Vlogger Grace Helbig currently has over 2.1 million subscribers and growing-  How does she do it? These days everyone loves going to YouTube to find great content, but how do you standout?  More often than not though, people will sometimes just make one or two videos, get frustrated, and then abandon YouTube, to become purely a viewer instead of a creator.  We reached out to some of our favorite vloggers for some advice.

We asked them – “If you had one piece of advice for a beginner vlogger, what would it be?”

As always, we received a ton of great advice, and we can’t wait to share it with you!

So here you have it, the best advice for beginner vloggers from pro vloggers!

Jimmy Diresta

https://www.youtube.com/user/jimmydiresta

“ I often tell beginners to keep consistent and to post videos at regular intervals. Even when no one is watching the audience will build slowly, but it will build.”

Carah Amelie

https://www.youtube.com/user/carahamelie03

“Make videos because you enjoy it and are passionate about it.. And NOT for any other reason. Subscribers will come.. Along with all else. “

Megan MacKay

https://www.youtube.com/user/MeganMacKay

“My advice for vloggers just starting out would be to zero in on making content you’re really proud of. Make content you’d want to watch, because making it is gonna be a lot of work and you’re gonna be spending a lot of time with the material. You might as well be enjoying yourself while you’re doing it. I also think that the most successful YouTubers do what they do because they love the community on YouTube and feel a strong pull to contribute something to it.  If you’re thinking about getting into vlogging purely because you want to be rich or famous, you’re missing out on the coolest part of the job. YouTubers get to connect with people from all over the world and talk about their passions and ideas. Like, are you kidding me?? That’s so cool!! I think that has to be a primary motivator for someone to get onto YouTube, because it’s so integral to the experience – for viewers AND for creators. “

The Bells plus one

Marsai Bell

https://www.youtube.com/user/Marsaib2009/

“If I had one piece of advice for new vloggers/bloggers it would be to be very consistent with whatever outlet you choose to do. If you are a reviewer make sure you have things to review, if you want to Vlog your life… Stop procrastinating and DO IT! Also be yourself and try to upload quality content. Be the best YOU..YOU can be.. On YOUTube! “

The post Vlogger Round-up: Beginner Advice and Tips appeared first on AmpliFound.

I’m not trying to scare you away from using the metric, but I want you to understand how it is calculated so you can make more informed decisions using it.

Why can this metric be misleading?

Google Analytics calculates time on site with this formula: the time of the first hit on the last page minus the first hit on the first page. Sound a little confusing? Don’t worry, this confused me, too – let’s break it down using visuals.

In the visual, a user lands on page 1 and spends 5 minutes there before moving on to page 2. The user spends 5 minutes on page 2, then moves to page 3. The user spends 15 minutes on page 3 before leaving the site (clicking an outbound link, closing the browser, or typing in a new URL).

So the time of the last hit on the last page is at 7:10PM. The time of the first hit on the first page is at 7:00PM. This means the total visit will be recorded as 10 minutes long. But we know that the user spent an additional 15 minutes on the last page.

Why isn’t this counted?

Google Analytics needs something to latch on to. Usually this is a pageview (it can also be an event). Since there is no pageview following the final page, there isn’t anything for Google Analytics to calculate this metric.

Use time on page instead

Time on page will give you an estimate for an individual page. Keep in mind, it has the same problems that time on site has. You can combat this by considering the exit rate of the page.

When the exit rate of the page is low, you should have more confidence in this metric. When the exit rate of the page is high, you should have less confidence in this metric.

Put simply, when users frequently exit from the page, time on page will be unreliable. When visitors generally don’t exit from the page, time on page is more reliable.

Did you find learning more about this metric to be helpful? What other questions do you have about understanding the flow of traffic and amount of time your readers spend on your blog? Let us know in the comments below! Maybe you’ll see your question answered in an upcoming AmpliFound post!

The post Analytics for Bloggers: Why Time On Site is Misleading appeared first on AmpliFound.

Come check us out every Friday, when we’ll be sharing the best blogging-related links from across the web, whether they’re useful how-tos, or just something amazing that one of our favorite bloggers is working on.

