ProBloggers Matrix

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Photo by ifindkarma

As bloggers, we need to keep track of many different things in the course of our writing, in addition to our usual responsibilities. If you blog regularly but do not stay organized, you’ll soon find that not only your blogging but also the rest of your life will rapidly devolve into chaos.

Bloggers are confronted by numerous tasks and concerns. The recent Google Page Rank Update (or Downgrade, depending on your point of view) has illustrated the need to cultivate sources of defensible traffic for your blog, as well as re-affirming the need for the development of new assessment metrics for blogs and websites, as well as the need for comprehensive discussion of these new assessment metrics by bloggers and sitemasters throughout the Internet and in offline communications channels. I believe that we need to be concerned a LOT less with Page Rank (We don’t need no stinkin’ Page Rank!!) and be FAR MORE CONCERNED with reader engagement on our blogs and websites (more on this in another post!!).

Other tasks that bloggers face:

1. Bloggers need to experiment with social media. Another task confronting the serious blogger (or problogger), is the necessity to wade into social media and experiment with it, to obtain exposure for their blogs and to secure additional traffic and RSS subscribers.

2. The need to read many other blogs, both within and without their respective niche.

3. Interaction with other blog authors. Networking is paramount for bloggers, especially probloggers.

4. Interaction with commenters.

5. Participation on blogging forums.

6. Participation in group writing projects. These help develop your writing skills as well as expose you to other blogs and their authors’ writing styles. You’ll also gain traffic and RSS subscribers, as well as valuable backlinks.

7. Participation in blog carnivals. These will expose your blog to more readers and bloggers and you’ll see increased traffic and subscribers and backlinks.

8. Article marketing. Writing articles and submitting them to article directories will increase your traffic and subscribership over time, especially if you submit many great articles on a regular basis.

9. Guest blogging. Networking with other blog authors will help you to secure guest blogging gigs on other blogs. These engagements will bring your dazzling blog more traffic and increased exposure to the blogosphere, and you will experience additional increases in RSS subscribership. You will get more backlinks.

10. Archiving of blog posts for the future. Life comes at you FAST!! You need to be prepared for the times when real life intrudes or otherwise PREVENTS you from being able to blog. You need to construct an insurance policy of sorts against the inevitable intrusions of life’s challenges. Develop at least ten surplus quality posts for those times when you just can’t blog.

11. Commenting on other blogs. If you want traffic and comments on your fine blog, this is a MUST!! Commenting is a currency in the blogosphere that you should be exchanging with other bloggers on a regular basis.

The above list is by no means exhaustive. You are starting to get a taste of all the tasks any serious blogger faces on a daily basis. There is only one way to deal with all of this: You have got to develop a schedule and stick to it. Make notes of what you need to get done concerning your blog and then complete those tasks! Institute an orderly structure in your blogging life! You’ll find that you will be a LOT MORE PRODUCTIVE when you have a good structured schedule in place!!

Well, it’s high time I turned the floor over to you!! How well do YOU keep yourselves organized, bloggers? Your comments and opinions are encouraged here! How many bloggers’ tasks did I forget to list lol? I’m sure there are a few!!

NEVER miss another useful blogging tip again! Subscribe to ProBloggers Matrix for FREE!

Share This

I have always been a firm believer in diversification. I never put all my eggs in one basket. When it comes to traffic for your blog, I recommend that you work on diversification of your traffic sources. This is an ongoing process that will require dedication, hard work, time and most importantly, PATIENCE. You should develop as many of the following sources of traffic for your blog as you can. As you progress through this list, you will greatly enhance the value of your traffic portfolio.

1. Commenting on other blogs.
2. Participating on blogging forums.
3. Participating on non-blogging forums.
4. Guest posting on other blogs.
5. Having other bloggers guest post on your blog.
6. Active participation on social media sites.
7. Participation in Group Writing Projects.

Share This

Photo by Big Island Fun

If you’re really serious about blogging, you should have a standalone blog. If you’re looking for a great blogging platform, WordPress is the one you should go for. It’s open source. There are millions of developers working on improving it every day. There are already hundreds of plugins for WordPress, as well as thousands of themes. More are being developed every day.

WordPress is easy to use and it can also be used as a Content Management System. It can also be configured to serve as an Interactive Learning Environment.

