Blogging & Your Little Black Book

When I get questions about my "best blogging tip" it's always hard to narrow down to one or two guidelines that mom blogs should follow. I considered, of course, the importance of networking and social sites. Creating valuable content, editing each post...there are many strategies for any blogger to be successful at their trade. But one I've overlooked for far too long is the importance of keeping a "little black book." Months after becoming a blogger, and wanting to communicate with the companies I worked with on reviews, it occurred to me I was not gathering contact information. It took hours to backtrack, pull up old reviews and find contact information about each company. Learn from my mistake, I began to keep email groups for every company and blogger you work with on reviews, cross-promotional campaigns, or in social site like Twitter. An obvious tip, perhaps, but one that has nonetheless transformed the reach of my audience each time a new idea hits, like Blog Popz. So keep that little black book and guard it well as you move from mom blogger to mom problogger status!

How Do I Become a Review Blogger?

1. Decide on a blogging platform (Blogger, Word Press, Moveable Type, Typepad). Simplistic, but this article by Technology Evangelist may help. I use Blogger myself.

2. Create a blog using a customized design template to stand out from the crowd. You can always start with a free template and pay for one as your blogs becomes successful. I'm more familiar with resources designed for Blogger and while Mashable has a great list of free Blogger templates, you can find many others by Googling "free blog template" or "free blogger template" as long as you don't mind spending time sifting through ones that aren't actually free. My designer, Gisele Jacequnod, has the sweetest collection of free templates for both Blogger and Wordpress.

3. Find other blogs in your genre and begin looking at them. What kinds of plugins do they use? What ideas can you get for your own blog? How will your stand out from the crowd? Subscribe to these blogs and begin to read them regularly to get insights for your own blog. Also, begin adding to your blogroll those you love the most.

4. Add your blog to directories, both general ones and some in your particular niche. Technorati should be your first stop but others such as Blog Catalog, Blogarama, and Blogflux are great ways for readers to find you. Here are a few other blog directory lists from Search Engine Journal and Google.

5. Keep posting. While getting the word out about your blog remember to write and post regularly, at least a few times a week. Start reviewing what you already love and don't worry about getting products samples just yet. You need to develop your writing style and blog first, so review things you own and love to get started.

6. Networking come next! This is essential for improving your blog rank, developing the blog itself and becoming recognized in your niche. Use sites like Entrecard, Twitter, Facebook, Stumble Upon on a regular basis. Here's a list of 50 social sites just to get your started from Inside CRM.

7. Read sites about blogging and get more ideas on how to improve your blog. Schedule into your blog routine regular times for improvement. My personal favorites are Problogger, Mashable, and Blogger Buster. You can find a more comprehensive list in my blogroll.

8. Now for the fun part. Review bloggers must decide up front the terms of their reviews. Will you review both good and bad? Personally, I only review products I have used and love which is why I require a product if I don't already own the item. If I don't love it, I let the company know and send it back if possible. However, I don't write negative reviews. As for samples...you should wait until your blog is established, making it a worthwhile endeavor for companies. But do not apologize for asking for samples. After all, eventually you will run out of your own products, and review blogging would be an expensive habit if you purchased every one you wanted to highlight for your readers. On the other hand, do approach companies you legitimately think are a good fit for the blog and offer your services as a promotional tool in exchange for product.

9. One surefire way to bring in traffic is to run giveaways on your site. Often companies are willing give products to give away to your readers. Check out Cool Baby Kid for an example of a contest. Offer extra entry possibilities which help promote your site. List the contest with sites like Prizey or Online Sweepstakes. I prefer to have the company ship direct since shipping costs add up quickly.

10. Finally, once you're established and as you work to improve your blog, think of ways to separate yourself from other blogs in your niche. For instance, I recently launched "Blog Popz," a blogger recognition program. Rather than a Valentine's gift guide which I knew other mom blogs would already be creating, I tried to think of how to have some fun with Valentine's Day while keeping it unique. Fantasy Book Lists is an example of brand new blog doing everything right.

Keep posting quality content and reading Ask Baby Kid and you're blog will be off and running in no time!

Featured Blog: Mom Giveaways

Find giveaway and contest listings for moms at Mom Giveaways.

