I generally separate my content into 2 main categories. Content for:

1. Products/Services
2. Content Marketing

Content for products and services highlights all the information a website visitor needs to know about a product or service. This may be across a few pages or thousands of pages or more, depending on the nature of the product or service. The content here helps the potential customer make the buying decision. The content should help influence or compel them to buy.

But when we talk about content for products and services for sites with 100k to millions of pages, some type of algorithmic optimization should also be implemented. This is dependent on the richness of the structured data on every page that can help formulate rules for the default values of various page elements, such as the title tag, meta description, image alt text, headings etc.

While content used for content marketing purposes, even if they may also help convert into a sale of a product or service, another use of the content in content marketing is to also improve popularity of the webpage. Content marketing pages are often featured in a blog, but they may also be in other forms such as FAQs, knowledge bases, forums, how-to guides, and more. Content will not always be only text, but can also be in various forms, such as images, videos, interactive pages like quizzes, games, surveys, downloadable pdfs, software, tools, etc.

The content here intends to be more engaging, and promotes to get the content shared on social media to increase visibility. Topics here stretch the relevance of simply selling a product or service. It can talk about the application of it, or tips and tricks, other use cases, events, or things that are just interesting, informative or even inspiring.

As more people see this content, it helps improve brand visibility, thus improving brand recall which helps general demand. And as an after effect also, more potential natural links go to these useful pages, which also helps out in SEO ranking.

Benj Arriola

Senior SEO Director, ForwardPMX/Assembly

To understand how to build a content strategy, it’s important to look at the influence of wider culture and how your brand fits in. But rather than ask ‘what’ changes culture, it can be more effective to look at ‘who’.

The change-makers, taste-makers, mavericks and renegades who challenge the status quo, that’s who.

Every culture-shaping product follows a set of characters who, in their interactions with wider communities, have captured some kind of zeitgeist and created something new: a new way of speaking, of behaving, of expressing themselves. Brands then follow: think of Nike Airforce One, the iPhone, and TESLA; they all followed actual people who captured a zeitgeist and leveraged technology as catalysts for cultural change.

In other words, people – and the norms and customs and ideas they develop — exist when there is no actual product involved. People and their ideas come first. Always.

Often when someone is disruptive, people turn to look, and this attention can create a small movement of people, ideas or ideals; a small wave. Just as a maverick disrupts and gains attention, so too do emerging sub-cultures. Initially led by a small group of individuals, subcultures are interesting, different and refreshing. In their originality, they are inherently creative, bold and risk-taking

Depending on the impact, benefit and timing of this new movement, wider culture may start to adopt some of its elements. This adds and shapes culture while adding fire to the sub-culture until it becomes absorbed and appropriated by the mainstream. We’ve seen this countless times as disruptive technology, sport or politics becomes the norm.

To me, this is emblematic of the transition of followers being ‘core’ to a movement moving to those who are following the ‘lifestyle’ of that movement. Core has credibility that can only be earned through exclusivity and via a highly influential group of people. As that area of culture is adopted by the mainstream, the core becomes a lifestyle.

The decision for brands wanting to create cutting-edge content strategies is often at what point to align with, facilitate or buy into a movement. Do they embark on a journey when embryonic subcultures, which may be seen as controversial but are tightly knotted to a hard-to-reach audience, are taking early steps that may eventually influence masses of people, or do they stick to the mainstream and leave this all alone?

Ultimately, the opportunity a brand has to influence and shape culture lies with the former. Done right, a trifecta is formed: through their content the brand is supporting and facilitating new expression, the (sub)culture benefits, and consumers see what is happening and buy into the product on a deeper level based on their values.

There is of course the process of cultural commodification, and the contradictions intrinsic to the relationship between culture and commerce. An important subject, no doubt – but best left to experts.

For now, it seems clear that through content brands can play a role in shaping and facilitating culture – and if they can do that with integrity, allowing more people to create and develop their ideas while pursuing their dreams, then that can only be a good thing for all involved.

Simon Baker

Managing Director

Tush Wijeratne

EMEA Head of Talent Acquisition @ GroupM

The key to understanding is what is considered “negativity “? Certain mannerisms, body language, and vocal comments can be interpreted as negativity but also this depends on the person doing the interpretation.

In the workplace, we all have individuals who are unique in their own way. With this also comes various personalities and what some deem as negativity others may call it a reality. Another aspect to consider is when different cultures come together the normal behavior of one culture v another could also show differences which could be interpreted as negativity. In short, it is important to identify true negativity v a biased interpretation of negativity. Different thoughts/ideas/ways of working etc do not equate to negativity.

The key is once “true negativity” is identified to understand the reason behind it. In my experience, it is always too important to look at it from that person’s view. It could be due to historical experiences, certain environments, change, and ambiguity. The root cause is important as this helps to take the individual/ team on the journey.

The world we know is not perfect, and there are a lot of obstacles we face regularly. As leaders, I believe our role, in addition to being motivating and inspirational, is to be also honest. Honesty is saying that sometimes things are not great, and yes, we all have negativity in some form or other in certain times/periods of our lives. That is being human. Teams respect the human leader rather than a drone.

Continue reading Wijeratne’s article Earn the trust of the team and then gradually, negativity disappears.

Alison Welch

001 Limited

Negativity in the workplace is a stealthy ninja, stealing passion and drive.  Never mind the toll that it takes on your mental being, it also manifests in physical ways.

Encouraging regular breaks, being open to conversations, and truly listening to the opinions of staff and other team members go a long way to developing a sense of unity and well-being within the workplace.

Raf Uzar

Head of Communication and Development, Penteris

Five Tips to Negate Negativity

Negativity often goes hand-in-hand with high performers. Research suggests that imposter syndrome is common among such individuals with studies suggesting that 80% of people in general have experienced such symptoms.

Ammongst colleagues in the Learning & Development and HR sectors, there is an incredible amount of self-doubt pervading the field. Most of the leaders in these areas, however, seem to be sure that there are ways in which we can fight this negativity. These can include the following:

1. Address Negativity Directly
Ignoring negativity can make it worse, but addressing it directly can help resolve the issue at speed. In a survey by the Association for Talent Development, 89% of respondents said that addressing negative behaviour directly is the most effective way to handle it. A study by the American Management Association has found that addressing negativity directly can also improve workplace morale and productivity.

2. Encourage Open Communication
Encouraging open communication can help address negative feelings before they escalate and get out of proportion. In a survey by the Society for Human Resource Management, 96% of employees said that open communication is important in their job satisfaction. Additionally, a study by Forbes found that companies with an open communication culture outperformed their peers 2.5 times.

3. Provide Recognition and Praise
Providing recognition and praise for positive behaviour can help counteract negativity. In a survey by Glassdoor, 63% of employees said that they would work harder if their efforts were better recognised. A study by the Ken Blanchard Companies found that providing regular recognition and praise can also increase employee engagement and satisfaction.

4. Foster a Positive Work Environment
A positive work environment can help mitigate negativity and promote productivity. In a study by the University of Warwick, researchers found that happiness led to a 12% increase in productivity. A study by Forbes also found that companies with a positive work environment have lower turnover rates and higher levels of employee engagement.

5. Lead by Example
Leaders who demonstrate positive behaviour and attitudes can influence the behaviour of their team members. A study by the Harvard Business Review found that employees are 75% more likely to exhibit positive behaviour when their leader does the same. Research by Forbes also found that employees who feel that their leader sets a positive example are more likely to be engaged and motivated.

Many leaders fight an ongoing battle with negativity and self-doubt, especially those who feel they are not built of the “right stuff”. This includes introverts and empaths. However, these five strategies can help leaders take the first step in dealing with negativity in the workplace.

