem lead to other problems? Does it crop up over and over? It's even more effective if you've had that same issue as well and can talk about it from personal experience and real emotion.
• Solve: give them the solution. Talk about the answers. Share how your product fixes the issue, frees up time, or eliminates annoyances. Share specifics about how your approach works efficiently and economically. And then tell them where to get the product or service. 

What I appreciate most about this approach is how truthful it is. The problem is true. The emotions and frustrations attached to it are true. And you know, from personal experience and trial and error, that the solution is also true. That honesty resonates with people. And they appreciate what you've shared, and they'll be back for more.

Take a moment to sit down and make a list of 10 problems the average customer faces. Here's a few examples:

• how to manage scraps
• basic measurements
• knowing what adhesive to use
• crafting on a budget
• organizing ribbon
• finding the time

Every one of those issues could be not just a blog post, but a whole blog series. Each issue would be a great video concept. They would make fantastic, interesting, helpful newsletter articles.

I bet you can think of way more than 10 problems your stampers face. We'll never run out of problems, actually... so we'll never run out of content to cover.

Sometimes it can feel a little manipulative to talk about "formulas" or try to keep an outline in mind when writing blog posts and newsletter articles. But actually, the PAS concept just really good customer service. You're solving people's problems--meeting their needs--sometimes even before they have articulated that need to themselves. When you are meeting people's needs, you do not ever need to feel like you're doing anything wrong.

You may even have realized, reading this article, that you already naturally use a PAS outline when you're writing to your audience. It's a natural progression when you identify a problem, after all, to talk it over and eventually wind up at the solution.

And while customer friends may not be ready to tackle the particular problem you've focused on right at that moment, it will be in the back of their heads that you have answers for similar situations. Anything that sets you up as an expert in your field, that makes you the go-to-girl for advice, is going to add value to your business that will keep paying off for years down the road.

Dream Big! And try implementing the PAS concept this week.

A note about those "honors" you were selected for...

Saavy direct sellers, take heed... that "honor" you were just selected for might not be legit.

Beware of any website, Top 100 list, or challenge group that sends you a "badge" to display on your blog. Some of them are legit and fun, a community you're proud to be a part of, but others are just looking for a way to get free clicks to their site. That's not an "honor" I'm excited to be "presented with."

You should curate any links you post AWAY from your blog very, very carefully.

Like it or not, we are all competing for views and followers, and some sites, lists, and groups have discovered an easy way to boost their own stats in the guise of honoring fellow crafters. What seems flattering and helpful might actually be a Trojan horse.

Display-only badges might prompt someone to go look up the site, but linked badges will take them straight to another site and hand them over. Check out which kind of blog widget the site, list or group is offering you, and make an informed decision about how to handle these.

Here's a few questions you can ask before you add the badge or widget to your sidebar:

• Are you a regular, active participant in this community or site, or did they approach you pretty quickly?
• Is the community or site, as a whole, supposedly about ALL demonstrators, but in reality just one demo or blog?
• Is the community or site, as a whole, something I agree with and am proud to be a member of?
• Have you ever heard of the group or list before? Did it just appear from nowhere? (this is a biggie; they spring up overnight)
• Is it a paid group (such as Stamping Top 100 or Scrapbooking Top 100) where you're only ranked if you subscribe, refer, or send enough traffic?
• Does the badge include a link away from your blog or is it truly JUST a badge?

There's nothing wrong with displaying as many badges and honors as you like. Just go into it with your eyes wide open, and ask a few questions before you let someone you don't even know use you for traffic.

What's your creating to marketing ratio?

With a craft business, many people assume you do nothing but create all day long. Wouldn't that be nice? The truth is another matter entirely!

Serious craft bloggers realize that the most crucial business activities are not in the stamp room, but in the home office.

There is a balance between spending the necessary time doing what you love to do, and doing what must be done in order to be able to afford to continue doing what you love.

Business-minded demonstrators know that a blog post is only worth it's marketing. No matter how awesome your content is, if it is not advertised, promoted, pushed out there, it's virtually worthless within a week. It will garner results only based on who happened to see it before it slipped off the first page of your blog or who happens to stumble upon it months or even years later.

No one wants to think of their work as wasted, no matter what their industry. So what can we do to make sure each post gets out there, promptly, in front of the eyes of those we want to view it?

Savvy business people use a creating to marketing time ratio of at LEAST 1:1. In layman's terms, that means they spend at least the same amount of time marketing, sharing, promoting and advertising their project as the time it took them to create it.

Think back to the last project you created.

What did you do when it was finished?

How did you market it so it would bring in results?

How did you ensure that it would continue to be promoted/seen in the future?

How did you ensure that not just your existing customers, but also future customers, would see it?

What would you say your ratio of crafting to marketing was?

Highly-successful demonstrators use a ratio closer to 2:1. If your answer was anything less than 1:1, you can be certain you are leaving money on the table and hurting the long-term sustainability of your business.