This week, we’re featuring some posts from our favorite travel bloggers, as well as some helpful blogging tips as usual.

And if you’ve got a great blog post or article to share, drop the link in a comment below. Maybe we’ll share your AmpliFIND next time!

Here’s what we’re reading this week:

• Catch up with Geraldine at The Everywhereist.

• Twins that Travel admit that their Instagram life is a lot better than their real life.

• YUM. Look at what Ashley Abroad ate in Jordan.

• Here are some tips to beat jet-lag from World of Wanderlust.

• Adventurous Kate visited the midwest for the first time and dug Milwaukee!

• The Montreal Jazz festival, seen through the eyes of Savoir Faire Abroad.

• Legal Nomads‘ New Zealand photos are breathtaking.

• Travel With Bender‘s kids ran with the bulls in Pamplona!

As usual, some blogging, productivity, and creativity tips and resources:

• A travel blogger blogging about blogging! The Young Adventuress shares what she’s learned after 5 years of blogging.

• The Nectar Collective has 5 reasons why nobody’s reading your blog.

And here’s what happened on AmpliFound this week:

• How to Identify KPIs for Your Blog

The post AmpliFINDS – July 17: Travel Blogger Edition! appeared first on AmpliFound.

According to the Google Knowledge Graph:

A key performance indicator (KPI) is a business metric used to evaluate factors that are crucial to the success of an organization. KPIs differ per organization; business KPIs may be net revenue or a customer loyalty metric, while government might consider unemployment rates (http://searchcrm.techtarget.com/definition/key-performance-indicator).

Here’s how you can identify KPIs for your blog:

Identify your business goal

In order to identify your KPIs, you must first focus on your high-level business goal that you want to accomplish. As a blogger, start by asking yourself this existential question: “For what purpose does my blog exist?”  A couple of examples of answers to this question might be, “to make money from advertising” or “to establish myself as an expert in my field.”  Once you’ve realized why your blog exists, you can define your business goals and dictate your KPIs.

Define Your KPIs

Next, identify the metrics that tie to your business goals and allow you to measure the performance of your blog.  These are your KPIs.  For example, if your business goal is to establish yourself as an expert in your field, your KPI is the metric that will help you define the success of that business goal.

An example of a KPI that could be used to measure how well you have established yourself as an expert in your field is “Social Shares of Articles On My Blog.”  You can identify yourself as an expert in your field by measuring how many times articles on your blog have been shared on social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.  You may even set a tangible goal such as 50 Social Shares, because Person X is an expert and Person X usually achieves about 50 Social Shares as well.

Identify your Key Metric and Assign a Value to it

Once you’ve defined your KPI, you can tie it to a metric in your analytics.  For example, the “Increase Social Shares of Articles on my Blog” KPI may be directly tied to the “Social Shares” metric that you have defined as a Goal in Google Analytics.  Assign a monetary value to this metric to help you determine how its performance affects your bottom line.

The performance of this metric is the key to giving you the opportunity to brag about your blog and say “My blog is successful, and here’s how I know.”

Report and Filter the Noise

Use your KPIs to guide your reporting on analytics for your blog.  Your clearly defined KPI will help you filter out all the noise created by superfluous data that you have collected in Google Analytics, and focus on the metrics that matter.  Focus on your end goal and work backwards to find out what behaviors people used to reach your end goal.

Iterate and Improve

When you report the performance of your blog, if you focus on your end goal and work backwards, you can then focus in on the potential for improvement in the future.  If you have hit the mark that you’ve defined as your goal, then great job!  Wave your flag and capitalize on your success!  If you discover that have not hit the mark, use this as an opportunity to find out why.  Then, iterate and improve your blog and its content.  The existence of KPIs can be the deciding factor of success for your blog.

The post How to Identify KPIs for Your Blog appeared first on AmpliFound.

Come check us out every Friday, when we’ll be sharing the best blogging-related links from across the web, whether they’re useful how-tos, or just something amazing that one of our favorite bloggers is working on.

This week, we’re featuring some posts from our favorite healthy living bloggers, as well as some helpful blogging tips as usual.

And if you’ve got a great blog post or article to share, drop the link in a comment below. Maybe we’ll share your AmpliFIND next time!