Parenting Tip: Always stay firm and consistent in your discipline.

Blogging Tip: Comment on other blogs, be friendly, and make sure you feel approachable. I'm at stay at home mom to two kids and also blog at A Mom Speaks and Faith Approved. You can always follow on Twitter too.

Baby Kids' Thoughts: If you run giveaways on your site, get to know Courtney since Mom Giveaways is one of the biggies. The site brings Baby Kid contests substantial traffic and am eternally grateful to her for helping to get the word out about the neat stuff companies generously donate for prizes. You can submit a giveaway by completing a short form and even have the ability to upload a picture with your post.

What's In It Wedensday: What's in your diaper bag?

A question I've been asked repeatedly by Baby Kid readers is "What's in your diaper bag" or "What kind of diaper bag do you use?" And since a picture is worth a thousand words, I've decided to begin a new feature on Ask Baby Kid called "What's In It? Wednesday." Each Wednesday a new question will be asked, announced the previous Wednesday. Take a picture, stick it on your blog, and you're all set! And remember to leave a comment back here with a link to your blog so we can check it out. That should free up some time to play with the kids, do some laundry, or maybe work on your blog even more. And since we're all curious to take a peek into each other's stuff, I think it will be lots of fun too!

Next Week: What's in your fridge?

How do you find new blogging resourcecs?

I find everything from blogging widgets to social media sites in two ways. First, by reading other blogs and exploring the resources they use. Secondly, I read contest lists. Mahshable, for instance, runs an annual Open Web Awards which is a great way to discover new resources. For instance, below is a partial list of the "Blogger's Choice" winners, allowing me to discover sites other bloggers use and love. This list alone will keep you occupied for some time, but when you're done also check out the People's Choice Winners for even more resources to explore. Did you find a new resource to use on either list? Please share...

Blogger's Choice Winners
Complete list of winners

Mainstream & Large Scale Social Networks
Winner: Twitter

Embeddable Widgets
Winner: Clearspring

Blog Plugins
Winner: ShareThis

Social News
Winner: Digg

Social Networking Applications
Winner: Ping.fm

Social Bookmarking
Winner: Delicious

Search & Social Search
Winner: Google

Photo Sharing
Winner: Flickr

Video Sharing
Winner: YouTube

Start Pages
Winner: iGoogle

Social Shopping
Winner: Wishpot

Niche Social Networks
Winner: Wadja

Networking & The Value of Blog Awards

The first few months I blogged, not knowing much about it at the time, I was in a vacuum. Focusing entirely on writing reviews of products and resources I thought were cool for moms, babies and kids, I didn't take time to read other blogs and connect with their authors. And while the blog posts were valuable, well-researched and written, my only readers were my husband, mother and sister. Becoming more comfortable with the blogging community, I gradually began to read other blogs and eventually started to network on sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Mom Bloggers Club. Needless to say, Cool Baby Kid grew substantially in it's first year as I realized the importance of networking, recognizing strengths in fellow bloggers sites' and making online friends. Blog Popz, my recently launched blogger recognition program, aims to recognize the importance of working with other bloggers. Awards not only strengthen relationships with other bloggers but also allow you to discover new ones to read and comment on, widening your potential audience and blogger network. To that end, it's always extremely flattering to be singled out for a blog award from A Little Bliss for "measuring up." The stipulations?

• Say one nice thing about your man. Easy, he puts up with my blogging!
  
• List six ways you measure success in your life. Breaking the rules a bit, here are three: my family is happy and healthy, I haven't stopped thinking about "what's next for me?" and that I've achieved the most recent goal I've set for myself.
• Give the award to five other bloggers who measure up. Just five? Life Starring Ellie & Eve for being a great new blog friend, The Domestic Diva having the cutest new blog design, and Goddess in Progress and Parenting Pink for agreeing to be an Ask Baby "expert."

Blogging Tip: Create awards, give awards, send Popz and solidify relationships with other bloggers in you're looking to take your blog to the next level.

Featured Blog: The Mom Buzz

Mom Buzz is buzzing moms on the latest parenting tips and trends.

