Tag Archives: Twitter

How To Make Your Blog Posts Go Viral Part One

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how to be a successful blogger, blogging, writing, working from home, Catherine Balavage, freelancing, money from writing, business, Catherine Balavage, Margaret Graham,
So you have written your amazing blog post but how do you get people to read it? In fact, how do you get your blog to stand out and be successful by having your blogs go viral? Here are my tips for writing good content that gets read and shared. For more on blogging check out my blogging book The Ultimate Guide To Becoming a Successful Blogger which is available in ebook and print. 

Content is King

If people are to be expected to put up with turning on a computer to read a screen, they must be rewarded with deep and extremely up to date information that they can explore at will. They need an opportunity for personal involvement that goes far beyond that offered through the letters to the editor pages of print magazines.” -Bill Gates.

These three words are the most important. In fact, these are the words your business should live by. Content IS king. Your posts will only go viral if your content is good enough. You have to write great posts that people will not just read but also share. You have to capture their imagination, or tell them something they didn’t know. You have to solve one of their problems or entertain them. You should write consistently good blog posts so people keep coming back for more. Your content should be good, well-written and sharable. But that is not enough, you also have to do the next step.

Tip: Be so good that they can’t ignore you.

Share Your Content

The more you share your content the more likely other people will see it, read it, and share it too. You can share your post on Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, StumbleUpon, Digg, LinkedIn, Google+, Pinterest and Tumblr. Phew. That is a lot of different sites and it can be exhausting sharing your post on all of them. The key is to find the ones that work for your content and then you can ditch the others. Of course, sharing on them all would be great, but you have to think about opportunity costs. Do what works, drop what doesn’t. Burning out never helped anyone.

Keep Your Title Short

It makes it easier to share on Twitter. People also have short attention spans.

Write Catchy Titles

Your title is an advertisement for your article. If it isn’t good, then people won’t click on it. The title is the most important thing because if you do not have a good one then your post will not get read. Take time on your titles and make sure they are catchy, suggest what is in the article, and pique people’s interest.  It is also important that the title tells you, or at least gives a hint, on what the post is about. No song titles or vague descriptions. I know it is irritating, but magazines can get away with that, but online you have to let people know why they should click immediately or you will lose them.

According to Peter Sandeen 80% of people don’t read more than the title. So make sure you make it count.

Tag Your Article And Include Good Keywords

Tag your post with relevant keywords. Google don’t penalise for over-tagging anymore but you don’t need to. Just add the most relevant keywords for your article so people can find it easily. Also include the best keywords in your title and in the first paragraph of your post. For example, I would tag this article “blogging” “how to make your blog post go viral” and “blogging tips”. It is also a good idea to go through your old posts and put in relevant keywords in the title and throughout the article. Optimise your old posts and your new ones. You will be more likely to get traffic this way.

This is probably the point where you realise that writing great content and making it go viral is not as easy as it looks. Well it isn’t, but it is a skill to learn and you can do it. You just have to learn how and I will give you the knowledge. Keep an eye out for part two. You can also read my article on how to make money blogging.

 

I will be telling you all you need to know about blogging in a series of articles. You can also check out my book, The Ultimate Guide To Becoming a Successful Blogger which is available in ebook and print. 

 

 

THE BUSINESS OF BOOKS: TWITTERQUETTE – Jane Cable’s personal foibles

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Twitter is looming large in my mind this week. Not just because the potential to be rude to each other has doubled with the letter count, but because Chindi Authors has launched its pre-Christmas social media campaign. Normally we have an event where we sell festive books but this year we’ve chosen to do the same thing online and of course we’re tweeting about it like crazy.

Twitter is a great forum for authors. It’s a place we meet each other, form into street teams and groups (both formal, like @RNATweets, and informal), link up with readers and bloggers, and generally share news about our books. We all have our own styles, but if I was making the rules they would go something like this.

  1. Be nice to each other. Social media can make it very easy for some people with bullying tendencies to be rude. It’s cowardly in the extreme. Don’t do it. I will block you. Twitter should ban you.
  2. Retweets should be reciprocal. While likes and thank yous are nice to have they aren’t the same. If I’m retweeting you the chances are that you’re an author so our followers are likely to be bookish people. They will be as interested in my tweet as my followers will be in yours.
  3. Use pinned tweets. For those lovely, lovely people who do retweet, please make it easy for me to return the favour. I’m not lazy but I’m time poor and I don’t have hours to scroll through pages and pages of your generous retweets looking for your own original content. So please pin it. And change your pinned tweet regularly.
  4. Use a picture. Just because tweets are more noticeable that way. If the picture tells your story, so much the better. That goes for page headers too. There are no excuses – even I can make them using Canva.
  5. Your profile includes a space for words. If you don’t tell me who you are, how can we connect?
  6. Don’t play follow back. This one’s going to be controversial but I only follow back for other RNA, SoA and Chindi members. Otherwise I will thank you for the follow in a personal way which I hope you’ll respond to. Then we can connect properly and share common ground.
  7. Don’t blitz me with the same tweet over and over again. I think we can all be a bit guilty of this but I’m more likely to click through to interesting content such as a blog you’ve written or a review. I’ve actually had to block some accounts which pre-programme the same tweets to fire like bullets. My publisher did it with Another You when it was on free offer and I was more embarrassed than pleased.