Here’s what we’re reading this week:

• Diane Carbonell has some feelings about “cheat days.”

• Nia Shanks weighs in on 30-day challenges: which work and which don’t.

• If you don’t have the time or money to join a gym, Cranky Fitness offers some gym workout alternatives.

• Here’s why you should maintain a healthy lifestyle while traveling, from Sweat Like A Pig.

• This honey almond & coconut granola from Peanut Butter Runner sounds delish.

• We can’t wait to try this lower body workout from Bender Fitness.

• Girls Gone Strong has some great advice on handling food pushers.

• Hungry Runner Girl‘s emotions affect her running.

• If you’re considering a paleo or Whole 30 diet, bookmark Nom Nom Paleo ASAP!

As usual, some blogging, productivity, and creativity tips and resources:

• How to make your blog safe and secure – from Bloggers Bazaar

• How to start a successful blog – from The Katie Show

And here’s what happened on AmpliFound this week:

• What Brands Look for in Blogger Partnerships

The post AmpliFINDS – July 10: Healthy Living Blogger Edition! appeared first on AmpliFound.

But what are brands looking for in blogger partnerships– and what should you be looking to get out of working with a brand? That second part is equally important– because like any partnership, it should be a good fit for both parties.

First, let’s talk about what brands are typically looking for when working with bloggers. At a high level, brands work with bloggers because they want to share something with a specific audience (aka YOUR readers).

Breaking down specifically want most brands (or at least the ones I’ve worked with!) are looking for:

Does the blog match the brand?

As I mentioned above, brands want to work with bloggers in order to share something with your readers. If your audience doesn’t align with their customer base, they probably won’t be interested in working with you. Some brands are also looking for blogs that share the same aesthetic or tone as their brand.

Is your audience engaged?

One of the first things brands might look at is how people are engaging with you & your blog. Are people commenting? Do you have a social following? Brands want to make sure that they are getting visibility through this partnership.

The quality of your posts

Do you have a clear voice or point of view? Are your posts well written? What sort of content do you write and share. Brands often look at these things to determine whether or not they want to partner.

The cost

Unfortunately, sometimes, whether or a partnership works out comes down to money. Companies typically have a limited budget for these type of partnerships and sometimes bloggers will ask for the moon. Of course, your time is valuable– and it makes sense that you should be compensated in some way. Finding the right balance is key here!

What about you? What should you be looking for in a brand partnership?

Flexible

A good brand should allow you to bring your own ideas to the table and infuse your personality and creativity into the post. That is the reason why they came to you in the first place! Brands that have super strict rules or want you to follow a rigid format might be ones to avoid.

Upfront

The brand should be transparent and upfront about what they’re looking for and what they’re offering. Communication is key here — on both sides!

A Brand that you believe in and would use

Just like brands are looking for blogs that are a good fit for them, you should only work with brands that fit with who you are and what you believe in. It should be something that you feel would benefit your readers. Nothing comes off as more inauthentic when you try to shoehorn a promotional post for a brand that isn’t really relevant to your blog or is something that you’re lukewarm about. Do it enough and you could turn off loyal readers!

So what can you do to attract brand partnerships? It’s actually pretty simple– focus on creating a kickass blog and building your audience

The right brand partnership can be your new best friend– and help take your blog to the next level!

Bloggers, what do YOU look for in brand partnerships? What are your favorite types of brands to work with? Let us know in the comments below!

The post What Brands Look for in Blogger Partnerships appeared first on AmpliFound.

Come check us out every Friday, when we’ll be sharing the best blogging-related links from across the web, whether they’re useful how-tos, or just something amazing that one of our favorite bloggers is working on.

This week, we’re featuring some posts from our favorite men’s lifestyle blogs, as well as some helpful blogging tips as usual.

And if you’ve got a great blog post or article to share, drop the link in a comment below. Maybe we’ll share your AmpliFIND next time!

Here’s what we’re reading this week:

• An important lesson from The Art of Manliness – how to fail and live to talk about it.

• Put This On does a weekly roundup of eBay fashion finds for guys who love a good deal.

• Here’s a review of the new movie Dope from Guys Gab.

