Wednesday, 17 April 2019

Grow Your Traffic with Simple Analytics!

April 17, 2019

   From Newbie to older bloggers, to hobby or pro bloggers, everyone agree that that growing your traffic is essential, but there are so many ways to do so!

 Free, Paid, but always guaranteed growth tools and tips flood the Internet. But where to start planning and creating growth strategies? How do you give your audience what they want?

  Today's post is an in-depth look into how you can analyse old Blog Post Analytics in order to target the right audience for your content!


 I'll be exploring how to better target your social media channels' audience in order to drive free traffic to your blog!


  Put simply, I'll be showing you what information to take away from your analytics in order to pin point your audience's interests and how to incorporate that into your Blog Strategy.

  Like in last week's post about Planning Content, we will be going through old published content, and looking at our analytics (views per post, social media interactions) to decide what works and what doesn't in your Blog - however, instead of focusing on creating or brainstorming new content, we are going to draft out our audiences main interests.

 You can read all my posts on Blogging and check out all related freebies here.


 

 BLOG POST ANALYTICS


  It's no secret I am blogging on a free platform and as such, my statistical options are narrow. Different platforms and providers can offer you a different range of statistical data that might suit your needs better.

 For me, the data Blogger provides wasn't enough to help me understand my audience. Here's an overview of what they provide: 

♥ Number of page views (per post, page or date range),
♥ Number of referrals per website
♥ Where and how my audience is reading my website (country, browser and OS). 

  It's not bad, but it is not enough if you want to turn your blog into a business or closely monitor certain aspects of your blog. I've ran hobby blogs with a good engagement level based solely off blogger analytics and I was super happy with my results - but the dimension of a blog and it's purpose will change it's statistical needs. 

  Good thing you can sign up entirely for free for Google Analytics. 


  This free Google Tool is your best option right now for free analytics that truly help you comprehend your audience.

  Here's some of the data you can track through Google Analytics:

♥ User demographics
♥User activity on your website (what pages they visit, campaigns they click or interact with, etc.)
♥Social Media Referrals
♥User trends (when they are most active on your page)
♥Bounce Rate 
♥Session Time
♥Session Number per website referral
♥Page Value
♥Etc.

  This is only a small fraction of all the reports and tools Google Analytics provides. The big variety of options and factors make it seem a bit of a seven-headed-monster sometimes but my honest advice is:

  Explore the several types of reports and truly understand wether or not they will serve you at this time. If not, prioritize more valuable reports for your present situation over worrying about how reports might serve you in the future. The only way to learn is by practising and studying, but it can be overwhelming to learn everything at once!
 

  For The Pyjama Editorial, I am at the moment tracking Social Media Performance more heavily, as I am trying to build up my following in both Pinterest and Instagram and am monitoring my content's performance in those platforms. 

   
MONITOR YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA PERFORMANCE WITH GOOGLE ANALYTICS

  The Blog is at a point where my strategy for traffic growth is to gather a loyal following on Pinterest and Instagram while growing my content slowly and working on my foundations. As such, I'm interested in learning about my content's performance on Social Media.

  Through the Aquisition Reports you can have a quick look into which pages were referred and how often during a specific time window, see their session times, number of different sessions, and so many other interesting statistical factors.

 To access a rank of which posts receive more referrals simply click 
Aquisition➨Social➨Landing Pages



By Clicking on each individual page you can see where the traffic originated from!

Or, if you want to group your pageviews per Social Network Referral, 
Aquisition➨Social➨Network Referrals


  
  You can also check different "dimensions" - which are basically different types of data you have available. These dimensions unfold into sub-dimensions and you can choose from the different types of reports Google Analytics provides (e.g. Aquisition, Behaviour, Asvertising, etc.) which truly makes this tool essential for anyone trying to grow their traffic and conversition rate!

 TIP:

Make a list of your best performing content ! What does it have in common? What niche was it wrote for? What main topic does it relate to?


  By identifying your best performing content you are onto your audiences interests! Analyse where that post performed better and why! Take note of that information - something about your post adds value to your audience, take that to your advantage and explore it. You can:

➨ write a more detailed post on the same or a similar/related topic
➨create a content upgrade to direct your traffic to your newsletter
➨create an ebook
➨do an email course
➨The possibilities are endless!