    Although these are my personal foibles my fellow @ChindiAuthors contributed to the debate. So thank you @carol_thomas2, @chirosie, @angela_petch, @julia76871430 & @michael_parker.

Kanye West Celebrates Kim Kardashian’s 30 Million Followers With Topless Pictures

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Credit: Kanye West/Twitter

Not known as a shy or withdrawn couple, Kanye West was his usual attention-seeking self when he published nude photos of his 34-year-old wife Kim Kardashian West to celebrate her 30 million followers on Twitter. We wouldn’t be amused if our other half posted nude pictures of us online but we are, ahem, less body confident then Mrs Kardashian West. The topless pictures from the second least shy person in the world (her husband takes the crown) were captioned with the words “I’M SO LUCKY”. We have to give it to you Kanye, fair is fair, she is indeed beautiful.

People Who Were Fired For Tweeting: Why We Should Be More Careful On Twitter

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The importance of social media training was highlighted by Labour MP Emily Thornberry tweeting a picture that many found condescending and classist. Many people tweet without thinking and those in a position of power routinely get themselves into trouble because of this. Reputation is everything in business and it can be destroyed with a single tweet. Twitter is a great resource but many forget how powerful it is and that tweets are not private. Clicking ‘tweet’ can ruin careers.

emilythornberrytweet

Thornberry’s infamous tweet featured the St George Cross flag, draped from a suburban home which had a white van parked in the driveway. The now ex-shadow attorney-general for Labour lost her job because of the tweet which not only damaged Thornberry, but also the Labour party as a whole. Ed Milliband was said to be ‘furious’. Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said: “We should have pride in flying the Cross of St George – don’t knock the national flag of England.”

Prime Minister David Cameron also said the Labour MP’s actions were “completely appalling” and made a suggestion that she was “sneering at people who work hard, are patriotic and love their country”.

After the incident Twitter founder Jack Dorsey was asked if the reaction to Emily Thornberry’s tweets made him frightened at the power of his creation. He said: “I don’t think it’s any different from what we’ve been doing as a humanity – it’s just faster.”

Other people who have lost their jobs because of inappropriate tweets include:
firedbecauseoftweet

CNN Middle East editor Octavia Nasr wrote a controversial tweet regarding Lebanon’s deceased Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah. Nasr wrote of her “respect” for Fadlallah, who was very anti-American and was also linked to bombings that killed more than 260 Americans. She later said she had been referring to Fadlallah’s “attitude” and apologised for trying to discuss a complex figure on Twitter.
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Politician Stuart MacLennan was fired by the Labour Party after making a number of offensive tweets. He referred to Commons Speaker John Bercow as a “t**”, David Cameron a “t***” and Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, “a b******”.” He also referred to elderly voters as “coffin dodgers”. He apologised for the tweets and was removed from the party’s ticket.
racist-tweets-are-always-offensive

Former MLB pitcher Mike Bacsik lost his job as a radio producer after drunk tweeting racist comments during a Mavericks-Spurs game.
this-joke-cost-a-comedian-her-job

Comedian Catherine Deveny was fired from a job writing for Australian newspaper The Age when she tweeted about her hopes that Steve Irwin’s daughter gets laid.

Her former boss, editor Paul Ramadge, said, “We are appreciative of the columns Catherine has written for The Age over several years but the views she has expressed recently on Twitter are not in keeping with the standards we set at The Age.”

 

TV extra on Glee, Nicole Crowther, tweeted about some plot spoilers she had heard on set. A big no-no in the entertainment industry. She was then fired via Twitter by the show’s producer, Brad Falchuk, when he tweeted in response: “Hope you’re qualified to do something besides work in entertainment.”

 

Comedian Gilbert Gottfried was the voice of the Aflac duck and made jokes about the Japanese tsunami. “Japan is really advanced. They don’t go to the beach. The beach comes to them.” He tweeted. Unfortunately for him Aflac is the largest insurance company in Japan and he was fired.