• Speaking of movies, here’s a list of the 10 most expensive movies ever from High Snobiety.

• Kempt answers your most burning question – what is a fedora, anyway?

• Uh-oh, Taylor Swift. The Kentucky Gent isn’t pleased with you, and rightfully so!

• We want to go to there! Hypebeast has a photo tour of Bing Crosby’s old Palm Springs estate.

• If you’re the type who likes to read reviews before you shop for clothing, bookmark Well Spent.

• We can totally related to this post about Neflix binge watching on The Hundreds.

• This color-matching guide from The Subtle Things is great – and not just for men!

• Add Dennis Glanz‘s style blog to your reader ASAP!

• Bright Bazaar shares three different ways to nail (no pun intended) the gallery wall.

• The perfect charcuterie from Probably This.

As usual, some blogging, productivity, and creativity tips and resources:

• Very helpful – how to find clarity from Kelley With Love.

• Blog Better by Leap wrote up a useful FTP 101.

• Whoa – check out how Dolly Dowse tripled her blog traffic in just one month.

• From Blog Tyrant, some realistic benchmarks for your first year of blogging.

And here’s what happened on AmpliFound this week:

• Is Blogging Sustainable as a Full-Time Career?

The post AmpliFINDS – June 26th: Men’s Lifestyle Blogger Edition! appeared first on AmpliFound.

But is it possible to earn enough as a blogger to do it full-time? And if so, is it sustainable long-term?

First, let’s talk money

Whether or not you can afford to quit your day job and live on blogging alone is completely up to you. You alone know how much you need to earn in order to maintain your lifestyle. So, once you determine the amount of money you’ll need to earn in order to blog full-time, the next step is to figure out if your blog has the potential to earn that much.

It’s easy to get excited when you read about how some top bloggers are earning upwards of $1 million per year. But it’s also very important to be realistic: highly-successful bloggers like BryanBoy, Pink Peonies, and Man Repeller are the exception, not the rule.

It’s a lot harder to determine earning potential for lower- to middle-tier bloggers, because most bloggers don’t disclose their earnings – talking about money is taboo, you know. But here at AmpliFound, we’ve got a ready-made case study: me!

I ran my own affordable fashion and shopping blog for seven years (from 2006-2013), and I’m ready to break the taboo and talk! First, some factoids about my blog:

• The majority of my blog’s revenue came from affiliate links (mostly ShopSense, some RewardStyle). I featured some sponsored content once in a while.
• In the blog’s heyday, it got an average of 75,000 unique visitors per month.
• I posted between 15-20 posts per week, and each post had an average of 5 links, which meant that the blog had an average of 75-100 affiliate links per month.
• I spent 15-20 hours blogging per week, on top of my full-time work.

Now, the earnings! Depending on the time of year, I’d earn anywhere between $300 and $2000 a month from my blog. The highest earning months were October (when I posted Halloween costumes every day of the month) and December (because of holiday shopping). Earnings would usually drop off significantly after the new year, and peak again in fall and winter. But the earnings weren’t consistent on a month-to-month basis, and even if I’d managed to earn $2000 every month, that wouldn’t have been enough for me and my family.

Since my story doesn’t apply to everyone, here are some more statistics for context’s sake:

In 2012, ProBlogger did a survey of 1,000 bloggers to find out their monthly earnings:

About 50% of the bloggers earned less than $100 a month.

Also in 2012, Jeff Bullas posted some statistics that showed that only 8% of bloggers earn enough to support a family, and 81% never even make $100 from blogging.

The moral of the story? Most bloggers will never make enough money to quit their day jobs.

Is Blogging Sustainable?

But say that you do. Say that you work really hard and build a great blog with high-quality content and engaged readers, and you earn enough money that you can support yourself or your family from your blog earnings. Does blogging in general have a future?

Well, I don’t have a crystal ball, but in the past year lots of big-time bloggers have moved onto other endeavors (see: Andrew Sullivan, Dooce, Young House Love). Furthermore, lots of really smart people are saying that blogging is on the decline.