“Content may be king, but it’s all in the marketing” once said Gerald Levin, then CEO of Time Warner. His maxim translates well to the professional services industry, where often the key challenge with content is how best to leverage – both externally and internally.

One model to address the content marketing challenge in professional services is a derivative of the ‘Content Tree’ concept used by many. A five-step approach, it has phases to get buy-in, create and deploy content. It begins with the ‘seeds’ of an idea, lays down ‘roots’, develops into ‘shoots’, grows into a solid ‘trunk’ and ends most importantly in multiple ‘branches’. Bear with me! This approach is not ground-breaking, but hopefully, it is simple to follow and communicate to stakeholders and colleagues.

The ‘Content Tree’ helps to make the most of the time and effort, of partner stakeholders and of the marcoms and other team members managing the project. At all points, we focus on the outputs from the content, considering how these meet business objectives and resonate with the target audience. The steps below mention various roles – stakeholder, marketer, analyst, writer and designer. Of course, sometimes, others can be involved, or the marketer can wear more than one hat!

1 Seeds

The ‘seeds’ are sown by the stakeholder for whom content is being developed. Here we seek to get buy-in from the stakeholder to put their time into the project. We strive to elicit their thoughts on whatever timely topic or issue is keeping their clients awake at night. We then question the audience demographics that we are seeking to reach and identify preferred channels to market we will later use to output through – the ‘branches’ of the ‘tree’. Normally, a 30-minute meeting is sufficient. We ask the stakeholder simply to talk about their key clients: what matters to them, and what’s happening in the outside world right now that weighs on their minds. Questions around who the clients are, what media or channels they consume and what outputs would be appropriate can help ensure focus. We aim to capture the essence of the discussion and, before ending, confirm this in the meeting to ensure all are on the same page.

2 Roots

The ‘roots’ are laid down by the marketer developing a hypothesis for the stakeholder to confirm or edit. At this stage, we aim to detail the ideas to be tested. We look to succinctly explain the situation clients find themselves in, why this matters, and what can be done about it. We test whether this topic is fresh and timely, or has already been done to death by close competitors in their own content marketing. We then detail the most relevant outputs and channels given the topic, audience and competitive environment. In terms of deliverables at this stage, a paragraph of bullets is normally about right. This should talk to the audience, the problem they face, how we will test, what our point of view might look like and what we will produce. Some research at this stage on sources of evidence, likely channels to market, and, importantly, a double check on whether others have published on this is essential. This should then be sent to the stakeholder for review and explicit approval, and a timescale, costs and metrics agreed before moving forward.

3 Shoots

The ‘shoots’ are developed by the analyst through the acquisition and interrogation of data, case studies or evidence. We seek to find multiple proof points of both the problem/situation and the solution/importance. Designing the research methodology or survey, or choosing desktop data tools may require advice from experts. At this stage, we should take a clear view on whether this particular ‘Content Tree’ will survive and how it will make it into the outside world in the name of our firm. The key point to make on this stage is around having clarity on what is required to validate the hypothesis built in the ‘roots’ step. It is all too easy to commission interviews or ask people to download data without a clear endpoint or sign-off in sight. Some organisations have a house style on what is required to substantiate a point of view, but where this is absent, agreement with our stakeholders is needed.

4 Trunk

The ‘trunk’ grows to form the written whitepaper, article or series of outputs being produced by the writer. We develop material that summarises the problem identified, the evidence at hand and the solutions of most merit – our point of view. And we seek to clearly answer the ‘so what’ question – why does this matter to our audience, as well as the ‘what now’ question, by providing clear calls to action where possible. Varying approaches are taken here depending on budget and scale. Often a writer is employed to build out the agreed hypothesis with key findings from the research, data or case studies. Whether a house style for such content exists or not, a designer might be engaged to turn the written work into a clearly presented output. Most importantly, final sign-off on the material should be planned and secured, to fit with diary constraints of stakeholders and any others who might need to review, e.g. lawyers.

5 Branches

The ‘branches’ are output from the process – owned, earned and purchased channels to market being managed by the marketer or wider marcoms/BD function. We look for channels to market that offer a strong likelihood of an acceptable return on investment, where metrics are available. And we carefully consider which of these options will satisfy the needs and wants of our stakeholders – sadly, sometimes the channels offering the best ROI, do not energise stakeholders. Each of the chosen ‘branches’, which were selected with reference to considerations at earlier stages around relevance to the audience, presence of competitors, etc., should be linked with appropriate consideration of measures of success. Many organisations will have a house view on these, and weighty textbooks exist on the subject. Importantly in the professional services environment, thought must be given to what internal stakeholders will value.

Growing your own

The ‘Content Tree’ ‘grows’ from ‘seeds’, to ‘roots’, to ‘shoots’, to ‘trunk’, to ‘branches’. Each step of the process aims to set out how a piece of content can not only be developed, but also meet Gerald Levin’s test that the marketing outputs are what matters most. When considering these outputs, it’s critical to think of the outcomes – their value, both externally and internally, to stakeholders.

Leor Franks

Tired of chasing after individual clients for your business? 
Let’s face it, winning new clients isn’t easy. So here are 3 ways to 10x your number of new clients. 

1. Position yourself as an AUTHORITY. 

It’s important to remember not everyone is ready to buy when you are ready to sell. Everyone is at a different place in the buying cycle.

At one end of the spectrum there are people mildly interested and on the other, there are people that have crossed a pain threshold and they are on a hunt for a solution.

When you go try to drum up business the chances of you being in the right place at the right time with the right client are very slim so instead you need to position yourself in the mind of your client as an authority for what you do, that way when they are ready to buy they immediate think of you. 

How do you position yourself in their mind? The answer is by designing, developing and delivering valuable content that helps them to solve problems.

2. Become an outstanding STORYTELLER. 

The most underused tool in business is storytelling. Look if you want your content to be shared on social media a great way is if your content is in the form of a story.

The most important story to start with is YOUR STORY. This is called your E.P.S (Expert Positioning Story) and it’s designed to do one very important thing. To illustrate YOUR WHY. 

The WHY you are doing what you do and why you care about the people you do it for. To do this effectively you must understand the composition of the 3 acts that underlie every great story.

3. Deliver your message ONE-TO-MANY, not one-to-one. 

When you communicate with your target clients make sure your time and reach are leveraged.

This is achieved by putting several of your target market in a room at the same time and delivering a well-crafted presentation in the form of a message that SERVES and SELLS.

If you spend time communicating with potential clients on a one-to-one basis you will run out of hours in a day to win enough clients AND more importantly you will have de-positioned yourself by making yourself too easily available rather than EXCLUSIVE.

Putting these 3 practices into your businesses can radically shift your income into top gear AND buy you back the most precious resource of all.

YOUR TIME 

I’ve been doing the above for 15 years and it’s enabled me to become a recognised authority in my industry, a Sunday Times best selling author, and an international speaker, speaking alongside the likes of Tony Robbins, Bill Clinton, and Sir Richard Branson. 

I’ve also been training entrepreneurial people like you for 15 years in how to become the ‘go-to authority’ in their niche or industry. 

AND the journey for each entrepreneur begins at my 1-day Stand & Deliver training where I teach the principles of designing, developing and delivering content for presentations, webinars, podcasts, online video and books.

By the way, I’ve always found it better for everyone if I keep the barriers to learning these strategies very low in the beginning which is why you can get a general admission ticket to Stand & Deliver for FREE. 

Doing so has helped me discover a lot of talent that otherwise may not have seen the light of day and of course, many of these people became my private clients too.

I hope to see you at the event and please SHARE this post as I’m sure someone you know will be very grateful you did.

Andy Harrington,

Sunday Times Best Selling Author of Passion Into Profit.

