Eat Blog Talk

Hashtag Jeff joins us in this episode to impart knowledge on the topic of SEO. He covers a broad range of topics that fall under the umbrella of SEO. - When to update content and when not to update content. And why you should stop fearing the Google recrawls (and Google in general)! - How and where to do keyword research and how to manage your titles and headings. - Best practices for using Yoast. - An overview of using Categories in Wordpress. See? Tons of great topics covered! See you inside!

This popular EBT replay dives into how to work with, approach, pitch and negotiate with brands you know and love. - Employ Alyssa Brantley's tactic known as the Pantry Pitch to figure out which brands to reach out to! - Learn how to find a brand's contact info and know you are talking to the right person. - Stay on top of your deliverables and contract terms in order to develop long-term partnerships. - Do the work for the brand! Make their job easier to make yourself more appealing.

Join us in this compilation of audio clips from previous EBT episodes where a handful of guests (Jena Carlin, Alyssa Brantley, Kelly McNelis and more!) take a deep dive into the many ways food bloggers can monetize their businesses. - Working with brands is a great way to connect with your audience! - Contributing content to other bloggers' sites is a way to earn money. - Learn the SECRET about how to make money through ebook sales. - Start hosting virtual cooking classes today! - And more!

Pinterest is a super important platform for food bloggers to be on. It provides so much opportunity for traffic and therefore revenue. Melissa works for Tailwind and has insider information about how food bloggers can make the most of Pinterest. - What the new Pinterest algorithm changes are all about. - How to adapt to the seemingly constant changes as a blogger. - Tools, tips and advice about how to grow while also preserving precious time and energy. - So much more inside, so be sure to listen in!

This episode is PACKED with inspiring nuggets, including stories about Candice's incredible adventure around the world and how it impacted her life and inspired her to become a food blogger. - Start planning your next big adventure NOW (it's the perfect time!). - Food blogging, travel and enjoying food all fit together perfectly. so get out there and explore. No more excuses! - Candice's stories & words of encouragement will get you excited about delivering new adventures and foods to your audience.

One of the biggest road blocks that can hinder us from success and happiness is tossing all of that mental garbage around in our minds. There are actionable steps you can take to STOP the garbage and get on with creating the life and business of your dreams. Jenny Melrose gives us her very best advice on this topic: - Guess what! You actually DO have the time. - You are not an imposter. - Negative self talk will only hold you back. - Fail forward! - And so many more great nuggets of wisdom!

Earning revenue through display advertising can be a lucrative monetization option for food bloggers. Megan Tenney from AdThrive talks directly to food bloggers who aim to earn money in this way. Listen in for some great tips! - WHY you should consider running ads, even if you're earning revenue through other means - Benefits of partnering with an ad management company - Minimum requirements for application approval - Tips for getting your page views up so this can be a revenue option for you

Self care plays a vital role in your food blogging journey because the better you are taking care of yourself, THE MORE SUCCESSFUL YOUR BUSINESS WILL BE! The more creativity will flow through your content. The more money you will make. The clearer your visions will be and the more productive you will be. In this episode we cover 20 ways you can start practicing self love: - Schedule self care into your weekly calendar - Time management - Declutter - Remove unnecessary resistance - And more!

If you find yourself overwhelmed by the process of creating a blog on Wordpress, this episode is for you! This is part 2 of 2 on the topic. Inside part 2 you will learn: - How to optimize blog posts for search engines - How to incorporate your primary keyphrase into your post - How to submit each post to Google - Best practices for tracking the performance of each post And more!

Self-publishing a cookbook is not as daunting a task as you might think! Jason talks us through the easy steps involved so you can get started TODAY. He has self-published 14 books of his own and has generated a healthy income from doing so. He shares so much value in this episode: - Determine goals, consider audience and also your niche. - How many recipes, page size, how to create the book and where to send it for print-on-demand services. - Pricing, launching successfully and more!

If you find yourself overwhelmed by the process of creating a blog on Wordpress, this episode is for you! This is part 1 of 2 on the topic. Inside part 1 you will learn: - Where and how to purchase a domain and find reputable hosting - Which theme to use - The difference between pages and posts - How to set up categories - Which plugins are most important And more!

Interactive virtual events are HUGE right now and we've been pulled into this new format because of everything that has transpired in 2020. There is so much opportunity for food bloggers to tap into this new format of connecting with their audiences. - Virtual interactive events have evolved quickly, so dive in while this is a relatively new(ish) concept. - Test out the waters on a small scale and grow if it is a good fit for your brand. - Opportunity for adding a revenue stream to your business!

Search Engine Optimization is a biggie for food bloggers! Whether you are just starting to educate yourself about SEO or you've been in the game a while, this episode will shed light on the hot topic! - How to strategize through keyword research. - Optimization through headers and titles. - Keep your user on your site as long as possible! - External linking, featured snippets and so much more!

Don't get caught up in the month to month changes within Pinterest. Employ the tips inside this episode to help your Pinterest account gain momentum that will never go away: - Mouth-watering food photography is a Pinterest necessity (THE most important tip of all!) - Utilize the new features (even when you don't want to). - Be consistent, be consistent, be consistent. - There's so much to experiment with inside the platform, so EXPERIMENT! - And more!

Creating recipe videos does not have to be a daunting task! Lindsay brings to this episode reasons WHY food bloggers should be creating videos. She also talks through HOW to make it happen easily and with little to no stress. - Don't disrupt your routine! Incorporate video creation into your recipe creation and photography workflow. - First determine which style of video suits you best. - Find out the equipment you need to accomplish your video goals. - Learn your keyboard shortcuts in order to cut down on editing time.