In this article, Vox’s Ezra Klein claims that two things factor into the decline of blogging:

The first is that, at this moment in the media, scale means social traffic. Links from other bloggers — the original currency of the blogosphere, and the one that drove its collaborative, conversational nature — just don’t deliver the numbers that Facebook does. But blogging is a conversation, and conversations don’t go viral. People share things their friends will understand, not things that you need to have read six other posts to understand… The other reason is that the bigger the site gets, and the bigger the business gets, the harder it is to retain the original voice.

Nieman Lab‘s Jason Kottke has a similar outlook:

The primary mode for the distribution of links has moved from the loosely connected network of blogs to tightly integrated services like Facebook and Twitter. If you look at the incoming referers to a site like BuzzFeed, you’ll see tons of traffic from Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, Stumbleupon, and Pinterest but not a whole lot from blogs, even in the aggregate. For the past month at kottke.org, 14 percent of the traffic came from referrals compared to 30 percent from social, and I don’t even work that hard on optimizing for social media. Sites like BuzzFeed and Upworthy aren’t seeking traffic from blogs anymore. Even the publicists clogging my inbox with promotional material urge me to “share this on my social media channels” rather than post it to my blog.

And the folks at ProBlogger say:

So how many blog comments do you get, huh? Is it anything like the number you had four years ago? I doubt it very much. Practically every blogger I’ve talked to has said comments are on the decline. Why? Two words: social media. Readers are not only using social media to find your content, they are also using their favourite platforms to interact with it, and you. A reader is more likely to share your post on Facebook and leave a comment there than write something on the blog itself.

What does this mean for you as a blogger?

Does that mean that you might as well pack it in and give up your dreams of being a full-time blogger? Absolutely not, but it does mean that you’ll need to work hard to keep up with what kind of content and interaction resonates with your readers.

It’s also important to keep in mind that most top bloggers aren’t making 100% of their income from blogging. Successful bloggers often have side products or businesses that earn them plenty of money. For example:

• Elsie and Emma of A Beautiful Mess have written books, developed two smartphone apps, and run an online shop where they sell craft supplies, e-courses, and more.
• Jessica of What I Wore has taught fashion classes at a local college.
• Joy of Oh Joy! regularly designs products for collaborations.
• Rach of Pink Peonies has her own jewelry collection for sale.
• Gala of Gala Darling, Shauna of Nubby Twiglet, and Kat of Rock n Roll Bride have collaborated on The Blogcademy workshops and online classes.
• Kendi of Kendi Everyday owns a brick and mortar boutique.
• And pretty much every top food blogger out there has written a cookbook.

So, if you’re going to be a full-time blogger, always be on the lookout for (or create your own!) opportunities to expand into other avenues.

So, IS blogging sustainable as a long-term career?

Not for just anyone. But if being a full-time blogger is your dream, and if you’ve got the money, drive, passion, and ambition to give it a shot, then go for it!

The post Is Blogging Sustainable as a Full-Time Career? appeared first on AmpliFound.

Come check us out every Friday, when we’ll be sharing the best blogging-related links from across the web, whether they’re useful how-tos, or just something amazing that one of our favorite bloggers is working on.

This week, we’re featuring some impressive projects from our favorite crafting bloggers, as well as some helpful blogging tips as usual.

And if you’ve got a great blog post or article to share, drop the link in a comment below. Maybe we’ll share your AmpliFIND next time!

Here’s what we’re reading this week:

• Check out the beautiful maxi dress that Create/Enjoy made!

• We’re always blown away by the creativity and ingenuity over at Ikea Hackers.

• ArtBar made a woven wall hanging on a branch, and it’s fabulous.

• These kitschy cardboard cacti from The House That Lars Built would be really cute (and safe!) for a kid’s room.

• DIY wood scrap arrows for every room in your home from Infarrantly Creative.

• Alice and Lois‘s watercolor business cards will definitely make an impression.

• Ohoh Blog has a great roundup of DIY wine racks.

• We can’t wait to see how AKA Design‘s vertical garden comes together.

• Minted Strawberry‘s DIY pearl bracelet is simple and timeless.

• The DIY ombre curtains in Taylor Made‘s craft room are just perfect.

• A Little Craft in Your Day is an impressive crafting blog by two teenagers!