Few days back, as I was researching hashtags for a marketing campaign based on the LGBTQ+ community, tags such as #homosexuality_not_accepted, #homosexualityiswrong and #homosexualityisasin surfaced at the top of my search results. The aforementioned disturbing search result is bound to send one onto an introspective reverie, doubting the basis of the so-called modernization of our thought process. Is hate speech on social media the voice of the bullies, and what can we do about it?

Having resided in a cosmopolitan setting, it is hard to digest that such homophobic sentiments still persist, let alone to such a large extent that Instagram algorithms suggest such hashtags to be trending. I am not oblivious to the struggles of the LGBTQ+ people, especially in more restrained parts of the world. Yet the hashtag trends suggest that there are a considerable number of people residing in my current urban surrounding who still uphold such regressive ideals. The point of the article is not to change every individual’s mentality, we all know that it is not a perfect world, but to strive towards that perfect world by limiting the propagation of hate speech on social media. Because that is how we evolve!

How toxic is the propagation of hate speech on social media?

We are all well-versed with an economic vicious cycle, let’s borrow the model to explain the toxicity of hate speech on social media. A trending hashtag is more likely to pop-up as a search result for the keyword “homosexual”, the posts with such hashtags are more likely to be surfacing on people’s search feeds. Leading to the propagation of hate towards the people of a certain sexual orientation, needless to say how persuasive popular opinion on social media gets. Which would in turn lead to further public exposure of such wrong ideals.

Homosexuality is not the only topic that is facing the brunt of social media toxicity. Search results on various other human rights movements such as feminism and racism demonstrate equally unsettling archetypes. In a world were more of than half of the population is struggling for equal pay and work opportunity based on their sex or sexuality, trending hashtags such as #feminazi_memes or #feminismiscancer are severely disconcerting.

The exploitation of Freedom of Speech

Many seek to argue that, being a liberal one must consider everyone’s opinion, even if their belief system does not align with yours. Yet the problem here is not valid opposing points of view, but an act of denying someone of their basic human rights. Exercising freedom of any form requires a certain degree of responsibility. Taking a democratic right for granted to oppress others’ freedom to live is wrong on simple humanitarian grounds.

The basic principle of bullying is to leech onto the insecurities of the already burdened. Yet we allow social media sights to be the Holy Grail for bullies and trolls in the name of Freedom of Speech. As regular users of such platforms, it is our responsibility to check which opinion makes a valid argument and what purely stems from bias and hate. Let us come together in suppressing the voice of bullies!

The subsequent course of action

The very fact that it’s easier for controversial topics to gain more traction on social media platforms than genuine good content seems to be a reflection of certain defiled audiences as well as the majority’s stunning passivity in the face of such depravity. While the tone of the previous statement is harsh, it justifies how pressing the issue of hate speech on social media is, especially on the mental health of someone already struggling with their identity.

Regulation of content on public platforms is the need of the hour. Yet, cyber algorithms are not always very effective in detecting offensive content. Hence, while consuming it is our prime responsibility as fellow humans is to make the basic effort to flag offensive content. Trust me, tapping on those three dots at the top right-hand corner of an Instagram post would not really take much of your precious scrolling time!

Aishwarya Mitra

With the advancement of social media like Twitter and TikTok, it is very easy for normal people to skyrocket to fame. However, just as easy it is to become the next hot influencer, it is also easy to be “cancelled” and lose your following and platform due to cancel culture.

What is cancel culture?

The word “cancel” holds a different meaning and use today than it did ten years ago. While its implications and concept remain the same, many young social media users now use the word “cancelled” to brand an influencer or celebrity as no longer deserving of support.

Cancel culture refers to the hundreds and thousands of people who actively campaign to get rid of the platforms and support of “problematic” influencers. A prime example would be R. Kelly and the recent exposure of his alleged sex crimes. After R. Kelly was put on trial, many of his fans and supporters “cancelled” and stripped him of his title as the King of R&B.

How effective is it?

Cancelling celebrities was effective in the early stages of cancel culture. Celebrities were mostly cancelled for very serious issues such as sex crimes and extremely racist behaviours. When celebrities and influencers are doxxed, they lose partnerships, collaborations, and job opportunities because big companies and other influencers do not want to associate themselves with racist, homophobic and misogynistic people.

Cancelled celebrities also convey a message to others to be wary of their own actions and the consequences that they may bring.

Can cancel culture be harmful?

Many people like, agree with, and even participate in “cancel culture”, but others find it to be a mob mentality that hurts others rather than helping. Along with comments of disapproval, there are also death threats that are sent to creators that draw a thin line between cancellation and cyberbullying. As cancel culture began to grow, “cancellation” not only applied to serious crimes, but also to very minor offenses.

Some people even dug up old tweets and social media posts of influencers from 5+ years ago with ignorant thoughts or offensive slurs. Even if the posts were from 10 years ago, they emailed the posts to high schools, universities, and jobs in order to get that person expelled or fired.

The problem

This creates an issue because it implies that people cannot grow, change, and learn from their past mistakes. Cancel culture does not give people a chance at growth or forgiveness even when it comes to mistakes from their adolescent years. It is important that when people make mistakes, they deal with the consequences and learn from the situation.

While Cancel culture may bring light to these issues it is also important to think about the long term effects that it may bring to youth who are still growing and learning from their mistakes. Find out more about cancel culture and its pros and cons with Jubilee’s discussion.

Questions about cancel culture to discuss:

• Do the cons outweigh the pros?
• How different is cancellation from cyber bullying?
• How can influencers learn their lesson without being completely doxxed from their platforms?

Gather data to build your social media presence

Data doesn’t refer to likes, shares, and other “vanity” metrics. You need to slide into as many emails as possible and gather phone numbers. Create a landing page to create some business-consumer interaction through email lists. This can also be helpful with remarketing products and content.

Use SMS marketing, LOL

Use SMS marketing platforms like Superphone to create more intimate business-consumer channels. One huge truth about social media marketing is that everything is interconnected and layered. For example, in your SMS text, it should have a link to the landing page which ultimately gets your business into the consumer’s email.

Create “insider” groups

Don’t feel bad about rewarding your most loyal “superfans.” This is the most direct channel you can create and your consumers feel appreciated. Do this through Whatsapp or Slack and expect these group members to help you in the promotion of your business!

Be in the know

You need to know what’s going on. For example, if you’re an exceptional presenter, know about events that would reward presentation skills in your area. If you use social media to monitor feeds that reward your skills in the real world, you’re that much closer to slaying the game.

Utilize Giphy

Words are boring, pictures are less boring, but GIFs are eye-catching. Giphy is a platform that allows you to use and upload GIFs to make your emails, promotional content, whatever pop. A good strategy is to upload onto Giphy so that others can market your brand on your behalf!

Unlock social media marketing for your business

With these five keys, you’ll be able to unlock a whole new world of social media marketing. If I could use a GIF, I’d use a victory GIF right now. Go get ‘em, tiger.

Questions about social media marketing to discuss:

• How do you gather data?
• What do you think about platforms like Superphone and Giphy?
• Do you have an Insider group for your business?
• Do you stay up to date with feeds that reward your skillset?

Renegade, The Charli, Roxanne. These are a few words that most Generation Z kids can immediately explain without context thanks to TikTok. What is TikTok? TikTok is the app that few people knew of and barely had any downloads in the United States just three years ago. It’s one of the top social medias raised to fame in 2020, topping Twitter and Snapchat. It’s easy for apps and trends to go “viral” in the age of technology, but the unbelievably fast rise of TikTok has media users and analysts scratching their heads. How did this China-based application become the number one app in just three years?

What exactly is TikTok?