Parenting Tip: I am currently running a little segment on setting a bedtime routine. Finding one that best suits your children and family will help everyone get more sleep in the long run!

Blogging Tip: Leave comments if you like the post or find it relevant. It benefits everyone. The blogger will know more about what you are interested in and write more articles that you love. That's the wonderful thing about blogs, they are so adaptable with the times! Also, you might make a wonderful new friend.

Baby Kids' Thoughts: Lucky enough to have hooked up with Erin at the started of her blogging career, I'm a regular reader. With a limited time to read blogs in between my real job, kids and three blogs, I'm really picky about which to spend my time reading and the Mom Buzz always worth your time. Want more Mom Buzz? Follow Erin on Twitter.

Erin's Final Ideas : The Mom Buzz publishes posts seven days a week, multiple times a day. I found the best way to keep up and not miss a review, post, tip or contest is to subscribe via e-mail. There is so much going on, even I am surprised when I see a new post or read my e-mailed newsletter. So subscribe and enjoy!

Give Props & Network with Bloggers: Blog Popz!

Introducing Blog Popz, the sweetest way to give props to fellow bloggers! A virtual version of the lollipops you gave in school to friends and admirers, each color represents a different theme. Get popz from authorized candy stores, receive them from fellow bloggers, and register your pop entering to win fantastic prizes for distributing and receiving the most popz!

How to Give & Get a Pop:

• How to Give a Pop: Navigate the widget above to learn more about giving Blog Popz to fellow bloggers. In a nutshell: go to the store of the pop you want to give, follow the directions there, "take" the pop (widget) and give it away. Click "Share" on the widget to obtain the direct link or HTML code you'll need to send your pop.
  

• How to Get a Pop: If someone sends you a pop, proudly display it on your site. The HTML code can be found by clicking "Share" in the lower right corner of the pop widget. Reciprocate if you'd like, and don't forget to register your pop.

• Where to Get a Pop (Candy Stores): Visit Cool Baby Kid below, The Not-So-Blog Blog (Love), Ohana Mama (Friend), Suzy Q Homemaker (Mentor) and From Dates to Diapers (Cute) to get popz.

Registration & Prizes:

• Register Your Pop & Enter to Win: Register the popz you give and receive by completing this form. You can check current standing anytime on the Standings & FAQ page. Seven prizes will be awarded: Most Popped for the blogger who receives the most pops in each category and Biggest Poppers for the two people who distribute the most popz. Biggest Poppers receive first choice. Choose from Valentine's Day gifts for either you or your little sweetheart, including:
  

Moms *Heart* Chocolate: Red Thread Confections Gift Certificate

Passionate Mom Gift Pack: Tees for Change Live Passionately Long-Sleeve Shirt & Mom Works Inc. Red Bundle with Long Sleeve Tee & Cinch Sack

For Your Sweetie: Doodlebug Dezigns $25.00 Gift Certificate

Boyfriend/Girlfriend: Your choice of complete Zutano outfits (boy or girl) from their Baby Basics line worth nearly $150.00.

Bubblecakes for Babycakes: Bubblecakes Baby $45.00 Gift Certificate

Grand Prize: Corky and Company Coats at KidsCoats.com $250.00 Shopping Spree

Favorite Pop Candy Store

Cool Baby Kid is your source for the Fav! pop. Give to all of your favorite bloggers. Complete any one of the following to "buy" your pop, and be sure to leave a comment with the name of the blog you're giving it to. Leave a separate comment for each Fav! pop you take and remember to register your pop in order to be entered to the "Biggest Popper" prize. Once you complete all five you can take unlimited pops! Give your pop (widget) by sharing it (click "share" in the lower right corner) with your favorite bloggers any way you'd like. I share by emailing them the direct link with the subject line, "You've been popped."

• Blog about Blog Popz. Leave a comment below with a link to your blog and the name of the blog you're giving the pop to.
• Add the Blog Popz widget below to your blog and leave a comment with the link to your site as well as the name of the blog you're giving the pop to.
• Subscribe to Cool Baby Kid via RSS or email and leave a comment saying "I'm a subscriber" as well as the name of the blog you're giving the pop to.
• Become a Cool Baby Kid Follower and leaving a comment "I'm a follower" with the name of the blog you're giving the pop to.
  