  I recommend that you do several keyword researches to find specific keywords and phrases that people in your niche are looking for - so, for example, if you had concluded that your best performing content was “5 Time Saving Products for Bloggers with Full Time Jobs”, and other posts directed at making blogging easier for busy people, you might’ve then gone and search for keywords related to “bloggers with full time jobs” - and thus building up your blog by developing content that your audience enjoys.
 

PIN THIS IMAGE SO YOU CAN REFER BACK LATER ON! 



  Of course, not all content should be based off Popular Published Content. If you are starting out, you might want to develop your foundational content first, the content that really interests your niche and that will be bringing people to your blog for years to come - and for that, you need to know your audience - and now you have the tools to do so!

  Now that you know HOW to get the Analytics you need, you can start growing your traffic by writing targeted blog posts that add value to your audience !

 


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By at April 17, 2019
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Friday, 12 April 2019

Make your own Coffeeshop Style Mocha at Home With no Coffee Machine!

April 12, 2019
  I'm a huge coffee drinker, and sometimes I run out of my Dolce Gusto Capsules, and recently my caffettiere broke - so I like to get creative, because I still need my coffee and do not want to walk to the nearest coffeeshop. If, like me, you also feel lazy when it comes to leaving the house first thing in the morning - this post is for you! 



  This idea came to me because of one of my favourite coffeeshops/bakeries back home in Lisbon - they excel in Nutella based Mochas, truly a treat. And, being a veteran Barista myself, I know a trick or two when it comes to preparing delicious drinks right at home!

  This recipe is also super budget friendly as you will most likely have all the ingridients you need in your pantry!

To start with, you'll need the following things:

  • Heat-proof Lidded Mason Jar*
  • A glass or Mug for your drink
  • a jug, small container or ramekin
  • a spoon
  *Make sure you are using a heat-proof jar as we will be agitating warm/hot milk (depending on your preference) in a few moments.


  Instead of a Mason Jar you can also use a plunger caffetiere (also called a French Press) - and I'll explain why down below!

After gathering your containers and spoon, you'll need your ingridients!

INGRIDIENTS:    
  • Milk of your Choice (I opted for Alpro's Coconut & Almond Blend)
  • Your Favourite Chocolate Spread (I used Lidl's Chocolate and White Chocolate Spread)
  • Instant Coffee of your Choice (I used Mokambo - a wheat, barley and coffee mixture perfect for an afternoon boost)
  • Hot Water


A Mocha is one of the simplest coffee drinks you can learn to make. It is very simply a chocolaty-coffee! 
Did you know you can prepare it in about five minutes at home and still enjoy a delicious foamy coffee?

HOW TO PREPARE

  1. To start your delicious drink, heat some milk up to your desired temperature - I used a heat-proof jug to heat my milk in my microwave but you can also use the mason jar
  2. Dissolve your instant coffee in freshly boiled water (the quality of your water affects coffee taste - make sure to use filtered water if you can)
  3. With the help of a spoon, cover the bottom of your glass or mug with chocolate spread. (Alternatively you can melt it in a bain-marie or with some hot milk to make a chocolate sauce)
  4. Pour your dissolved coffee on top of the chocolate in your glass.
  5. Take your heated milk and pour it into the Mason Jar - make sure this is heat proof! - and then screw the lid tightly.
  6. Shake the Mason Jar for about 30 seconds - or more depending on how much foam you like in your coffee!

    ALTERNATIVELY
    Use your caffetiere to create a foamier coffee! Simply pour the warm milk into your caffetiere and then push and pull the plunger quickly a few times, creating an agitating motion that will foam up your milk! Great if you like a good cappucino right at home!
  7. Pour the shaken milk into your glass - optional suggestion: Top with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles.

Don't forget this simple recipe, pin this image:


As you can see, you can prepare this delicious drink in under five minutes and you can even customize it further by adding whipped cream or extra flavourings!





What is your favourite Coffee Beverage? Mine has to be the Flat White (Like a true coffee snob!)
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By at April 12, 2019
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Wednesday, 10 April 2019

PLAN YOUR CONTENT LIKE A PRO

April 10, 2019

  Last week I talked about how to set up an Editorial Calendar using Trello, a free to-do-list/visual board app, this week I'm going to tell you how I actually plan the content that I schedule on my Editorial Calendar.