TikTok is the viral video-sharing application that you can probably find on every phone of Generation Z. It was originally a Chinese app called Douyin before its name changed to TikTok for the international market. It allows users of all ages to create 15 to 60-second videos about anything. Users can view videos on the “For You page” which is the main page that users will scroll through. The “For You page” specifically caters to each user depending on the algorithm. Users can duet other videos, like, comment and share.

How did TikTok get so popular?

After the popular video-sharing app, Vine, was taken down in 2016, there have been several attempts to create a new hit video app. However, none of them attracted media users until 2018 and 2019 when TikTok blew up. It also took over another video-sharing app called Musical.ly and many of the influencers on that app moved over to TikTok.

TikToks can also be easily shared on other platforms such as Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram so users of those platforms are able to see the videos and be compelled to download the app themselves. It wasn’t too long before popular celebrities and influencers were using the app. TikTok’s main appeal could be the challenges that are on the app. There are dancing challenges, singing challenges, and other trends. If their videos are good enough, anyone could easily become the next TikTok famous star.

What are some influences of the app?

Because TikTok is one of the main social media platforms that create the trends we see today, there are many influences from this app. Most notable are the songs that are used in the videos. Many top songs on Apple Music and Spotify are actually “TikTok Songs”, which are songs used as BGM for TikToks.

TikTok has also popularized certain aesthetics such as dying one piece of hair a crazy colour, also known as “TikTok hair.” TikTok celebrities or normal people that have skyrocketed to fame because of the app are also very influential. 16-year-old Charli D’Amelio is one of the most famous influencers dominating the app and her fame has landed her several big collaborations and sponsorships. She has a drink named after her at Dunkin Donuts and is currently the face of a new Morphe make-up collection.

Effects of TikTok

TikTok is an amazing app with a lot of positive influences and an exponentially increasing user base. It brings users together through challenges, trends, and video sharing. However, it is also one of the largest data-mining apps. The app is based in China and the data goes directly to China. This is a concern for American users and the U.S government. In fact, the app is so controversial that the Trump administration even considered banning TikTok from the U.S. Find out more about TikTok and its growth here.

Questions about TikTok to discuss:

• Could there be any negative sides to TikTok?
• Is there a problem with social media with large user base?
• Do you think TikTok will ever be the “new Facebook” as the largest social media platform?

How to start sharing what you know online, create a blog people want to read, and actually get people reading it without any tech skills required!

Have you always wanted to share what you know online, but never got around to doing it? Or thought it was all just too hard? Hi, my name’s Ross Hunter in the next couple of minutes I am going to show you how to start a blog the quick and easy way!

Did you know that 99% of people who start writing a blog never get off the ground, and they carry that regret with them for years? 

Here’s the problem you face: you’ve got a lot of life experience that you’d like to share, but maybe your friends have heard all your stories before and your kids just won’t listen!

Which means you’ll never get a chance to pass on everything you know. All of that knowledge is swirling around your head – and while you still learn every day, it’s not getting any fresher, unfortunately!

Luckily for you, there’s now a solution.

Let me introduce you to Expert Circle, the platform which makes it easy to start sharing your knowledge, with no tech skills required!

• Expert Panels makes it super easy to publish yourself online – easy enough for anyone who can browse the internet – which means you can share your experience with the world!
• It can take as little as 10 minutes to publish a professional-looking blog, saving you time and freeing you to spend more time sharing your thoughts with your family.
• You can easily share things you’ve learned through your life, and imagine the excitement when you hear what other people think about them!
• The knowledge you pass on will be online for all to read, making a lasting contribution to the community, so other people will benefit from your experience.
• Being published online is a great way to be recognized: your friends and family won’t know what to say when they see your views online.
• Blogging on Expert Circle is the easiest way to publish yourself online, and there’s no need for tech skills to build your own website, saving you money and time!

At Expert Circle we are 100% focused on making blogging easy. No other platform allows you to create and publish blog posts in such a clean and simple way.

And we have shown that more than 75% of our new members actually go on to publish their own blog! That success rate shows how easy we’ve made this to do. According to Astute Copy Blogging, 80% of regular blogs fail – but 75%+ succeed on Expert Circle That’s why you need to give this a try.

Here’s what you get when you join Expert Circle:

• Easily create  multimedia blog posts for FREE
• Benefit from your posts being shared with Expert Circle’s built-in audience
• Share your posts directly on social media and with your friends – unlimited reading is FREE for all, so everyone can enjoy your blog
• Follow other Expert Circle’s contributors to keep up to speed with the latest views

And by the way, at Expert Circle we also offer the great benefit that we will share your blog posts on our social media channels, which have thousands of followers! Your views and wisdom will be seen and truly heard. It’s taken us a long time and effort to build up our followership and we are more than happy to share them with you.

Do you think that if you pass on this offer you will create a blog by tomorrow? Probably not! You’ll end up thinking woulda, coulda, shoulda. What you need is to get started with something that is dead simple. Join Expert Circle now and you can have your first blog post up in as soon as 10 minutes! Wouldn’t you like to be sharing your views and seeing the look on other peoples’ faces when they see your name up in lights? Act now! Take this offer and your satisfaction is guaranteed.

Get started blogging the easy way today!

Building and maintaining a successful blog is such a rewarding experience. Finding people eager to read your work is exciting for all bloggers, old and new. However, the path to getting to the popularity stage is much easier said than done. Many steps go into the process of building a blog, and it all starts with deciding what type of blog to create. There are an endless number of topics to choose from – fashion, cooking, fitness, etc – but what truly makes a blog special is when the blogger is passionate about their work. Passion, quality, and individuality are the three most important things to keep in mind when finding the right blog niche.

Think about a topic you are passionate about

Write about something that excites you! Trying to write about a topic that doesn’t truly interest you will only result in a lack of passion that will show through your work. Readers want to read quality work, and that quality will be sacrificed if you don’t care about what you’re writing. Choose a topic that you find fascinating so writing your blog will feel more like fun and less like work.

Incorporate different facets of your life 

There is so much more to every individual than just one hobby or interest. Take advantage of all of the knowledge and experience you’ve gained from every aspect of your life (professional, personal, social, etc.) and use those experiences to shape your blog. Remember: your blog belongs to YOU, and you can do anything you want with it!

Choose a blog niche about something people will want to read

Make your content unique and specific to you. Blog readers don’t care to read the same content over and over again on different blogs. Choose an aspect of your niche that’s relatively untouched by other bloggers, and make it your own. Pro tip: do some research! A quick Google search can reveal what types of content bloggers are already creating and what types you could shape your blog around.

Coming up with a blog niche both unique and personal can seem an intimidating task. A tip to navigating the process of deciding on a niche topic and then implementing it is to consider what you as a reader would want to see. You know yourself and your interests best, so trust your gut and create a blog that’s both successful and rewarding!

Resources to improve your blog

As someone looking to improve your blog, we invite you to publish on Expert Circle which will drive up traffic and provide you an SEO boost! We also have extensive resources for bloggers to help you succeed.

Mallory Griffin

Putting up our ideal personas on our social media handles is what defines our generation. We claim to be the woke millennials of the 21^st century, being politically correct is important for us. Yet somehow our Snapchat filters tend to cast a shadow over the crude reality of things. Putting up Instagram stories protesting injustice has somehow become more about following a trend, rather than supporting a cause.

Do hashtags outlive social movements?

Do not get me wrong, there are people who genuinely care. The millions of protestors raising up against police brutality have moved me to the core. They renewed my faith in a democracy, in the power of the people. But the silence that followed is all the more disheartening. The way that the people moved on to the next trending topic on social media makes me question whether hashtags outlive the actual cause of our social movements? The aim of this article is not to point out a particular movement, but just to show the generic course of what our liberal ideals have come to.