 

A woman called Connor Riley got a job offer from Cisco and tweeted: “Cisco just offered me a job! Now I have to weigh the utility of a fatty paycheck against the daily commute to San Jose and hating the work.” Cisco employee Tim Levad then replied: “Who is the hiring manager? I’m sure they would love to know that you will hate the work. We here at Cisco are versed in the Web.” Oops.

 

 

Norm MacDonald’s Touching Tribute To Robin Williams

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Robin Williams’ death left a world in mourning like no other celebrity before him. The laughter and joy he brought to people in childhood and beyond made him an international treasure.Robin Williams tribute

 

 
One of the most touching tributes I saw was from Norm MacDonald, I am not embarrassed to say that it even made me cry. Rest in peace to Robin Williams, who will be sorely missed. Here is Norm’s amazing tribute. Let us know what you think.

Norm MacDonald

Norm MacDonald

Samaritans is available round-the-clock on 08457 90 90 90 or email: jo@samaritans.org

Olivia Palermo’s Stylish Wedding

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The fashion world has been waiting with bated breath to catch a glimpse of Olivia Palermo’s wedding dress. Forget Kim Kardashian, this was the wedding dress everyone wanted to see. The wait is now over.

Credit: Olivia Palermo Twitter.

Credit: Olivia Palermo Twitter.

The bride wore Carolina Herrera and did not sway away from her unique preppy style. Palermo’s dress is certainly unique. She choose a full-skirt silhouette but the twist is the dress is a cashmere sweater with a tulle skirt. This was worn over coordinating shorts. Seriously, who else could wear shorts to their wedding and look this stylish. She even wore a pair of her old Manolo courts, her “something blue”. They were the same shoes Carrie Bradshaw wore in her civil ceremony in the Sex & The City film. Check out the strong make-up too, another brave choice that works.

Credit: Olivia Palermo Twitter.

Credit: Olivia Palermo Twitter.

It was a small wedding in a quiet park in Bedford, New York, attended by only a handful of family members.

 

“We really wanted to keep this beautiful day very private and special to us and enjoyed the whole day with our family and two friends, Bedford is such an amazing and romantic countryside.” Palermo said.

 

If you wanted something grander, stay tuned. Apparently this is “part one – the civil ceremony” according to the couple. We can’t wait.

 

 

The CIA Join Twitter With The Best Tweet Ever

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The CIA Join TwitterThe CIA joined twitter with what is, possibly, the best first tweet ever.

The Twitter account was launched a few days after the CIA opened a Facebook page, on which it honoured D-Day.  The agency will use its social media to post job openings, trivia from the CIA World Fact book, photos and “reflections on intelligence history.” The agency will also partake in Throwback Thursday and event livestreaming.

 

The CIA quickly had over 400,000 followers (now at 584,000) and the tweet has 280,000 retweets and 170,000 favourites. Not bad for three days.

What do you think?

 

 

 

 

Sarah Millican Responds To Criticism About Her Appearance On The Red Carpet

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The red carpet can be a brutal place for women: their talent is put to one side and they are based entirely on the sum of their parts and ability to dress. This is what happened to Sarah Millican at last year’s BAFTA Awards.

“I’m sorry. I thought I had been invited to such an illustrious event because I am good at my job. Putting clothes on is such a small part of my day. They may as well have been criticising me for brushing my teeth differently to them” She wrote in her Radio Times Essay.

 

Sarah millican responds to trolls BAFTA Awards

Trolls on the internet attacked her red carpet look, calling it “disastrous” and “nana”-like. She was hurt but choose to respond and point out the sexism of a woman being judged on her appearance rather than celebrated for her achievements.

“I’m not a model (I’m a comedian), have never learnt how to pose on a red carpet (I’m a comedian) and I have pretty low self-esteem.”

She also had this to say about her John Lewis dress:

“Fancy expensive designer shops are out for me as I’m a size 18, sometimes 20, and I therefore do not count as a woman to them.”

“It was like a pin to my excitable red balloon. Literally thousands of messages from people criticising my appearance. I was fat and ugly as per usual. … I cried. I cried in the car.”

Then she got angry….

“Why does it matter so much what I was wearing? … I felt wonderful in that dress. And surely that’s all that counts.”

 

Cate Blanchett also got sick of the sexist double standards after the cameras kept scanning her up and down at this year’s SAG Awards. She asked, “Do you do that to the guys?”

Funnily, Millican, points out the sexism of the situation: “My husband wasn’t asked who he was wearing, which disappointed him. Mainly because he was dying to tell ANYONE he was wearing an Asda tux.”

Even better, Millican had this to say about the dress she wore:

“I made a decision the following day that should I ever be invited to attend the Baftas again, I will wear the same dress. To make the point that it doesn’t matter what I wear; that’s not what I’m being judged on.”