  In today's post, I'll explore Content Planning - A bit more work goes into structuring my posts than just having an Organized Editorial Calendar, and you can read all about it down below!

You can read all my posts on Blogging and check out all related freebies here.


  Blogging is at it's peak popularity these days, and almost everyone wants to be a blogger or influencer of some sort. 

  This is great, but it might be a bit daunting to start with all the information available nowadays. 

Where should I start, what should I post first, how should I promote my content

  Even with more seasoned hobby bloggers, like myself, it can be a struggle. Specially if you also work full time, or have a family to care for, or you're juggling other responsabilities.

  It is important to keep in mind, however, that if it works for me it might not work for you and vice versa. Today I am sharing how I plan content and what I analyse in order to make decisions towards growing my traffic and conversation rate.

Let me give you some background about myself: 
  I have been a hobby blogger for about a decade now, and decided to get back into blogging and plan towards going professional. I have had failed blogs over the years and I've had small success stories - all which inspired me to go forward and keep working on what I like. I am also a virtual assistant to my boyfriend's online business, in charge of coming up with Instagram Designs and Strategies to execute his growth plan. I love sharing my knowledge and seeing other blogs grow along side mine!


PLAN YOUR CONTENT

When it comes to brainstorming and planing content, I try to analyse my blog first. I look for:
  • Which blog posts have more views and engagement
  • Which posts on my Instagram and Pinterest have more engagement
  • What topics have I posted about last

  My traffic mainly comes from Instagram and Pinterest, , hence why I take these into consideration when planning new content.

  I then try to taylor my content to fit in with what my main audience liked best - and for me, my best performing content in social media is always related to blogging or lifestyle (plants, beauty posts or flatlays are quite popular with my Instagram audience).

  Next, I'll analyse my lastest posts for performance; I decided to focus on growing my social medial expertise and presence before fully focusing on how to convert that traffic into subscribers, which led me to overlook the blog for the last few weeks and haven't posted consistently as a result- and even though I didn't achieve the numbers I hoped for, I can still takeaway precious information about my audience:
  • My best performing post was my first one, where after a brief introduction to the blog, I wrote about coming up with my Blog Name and provided a Worksheet. That tells me that people interested in Blogging have found my blog and actually read that post - it added some value to them!
  • My second best performing post was a Baking post about tips on how to bake the perfect Heart-shapped Caramel Shortbread - Baking is a very competitive niche and I wasn't posting at the perfect time neither was I posting anything NEW.

 I can keep going, but you get the gist of it. Truly analyse what you have posted in the last month as even the tiniest bit of information can help you improve your content strategy and help you funnel in deeper into your niche and help you come up with a more cohesive blog feed. 

 You can then round up the Categories you achieved most engagement in and plan more content around them. For me, Blogging was the best performing Category, which tells me that my readers are likely to be searching for keywords such as Blogging, Building a Blog, Growing a Blog and Getting Traffic. So I can plan to write around those topics and provide solutions for their problems.

TO RECAP, SO FAR WE HAVE:
  1. Established Traffic Sources and Audience,
  2. Established and Analysed Content for Performance,
  3. Establish Most Engaged With Categories,

  Now you know what to write about, come up with 5 possible Blog Post Titles that you'd like to write for! 

TIP: When researching for your Blog posts, set a timer for yourself and work on each post within the time you've allowed - even if you do it in two or three sittings - otherwise you might end up in a research spiral and not actually writing the post.

Time For a Break! Remember to give yourself a break every other hour. This will allow your brain to rest for a while and come back refreshed onto it!

Now let's start structuring your post:

  • What is the central problem you're solving
  • What is your proposed solution 
  • Do you have facts and examples - photos, infographics, testimonials
  • Are you backlinking something? - affiliate links, or old blog posts, other helpful blogs
  • What is your Call to Action? - What do you want your audience to do upon reading the post?