WordPress is INSANELY customizable. Stay the hell away from free blogging hosts. Get your own blog host and use WordPress. Better yet, hire a designer and develop your own blog design. This will help your blog to stand out from all of the other estimated 143 MILLION blogs already on the Internet. There are 130,000 new blogs coming online each and every month.

What blog platform do YOU use? Do you use WordPress? Why or why not? Your comments are always encouraged here at the ProBloggers Matrix!

NEVER miss another useful blogging tip again! Subscribe to ProBloggers Matrix for FREE!

Share This

There’s a bloggers’ forum out there that’s been generating a lot of buzz in the blogosphere that you need to join! This blogging community is called the Blog Premiere forums. I joined yesterday as the poster known as J.D. Blog Premiere is a friendly forum for bloggers. If you have any questions about blogging, they will help you. It’s also a great place to meet other bloggers and network with them!

Share This

Photo by mandj98

People LOVE lists! Blog articles that are lists tend to get Stumbled and Dugg. They tend to get a lot of backlinks. Bloggers start discussions about them on their own blogs.

Another thing I’ve noticed about lists is this: Commenters will comment about what they think should be added to the list. One thing that you can do to encourage your readers to comment on your blog, is to include some of their comments in your lists. When you do this you should link them up, by that I mean that your should backlink to their blog. They were nice enough to take the time to comment, so if their comment warrants inclusion into your list article, by all means, add their comment to the list along with a backlink to their blog. You will develop a fiercely loyal readership this way and they will comment more. Don’t forget to give your regular commenters link love occasionally.

Another thing that your should do to reward your commenters, is to draw inspiration from their comments for one of your blog posts. When you write a blog post that was inspired by one of your reader’s comments, be sure to credit them with a link to their comment and with a link to their blog!

If you implement the above you will develop a readership that will be fiercely loyal to your blog! When you engage your audience in this way, you will be well on your way to establishing yourself as an A-List blogger.

Now it’s your turn, readers! Do you draw inspiration from your commenters? Have you ever added their comments to one of your list articles? How did they feel about it? Don’t be bashful! Your comments are encouraged here at the ProBloggers Matrix!

NEVER miss another useful blogging tip again! Subscribe to ProBloggers Matrix for FREE!

Share This

Photo by Lodewijk-van-den-Broek

There’s been much talk around the blogosphere lately about blogging and its effects on your health. I’d like to take the conversation here and also add a few thoughts.

The Internet is a constant, always-on communications medium 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. To succeed as a blogger, you have to constantly write valuable articles. You also have to work the social channels, and participate actively and usefully on blog forums, group writing projects, leave comments on many other blogs, among numerous other activities.

You can’t slow down the Internet, but you can enhance your health so that you can deal better with the challenges of successful blogging.

1. Make sure you enjoy blogging. Make certain that blogging is your true passion, and you can’t go wrong.

2. EXERCISE, EXERCISE, EXERCISE and do it regularly. I work out 5 to 6 days a week. I’m getting pretty good at it. I’m no Mr. Atlas, but my weight is down and I have never felt better! Exercise will do wonders for your blogging!

3. Nutritious diet. Try to refrain from consuming excess junk foods. Eat regular meals. Move away from the keyboard and relax and enjoy your meals! The computer and your blog will still be there when you finish eating.

4. Get enough sleep. I’m guilty of this one. I have gotten seriously involved in my church. I’m ADDICTED to my church activities! I’m so excited about my church stuff that I can’t get to sleep at night. Blasting all those songs on my iPod isn’t doing my sleep patterns any good either. A warning is in order here: Getting involved in helping out your local Master’s Commission can be severely addictive. I know, I’ve caught the disease and it’s raging lol. Try your best to get at least 8 hours of restful sleep a night. I’ve been managing 4 to 5 hours per night in the past two weeks. It’s really beginning to impact my daily routine adversely.

5. Try not to spend too much time blogging. Okay, okay, so I’m a hypocrite. I spend 6 to 10 hours a day blogging. If you can’t reduce the amount of time you spend blogging, at least break it up. Get up off your comfortable bloggers’ chair once every couple of hours and stretch. Take a short walk. Listen to some invigorating music. Kick back with your friends. Even better yet, go out for a short drive in your kick-back 1988 Dodge Ram with your friends and BLAST your stereo! Really kick back on that nice soft deep vinyl bench seat and enjoy the ride!