• Share this post leaving the comment "I shared" with the name of the blog.
  
  

If you have any questions at all about Blog Popz or would like to donate a prize for future editions, please check the FAQ's page or contact me. I'd be happy to help.

Now start popping!!

When & how did you potty train your daughter?

This is one question I have no personal experience with though am going to attempt sometime soon. Aside from giving my daughter the potty and getting her used to it and reading potty books, we're not quite there yet. Therefore, I've enlisted an Ask Baby Expert, Jamie, to help tackle the potty training issue.

Though some studies show the average age for potty training for girls to is 20-29 months with boys training closer to 31 months. Since every child is different, look for signs your child is ready to potty train. When ready, we first got our daughter used to the idea by reading books and showing her how to use the potty. One weekend, making the transition by putting the potty in the main playroom and encouraging her to use it, the diaper came off! Knowing her schedule and watching for signs, we guided her to the potty as she used it that day for the first time. I also used more than one of these potty training tips I found on Babycenter. Though the transition from diapers to potty was a relatively smooth one, there were issues with potty training while out and about such as shopping, driving, or visiting family and friends.

Essential to potty training is the development of independence for our little ones. We all know that they want to do EVERYTHING on their own at this stage! With that in mind, our choice of outfit must be considered very carefully while embarking upon this journey together. Avoid zippers, buttons, stockings and, leggings - which can all be challenging to manipulate for those independent little hands. However, don't put those skirts and dresses on the top shelf just yet. Try Baby Legs under those adorable outfits during cold months. Not only are they gorgeous, they are also simple enough for toddlers to manage during potty time.

Interestingly, Jamie mentions Baby Legs which Cool Baby Kid has reviewed on numerous occasions. My daughter has recently been wearing super luxurious and super soft Baby Legs since we live in the chilly Northeast; we'll definitely use during potty training now. She'll be the most stylish potty trainee. Thanks for the great tips Jamie!

Giveaway Time: Enter to win a pair of super soft Baby Legs by sharing which pair your would use during potty training and why. Click here to find out how to increase your chances of winning. Contest ends 1/20/2009. Contest rules apply.

How do you collect data on your site?

I use many of the Google platforms including Google Forms which collects data for everything from contact information to featured blogs. To set up a form which will automatically collect answers and information, just log into Google Docs with your Google account or set up an account if you do not have one already. From there it's fairly simple to create a new form:

• Click "new" then "form."
• Give your form a title such as "Contact Me" or "Featured Blogger Application."
• Complete a byline such as "Please complete the following information..."
• The form already gives you two pre-set boxes you can modify or delete. Double click "name" and you can add a "question" and "help text." Then choose from different types of answer formats such as straight text or multiple choice. Play around with to see which format works best for your question.
• You can make the question required by clicking "Make this a required question."
• Click "done" and you're all set.
• When you scroll over the question area on the right hand side of the screen a menu will pop up with an option to delete, duplicate or edit your question.
• When you're all finished click "save" in the upper right hand corner.
• You can embed the form directly into a blog post by going to "more actions" and embed. Another option is to see the form "live" and copy and paste the link to use anywhere you'd like.
• When someone completes the form, you will automatically see the responses when you open your form. You can edit, embed, sort, and a variety of other options at any time.

I you have any additional questions or problems, use this handy dandy Google Form to contact me, and I'd be happy to help!

Like this post? You may enjoy this too...

It's New Years' Baby! Goals Roundup & A Big Blog Giveaway

Cool Baby, Smart Baby and Ask Baby Kid would like to wish you a very Happy New Year. To celebrate, in addition to a neat blogger-only giveaway, I've asked some cool, smart bloggers to share their 2009 blog goals. To me, goal setting is the single most important aspect of achievement. Whether the goal is to run a marathon or obtain a PhD (two of the goals I'm most proud of aside from surviving childbirth in one piece,) I've never succeeded at anything without setting the goal to make it happen. And while I have many goals for the upcoming year, my blogging goal is for the new baby blogs to achieve the same success in their first year as their mama blog, Cool Baby Kid, and to reserve time each week for blog improvement. Time is enemy #1 and managing it always an issue, but a commitment to constant improvement is vital to blog (or any) success. Here are some other great blog goals, in the author's own words:

• Andreah, Life's a Hoot, wants to reach 100 followers and get some reviews/giveaways.
  