  For example, 
For last week's post about Creating an Editorial Calendar:

Problem
Organizing your Blog And Keeping On Top of Content Creation
Solution
 How to Build an Easy and Free Editorial Calendar
Facts
Trello - what is it and how can it help, How I use my Calendar
Examples
review of trello
Backlinks
trello referral link, link to my "Blogging" category
Call to Action
Free Blog Post Checklist

  You do not need to write this down everytime, but I do recommend you do - this way you know you can keep sight of the direction you want to take! 
 If you feel like your post isn't going where you wanted it to you can refer back to your notes and re-align your post to be valuable and enjoyable!

TO RECAP, SO FAR YOU HAVE:
  1. Established your Audience and Traffic Sources
  2. Established and Analysed Content for performance
  3. Established Most Engaged with Categories
  4. Thought of and Researched 5 possible Blog Posts
  5. Sat down to work on your first Post and started to structure it.
 Planning content can be hard work, but by brainstorming associated topics you are slowly coming up with a full Editorial Calendar filled with amazing content you want to write about!

  Merge your content planning and creation strategy with your Editorial Calendar for a super organized and full Blog Schedule!

  I'm a firm believer that not only does practice make perfect, but that the more you write, the more you find to write about - and so my content strategy relies on periodical brainstorming as a reflection, as I believe that by researching more and writing different articles I will find and learn about new topics to talk about!

 How do you plan your content to ensure Blog Growth?


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By at April 10, 2019
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Friday, 5 April 2019

Actually Start Saving Money By Getting in the Right Mindset

April 05, 2019

  Nowadays, if you search for tips on how to save money (how to plan a budget, living on a tight budget, and so many other related topics)  you'll find a lot of bloggers pointing towards amazing deals and apps or websites that give you discounts.

  Upon reading a string of those posts, you feel hopeful that now you'll finally turn around your finances and start to live how you want, you feel great! - But how many times have we all been through this, time and time again, to then fall back into old over-spending habits?

  Don't get me wrong, I love a good deal. But there is a personal journey that you must follow before looking into money saving tips like those.


How do you actually start on getting your finances on track?

  Controlling your finances is continuous work and as such you must develop positive financial habits that enable you to actually work out your budget plan! 

  Do you wonder how to actually start saving money and sticking to your budget? Are you a little bit afraid to live a life full of sacrifice? Do not worry! You do not need to stop having a social life or indulging now and then. You just need to create positive financial habits that will make you change your mindset and save!

 Positive Habits will get you where you need to be 100% of the time. Be it paying off debt, saving for a trip or for University.
 For any area of your life you might want to save money for, the first step will always be setting ground rules and working them into a routine - hence creating a positive habit!

  Positive Financial Habits are your Key Ingridient to Sticking to your Budget


  By creating the habit of shopping in a cheaper Chain-Supermarket as opposed to the more popular brands, by cutting my beauty/fashion spending, by changing brands and companies I used previously and making other adjustments to my financial strategy I have saved enough money over a few years that have allowed me to go from living in a rented bedroom with my boyfriend that we could barely afford to living in a rented spacious one bedroom apartment and allows us to live a comfortable life of minimal sacrifice.

  Cutting down your expenses and finding cheaper alternatives does not mean that you have to sacrifice your social life, or your full face of make-up or your abs of steel - it honestly means you will commit to search for a more sustainable alternative - you can take that both ways: either you resign to a bleak less-quality option or you work on finding the right choice by getting creative.

  The other key to sticking to your budget is to accept that you yourself have to work to be better too. You must accept that some of your habits will need to change or be planned better in order to comply with your budget.

  It is one thing to know that you need to cut down expenses, but it is entirely different to be self-aware of habits that cause you to over-spend. 

  Popular money saving tips that you can find anywhere online include things like "don't pay the full price, look for coupons and discounts and deals" and, while it is true you can save money like that, the more important question to respond to is "Do I actually need this product". 
  
  The perfect thing about developing the habit of asking yourself if you truly need something is the time you save going over over-rated "hot deals" websites for items you do not even need or will even give much use, or, in other words, the time you save having a clear mind of your shopping needs!

   You need to target the root of the problem and not just the symptom. 

  Start changing small things about your habits like swapping Internet Providers to a better value deal, or something smaller like shopping in a cheaper grocery store. Target impulse buys by asking yourself why you want to buy something - is it for a purpose, or is it impulse?  

