BLOG STARTERS - THE NEXT BEST THING TO AN EASY BUTTON

Does coming up with a topic to blog about feel like a kick in the knees by a donkey? 

If yes...this blog is for you.  

But first….Congrats to my blog winner Diana Marik.  Diana has won a $5.00 gift card to Starbucks JUST for signing up for my blog updates.  Diana send me your mailing address at lisawellsauthor@gmail.com

Now back to blog starters:

To use blog starters efficiently you need a niche. Why? Because your blog needs to be consistent.  My niche is Social Media For Authors.  

Once you have a niche, you need to come up with a list of words that describe your niche.  Lots and lots of words. 

Then you can use starter blog headings like the ones in the poster below and fill in the blanks with some words that correspond to your niche.

Examples:  

How to Tell If_______        

becomes

HOW TO TELL IF SOCIAL MEDIA IS WORKING FOR YOU

____ Every _____ Should own

becomes   

5 TOOLS EVERY BLOGGING AUTHOR SHOULD OWN 

Finding blog starters is easy. They are all over Pinterest.  Check out my Pinterest board (SOCIAL MEDIA FOR AUTHORS) for more blog starters.

I’D PIN THAT

but first....Congrats to my blog winner Emily Mires. Emily just won a $5.00 gift card to Starbucks just for signing up for my blog updates. Emily send me your mailing address at lisawellsauthor@gmail.com. 

Pinterest is powerful if you can pin images that grab the attention of viewers. That's a big IF.  But if you follow the rule of the Big Six - you'll be a winner pinner every time. 

Six steps to creating powerful- pinnable images?

1.   They must tell an instant story. 

2.   The text has to be easy to read and bold.

3.   Make sure your images are the right size. (If you don’t know if it’s the right size, pin it and see what it looks like.)

4.   Look at the boards of your perfect customer. What are they pinning?  Create images they can pin to those boards.

5.   Host contests and giveaways. Pin an image of the event on Pinterest. People search Pinterest for contests to enter.  Use the right language in the description field:  Enter to Win – Giveaway – Contest.  You can even enter an amount in your pin and Pinterest will add a banner to attract more attention.
6.   Your caption should evoke emotion.

Need a place to get free images – idpinthat.com has pictures that are free. No strings attached. They are FREE.

So tell me - did you know that there are boards on Pinterest just about contests to enter?  

Ignorance is not bliss!

Way back in 10th grade my business teacher told the class that ignorance is no excuse in the eye of the law. In other words, just because you don't know you're breaking the law doesn't make it okay. The penalty is the same.

Tonight while listening to a podcast hosted by Cynthia Sanchez of Oh So Pinteresting, I discovered I've been unknowingly breaking a Pinterest Law. 

Had I been caught by Pinterest, they would have placed me in Pinterest Jail. I don't know about you, but I don't wear horizontal stripes well. Ugh.

That aside, I have a lot of goals in life. And one of them is to never go to jail. Even if the jail is virtual, I don't want to go there. 

What law have I been unknowingly breaking?  

If you use Pinterest to promote a product that you benefit from, then you are using Pinterest as a business. So if you have a board on your Pinterest page that is called - My Blogs - and your blogs are about your books, you are promoting yourself on Pinterest.  Your account should be a business account and not a personal account.

How can you tell if you are using Pinterest as a business account or a personal account? Look at your name in Pinterest. If it is just your first name, or first name and last name, you are using the account as a personal account. 

To change this to a business account you need to go to:  business.pinterest.com.  

Below is the page that will come up.  If you already have a Pinterest page, click on CONVERT NOW.  This allows you to keep all of your current boards.

  

Get discovered by millions of people looking for things to plan, buy and do.Join as a businessAlready have an account?
Convert now

Answer the questions asked. Click convert and that is all there is to it.

Until next time,

Lisa Wells

Social Media For Authors

Turning PowerPoint slides into images...

Turn Your PowerPoint Presentation 

into Visual Media Images

Today's post is super easy.  I'm going to walk you through the steps to turn a slide from your PowerPoint presentation into an image you can post with social media.  

Step 1:  Open your PowerPoint

Step 2: One the left hand side where it shows you all of the slides in your presentation, click on the one you want to turn into an image.

Step 3:  Go up to file - where you'd click to save something - and click on Export. (Yes - that is an option)

Step 4:  It asks you how you want to export the file - choose change file type.

Step 5:  It will show you a list of your additional options - choose jpeg.

Step 6:  It will ask you if you want to export the whole presentation or just the slide you clicked on in step 2. Choose just that slide. 

(It, It, It...Three sentences starting with It - UGH.  I know - bad writing - but I'm applying the KISS rule - keep IT simple silly.)

Step 7:  Choose save as - and save the image to (desktop/your choice) with new name.

Step 8:  Now you can upload your new jpeg to your social media site. 

That was easy -easy -easy - Don't you think?

Above is the first slide in a class I teach on How to Write a Series. The class will be offered again in August. Can't wait that long to learn the tricks of writing a series? Not a problem. You can choose to purchase the lecture packet to the class at the Margie Lawson Writer's Academy.  