Beyond the US: on a more global scale

Being an Indian, I wholeheartedly believed in the movement against India’s citizenship changes (the anti-CAA-NRC movement). I supported the cause, and the solidarity that the people of the nation showed, in order to stand up for a marginalized section of the society. Made me swell with pride for my nation and its people. The pandemic has crippled the voices that a mass gathering could raise. Despite laws of social distancing, thanks to social media, opinions could still be presented, the agitation could still be continued. But what could have been a platform to raise awareness has become the Holy Grail for trends.

As a generation, is this what we have come to? Propagating hate speech is easier than voicing the truth? Our social causes are just mere trends? Do hashtags outlive actual human empathy?

From February 2020, Thailand is having a mass agitation against an autocratic government. They have been fighting for their civil rights with full flair, both offline and online. Hashtags are the new slogans, civic grievances and dissatisfaction has been plastered all over social media. The tenacity that the people exhibited, by raising the second wave of protests after the lockdown restrictions were eased, shows their sympathy to the cause.

Minorities and the majority

May sound controversial, yet the mere difference in the protests that faded away and the voices that still resonate of free will, is the demographic percentage of the people who are oppressed. In the case of the latter, no specific section of the society is being targeted, everyone is at risk of losing their basic right to speech and voicing their opinions. While in the case of the other scenarios, it is mostly the minorities’ lives at stake, the majority is seemingly sympathetic at first, but is basic sympathy enough to bring about revolution or even lasting change?

Life goes on, but do we really like where the course of our morals is headed to? How is it so easy to move on, from a genuine outrage towards the violation of basic civil rights? This just highlights the inherent hypocrisy that comes with calling ourselves the liberal idealists of the free world. Such ignorance just puts us back into the cycle of the self-righteous thought process that we are so vehemently protesting.

Not just introspection, but the subsequent course of action is key to a more evolved future

One of the benefits of associating an hashtag to any campaign, be it a marketing campaign or the one for a social movement is that they still continue to raise awareness. But that would only be possible if conversations are kept going, using those hashtags, giving them more traction on all the social media platforms so that the trend does not die, the cause does not fade away. As regular users of social media, we cannot shy away from talking about an issue that no one else is talking about anymore. Being a millennial myself, I too feel the embarrassment in talking about something on a social platform that no longer is considered a trend, but the longevity of a social cause, where real lives are at stake, cannot be based on what our peer groups consider to be “cool”.

As regular people, we might not have the administrative power to make or change the law. We could gather and protest on the streets, but we also have to carry out our regular domestic and work responsibilities, otherwise we are just being hypocritical irresponsible citizens who want change, but do not even contribute to the GDP of our country. What we could do is keep the uncomfortable conversations going. I say uncomfortable because your peers might not be willing to talk about a movement that faded away a few months back, but force them to have that conversation, provoke them to put forth their opinions, both online and offline. After all, discussions are the ultimate way to raise awareness.

We can be better

Trends are good, as long as they are limited to fashion and pop-culture. We could be the generation that idealizes Korean boy bands and obsesses over celebrity rap battles. But let’s not talk about human rights movements just to gain more likes and shares. Let’s not allow hashtags to outlive the actual social movement. I know we are better than that!

Questions about hashtags outliving social movements to discuss :

• Do hashtags outlive the actual cause of our social movements?
• Do protests that are in support of the minority eventually fade away?
• What can we do to change that?
• How can the average person take real action, instead of just liking or sharing a hashtag?

Aishwarya Mitra

There are many guides to starting your own blog out there. In this one, we focus on making how to start a blog easy and hassle-free, letting you focus on what you love the most – exploring and sharing your passions!

The hard way, and the easy way, to blog!

We can let you in on a little secret – it’s possible to spend weeks (if not months) building your own website to host your blog, learning the art and science of search engine optimization, curating your website, and managing social media channels. But all that is in no way required to have a successful blog!

This in-depth guide provides everything you need to know to create a blog that achieves your specific goals, without all the hassle.  We’ve focused this guide on the easy ways to blog, though the great tips below will help anyone looking to start one as well as even some serious, veteran bloggers!

Setting clear goals in starting a blog

When thinking about starting blogging, it’s hugely important to create clear goals on what you want your blog to achieve. Matching those goals to your approach means you focus on what blogging does for you, not anyone else. That may be about simply sharing what you love, or creating engaging interactions with others in your niche!

Spending some time setting goals about what you want to achieve with your blog will make this easy:

• Are you looking to share your knowledge?
• Influence the debate on a particular topic?
• Find and interact with others who share your interests?
• Earn some income on the side?
• Or, perhaps make it into a career?

Jot down your goals quickly, and while you’re doing this, see how you feel about them and if they really motivate you. That gut check is likely to give you a good sense of what will work for you or not. Depending on your chosen goal, different approaches will help you succeed – there are easier and harder ways, so read on!

The full range of blogs – from hobby pages to passionate sermons to serious money makers

Blogs can be very simple to very sophisticated, and everything in between! There are millions of writers out there who post articles here or there. Many of them achieve their goals this way, and many don’t. The content ranges from short, chirpy posts to in-depth articles about arcane topics to emotional missives on today’s key issues.

Some blogs have massive amounts of web traffic, and others serve very specific niches – and both can have a huge influence! Many blogs include “affiliate” marketing links, where they earn commission on sales. While some blogs earn large amounts, many earn very little. As a result, it’s really important to have your goal in mind so you can cut your cloth accordingly.

The easy way to share your views and create engagement

At Expert Circle we focus on enabling people who have great expertise to share their views and create engagement with others, and many of our members want to know how to start a blog without building an entire website.

More broadly, this guide focuses on the different straightforward and easy ways to create a blog that:

1. Propagates the author’s views on key topics
2. Allows others who share the author’s interests to engage deeply with it
3. Does not require advanced technical skills

There are 8 key steps to starting your own blog, and we will cover each:

1. Explore your passions: brainstorm blog topics that interest you
2. Prioritize to choose your preferred blog niche
3. Create a quick plan of some initial content
4. Start writing – the crucial step to starting your own blog!
5. Add the bells and whistles you need to be successful (learn how to do this)
6. Determine how and where you want to distribute your blog
7. Hit publish and start sharing!
8. Keep sharing, and keep writing – how to stay motivated with your blog

Step one: explore your passions: brainstorm blog topics that interest you

Want to know the number one success criterion for blogging? You have to be passionate about what you are blogging about! Whatever your goal, having the motivation to achieve it comes from a strong interest in your chosen topic.

So while there aren’t many secrets to this step, it’s crucially important. Start jotting down some things you love, and things you love to share. Many people know that “sleeping on” important decisions helps to get good outcomes, and we recommend that for this one! Spending time on this up-front will pay dividends later on.

Step two: prioritize to choose your preferred blog niche

Once you’ve had some good shut-eye, come back to your list. Do any stick out as “the one” you want to use to start your blog? Any that you just don’t get a good feeling about? Do some quick triage and aim to have 2-3 front runners left.

Now, there are a few ways you can proceed. Going with your gut is a great way to choose if your goal is sharing what you are passionate about. On any topic, there are great ways to get your views in front of interested people. Some interesting or incisive writing and the tips later in this guide will ensure that. For most new bloggers, this will meet their goals!

A few pro tips for those looking for more

However, if you have highly specific goals (getting thousands of hits, say) then we recommend some additional research on your shortlist. First, type a search in Google that you think someone interested in your topics would try. Then, at the bottom of the screen, Google will suggest related searches, the shorter of which you should capture. Run those through WordTracker or SearchVolume.io, and see how much demand is there. Topics with around 10,000 hits per month or more will give you the chance to generate significant traffic.

So where does this leave you with your shortlist of topics to start your blog? If you are all about exploring and expanding upon your passion, go with your gut and choose your favourite topic!

