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Here you go! I’m answering several of the questions you asked in yesterdays post. These are great questions and I’m sure many of you have the same ones.
The main thing I’d like to impress upon you is to develop and maintain organic relationships with like-minded women. I truly believe that if we unite together we will each succeed!
Q – Baby Blog Addict: “I’m just wondering how many hours per day or week do you spend on Tip Junkie? And how much additional time do you spend on the computer for your own personal blog hopping, email, etc? I, like most bloggers, am always trying to find the happy medium and not get pulled in too much. THANKS!”
A – Tip Junkie: It usually takes me about an hour or two to complete a post on Tip Junkie. Right now I’m really into keeping the posts related to a specific theme for easy searching and indexing. However, that usually takes a LOT longer and a lot more research.
I average anywhere between 30-100 e-mails a day so that usually takes another 1-3 hours to keep up with depending on what’s going on in my personal schedule.
I’ve read several articles on managing your blogging time. Some suggest that you plan out a weeks worth of posts on Monday, some suggest you blog all in 1 day and schedule the posts to post automatically, while other’s suggest that you use a timer. This happens to be a passion of mine that I love! So I get done with my personal work and then I put in a good movie in my media room and I work on Tip Junkie in my Lazy Boy. I feel that as long as I’m not neglecting my responsibilities at home and that all other needs are met – it’s OK for me to use my personal time doing what I love.
Q – Mandy: “I want to know what your favorite tips are that you have featured? And how do you find such great people and their tips to feature?”
A – Tip Junkie: I’ll be announcing my 2008 favorite tips next week in the Tip Junkie Awards. {{giddy}} But for now you can check out Top Ten Tips for Junkies which list my favorites in several categories.
The majority of the tips I feature are the ones submitted to me by readers. That saves me tons of time. {{hugs to readers}} I also use del.icio.us to catalogue all my favorite tips for future posts I find blog-jogging. It’s fabulous!
Q – SoBella Creations: “How long did it take you to have followers of the Tip Junkie Blog?”
A – Tip Junkie: I guess it depends on how many you’re talking about. I launched Tip Junkie June 2007 and she’s exceeded my expectations. I remember hitting my 1 year mark and having 568 subscribers from Google & Bloglines and averaging around 800 visitors a day. I was ecstatic!
It has obviously grown a lot since then but I would suggest blogging for at least 1 1/2 years to see some folllowing or influence. However, the SITS girls earned those kind of stats after 6 months – so everyone is different. {{they’re fabulous}}
Q – Stephanie: “My question is….How do you get people to comment. I have many who tell me that they read my blog, but alot of them don’t leave comments. I’d love the change that.”
A – Tip Junkie: Ummm. That’s a question for the fabulous SITS girls. I don’t receive many comments on Tip Junkie unless there’s a prize involved. 😉 It used to hurt my feelings with all the time I put into each post, however I no longer need that validation. Now I’d rather my readers click on the each of the links and send traffic over to the women I feature. That’s why Tip Junkie works, because my fabulous readers validate these creative women.
In all honesty, I think the only way to receive comments is to give them. I’ve learned that developing caring relationships with bloggers is essential and then they’ll be there when you need them.
You can also try making your posts “speak” to your readers where they can’t help but share their feelings on the subject. Also, one of my favorite bloggers asks a question at the end of her posts which directly relates to what she just shared.
The Top Commenter Widget is another way to validate your readers and entice them to comment. Plus it’s just straight up fun.
Q – Brooke: “It has been kind of a “dream” for me to be able to blog and make money. Do you make money from the sponsors? If so, how did you get them to sponsor your blog and how long did it take?”
A – Tip Junkie: Ahhh…I think this is all of our dreams. Not only to be validated with tons of fabulous comments and “followers” but also to receive a fat check in the mail each month. Once again, this question is for another blogger, the ProBlogger. I spent an entire month following his advice and it was worth it. He’s amazing and the first man featured on Tip Junkie. {{your welcome Darren – it was time I gave back.}}
For me personally, I’m still figuring it out. Trial and error Ladies. I get
this question a LOT and I’ll give you my advice, however remember that you get what you paid for and this baby is FREE. “No it’s not worth it. Sign up with BlogHer or RGM where you get a check automatically and there’s no extra work on your part.” 😉
Actually, it really depends on your traffic and influence. There are so many blog shops that are willing to pay a couple bucks to put their button on your blog. The price point for blog advertisers is very low and the work to maintain it is very high. So it’s up to you.