The crazy looking chic is my daughter. I love that she's so willing to look less than "perfect" for the sake of getting a laugh out of someone. This was a picture she sent me one day when I asked her to match the socks. Our unmatched socks collect in a basket until someone breaks down and sorts and matches. Usually me - deep sigh. 

What is the one chore in your household you always try to get someone else to do?   

The Visual Media Library

This week I am going to continue to talk about the importance of visual social media. 

I could spout off statistics that prove how important it is for you to use visuals in your media posts, but I'm not. I'm just going to say statistics prove visuals are CRITICAL to draw attention to your posts.  If you don't believe me, please feel free to do the research. 

If you do believe me, then it is time for you to start a visual media library of your own.  One you can go to when you're writing a new blog post, etc. and upload a picture to it so that your post sparkles with Read Me, Read Me, Read Me vibes.

This is a picture I designed using CANVA.  I paid $2.00 and own a one time use license of the image. The 'One Time' aspect of Canva's One Time Use License means you can use the image in one design, not that the resulting design can only be used in one place.

Purchasing your pictures from sites like this is an option. But you can also take your own pictures. 

However you decide to populate your library, you need a visual library. In your library, decide how you are going to organize your photos. Come up with a system that will allow you to find pictures according to what you are looking for. 

For Example, I may file the above picture in a folder called Social Media Images. And this one

in a folder called, Sideway Pictures that make me smile. 

What are some folder names you will use to label your photos in your social medial visual album?

Social Media for Authors

Today's post will be a continuation of the importance of using visuals in your social media posts.  

https://www.canva.com/design/DAAvod43q5s/OEfRDGh6tM8Glc08bLGg6g/draft/view

SOCIAL MEDIA

SOCIAL MEDIA FOR AUTHORS

Some of you may have noticed I haven't blogged in a very long time. This isn't a result of procrastination but more a result of consternation. What to blog about? What will my niche be? 

It's taken me a while, but I've finally decided to blog about social media for authors. Tweet this.

Why social media?  

I’ve spent the last nine months immersing myself in podcasts, blogs, workshops, etc. that educate on the area of social media, and I have become enthralled with the topic.  I want to blog about what I’ve learned (and am still learning) in the hopes that other authors can benefit from my research.  

With that being said, today’s post is going to start a series of posts that take a look at Visual Social Marketing. The use of images and videos to promote one's content. 

This post is talking about the difference between embedding an image and uploading an image.  You need to know this. 

#467231455 / gettyimages.com

This is an image that I embedded into my blog.  Embedding is different from uploading.  When you embed an image, your site is not hosting the image. It is still being hosted by the site you snagged it from. This is a good thing when it comes to legal issues regarding using another's photos.  My understanding is that as long as I'm not using the photo to sell a product, then I can embed it and not be sued for stealing someone's photo.  Notice how at the bottom of the photo, it shows you the site it came from and gives the artist credit.  I didn't manually add all of this, the credentials magically happened when I embedded the image. Whoot!

How does one embed an image. 

I got this image from:  http://www.gettyimages.com/Creative/Frontdoor/embed 
And, below, I've pasted their verbiage for my right to embedded this picture on my site, so that you can read it. In no way do I pretend to be an expert on the legal side of embedding pictures. 

Embedded Viewer

Where enabled, you may embed Getty Images Content on a website, blog or social media platform using the embedded viewer (the “Embedded Viewer”). Not all Getty Images Content will be available for embedded use, and availability may change without notice. Getty Images reserves the right in its sole discretion to remove Getty Images Content from the Embedded Viewer. Upon request, you agree to take prompt action to stop using the Embedded Viewer and/or Getty Images Content. You may only use embedded Getty Images Content for editorial purposes (meaning relating to events that are newsworthy or of public interest). Embedded Getty Images Content may not be used: (a) for any commercial purpose (for example, in advertising, promotions or merchandising) or to suggest endorsement or sponsorship; (b) in violation of any stated restriction; (c) in a defamatory, pornographic or otherwise unlawful manner; or (d) outside of the context of the Embedded Viewer. Getty Images (or third parties acting on its behalf) may collect data related to use of the Embedded Viewer and embedded Getty Images Content, and reserves the right to place advertisements in the Embedded Viewer or otherwise monetize its use without any compensation to you.

That being read - They have an icon on some of their photos (not all) that you can click on and it gives you the embed code.  You copy the embed code. Then you go to your blog post and where you have a button that says HTML,  that's where you will paste your embed code.  

Don't freak out.

When I first clicked on the HTML button, a box full of code came up. I quickly closed the box thinking I was about to erase my entire blog or something.  Then I reread the instructions for how to embed, took a deep break, clicked on the HTML button, and took another look at the box.  I realized that at the bottom of all the scary code, I could hit return and have a free line to paste my code.  I did this.

Then I went to the preview page of my blog post and - ta da - my photo was there.  

I hope you give this a try in your next blog post.

So before you read this post, did you know about embedding an image vs. uploading an image?