As usual, some blogging, productivity, and creativity tips and resources:

• A DIY and blog advice all in one post! Here’s a washi tape blog planner from Chic Steals.

• Advice from The Nectar Collective on how to shake off your online haters.

• 7 blogging mistakes that you don’t want to make, courtesy of Michael Hyatt

• PostPlanner has curated a pretty stellar collection of blogging tips.

And here’s what happened on AmpliFound this week:

• Writing Resources – for Bloggers and Everyone!

The post AmpliFINDS – June 19th: Crafting & DIY Blogger Edition! appeared first on AmpliFound.

Fortunately, the Internet is loaded with apps that can help you improve your writing, find the right word, or let you know when you’re slipping into passive voice. Check out a few quick picks for free apps that can help you

Hemingway App

Ever feel like sometimes you ramble and your blog goes off on tangents? Do you pal around with the passive tense too much? Or do you need to attend a support group for egregious adverb usage? Not to worry! The Hemingway App can help you refine your writing and make it more easily digestible for readers.

To use Hemingway, simply hit the “Write” button in the app, then type or copy-and-paste your text into the desktop app. Click the “Edit” button” and it will show you which sentences are hard to read, if you’re using passive voice, or going crazy with the adverbs. It also shows you the Grade Level readability. Want to be sure your blog can be read by a person with a 6th grade reading level or if it’s collegiate level-material, Hemingway can hep you to that, dude!

Cliche Finder

You’re writing. You’re clicking along on your keyboard. The words are pouring out of you like tears of regret after an all you can eat buffet. You pause and take a step back. And there it is. The dreaded cliche.

Maybe it takes the form of cringe-worthy business speak in a pitch — like the overused “think outside the box” or the borderline Creepy McCreeperson “open the kimono.”  Or perhaps your creative writing feels a little less creative when you drop in phrases like “dark as night” or “light as a feather.”

Boo.

Cliche Finder can help you locate phrases that are overused by other writers in your prose. Copy and paste your block of text into the Cliche Finder, click the “Find Cliches” button, the app will highlight the cliches in bold text. It won’t help you come up with something new — that’s where your own creativity comes in — but it can show you where your words can use some work.

Power Thesaurus

I am a big advocate for the Thesaurus feature in Microsoft Word. You know when you’re using the same word over and over and need to switch it up. Sometimes, you may be scrambling for the right word, but it escapes you.   But if you don’t happen to have Word — and even if you do–  sometimes you need a trusty word bank to lean on.

Enter Power Thesaurus — a souped up version of MS Word’s “thesaurus” feature. All you need to do is type in a word and it pulls up a selection of other words to choose from. Even better, other Power Thesaurus users can vote synonyms “up” or “down.”

If you’ve got a hankering to expand your vocabulary, the app shows you popular words that have been searched alongside recently searched words. Have at it, Tiger!

Grammarly

If you struggle with grammar — or may be predisposed to adding a stray apostrophe to “its” when it denotes possession, Grammarly can help you. This nifty little browser add-in works with Chrome to evaluate your word-crafting skills and give you pointers on how you can improve your grammar game.

Grammarly offers both a free and paid version, but both are relatively simple to use. Just download the browser add-on.

Write Rhymes

Sometimes you wake up feeling your inner Dr. Seuss or Humpty-Hump calling and the muse moves you to write lyrics or poetry. While “cat” and “hat” may gel together and “humpty” may be “pronounced with an ‘umpty,’” other words may be harder to couple. (Yeah. You try rhyming “artist” with anything other than “fartist” on your own and see what you come up with.)

Write Rhymes helps you find the right bit of verse to plug into your poem or jingle when the you’ve got nothing. Just copy and paste your text into the app, click on the word that you’re trying to rhyme and hit your “Alt” key, and Write Rhymes will come up with several suitable matches for you to use.

These are just a few free writing resources that can help you become a better writer. Take them and use them to and blast through blogger blocks, grammatical grievances, and linguistic conundrums.

Do you have any favorite writing resources you use? Let us know in the comments below!

The post Writing Resources – For Bloggers and Everyone! appeared first on AmpliFound.