Side note: many craft bloggers fall into the trap of thinking that blogging a project is the same thing as marketing it. While a blog post IS a marketing device, it's also a project in and of itself. And as a project, it also requires the same amount of marketing in order to be successful.

We bust our backsides to produce top-quality blog content--and then sit back and wait for people to come to us, instead of going to them.

It can be discouraging to think of all the many past hours spent creating cards and then creating blog content, hours which we see now were too often left un-maximized by lack of marketing after creation. However, let me encourage you with this saying: "Know better, do better." You have learned an important lesson today; let it inform your actions going forward.

Does this seem like a daunting task?

Can I share a secret that will help?

The secret is to find as much joy and creativity in the marketing part as you do in the crafting part.

Learn to delight in new-found social media skills instead of dreading them as an unavoidable chore. Take pleasure in a well-crafted turn of phrase and in staging a great photo. Draw strength from realizing you are spending your precious time in a smart manner that will pay off far into the future. Turn some of that God-given creativity into the business realm and enjoy learning new skills.

Much about direct sales has changed in the last ten years. This is one thing that has not, although the forms of marketing available to the common man have proliferated almost beyond imagination. The people you see at the top of the company are not necessarily the best stampers. But they are definitely those who have learned the lesson that advertising is EVERYTHING.

What could change in the next year, if you started today and worked towards a 1:1 ratio?

Where would you be if you started today and put all your energies towards a 2:1 ratio?

Let's find out, shall we?

7 Ways to Give Your Social Media a Quick Facelift in the New Year

As I have been wandering around the internet verifying demonstrators for the SOMHS business Facebook group, I have come across a good number of blogs and Facebook headers bearing out-of-date information, old catalogs still up, holiday pictures still featured prominently. That definitely sends a poor message to anyone looking for an active, enthusiastic demonstrator!

I've compiled a list of quick tips and tricks you can use to freshen up your blog and other social media sites to make sure you're communicating the most recent information possible, in the most appealing way possible.

1. Change out your catalogs promptly. There's no excuse for not having the current catalogs available with free sites like TAMS providing courtesy catalog widgets for all demonstrators. TIP: I mark the date each new catalog begins and ends on my planner so that I am reminded to change them out.
2. Get a fresh headshot. Let's face it--we've changed "a bit" since that eight-year-old photo we have been using. Time to get a new one! TIP: If you have trouble finding a photo of yourself that you actually like, try changing it to black and white. For some reason it feels kinder and softer, and as a bonus, it won't clash with your color scheme.
3. Liven up your color palette. Colors are intensely psychological. They "speak" even louder than words. Are yours fresh? Up to date? Fun? Do they fit with the feel and style of your chosen brand name and the color combos you lean towards? Do they grab attention? Do they feel warm and welcoming in the winter, and cool and refreshing in the summer?
4. Update your header. If you don't have a professionally designed one and don't have the computer skills to do it yourself, my best tip is Fivver.com, a site that connects free-lance designers with people who need something quick. You can get a logo designed for five bucks. Blog headers and Facebook covers for ten bucks. That's a pretty cheap facelift!
5. Use the corporate graphics from your company. Stampin' Up provides a large file of gorgeously staged photographs with each new catalog. These will help you sell products we carry without actually having to own every last one of them. Do you know where to find this file? How to download it to your computer, un-zip it and use the photos? Time to learn! Click on Happening Now, then Catalogs.
6. Delete old sales and recruiting information. There's no reason to have the Pick A Pack of Papers sale from 2014 on your site, or the Starter Kit promotion from eight years ago still in your Facebook photos. If it was strictly sale information and not projects, delete it without hesitation. If there were projects in that post that you don't want to lose, delete just the sale info and change the wording so it's more "evergreen." Focus on the layout or idea or color combo instead of the specific set or tool. Evergreen posts and photos continue to be relevant--and bring in business--long after the product itself has been discontinued.
7. Check for broken and dead links. Nothing's more frustrating than stumbling across info you want to pursue, only to discover the link no longer takes you there. I use the free site deadlinkchecker.com to identify links that are not functioning so I can easily fix them or go delete the old post. HINT: do this regularly, so it's not overwhelming. If you've not been in the habit of checking this or deleting outdated sales info, the first time you check for dead links will be a bit of a shock!

I hope you've gotten some great tips from this list. If you have a "quick facelift" idea to share with your fellow direct sales consultants, please leave a comment. Thanks for visiting Song of My Heart Demonstrators today!

How not to blog: what your former followers could tell you

Recently I posed an interaction question on my Facebook business page: "Have you stopped following any craft blogs lately, and why?" The ensuing comments were full of wonderful "what not to do's" and I thought that many bloggers could benefit from hearing what their former (or potentially former) followers had to say.