  Understand what makes you overspend and devise a plan to control that specific problem. 

  For me, it is beauty and fashion (I am truly vain and like experimenting new looks every once in a while), so I set a few rules for myself to control this:

  • I don't allow myself clothes from Primark unless they are specifically for work (Because I want to invest in pieces that are evergreen and fabric that has good longevity but given my line of work I know that even the best quality clothes will not last me)
  • I don't allow myself to buy expensive clothes, because there is literally no need for that - I already have clothes that are perfect, why would I over-spend on another jumper?
  • I put on my curating hat when clothes shopping: does this piece add value to my closet or is it going to get thrown on a shelf or drawer and forgotten
  • Only go into popular stores when it’s sale season - I have lost count of all the items I purchased over time that I then found at 50% off when it came to sale season.  Now I only shop at them when there is a sale - I spent 8£ on Zara on two jumpers that were £37 when they were launched.
  • Keep the monthly clothes shopping to one outfit or two items (so I would by a dress + jacket, or top + bottom and stop there) - there are even long stretches of time in which I don’t buy anything, but it is a good rule to have
  • Charity Shops are IT. - My friends are always super jealous of my charity shop finds, and they know these stores are the only place I buy clothes from nowadays. You can find clothes that are like new in condition for ridiculously low prices. 

  That is just one of many ways I allow myself to indulge in more superficial things while also keeping to my budget. Following these rules changed my mindset from "I do not want second-hand clothes" to "I truly find it ridiculous to over-spend on clothes just to keep up with fashion trends". I have saved money while keeping with my lifestyle by simply creating a new habit through a few simple rules. 

  This obviously means you need to work on your habits alongside your budget as one cannot go ahead without the other. I can only afford to indulge in "new" clothes because I have not only lowered the spending cap but also because I cut all my beauty spending down to my daily make-up essential - no new lipsticks or eyeshadow palettes, no trying new brands until I need an actual product, etc. 

  By making small changes like these, I have saved money that allowed my to stabilize my home and financial life.

Here are the general rules I follow when I'm thinking of spending money!


 GOLDEN RULES I FOLLOW IN ORDER TO KEEP ON TOP OF MY BUDGET


  1. Is Brand an indication of quality?

      A false-move that many of us will make is buying something of a popular brand because, well, because of the brand. In most cases, you'll find you're actually paying a bigger price for the brand label than the actual product quality. In other cases, however, brand is indication of product quality (for better or for worse), which is why I follow the next rule.

  2. Research Everything

     Make a habit out of always reading reviews before trying new brands or lines of products - knowledge is your best weapon when saving money. By knowing exactly what you need and what to look foor you can avoid spending money on items you do not actually need.

  3. Don't deny yourself a little pleasure, simply get creative on how to !

     Change your weekly drinks at the pub for weekly drinks in your backyard. Change expensive dinners out for lovely and warm homemade food! Change expensive shopping trips for local market and second-hand shop purchases!
      Just understand what about your habits is wasting you money and plan out how to solve it while still allowing yourself to indulge every once in a while by following the next rule!

  4. Plan everything!

      Plan your grocery shopping, your trips, your meals, your comutes. Plan. Planning allows you to analyse your time and your money and saves you both. If you have a clear list of items to shop you won't spend time looking through all the aisles of the supermarket and inevitably bring a thousand snacks home. Planning will also keep you on top of your expenses and not let you be surprised by any late fees.

  5. Know what you need

      It is increasingly more important to be knowledgeable about what you shop. Be it because you adhered to a strict diet or because you have a health need or because you are on a budget: know your ingridients - did you know that a lot of health and beauty products that are expensive are so because they are filled with expensive ingridients you don't need? This is why I make sure to research every new product I intend on buying.  Identify the main ingridient or feature you are looking for in a product, what actually makes you need this product, and then look into your pricing options. 

Save this list of rules for future reference by pinning this image!




If you question your buying impulses, create positive financial habits, set rules and keep budgeting you'll be able to start thinking about hitting those monthly savings goals you've always wanted!

What works best for you when trying to build up your finances will also help you when you start thinking about filling your savings account ! 


How did you take action and start managing your finances?

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By at April 05, 2019
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