6. Take a break from blogging for a while. Take a few days off, pack up the 1988 Dodge Ram, and head straight for the beach. Turn up the volume and really kick back! Hit the beach and enjoy the sea air! Leave your laptop at home. Forget about the Internet for 72 hours and just walk in the sand. Hit the surf at high tide and have an excellent time! Enjoy an engaging game of beach volleyball with your friends! Better yet, get everyone on the beach involved in the game!! Build the mother of all sand castles right on the low tide line, at low tide, then fight the ocean as it tries to overwhelm your sand castle! Get lots of pictures of it! Post those pics later on your blog and write up an inspiring article on what bloggers can learn from having fun at the beach!
That’s the ticket to healthful blogging!

How do YOU stay in great health while enjoying the success your blog affords you? You’re encouraged to weigh in with your two cents!

NEVER miss another useful blogging tip again! Subscribe to ProBloggers Matrix for FREE!

Share This

The best pictures to use in your blog are known as Attribution Licensed photos. You can modify them and use them on your blog, regardless of whether your blog is commercial or not. The only thing that’s required of you, is to credit the author by linking back to their profile at Flickr.

This is the search page on Flickr where you can find virtually any Attribution-Licensed Flickr picture that you can use on your blog:

I have been using Attribution-Licensed Flickr photos on this blog for over three months. A word of warning is in order here: Using Flickr pictures on your blog can be severely addictive! Flickr pictures add interest to your blog and can really complement your content. You’ll find that you’ll get traffic from Flickr as well.

Now you get to have your say! Do you use Flickr pictures on your blog? Why do you use them? Why not? Your comments are encouraged here at the ProBloggers Matrix!

NEVER miss another useful blogging tip again! Subscribe to ProBloggers Matrix for FREE!

Share This

Photo by ~Twon~

This is a list of blogging habits that I and other established, successful bloggers have found useful:

1. Be as original as you can. Find ways to relate blogging to other topics is one great way to accomplish this, but there are others. “What Bloggers Can Learn From Truckers” is one. (More on that in a later post).
2. Use relevant niche content. This is why it’s so important to decide what your blog will be about. Find a niche for your blog to serve and stick with it.
3. Find your posting frequency and stick with it. Regular posting is important. Regular updates to your blog lets your readers know when to check their feedreaders for your latest offerings!
4. If you miss blog posts, Be sure to make it up to your readers! I missed a couple of posts near the end of March. So, I am posting five days in a row, April 1 through April 5. I NEVER, EVER forget my loyal readers who take the time to read my blog.
5. Give your commenters frequent LINK LOVE!! I can’t emphasize this enough! Everyone loves backlinks. You simply can’t give ‘em too many backlinks! What goes around, comes around eventually.
6. Be Creative! THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX!! Last August during one of Darren Rowse’s brilliant group writing projects, I decided to give my commenters some link love in one of my blog posts that I then submitted to the GWP. My commenters then got treated to beneficial exposure to Darren Rowse’s readership, which was then around 30,000 strong! You should try this!!
7. Keep written logs all the time! Keep a notebook around with a pen or pencil. I have blogging notebooks in every room of my house, for example. I have one in my vehicle too. Have an idea that you can blog about? WRITE THAT PUPPY DOWN!! You’ll soon have a ton of interesting ideas to blog about!
8. Blog with a BLAZING HOT FIERY PASSION!! If you’ve got a hot date and she asks you for a kiss, do you respond with a total lack of enthusiasm? Hell No! Whatever you do in this life, Do it with a Fiery white-hot PASSION! Know what you’re doing (or blogging about!). Know your niche and MEAN SERIOUS BUSINESS! Blog with PASSION!
9. Help out other bloggers and posters on blogging forums. This also goes for posters on forums other than those on blogging. You write a blog post that solves their problem, then write a summary of the post on the forum along with a link to your blog post. Then, you follow up if they have any more questions!
10. Develop a blogging cushion! You can write blog posts in advance and keep them in your WordPress dashboard for emergencies, times when life gets in the way of your blogging. Your blogging cushion can be a real lifesaver!
11. Read other blogs and also offline publications. These will sharpen your writing and communications skills and advance your blogging brand across the blogosphere! You’ll also find a wealth of ideas to blog about!
12. PERSISTENCE, PATIENCE, CONSISTENCE. It takes time to build a blog community of readers and commenters. You must have a lot of patience, and you must blog persistently and consistently over time.
13. Show some personality, will ya!! Disagree with other bloggers and enter into some politicking in the blogosphere. It’ll get people talking about you, and enhance your traffic! People online love to gossip and will flock to your blog.
14. Be open to learning new things/improve your blogging skillset!! This is extremely important! The Internet is changing, as is blogging and other channels of online media. You must study and learn new things in order to be able to adapt to the ever-changing Internet and improve/enhance/broaden/sharpen your blogging skillset.
15. Use creative commons pictures of people. They will follow their pictures to you like a trail of bread crumbs
16. Your readers’ comments will provide a source of INSPIRATION! For example, Twon inspired #15 in this list!

