Blog | Elite Blog Academy

Stop Playing the Traffic Game

Have you ever noticed, whether you’ve been blogging for a while or are just getting started, that bloggers tend to be a tiny bit–dare I say it–obsessive when it comes to traffic? “I need traffic.” “Where is my traffic coming from?” “How do I get more page views?!” And while I totally get the logic behind this thinking (more people = more money, right?), the reality is that in the long run, obsessing over traffic is not the line of thinking that will get us to where we want to go. In other words? If you really want to take your blog to the next level, you need to stop playing the traffic game. A Quick Overview of Traffic Now, don’t get me wrong — I’mRead More

The Joy of Growing Pains

It has been said that life begins at the end of your comfort zone, and I have to say that when it comes to blogging and business — it’s totally true. Anytime we’re willing to stretch ourselves past the point that feels comfortable (and in control), to take risks, and to do hard things, we see big things happen. Outside of our comfort zone is where all the amazing, life-changing, juicy stuff happens. The thing is, stepping outside of our comfort zone is… well, uncomfortable. It feels scary and hard. It’s confusing and overwhelming. It feels risky and unsure. Sometimes it even makes us question our self worth. What if we look stupid? What if we make a mistake? Worse yet, what if we fail?Read More

When Your Blog Isn’t Working

Here’s a scenario I see happening a lot in the blogging world: Karen started her blog about 10 months ago. She has a TON of content… but unfortunately, that’s about all she can say. She’s not seeing any results — not a lot of traffic, not a lot of income. She can’t quite figure it out and all she knows is that it’s not working. She’s so frustrated! She’s been writing and writing and writing — and it feels like nothing ever comes from it. Every day she wonders, “should I keep going… or should I throw in the towel?” On the one hand, Karen doesn’t want to give up on a blog she feels passionate about. But on the other hand, she doesn’t wantRead More

Rock Your Blog Post Graphics

There’s no doubt about it: the world we live in today is a visual one. People have always been naturally drawn to visuals, but in the last few years, with social media platforms shifting their focus from text to images (think Instagram and Pinterest), visuals have never been more important to bloggers than they are today. Why You Need Images in Your Blog Posts In the early days of the ‘interwebs’, SEO was all about the finding the right keywords to drive traffic to your site. Images were an afterthought (if a thought at all!). Computers were slow and took what seemed like years to load a single image. The iPhone wasn’t even a blip on Steve Jobs’ radar. Remember those days? Well… times haveRead More

Introducing….The EBA® Product Launch Playbook (Now Available for 5 Days Only)

I‘ve never been shy about sharing what works and what doesn’t work when it comes to my own business. I’ve been blogging since 2010, and in the seven years since I first founded Living Well Spending Less®, I’ve somehow managed to build a thriving 7-figure business, as well as become the New York Times bestselling author of five books, create an online course called Elite Blog Academy™, and create the Living Well Planner®. And while saying it like that, all in one quick sentence, makes it sound like it was all easy, and even like I knew exactly what I was doing all along the way, the reality is anything but! You see, when I first started my blog, it couldn’t even be considered an onlineRead More

The Biggest Blogging Mistake You Might Be Making

“What do you do?” Am I the only one that HATES that question? How do you explain, to someone who isn’t a blogger, that blogging actually IS a job? But is it? Because here’s a little secret about blogging that you might not know: If you’re making money through your blog, you’re not just a blogger. You are an entrepreneur. Now, understanding that you are an entrepreneur–not just a blogger–probably won’t solve the dilemma of knowing what to say when someone asks you that dreaded question, but it is an important mindset shift all the same. In fact, I would dare to say that this simple mindset shift separates the average earners from the superstars, but believe it or not, 99% of bloggers never getRead More

Create Your First Online Course

Online courses seem to be everywhere these days, don’t they? Regardless of your interests, it’s hard to scroll through Facebook without seeing at least one opportunity to enroll. From Teachable to Udemy to Lynda and a million options in between, self-paced learning has literally exploded in the past few years. So what does this mean for you? Well, if you are a blogger, it’s possible you’ve already benefitted from at least a few of these online trainings, and perhaps you are beginning to see all the value that online courses have to offer. And maybe you are at the point where you’ve moved on from the basics. You’ve started building an audience of engaged readers, and you’ve created a ton of really valuable content. PerhapsRead More

Riding the Blogging Rollercoaster

Has your day ever started in a way that makes you close your eyes and think, “Yep… It’s going to be one of those days”? Maybe you go to wake your kid up for school and they immediately throw up all over you. Maybe your cat knocks over your cup of coffee and it spills all over your laptop. Maybe you log on to your blog only to find your server is down, or worse yet, you’ve been hacked. Maybe your Pinterest account gets accidentally flagged for spam, or your ad account on Facebook gets suspended. Or, if you’re me, maybe your daughter goes to give you a hug before leaving for school, and on the way up, headbutts you and splits your lip open.Read More

When to Monetize Your Blog

One of the most common questions I hear from our EBA students is this: When is the right time to monetize my blog? And my answer to that question is always pretty simple–as soon as possible….as long as you’ve laid the groundwork first! After all, blogging is hard work, and I tend to believe that the sooner you are getting paid for your efforts, the easier it will be to stay motivated to keep going, especially when the going gets rough (and it will, at some point!) Now, of course, making money from your blog doesn’t always happen on day 1, or even on day 100, especially because a lot of bloggers are hesitant to monetize at all. They worry monetizing will make them lookRead More

Facebook Advertising Basics

There’s no denying it: Facebook ads are absolutely EVERYWHERE. And if you’ve been paying attention, it probably seems like everyone who’s anyone is touting the wonder that is Facebook ads. And I’ll be the first to admit–I think advertising on Facebook is pretty amazing. I meant, think about it–in the “old days” of running a business, you had to pay $5,000 for an ad in a magazine or the Yellow Pages and hope for the best. But with Facebook ads, you can spend $20, test an ad, see how it performs, and decide if it’s worth investing in. The truth is, Facebook ads are a hot topic for a reason. They can be pretty awesome and an incredible tool for building your business… when they’reRead More