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--------------- The Chat: --------------- Welcome to the Chat at our weekly Wed 3pm EST (8p GMT) This Chat hour we will chat with about Blogging Tips with Welcome Justin Germino! So excited to have you here! Today we are talking to Justin Germino about blogging! Q1 With the new year, any blogging resolutions? A1 Personally, mine are just to have fun with blogging, continue engaging readers and give away more gadgets for the fans. A1 I also have a resolution to switch to a new more efficient, leaner Wordpress theme and reduce pageload times for site. I like the engaging part.. You mentioned, in a comment on about person versus entity... A1 To be even more organized. Yeah, I try to connect with people not just present a brand, I am my blog, my blog is me. A huge portion of my blogging time now involves just communication via social media Join us and ask your questions related to blogging, ask anything remember no dumb questions. Do you find that you spend more time interacting than managing the blog? Probably, my time to create new content has gone down, but the engagement level is equally important. This is why I have staff writers though, to help keep content coming while I keep up with the social aspects too However, even with my reduced writing time, I still do 20-25 articles per month myself. Do you have a system? Like 5 articles in one sitting, or do you have a goal of abt 1 article per day? I wish it was that consistent, it is more like no articles for 2 days, 3 articles on day 3..etc As many of my articles are gadget reviews lately, they take time, a lot of time. I just make sure at least 1 article per day is scheduled and published on my site, my goal is 3 per day 3 total articles, not all written by my, but overall. How long does it take to write a review? I remember Ann Smarty mentioning 5 hrs for a Mashable article. ;) My recent review of the I'm Watch took about 4-5 hours, so about right. Q2 What would be on your blogging wishlist (software, skills, hopes, dreams...)? Some software with limited functionality I can review faster, games can require longer play to review After all to review a FULL game you have to complete full game and that could take 20-80 hours. Although, that sounds fun, to play the games and you mentioned being able to play some with your kids.. A2: A new WP theme, new leaner theme, almost found what I am looking for, needs some tweaks. A2: More writers as well, just brought on a new writer yesterday. Sorry about that was having connectivity issues Yes, I am avoiding Thesis or Genesis framework at this time myself. I love the optimize press theme but still would love to see a drag and drop with better plug in options Understandable. It happens. Glad you could join us ;) Looking for something leaner, for faster page loading? A Windows update was dominating my system... Need to plan those. I just implemented Thesis 2 and it takes awhile to convert it, but it is a developer's dream. Drag/drop/boxes... I have wanted to experiment with it, but I don't have time for the overhead, going for a new minimalist approach Q3 Where do you go for help with your blogging needs (resources, communities, etc.) What is the best plugin for membership sites? Yeah, there is a LOT of overhead on implementation, but I'm find a time savings on maintenance. A3: Google search first, then post questions on Facebook usually one of the blogging related groups like Blog Engage next. There are a couple out there, like wishlist and s2member. I like s2member because you can try-b4-u-buy Hey all, long time no see! If you need a lot of tutorials, you may prefer wishlist. It is higher priced, but may be easier to implement. Hey Brian. Good to see you. That's a good point, posting questions versus statements. For engagement or answers to specific questions? I actually have not looked at or researched membership plugins yet myself. I will be strictly consulting from this point. So glad I made up my mind I have tried S2 membership it seems to fit for most of my clients. Would love to connect on Facebook I am grounded for 10 more hours. I think the only thing that S2 doesn't make as clear is how to show/hide content based on membership... But, very doable (re: S2 Member plugin). Brian - where do you go for answers to any blogging (or other) questions? Google, forums.. What are some popular SEO Blog Topics this week? Next Week Preview: chatting with about Hmm, I don't know about SEO but the new Facebook Social Search is making big time news. Q4 What is your advice to new bloggers (or your “key to success”)? RT : Join us and ask your questions related to blogging, ask anything remember no dumb questions. I saw that this morning. Facebook may give Google a good run, but still have a long way to go. IMO Maybe that depends on who one thinks is ahead to start with <wink> ;) RT : Next Week Preview: chatting with about Hey Justin, et al! My first time in here. Greetings from the frozen Bayou State. :-) <wink> Ah it's all a matter of how you look at it.. Welcome! Do you have any blogging questions burning on your mind? A4: Write about what you are passionate about, it is hard to build routine if you are not enthused about what you write about. Joining late but I'm here! How important are tags and categories when blogging for visibility I've been blogging a couple years now, just the one centered on special diets w a vegan slant. I use them more like organizational tools, categories to help readers navigate site. unless you count some of my article series as blogging, then I cover country life, gardening and art, too. Yeah, like said, I use it for navigation. Though, tags do help with SEO. cc: I love hashtags. I have to watch not to overdo it. I think overtagging wears out readers' eyes. You mean like those tweets that have one word and the rest are hashtags? :) I enjoy writing posts as much as promoting them. Exactly! They may hit trends and generate readership, but as a reader, I resent the wear and tear on my eyes. Thank you for joining us, Justin Germino for our chat We have to consider that much of the population is either aging or buried in reports & drowning in social m edia. MT : "I resent the wear and tear on my eyes." <-- I hear ya Drowning in social media is right. I actually enjoy writing posts, the promoting I leave to automation for the most part (bad I know) Missed the chat? Stay tuned for Tweets letting your know the archive/summary is ready. But, there are also only so many hours per day, so automation is sometimes necessary. I agree, but you trade off the "Human" element with time preservation and efficiency. Balance is key. Thank u for joining this week's Twitter Chat. Feel free to keep chatting, just wanted to let you know we appreciate u! I need to study up on automation. Discovered TED talks & a 2013 Trend Report. Getting ideas! I agree! I agree, but you trade off the "Human" element with time preservation and efficiency. Balance is key I wouldn't be nearly as efficient in blogging, Gremln, Hootsuite, Dlvr.it INVALUABLE tools for me. for all of my followers who see this we have Tweet Chats each week at the same time with a guest Tweeter! It's a fun forum. Where's the chat's transcript site? skype chats, linkedin, twitter and quora usually. Woo we actually trended last week! Hey Brian here from The Dragoncast over . How's everyone doing tonight? Thanks for telling us about the podcast ;) Yes, we did! RT : Woo we actually trended last week!
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