Over to you, readers! Do you have any great blogging habits you can share with us? Feel free to discuss them here at the ProBloggers Matrix!

NEVER miss another useful blogging tip again! Subscribe to ProBloggers Matrix for FREE!

Share This

Photo by Cronfeld

It’s April 3 and spring is here! I don’t know about where you live, but I reside in the U.S. and the weather is beginning to warm up! The tulips and daffodils are coming up fast and some of the trees are greening! The grass is slowly beginning to green up as well.

This is a wonderful time to go straight to your neighborhood gym and purchase a membership then start working out! It’s early spring now and summer is only two and a half months away! It’s time to get your body all tuned up for summer!

All winter, we have been swathed in thick clothes and coats, trying to stay warm. We have been all cooped up in our offices, typing away at our blogs! This is definitely not very healthy. It’s time to go outside and breathe in some fresh air! Start up your 1988 Dodge Ram truck (or whatever vehicle you drive) and kick back on your comfortable bench seats and open those windows and turn the stereo way up!! Hit the highway and head straight for your local gym!

There is nothing worse than having spent the winter all cooped up in your house, not getting any sun or decent exercise. Hit the gym and start out nice and slow if you haven’t been exercising regularly. You will be amazed by how great you’ll feel once you get done lifting a few weights, hitting the cardio machines or swimming laps in an indoor pool!! Then you hit the hot tub and let those strong hot water jets massage away your cares for about 20 minutes! Then you hit the showers. On the way home, CRANK UP your car or truck stereo! The louder, the better! The neighbors’ll get over it! Your spirits will SOAR like you wouldn’t believe! Then when you hit your blog you will DAZZLE your readers with such spectacular content that you’ll blow all of your blogging competition out of the water!

Not only will a regular spring tuneup get your creative juices flowing, it’ll launch your writing creativity and passion into overdrive on serious steroids!!

When summer arrives and you’re all ready to hit the beach (and that time will be here before you know it!!) you will be in perfect physical shape, you’ll be slim and trim and good to go. All of your friends who refused to budge off their couch will now be faced with a terrible dilemma: Try and get into shape in July smack-dab in the middle of beach season or just go to the beach all out of shape wearing a shirt in the 107 degree heat and humidity to try and cover up all their fat that they’ve accumulated from noshing on all those holiday treats well past the holiday season.

You will be in such excellent shape that your blogging will excel! That’s right about the time you should get a new blog theme or even go for a radical redesign of your blog! You’ll have the best summer of your entire life and your blog will dazzle so many readers that you’ll even give Darren Rowse a run for his money lol!

Over to you, readers! Are YOU ready for a spring tuneup? Tired of spending all your free time around the house breathing only its dank, stale air? Are you ready for a radical recharging of your batteries followed by an equally radical revitalization of your blogs? Tell us what you think! You know you want to!!

NEVER miss another useful blogging tip again! Subscribe to ProBloggers Matrix for FREE!

Share This

Photo by jurvetson

We are running out of IP addresses, and this means that you will not be able to get any more new blogs or websites soon.

I know that there are so many of you out there who are champing at the bit to start up your authoritative, A-List blog, but unless you start it soon, you will NEVER, EVER get your chance. You will forever be on the outside looking in longingly at us established bloggers who are happily blogging away, building our preeminence while you wish you had only grabbed an Internet address for yourself before they all ran out.

The Internet runs on version 4 of the Internet Protocol. This version is called IPv4, and it contains four billion IP addresses.

There is a ray of hope at the end of this particular tunnel though: IPv6. This new version of the Internet Protocol holds more than 16 billion-billion addresses. So there’s still some hope for all of your new bloggers out there!

Get your IP address soon, and start your dazzling blog ASAP! Then stay tuned to the ProBloggers Matrix for all of the latest tips! Better yet, Check out our feed! We deliver for FREE!!

Share This