Post Guidelines

To participate in the Community Blog, you are requested to post a marketing message regarding the blog to a minimum of four (4) online places per month and to contribute a minimum of one (1) blog post per month. Estimated time for this commitment is a maximum of 1 hour 20 minutes per month.

Please check the blog posting calendar (it’s called Future Post – scroll down to the bottom to find it) to see which days are open (days that are already scheduled will be highlighted in green). Our intention is to have at least one blog posting per day, during the business week (M-F). The more posts we have, the more exposure we receive, so please post as often as possible. Choose a day by clicking on a non highlighted work week day – this will change the date for your post – check it is correct and then hit publish. The post will then publish on the day chosen. The time has to be manually changed – it is a good idea to set the time for the morning US time.

When writing your blog post, please consider the following points:

1. Does this post give unique content to my readers?
   
2. Be sure your content is not posted in any other places. If you have contributed this information to more than one blog, please edit before publishing to make the content slightly different.
3. Does this post enhance the reader’s life in some way? Or is it just noise or fluff?
4. Is the spelling correct and does this post make sense grammatically? We have several editors who will be pleased to look over your content if you send them a personal message. You always want to put your “best foot forward” when publishing anything online. Proofread and spell-check your own posts before asking someone else to proofread them
5. What could I delete from the post to make it more concise? - Readers don’t like overly long blog posts. - They do like short sentences.
6. How could I make it easier for my readers to scan this post? Could I make my sentences or my paragraphs shorter?. It is best to divide your content into multiple postings, instead of posting one extremely long post. Readers lose interest quickly .They will probably move on to something else if your post is too long.
7. Should I use photos in my post? There is a plug-in available called Photodropper. Scroll down on the blog until you find it. This plug-in links to Flickr photos. After you install the plug-in, type in your keywords and it will find some free photos to use in your blog post. It is recommended that you use photos frequently, but don’t overdo it.
8. Think about the title of your blog: Is it engaging? Use a slightly controversial title to invite conversation and comments.
9. Should you give this post a little time to mature before posting? Perhaps you should keep this post in your draft file and read it again the next day before you publish it. Reread your post making certain that it is clear, concise and readable.
10. You may write as many posts as you would like at one time. Remember that you can schedule the day and time that you would like your post to be published. This is especially good if you know your time is limited during a particular time of the month or if you are going to be out of town and unavailable during a specific time. Write it ahead of time and it’s ready to publish on the scheduled date.
11. Have you or others written previous posts on this topic? If so, provide the links to encourage conversations going back and forth between different posts.
12. What is the main objective of this post? Have you stayed on-topic or have you moved off-topic? .You can remove the tangents and turn them into later posts. Remember that your writing style will grow with practice.
13. Remember to post consistently once a month. Please do not leave gaps between of more than a month between posts.
14. What do you want my readers to do with this post? Have you given them a call to action? Find ways to engage your reader. For example, ask questions, ask them to share their opinions or solicit comments. Read other blogs for examples of calls to action.
15. Your posts do not have to be written with SEO value in mind. If you are knowledgeable in SEO and want to be sure to include your keywords, that is wonderful, but is not necessary.
16. Do not use your blog post for self-promotion. You may certainly pick a topic that is in your area of expertise and then refer people to your website for more information. But do not use the post as an advertising medium. Be sure that your self-promotion contributes something of value, so that the readers will continue to follow you. For example, if the topic of your post is also covered in your radio show, you may invite the readers to come and listen to your radio show and give the details they need to do that. Posts should always be 90/10 - minimum 90% great content, 10% max of promotion
17. The purpose of this blog is to make our voices heard as a community. Our goal is to write about what we know and to cross-blogging with each other’s blogs.
18. Some of the questions asked in the Passions Project Room could be used as a blog post. Invite our community members to answer these questions as a way to showcase their individual expertise.
19. One day per month will be designated as “Question Day” in the Passion Project Room and these questions will be posted to the blog to be answered by any of our members knowledgeable enough to do so..
20. Occasionally a book or product review will be permitted. Reviews must be of a product/book that you really love, include what you liked about it, what you did NOT like it, and any other helpful comments. Multiple book or product reviews posted within the same month will be removed. If you are reviewing a book/ DVD, you may include your Amazon affiliate link.
21. Be sure that your posts fit into one of the categories already designated on the blog. You may write on any topic at any time, as long as it falls into one of the following categories

· Blogging (anything related to blogging);

· Finances (taxes, couponing, cost-saving ideas, etc.);

· Marketing, SEO, PR;

· Motivation, Mindset and Wellness (exercise, mental attitude, positive thinking, etc);

· Running a Home-Based Business (could include time management, organization, how to hire Vas etc);

· Social Networking;

· Techy Talk.

· Reviews