If you are looking for scale, choose something that more people are already interested in so you can piggyback (and ideally is also an interest of yours!).

Step three: create a quick plan of some initial content

We’re pretty sure that with your level of passion, you’ve had your head racing with potential blog topics! Even so, and armed with your chosen topic, we recommend you jot down 4-5 initial blog ideas. With this, make sure you can imagine yourself writing on those topics. Listen to your instincts – do they resonate with what you like?

Doing this exercise may seem a bit daunting, but trust us, it will pay off rapidly. If you find it easy to do, then well done, you’ve chosen a good topic for you. If more difficult, see if you can work through it with effort. Not every blog is easy, and some of the best ones are not easy to create, so stick with it!

Then, take your topics and sketch out a brief outline of each – just 3-4 bullet points each. You now have the makings of a solid initial content plan to start your blog! Going in to your blogging journey with this in hand provides a good roadmap to keep you on track.

A more advanced tip at this stage: start considering who your ideal audience members for these topics would be. The more you have your audience in mind, the clearer your blog’s writing and the easier to generate followers!

Step four: start writing – the crucial step to starting your own blog!

You’ve made it this far, don’t give up now! Unfortunately, there are millions of blog ideas that have never made it past this point. We genuinely hope you won’t be part of that statistic! And we’ve even structured this guide with a bit of “escalating commitment” to try to nudge you along. (By having you plan your blog before actually writing it!) Even so, it’s now up to you to take the leap and start writing your first blog post.

Choose a topic from the handful you sketched out. Perhaps not your favourite even, but the one that you can almost imagine yourself writing. Get yourself in the right mindset to write.

Choose an inspiring spot – your porch, the local library, wherever. And beyond this, make sure you feel ready to go. While you may feel a bit of anxiety, try to use that nervous energy and channel it into your blog! It can give you real power, and there’s no better feeling than putting it to good use and getting a great result.

Step five: add the bells and whistles you need to be successful

You can find endless technical guides out there that help to optimize your blog. Most of them help you generate free traffic from search engines, which is certainly a good thing. Though keep in mind your goals – sometimes finding the right niche audience will achieve yours with much less effort and technical knowledge! Finding the right platforms to use can solve these issues automatically, and we’ll consider that in step six and beyond.

No matter what your goal is, there are some key elements that are simply good practice with blogging.

• First, draft a clear title that communicates the purpose and content of your blog. Add some “hook” along with that, and people who share your interest will be dying to click on your blog!
• Second, create a clear structure to your article, with defined sections and subheadings that signpost them to readers.
• Third, use keywords throughout your article that refer back to your main topic.
• Fourth, ensure you have enough depth in your blog to make it useful to readers. 300 words is the absolute minimum, and 500-1,000+ will start to get you more traction.
• Fifth, pick an eye-catching image to help viewers understand and choose to read your article!

These are the critical hygiene elements to creating a successful blog. Though of course, the actual content, the thought you’ve put into it, and the writing style matter hugely beyond these!

More about those keywords

What does this thing about keywords mean? Well, search engines use keywords to determine the topic of the article and how “relevant” your content is. While they are fairly good at this within the specifications of their algorithms, none is truly intelligent! So how much you need to pay attention to this depends on the goal for your blog.

But whatever your goal, you do want people to be able to understand your blog easily and follow your arguments. As such, good writing practice does actually hold that you should use clear language and repeat keywords. Related words and synonyms of your keywords also matter here. It’s the old “tell them, tell them again, and tell them what you told them” adage. In other words, repeating keywords is the way to convince your audience and propagate your point of view!

So while search engine optimization (SEO) is to some a “dark art”, it can actually improve your blog’s impact regardless.

Step six: determine how and where you want to distribute your blog

Many “how to start a blog” guides begin with the how rather than the what. Indeed it is important, but we focused on helping you get started actually writing your blog first. We now turn to the question of how and where to distribute it. You certainly want the right people to read it so your views get out there and start shaping the conversation!

There are many ways to distribute a blog, and no one way is right for every blogger, so we’ll present some options and let you decide. We do firmly believe that keeping it simple and easy is best for the vast majority of new bloggers. Focusing on what you do best – creating great content – can be liberating, letting others do the hard work! This is an important decision, and hence this is a longer step, but well worth considering carefully.

Deciding whether to host your own website

The first decision is whether to create and maintain your own website. While there are tools out there today which make it easier than it was, it still isn’t for the fainthearted! You’ll need technical skills, as well as a willingness to research and to monitor and fix problems as they arise. There are a few options that offer free website building, but to use some of the advanced features from this article you will need to pay a minimum monthly fee of roughly $10 to start, and that can go up significantly.

WordPress is a good option to host your own website, though again it does require technical skills. Be sure to choose carefully between WordPress.org and WordPress.com. The former is more sophisticated and has charges, while the latter starts free but then charges for advanced features. There are many other platforms out there, all with pluses and minuses, and we won’t cover them in-depth here.

Making that key decision on how to start your blog depends on your goals – (duh!)

So what does it all mean? Deciding whether to build your own website really comes back to the goals you have for your blog! If you are aiming for thousands of hits and to create a significant income stream, you will want to spend the time, effort, and money to customize your blog and control it to the minutest detail. If your focus is sharing your views and engaging with others who share your interests, a website is not required!

How to create a successful blog the easy way

The great news: there are many ways to have a blog that meets your goals that don’t require technical skills! We will outline the best practices on how to do this and all the options you have. And we focus on the super-easy blogging platforms, and then see how you can use them to share your views!

There are a few key platforms in the easy blogging space. We believe that the big three to consider are Medium, Expert Circle and Tumblr. Each has key strengths and does not require you to build a website. Starting your blog on any of these platforms will give you a great start to achieving your initial goals. The sky’s the limit from there: you may reset your goals later, and you can easily build from these platforms!

The Tumblr platform

Let’s consider Tumblr first. Tumblr offers a cross between a blogging and social media platform and is particularly popular with younger age groups. 18-29 is the sweet spot, and if your chosen niche is relevant for that group, Tumblr is a great option! You can create your blog and share it socially with other members of the platform and beyond. They have about 500 million blogs already, so you can see their immense popularity. Recently they have been acquired by WordPress, and as a result, some features may converge between the platforms.

Expert Circle and Medium 

These platforms offer a very easy blogging experience, with the added benefit that they share your blog with their audience. That provides built-in traffic for your work, and could solve all of your blog’s distribution needs! For many bloggers, they are all you need to achieve your goals of creating great content and developing a following.

With both Expert Circle and Medium, you can simply sign up and start writing! Both platforms allow you to format your blog posts beautifully and add imagery, videos, and social media. These are great ways to showcase your content.

There are important differences between the two platforms. Medium uses complicated algorithms to recommend stories to their reader, while Expert Circle organizes its content by category, which allows creators on its platform a greater ability to place content in front of others who have a strong interest in it. We are certainly partial to Expert Circles’ approach, and we invite you to read more about it below!

Easy blogging and who “owns” your content

The easy blogging platforms we have been discussing don’t require you to build your own website. That does mean you will post your work on someone else’s site, of course! Fear not, however – you will continue to own your work. While the platforms do have limited rights over your work within the confines of their sites, all you need to do is keep a copy and you can do whatever you want with it from there!

Step seven: hit publish and start sharing!

Step seven is, take a breath, a lot shorter – you’ve already learned how to start a blog! We’ve actually already covered the best practices for using these easy blogging solutions in step five. All you have to do is write some great content that you love, and hit publish!

In addition, there are some great tips about how to use Expert Circle below which will help you get the most out of our exciting new platform. They allow you to share your work with people who share your passions and create great conversations with them!

