Today I want to talk to you about photography. If you have a business right now - the very best way to promote it is social media. And the best way to gain traction on most social media sites is excellent photography. Cake orders are driven by photos. Facebook shares are driven by great great photos and videos. Pinterest Pins are driven by photos. You see where I'm going... Anywho - the reason I'm telling you this is I used to take horrible photos. Then a few years ago, my photography skills improved dramatically and I credit 2 things with that happening. #1 was an in-person, real-life photography class. #2 was Food Blogger Pro. Here's an example of the same recipe - Easy Homemade Garlic Cheddar Biscuits: Clearly I've learned a lot since 2010!! So, Food Blogger Pro is an awesome website that teaches you how to start, grow and monetize your blog... plus a thousand other things! Specificaly included in your membership are hundreds of videos and entire sections ...
Blogging Basics
WordPress 101 Course – Get $10 off for the next 4 days!
You guys. Managing three blogs is a lot harder than I ever dreamed. I cannot for the life of me seem to post regularly on all three. I continually strive to do better and that's all I can offer. So here I am popping in at a random time after 3 weeks of silence to share something I feel you need to hear. One trend I've noticed in the blogging world is this trend for so many bloggers to start teaching and selling blogging courses. There's nothing in the world wrong with that - here I am writing on a blog about cake bloggging. And that's awesome! BUT, the other trend I see is the ever increasing prices of the courses and information that's out there. I appreciate that content creators need to scale and grow their businesses... but I so wish there were more of them that kept beginning blogger courses very, very affordable. Afterall - almost anybody starting a blog is not making any money yet, so spending $500 or more on a course to grow your blog is likely not ...
Is the idea of blogging overhwhelming to you?
Is the idea of blogging overwhelming to you? I have good news for you. That's completely normal. I've been there more times than I can count and still find myself drowning in my to-do list from time to time. In fact, I've never met a blogger who didn't feel overwhelmed at some point in their blogging journey. Or possibly overwhelmed all of the time. The simple fact is - you could spend every waking minute of every day working on your blog. There's always something to do. Writing new posts, promoting on social media, updating to the latest designs, plugins, etc. and implementing all the strategies that the "experts" say will make you successful. The amount of information out there is endless and trying to do "it all" will cause you to burn out very, very quickly. So what are you to do? You must prioritize. The bottom line is figure out what you do best and do it. Figure out where your audience is and spend time there. I'll give you one example: I found ...
Rose Bakes is in “Facebook Jail” : Why You Must Own Your Own Website or Blog
I've known for a long time that having your own website (or blog) is essential for your business. Not just a Facebook page or an Instagram account - but your very own website. And today I'm going to tell you... Why You Must Own Your Own Website or Blog. Why? Because when you park your business on a social media channel, you really have no control over it. You might think you do - but when it comes down to it, you don't, Here's what happened to me recently to prove this to you. Facebook put Rose Bakes "in jail". Did you know Facebook could do that? They can. Out of the blue, I logged into Facebook a couple of weeks ago, clicked over to my business page and found this notice blaring across the top of the page: Facebook locked me down and threw away the key... for a month (this happened on June 29). They didn't give me any idea what I did wrong other than them sending me this cryptic message that I was posting " false, misleading, fraudulent, or deceptive ...
3 Great Blogging Freebies
I assume you're reading here because you've been thinking about starting a blog, or maybe you already have one. If either applies to you, I have 3 Great Blogging Freebies to share with you today. If you're someone who hasn't started a blog yet, let me also encourage you to check out some of my other posts: How to Start a Food Blog & Make Money With It (over on Rose Bakes) and How to Start a Blog in 3 Easy Steps. I started my blog, Rose Bakes, in January 2012 and have built a successful business out of it. I'm currently earning full-time income from my blog. I couldn't be more happy (or sometimes surpised) about my success. My blogging income helped us get 100% out of debt. That's right. We own our house, our cars, no student loans - no debt of any kind. Blogging income (added to my husband's income) also allows us to give generously, have a very flexible schedule, and helps me stay home with (and homeschool) my kids. The bottom line is, we spend more time ...