Remember, these were followers at one time. People who discovered a blog and liked it enough at first perusal to bookmark it or subscribe. In some cases, they were subscribed for months or years before calling it quits. If it were my blog, I'd want to know why people were bailing out. No, you won't be able to please everyone, but are you unintentionally alienating some of your readership?

Here's what former followers have to say about the reasons they left:

• I quit because they stopped using mostly their own products and just used whatever
• I quit because their site was a garish color/font too small/too light/hard to see actual content
• I quit because the person seemed negative/angry much of the time
• I quit because it was more about their pets than about stamping
• I quit because they didn't post regularly
• I quit because her projects were quite sloppy and messy
• I quit because they never responded to questions/comments
• I quit because she started doing all/mostly all digital scrapbooking
• I quit because the person was so preachy with their life choices
• I quit because they only posted CASE'd (copied) cards
• I quit because she only does videos and I can't see those easily
• I quit because they began to post only/mostly tutorials for sale/product shares
• I quit because they only posted specials/news and never their personal work
• I quit because her style was one-note and she never EVER ventured outside it
• I quit because she had music that would blare out and scare me half to death/wake up my kids
• I quit because it seemed she made everything but cards

Did you see something all of these reasons have in common when you read through the list?

They are ALL under your control.

Sometimes people complain about something that we can't or don't know how to change on our blog, due to technology limitations, time, or personal resources. But these common alienating factors listed by former followers are ALL within the realm of what is possible to easily change, starting with your very next post.

Focusing on what we can change is always a better tactic than fussing over what we cannot.

Click to Tweet: Focusing on what we can change is always a better tactic than fussing over what we cannot.

Why should I change? you might be thinking about now. Don't I have the right to blog how and when and why I see fit?

Yes, you certainly do have that right. But your followers also have the right to be turned off by unprofessional behavior or content that is unoriginal or doesn't fit their needs. Your willingness to adapt your blogging behaviors to better suit your audience is what, bottom line, separates the hobby blog from the business-generating blog. Which do you want?

Dream BIG and blog hard!

5 More Easy Blog Posts for when you haven't crafted in a while

We've all been there... that moment of realization that it's been days since we blogged, and likely to be more days until we have a chance to craft something to blog about.

Professional bloggers knows some secret post types that add value to your site without dumping poor or hasty content into cyberspace--and that won't leave customers dissatisfied with how often you're (not) posting.

See Part One of this article here, then read on for five more great ideas for blog posts when you have nothing new to blog about!

1. Gift Certificates: we don't think of these except at the holidays, but actually, people need gift cards all year long. Grab a couple of old gift card holder ideas (or compile a board on Pinterest) and create a post about the gift certificate options you offer. PS--Be SURE to include a graphic or photo with your post, or there's nothing to allow people to pin it. NEVER blog without at least one photo!
2. Newsletter Sign Up: When's the last time you did a specific blog post about signing up for your newsletter? it's not enough just to have the sign up box on the side or to occasionally mention they should join. You should be DRIVING customers to that priceless contact list! A newsletter self-identifies people who WANT your sales pitches--it is worthy of it's own blog post once a quarter! Embed the sign-up form right in the post to remove any obstacles or excuses for not joining.
3. Video Playlist: this is especially fun if you don't do video tutorials yourself. Create a YouTube playlist of the official Stampin' Up videos. YouTube shows all sorts of recommendations after a video ends, so having a playlist helps customers stick to the corporate videos and not stray into watching other companies' videos. Organize the playlists into helpful categories like "easy gift ideas" or "new techniques." Share the link in a post, embedding the first one right there in the blog to provide a visual.
4. Family News: if you are not in the habit of sharing much personally, it's time to loosen up! People want to do business with PEOPLE, not PRODUCTS. It's ok to post some family trip pics or your recent family photo shoot. Don't overdo it, but if it's been a bit since you posted anything personal, customers love to get to know you better. Often these are the most-commented-on posts of the whole year.
5. Unboxing: we've all seen the videos of demonstrators who ordered the entire catalog opening their boxes and talking their way through every product in the book. While that's not even close to possible for 99% of us, we can still take the VERY popular "unboxing" idea and use it in ways that suit our budget and style. I've done unboxing videos on bags of mailed-in swap cards. I've done them on our cardmaking kits. You can do one on every Paper Pumpkin. Use the word "unboxing" in your post title--it's a social media goldmine. I don't know why we're so fascinated watching people unpack things, but hey--if it gets viewers and readers, go for it! If you don't do video, then just take a picture of every step in the process of opening your chosen item. Write a short line or two about your thoughts as you went through each step, being sure to communicate your utter excitement.

There you go--together with Part One, that's ten blog posts you can pull together in a hurry when the stampin' mojo has flown the coop or you truly do not have time to sit down and get crafty. Exercise your creativity in a totally different way by creating a content-rich, useful blog post from nothing! Happy blogging!

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