Sharing your blog on multiple platforms

Now that you’ve published your first blog post or two, use it as much as you can! Share it on your social media channels, and also on the other easy blogging platforms you didn’t end up choosing! Find discussion forums on other platforms that cover your niches such as Reddit and Quora, and post links there. All of these things will drive up traffic to your blog and increase your influence!

Step eight: keep sharing and keep writing – how to stay motivated with your blog

You’ve made it this far on how to start a blog, and so far, so good. Now we don’t want to share too many statistics, but many bloggers lose motivation and end up stopping! But we certainly want you to keep going. As a result, we’ve pulled together some top tips to help keep up your drive.

First, it’s important to keep your goals at the front of your mind. Moreover, managing expectations around this is crucial, as your first few posts may not achieve the level of impact you expected. It takes time for even determined new bloggers to reach a significant audience! Our easy blogging approach is the best way to find your niche sooner, but it still takes time. That’s why we say to keep sharing and keep going. The more you write and share, the more you’ll get noticed! Keep the longer-term goals in mind, and focus on short-term actions and the boosts they give you. You’ll get there if you stay focused!

Second, routines and support networks can really help. Aim to set a schedule that gets you focused on your blog at regular intervals, and make it a sacred time. Sunday afternoon after reading the morning paper? Tuesday evening after dinner? Or a more frequent lunchtime slot every day? Whatever it is, set a realistic goal and stick to it! Adding in time with other bloggers can also really boost your motivation, so get a buddy or create a club.

Third, generate some interaction with your followers. There’s no better motivation than hearing from people who read your posts and have an opinion about them! The easy blogging platforms have comments built in, and the more you share them on social media the more comments you will get. Keep up an active dialog with your followers and it will power you forward. Be sure to check out Expert Circles’ advanced features – you can even jump on a live video discussion with your followers to deepen engagement and really strengthen your connection with them!

Some more pro tips

There are more technical matters to mention here, which can help your blog rank in search results. A lot of this goes back to those algorithms. Be sure you have sprinkled your key phrase fairly regularly throughout the article, including sometimes in your subheadings. Too few mentions will get you penalized as well as too many – it certainly shouldn’t look forced! 

Also, now is the time to go back to the keyword research you did in step two. You will have chosen a keyphrase with decent traffic, with lots of searches every month. There are also other similar Google search terms that are related to it. Try to add several of those in your post, which will give you the ability to rank on those terms also. 

There are other little tweaks that can help optimize things as well. Aim to use your keyphrase at the beginning of your title, and keep the title to 60 characters in length. Beyond this, you want to add links to external sites, preferably reputable ones with large traffic, and post your blog in other discussion forums, social media, and places that will link back to your blog. The search engines take all of these into account in their rankings!

All of these advanced tips can help take you to the next level when you are starting your blog. If you decide to get really serious, there are reams of detailed guides out there, and to master this art you will need to spend a lot more time with them!

Blogging – what is it and how can you enjoy it?

Whether you spend a lot of time online or not, you’ve probably heard of the blogging craze.  And while it is a bit of a craze, it’s not just a passing one. In fact, blogs have become one of the best ways to share knowledge, period. And we’re here to share with you how anyone can do it!

There are so many sides to blogging!

A lot of younger people want to “see and be seen”, “share things on social media”, and the like, but there are actually many sides of blogging that have nothing to do with all that. Starting a blog as a mature individual can achieve many things, and the excellent news is that new technology actually makes it easier for those without extensive technical skills!

What is a blog, you might ask?

A blog sounds like a technical term, but actually, it is just an online article. A series of articles can form a blog, or an individual article – which is called a “post” in the blogging lingo – can also be a blog. We recommend that you not worry about all this, and just think of all of these things like an online article. And yes, you can actually create one yourself, so read on!

Why would I want to write online?

There are so many reasons to write. As working people, we all have quite a few life experiences, and imagine sharing those for others to benefit from! It can be for other experienced folks to relate to, or even to try to provide advice for others. Beyond this, you have strong interests, and by sharing them online you can connect with others who share them.

How to approach this exciting idea of starting a blog

You’re interested in publishing your views online – terrific! You can just start trying it, and we’ll explain how to do this below. Yet it’s also probably worth doing just a bit of planning, which will lead you to the best results.

Setting goals in starting a blog 

When thinking about starting a blog, it’s worth considering your goals. They may be about simply sharing what you love, or creating interactions with others who share your interests:

• Are you looking to share your knowledge?
• Find and interact with others who share your interests?
• Influence the debate on a particular topic?

Jot down your goals quickly, and while you’re doing this, see how you feel about them and if they motivate you. That kind of a “gut check” is likely to give you a good sense of what will work for you or not.

How to prepare to start writing 

We’ll come to how to publish in a few moments. The first thing to do is to come up with a first topic or two that you’d like to write on. It can be literally anything, and just jot them down. With this, make sure you can imagine yourself writing on those topics. Listen to your instincts – do they fit with what you are interested in?

Doing this exercise may seem a bit strange, but trust us, it will be worth it. If you find it easy to imagine, then well done, you’ve chosen a good topic for you. If more difficult, see if you can look to the internet or friends and family to give you some ideas.

Where you can start writing and publish your work

The easy way to start writing work or a career-related blog is on Expert Circle. We have created a super-simple place to create your work and publish it. It’s so easy that if you have a short view to share, it will take only 10 minutes to complete! Of course, we encourage you to write longer pieces, which will develop your thoughts, help keep your mind sharp, and be more interesting to readers.

Benefits of starting a blog on Expert Circle

First of all, it is dead easy. The whole process including setting up your account takes only four steps (see below)!

Secondly, Expert Circle is designed to create places where you can share your interests, explore what others are sharing about them, and even get into discussions with other people about them if you like.

Thirdly, it’s very simple to share your work with others. Just click share to email your friends and family!

Beyond this, you may wish to take advantage of Exper Circle’s more advanced features. You can become a valued contributor to your interests and influence the conversations! Read on to learn how easy it is to start on Expert Circle.

The four-step guide to creating your blog the easy way on Expert Circle

1. Set up a free account on Expert Circle – and start your blog the easy way!
2. After creating your account you will be taken to your Profile page, and simply click the “Create a new post” button
3. Create a title and start writing your blog!
4. All you have to do now is hit publish!!

After publishing, you can see all of your blog posts in one place in your Profile, and share from there!

Further tips to develop your blog

On Expert Circle, we have created over 50 business-related topics and growing. You may add these “categories” to your blog, which will give you several benefits. So, when you publish your article, it will feature in those topics. For example, if you want to write about how to start a business, it will feature in the Expert Circle Business Management category topic if you choose it. That way, others interested in starting business tips will see it and benefit from and respond to your work!

In addition, adding a sharp image to your parenting (or other!) article will make it more likely that those in the Parenting topic will choose to click on it and read it. We’ve developed a more advanced guide to starting a blog, which you may wish to review also – or come back to it once you’ve tried blogging and want to develop it further!

This is literally all you need to start writing online articles and blogs. We invite you to start now!

Bringing it all together: starting a blog

We’ve talked in this guide about how many career-oriented people have been interested in blogging. The concept of a blog is new and hard to understand at first for many, in fact. But it’s actually really simple, and the new online tools make it so easy to publish your own articles.

At Expert Circle we are focused on making blogging easy and accessible to all, and we hope you have enjoyed this guide.

It is becoming increasingly important for businesses to develop a strong web presence to engage and communicate with their customers. Having a strong website is definitely important in establishing an online marketing and branding strategy. But the global dynamic shift requires small businesses to go even further. And we’re here to convince you that blogging for small businesses needs to be a key part of your online strategy.