How to Backup Your WordPress Blog
I was talking with my friend Jennifer today, who just started her own new blog and she asked a question about how she should be backing up her blog. I immediately knew I needed to share How to Backup Your Wordpress Blog. If you have a blog, you should have a backup of it. Period. It's essential. Almost 2 years ago my blog was hacked and I've never been so happy to have had a backup plan in place. And being hacked is not the only threat you face. Your host could have server issues. You could install a plugin that causes a conflict and breaks your blog. You could even click wrong once or twice and lose days, weeks, or years of work. Believe me - it's happened. To prevent the heartache and panic that comes with a broken (or deleted) blog, have your blog backed up regularly. There are a several ways to backup a blog (probably more than I'm aware of), but I'll give you some basic information. First, your hosting should be creating regular backups of your blog. ...
One of the best blogging investments I’ve made: Food Blogger Pro
I have a confession to make. When I started my cake blog more than 5 years ago, it was a mess. I had some great cakes and content, but I was all over the map about how to make it successful. I did find some success, but it was by accident - not because I had any idea what I was doing or following any strategy. I spent a lot of time researching blogging techniques, but I found myself totally overwhelmed. It's so easy to get get "information overload" when it comes to blogging! The struggle is real! Over the years I've bought and tried many, many ecourses, ebooks, courses, etc. trying to find the thing to help me be successful at blogging. Some of them were truly helpful (and I share about them), but most were wasted money. And then there's Food Blogger Pro. It's one of the single best purchases I made. I was so happy to find a website that covered all the fundamental principles I needed to grow my blog. I'm currently earning over $7000 a month and I know a lot ...
How to Start a Blog in 3 Easy Steps
If you're looking for a quick rundown on how to get your blog started, this post is for you! I'm going to share How to Start a Blog in 3 Easy Steps. These days, you can blog about anything... you house, your kids, your hobbies, your job... the sky is the limit. Your blog can also be an extension of your business and you can make money with it - which I love and what I do on Rose Bakes, at RoseAtwater.com, and here at CakeBlogging.com. Actually, over at Rose Bakes, I wrote an extensive post about How to Start a Food Blog & Make Money With It... if you're interested! UPDATE: I also shared how I made almost $37,000 Blogging in 2015 - check that out HERE! But back to the reason I'm writing. That post had loads of information, but it doesn't really break down, step-by-step, how to actually set it up, so I thought it might be helpful to to focus just on the starting part. SO here we go... How to Start a Blog in 3 Easy Steps!! What are the 3 Easy Steps? 1. Choose a ...
5 Days to a Successful Blog Launch – Only $7 for a limited time!
Have you been trying to decide if you should start a blog? Or maybe you want some help getting started - something to get you up on your feet quickly? Well I have a great news! Crystal Paine from MoneySavingMom.com has written a 5-day course designed to help beginner bloggers get their blogs up, running, and ready for launch —in 5 days! Let me tell you about 5 Days to a Successful Blog Launch. What's included? When you enroll in 5 Days to a Successful Blog Launch, you’ll get: 5 comprehensive daily lessons covering the essential blog launch tips, to-do's, and strategies including information on hosting providers,blogging platforms, email list providers, content creation, social media and more! Actionable daily assignments to keep you on the fast track to your blog launch goals! Additional links and resources for each day, if you'd like to dig deeper on a subject. Easy-to-use glossaries to ensure you understand the lessons. Printable blog launch checklist to walk you ...
What is the Genesis Framework?
What the heck is the Genesis Framework? I know I had that exact question when I transferred my first blog from Blogger to Wordpress. All of the terminology is so confusing and the learning curve is steep. But if you have the same question, then I found a resource for you that I didn't know existed until recently. It's a free ebook written by the experts themselves.... The Genesis Guide for Absolute Beginners. This guide will especially be helpful for anyone wanting to set up and customize your own blog without hiring a designer or Wordpress developer. But even if you plan to hire someone, having a basic understanding of the terminology will be a huge help to you! To get this guide, you don't have to enter an email address or sign up for anything. You just click here and download the ebook! It's 59 pages answering most any question you could dream up about the Genesis Framework, themes and child themes. There is text and photos to walk you through every step of ...