• Courtney, Mom Giveaways, would like to reach the 1000 subscriber mark and to make enough money to pay the lovely ladies who help me.
  


• Kimberly, Pretty Pink Momma, wants to have at least 3 emails and at least 50 views a day and make my blog as interactive as possible while having as much fun as possible getting to know other moms.


• Toni, A Daily Dose of Toni, would like to have everyone in the blogging world to just get along and support each other. I hope to bring a smile to peoples faces and show them that blogging is fun, not a competition.
  


• Juile, Cool Mom Guide, just wants to be a size 6, and I want to help everyone else be a size 6 (or whatever size they want to be).
  

• Bridgette, The Not-So-Blog Blog, is ready to grow by leaps and bounds and celebrate her one year blogiversary! Most importantly, she wants to foster relationships with the wonderful bloggers she has worked with this year and collaborate with new bloggy friends. In turn, she will expand my content and bring readers new and exciting giveaways! She also would like to open communication with new PR companies and sponsors.
  

• Kim, Painter Mommy, would like to have 100 subscribers to her new "Painter Mommy" blog by March.
  


• Dina, Walking Within the Spiral, wants to have someone to rebuild her blog and do a lot more creative writing which would include driving a whole lot more traffic to it as well as to create another blog which focuses on product/service reviews and promoting other moms in business.


• Alicia, Balancing Motherhood, finds that if she concentrates on one goal she may be able to make it happen, such as adding more original photography to her blog.
  


• Rhonda, Family Meal Plan, in addition to getting her blog custom designed would like to work on increasing the traffic on this new blog she just started.


• Cindi, CindiMoomettesgram's Musings and Mama Mentor, having just finished up her first year as a blogger, feels like she has come quite a long way. She is constantly tweaking her blog and is working on my 4th one which give Cindi the opportunity to do niche blogging. She is also trying to focus on providing relevant content for each one!
  


• Caroline, Parent Club 3, would like to write interesting content which will spark more comments. Tracking through Google analytics, she knows my visitor traffic has increased significantly over 2008 but wants to hear their voices!
  


• Kim, A Parent's Life to Behold, has a few goals: to master HTML to the point that she can be called, "The Guru Of Revealed Codes," stop manically watching the Feedjit widgit on she page, figure out how to write another post in which she can yet again talk about John Mayer, use as many links as possible, just because she likes adding links, and then seeing that they actually work, trade her blog button with 1,000 other bloggers, (hey, it's a "goal" right??) and lose 10 pounds...uh, sorry wrong goal list.

• Laura, LA Story, plans to visit even more Los Angeles hotspots that are kid-friendly and reasonably priced (hopefully discovering a lot of new ones along the way) as well as make new connections with other mom bloggers around the country.

• Courtney, Women Living Well, wants to grow the content of my site by asking others to contribute to her site. She wants to offer information on marriage, parenting, homemaking, finances, healthy eating, exercising, recipes etc. but I can't do it all well alone. Also, she wants to learn from guest contributors along the way and incorporate their strengths into my own life and blog about the ups and downs of striving to do these things well. Living a balanced life is hard work!
  

• Cynde, To China and Back and Brain Swizzle, plans to update at least twice a week. Though this is not a lot for some, but Cynde says she's really gotten bad about updating. Her second goals is to include more creative writing at Brain Swizzle.

• Karen, Mommy's Favorite Children's Books, would like to work with a designer to give the blog a unique and easy-to-read/navigate theme, write for the blog at least once a week visit the library at least monthly to hunt for great reads to share.

Cool Giveaway: Bloggers...this one's for you! Enter to win a "Featured Sponsor" spot on Ask Baby Kid by blogging about this post, including the New Year's Baby logo, and leaving a comment with the link on the "New Year's" post on any of the three blogs. Entries will be pooled into one master entry and chosen at random. Contest expires 1//7/2009. Winner's ad will run immediately after receiving your 125X125 logo until January 31, 2009.