The way businesses operate around the world will be changed forever. The coronavirus pandemic only strengthened the conclusion that “digital” is the future. Businesses tend to overlook the power of blogging because they see it as a past trend. But this couldn’t be further from the truth.

“My customer engagement increased tenfold in 3 weeks” – Dave, café owner

One of the most effective ways to build brand awareness, while providing relevant and useful content to your target audience is through consistent blogging. Blogging for small businesses is an inexpensive way to drive traffic into their websites and attract more potential customers. According to a recent inbound marketing report, nearly 80% of companies that use blogging as a part of their marketing strategy reported acquiring customers through their blogging efforts.

Engaging your customers and building trust

Healthy customer engagement is an essential element of online marketing and branding for any business. Blogging provides the opportunity for you to connect with your existing and potential customers in a more conversational and friendly way. You show your customers that you are not just a business seeking to maximize your profits, but also a business that truly cares about its customers.

Blogging is a good way to build a much-needed trust with your target audience through high-quality content that they find relevant. With active interaction, you will also be able to follow the visitors’ responses to your posts. This means you will be able to respond directly to their comments, which is huge in building trust and relationships.

There are two main options to gain the benefits of blogging for small businesses

In order to do that, you can decide to look for any blogging solution and domain hosting services available on the web and start building it up from scratch.

OR

For the sake of being the most efficient, you can choose a smarter approach and find a service that will take care of all the backend mechanics for you. Instead of building things from scratch, you can just focus on what content you will promote to your audience and how to make it most relevant.

Sounds much better, doesn’t it?

That’s why you should go with Expert Circle.

Expert Circle is a platform that will give you all the features you need to directly reach your audience and analyze your engagement more deeply. It’s a two-way street. You will not be restricted to just uploading content, and you can engage better with your audience. Further, you can also integrate your blog with your community by adding blog posts to customer profiles that will be featuring blog entries created by your community members.

Sign up today and try your first posts on Expert Circle for FREE!

Levani Shalolashvili

Every successful blogger knows that the key to having a great blog is having great readers. Your blog readers are so incredibly important because they determine whether a blog will grow and become popular, or fail to gain any traction. Luckily, there are many ways you can attract great readers to drive blog engagement! Here are 4 key steps you can take to increase engagement and get more interactions, and the best part is that they can all be done right now!

1.     Reply to comments on your blog

Increasing engagement on your blog starts with the readers you’ve already acquired. There’s no point in trying to find new readers if they’re not going to return to your blog after the first visit. Engaging with your readers can often be as simple as responding to their comments on your posts. But to make the comments effective, there are a few things to keep in mind. People like to feel appreciated, so engaging with the comments of users sends the message that you acknowledge their contribution and welcome their interactions.

Reply comments can be as simple as thanking them for their input, asking follow up questions, or starting a relevant discussion. The goal is to make sure your readers know their interactions do not go unnoticed. Another way you can show your appreciation is by interacting with the blog posts of returning users. This will, once again, show readers that you appreciate their interactions and you want to maintain their readership. All of these quick items will really drive up your blog engagement.

2.     Leave comments on other blogs in your niche

Leaving comments on other blogs can be very impactful when it comes to building readership and increasing engagement. Blogs in your niche likely attract lots of the same readers that you hope to attract, so posting comments on similar blogs will place your blog in front of the right audience. The key to making this step effective is posting only interesting and meaningful comments. Readers are much more likely to click on the profile of an account that posts something they find fascinating and significant than an account that posts comments with no relevance.

3.     Feature more popular bloggers on your blog

In a similar fashion to the previous point, take advantage of the readership that other bloggers have already amassed. If readers enjoy reading blogs in a particular niche, it benefits both you and them to get them onto your page. A way to do this is by featuring more popular bloggers from your niche on your blog. The features don’t have to be too long or overwhelming, but getting their name and link on your page can serve the simple function of getting more relevant readers to your page. We also recommend aiming to get your blog featured, which will put you in front of more viewers!

4.     Ask your readers what they think 

The final step, and possibly the most important, is asking your readers for feedback. Asking them what they think about your blog and what they want to see more of can provide you with a strong understanding of what you can do to increase interactions and build blog engagement. Remember, the ultimate goal is to make your readers WANT to engage with your blog! Ask your readers what types of content they’re enjoying on your blog, and what types they’re not big fans of. This will give your readers the sense that they are just as much involved in the blog as you are and that their feedback is appreciated.

Driving up blog engagement

Engaging with your readers is such an important step in the process of increasing interactions with your blog. Taking these 4 steps will bring you one step closer to achieving your goal of increasing blog engagement!

As a writer looking to improve your blog, we invite you to publish on Expert Circle which will drive up traffic and provide you with an SEO boost! We also have extensive resources for bloggers to help you improve what you do.

Mallory Griffin

From sharing your views to building influence in your niche, to driving in-depth interactions with others who share your interests. The great news is that Expert Circle is designed exactly to help you achieve this! Our platform has all the answers when it comes to the easy way of how to start a blog.

First, Expert Circle makes it easy for you to share your amazing blog content. You can create your dream blog and post it in minutes! 

Second, Expert Circle’s approach means that you can place your blog directly in front of a highly-interested audience. Our content is organized into topics, and you select which are relevant for your posts, where they show up automatically. If you don’t find your niche, create it! 

Third, Expert Circle’s unique video discussion capability means that you can engage deeply with your followers and others who share your passions! 

Read on to find out more about how Expert Circle can help you achieve your goals!

Expert Circle – the easy way to blog!

If the technical side of building and maintaining a website is not for you, don’t stress. We built Expert Circle for you because we want you to focus on doing what you do best, which is creating great content. We’ve ensured that SEO and security are optimized, so all you have to do is create your account and get started!

Expert Circle helps you create amazing content 

With Expert Circle, you can add images, videos, social media posts, and audio to grab your readers’ attention! Our easy formatting editor ensures that your posts look great on the platform. You have all the tools you need to share your views! 

Using Expert Circle’s categories to place your blog in front of a relevant audience

Expert Circle has created a canvas of over 50 topics and growing! What this means for your blog is that you can place it directly into the topics relevant to your expertise. There’s no black box of algorithms that will share your posts, you and our members decide!

Our topic areas make it easy for members to explore, follow, and engage with their interests. By posting in them you will benefit from joining congregations of people who are already interested in your topic. You can place your blog directly in front of them! Tap into specific audiences that crave your content, and connect with other creators who have shared interests.

Right now we’re focused on a number of the big ones ranging from Leadership to blogging to recruitment to business, and if you can’t find your niche in the remaining list, you can create your own! 

You can help shape the conversation within Expert Circle’s topics, so we invite you to start posting and sharing your views!

Expert Circle allows you to express yourself and learn about new ideas in the process

Your thoughts and opinions matter. That’s why Expert Circle gives all members an equal opportunity to share what they have to say and actively fights the echo chambers endemic to today’s social media. 

Our members congregate around business and lifestyle related topics and shared interests, rather than shared viewpoints alone. Expert Circle inspires conversation and debate, because we believe learning from and engaging with others is a vital part of life!

You can cultivate deeper relationships with your blog’s followers on Expert Circle

Do you ever wonder what your followers think after they write a comment on your blog? Then why not invite a group of them to review your project or product on the directory? 

Deepening relationships with them will drive loyalty, advocacy, and ultimately greater influence for you, not to mention providing tons of material for your next post! 

Beyond that, sharing the video chat will also broaden your reach even further. Stay connected with your community on-the-go from anywhere and everywhere. 

Join Expert Circle to gain all of these amazing benefits!

As you can see, Expert Circle is no ordinary blog site or social media platform. It’s a platform built to encourage creativity, connection, and meaningful content in whatever way works for you. Think outside the box with Expert Circle and find new topics, foster old ones, and connect with people who share your expertise!