I didn’t intend for Tip Junkie to ever make money, I did it because I loved it. However, I just happen to have a genuine passion that others share and I found a niche that can produce a couple bucks each month. It’s not a lot but it’s enough to keep me feeling validated and wanting to use my unique strengths to inspire others.
I was blogging over a year and a half before the opportunity presented itself to have sponsors. How do I get them? They contact me, but it’s only because of my readers! You Ladies ROCK!!
Fabulous question, thanks for asking!
Q – Emilee: “My question is how long did it take for your blog to get a good following? Any suggestions on where to advertise or exchange links?”
A – Tip Junkie: That really depends on what you think is a good following. As I mentioned before at my 1 year mark I was over the top excited about 800 visitors a day. I think the first year of blogging is the most fun, enjoy the ride.
How did I work on launching my blog? A TON of comments. For about 6 months I left comments on over 200+ blogs a week. They weren’t lame like “come take a look at my blog”, they were nice comments that related to the post. That’s how I got my start, a lot of leg work.
I only asked 1 blogger to exchange links with me and she refused. And she should have! She was fabulous and I hadn’t made my place on her blog yet. {{and probably still haven’t ha ha}} I don’t think that’s an effective way to use your time. Make real connections with other bloggers and work your way up naturally. When you have something really fun going on, then e-mail your friends and tell them about it. Collaborating with other fun women who you connect with through interviews, giveaways, spotlights, swaps, and e-mails are the best use of your marketing time.
I don’t pay for any advertising. Word of mouth and a fun blog post by a friend or reader is the best marketing you can receive.
Q – Anonymous: What are your top 5 tips?
A – Tip Junkie: That’s way too difficult to answer! I have a ton of favorites. I’ve listed several on Top Ten Tips for Junkies.
Q – Rose: “My question is regarding blinkies. Many sites show their blinkies but not the html code, and I can’t seem to figure out how to “grab” the blinkie without the code. If I save the blinkie to my computer it saves as a gif file, and the motion ends up being lost even if I manage to link the picture back to the site. SO, how do I grab a blinkie if there is no html code listed (like on your site) and if I wanted to make my own blinkie, how would I do that? how do you post the blinkie with your code posted underneath it? ok, that’s more than one question, but they are all the same topic!”
A – Tip Junkie: These are some good questions. Whether the image/button “blinks” or not you can use the following steps to grab any image on any blog (unless it’s protected).
1. Right click on the image
2. Click on Properties
3. Copy (control C) the Address (URL) – be sure to get all of it.
How to Copy into Side bar:
4. Click on Add a Widget
5. Add a picture
6. Paste (control V) the URL into the text box under Image/From the Web
7. Click on Save
8. Then drag it to the position on your sidebar where you want it.
How to copy into a Post:
4. Click the ‘Add Image’ button inside your post.
5. Paste (control V) the URL into the right side text box next to URL.
6. Press the orange upload image button.
Sorry, I don’t know how to make a “blinkie” button but I’m sure you could Google it to find out how. Most of my technical issues I outsource to my webmaster. Maybe I’ll do some research another day and do an entire post on buttons. 🙂
Q – Olmos Family “I have been trying so hard to figure out how to make a button for my blog that people can copy and paste the code into their blog if they would like. How do you get that code? I am so confused! Any help would be great!”
A – Tip Junkie: Hmmm. Another tough one and one that I get e-mails about ALL the time. Honestly, I sent the link to my husband when I first started Tip Junkie and asked him to figure it out. {{cuz I don’t speak man}} And he did.
I’ll give you my code if you PROMISE not to e-mail me tons of questions about it. This is all I know. K!
Whew! That’s a LOT of information for one day. I hope that you’ve learned a ton and won’t forget who spilled all her secrets for your benefit! Just don’t forget the “little junkie” when you’re all fabulous and famous. {{wink}}
Don’t worry if your question didn’t get answered, I’ll be sure to answer the rest of your questions in another post.
Thanks for taking the time to answer so many questions. I’ve really enjoyed reading your responses.
Thanks for all your great tips today!
Sorry Emilee it took a LONG time to do it. I started at 9am. Blogging flat on my back isn’t very efficient.
I also had a friend come bring me lunch and we got chatting. I love visitors! 😉
That was really helpful, thanks!
You are awesome! I kept coming back all day waiting for this. lol Thanks so much for your feedback. 🙂