The online world is FILLED with noise and it can come in the form of social media, competition, constant changes and even help for your business. Join us in this episode to get Madison's best advice about how to filter out the noise. - What do you truly enjoy and what you are good at? - Discover what the number one best monetization model is for your blog. - Attend Madison's FREE summit for food bloggers that will help you find clarity and sort through all of the noise.

This episode is jam-packed with encouraging nuggets about how to find what YOUR things are and how to stay focused on them in order to run a super streamlined business. Dawn brings such an inspiring story to the table! - Imposter syndrome is normal, but don't give into it! - Figure out who your people are, what they want from you and most importantly figure out who YOU are as a brand and a content creator and stay true to that. - Manage your time and be as efficient as possible in order to get everything done that needs to get done. Especially if you are over 40, you are going to love this episode!

Pinterest is HUGE for food bloggers! Kate takes us through some key points to keep in mind when we prepare to send our content through the world of Pinterest: - Know your audience! This holds true on Pinterest, as well! - Pin guidelines are important to keep in mind: image size, what text to include and which photos to use. - It is worthwhile to do testing to find out which styles your audience likes most from you. - Create the perfect description and now we can include post titles! - Video tips included!

As Executive Director of Freelancers Union, Rafael Espinal is a huge supporter and advocate of freelancers. Listen to this episode to hear: - Information about just how important freelancers are to the U.S. - Potential threats that could impact freelancers negatively. - What we can do to make a difference!

Cleaning up your website will increase organic traffic and it will make your content more user-friendly. Join us in this episode to get your wheels turning. We talk about six ways you can get started with blog tidying today! - Take inventory: Recycle and delete. - Update your About and Home pages. - Clean up your top content. - Perform plugin cleanup. - And more!

In this episode Karista talks us through her journey of leaning into her intuition and experience to know what next step she needs to take. One project led to the next and this has continued until she found her true passion, which is writing cookbooks. Learn how you can do this, too! Find that next big thing that is going to fill you up. - Learn how to navigate those tasks you don't love. - Find out how to get started on those big passion projects (because getting started is the toughest part!).

*Episode content warning: talk of abuse and divorce.* Marye overcame an unexpected life event with a pivot that set the last half of her life up for success and fulfillment. This episode is filled with inspiration and encouragement so you can do the same. - Your mindset and thoughts determine so much of your success. - When we stop growing, we start dying. Get out there and live because there is ALWAYS a way to find happiness and success. - Instead of investing in courses, invest in community and mastermind groups. Nothing can benefit you more than this!

Gift guides are a great way to connect with your audience. Listen to this episode for tips about how to tap into gift guides as an additional stream of revenue. - Think about items you love, that fit your brand and that your audience will devour. - Consider product photo permissions before getting started. - Amazon Influencers is a program that eliminates the hassle involved with photo permissions. - Publish them well in advance of the holiday in order to give people ample time to shop!

Jen Lefforge grew her two YouTube channels to over 20K subscribers in just two years. She embraces being over 40 and forging ahead into her passions with energy and positivity. This episode will bring inspiration your way! - There's room for everyone so start your YouTube channel today! - No matter your age, people are seeking safety, comfort and a sense of HOME right now. - Use decent thumbnails, work on your presentation style, be patient and most importantly.. GET STARTED!

Consider creating a membership site to diversify your audience and revenue streams. Your people want YOU, they want exclusive value and they are willing to invest in those things. In this episode Megan and Bethany talk through their experience developing a membership site and what they have learned. - Why you should do it and ideas for getting started. - Things to think through before starting. - Where to put your focus when you're just starting out. - HOW to make it happen: tech, marketing and more!

This EBT replay is with Alida from Simply Delicious. She talks about how planning and scheduling has allowed her to get content up on the blog 7 days/week (yep!). Her secrets will help YOU open up space for so many things! - Start out small, if needed, but work toward saving up a "bank" of content. - Push yourself to create more, but have grace when you don't quite live up to what your calendar asks of you. - Set goals and work backwards, figuring out smaller steps that will get you to those goals.

Working with brands does not look the same in 2020 as it has in previous years, so tune into this episode to hear expert advice from a food blogger who works with many brands. Maria's words will encourage and motivate you to get the most out of Q4 and beyond. - "Think quarterly" is one of Maria's mottos. - Listen in for ideas about types of brands and products that will likely rise in popularity in Q4. - Deliver the content your audience loves, while keeping the current situation in mind.

Alexandria is the content creator at ForeignFork.com and her journey is an adventurous one! She is cooking and eating her way through every country in the world, from A to Z. - Enjoy flavors from all over the world while avoiding cultural appropriation as a food blogger. - How to recreate recipes from other cultures as authentically as possible. - Other cultures honor their food differently than in America, so remember this as you reply to people. Alexandria's passion project will inspire you!

Join us in this compilation of audio clips from previous EBT episodes where a handful of guests (Abbey Rodriguez, Jessica Gavin and more!) talk about the importance of community, accountability and masterminds. - It is IMPERATIVE to network in order to find food blogging success. - Being in mastermind groups and getting advice from other entrepreneurs is vital. - Inside this compilation you'll hear a handful of food bloggers talk about how being connected helped launch them into success.

If you are tired of the stress revolving around finding predictable revenue, this episode is for you! Here are a few ideas for diversifying your revenue streams: - Ad revenue is a no-brainer once you have enough page views to work with a reputable ad network. - Ebooks, courses and affiliate marketing are great ways to earn passive income. - Use email marketing to deliver your products to your audience! - Sponsored work with brands, contributorships and more ideas are waiting for you inside the episode!

Russ and Natalie Monson, the founders of the Prepear platform, have a great alternate solution for creating digital ebooks, which can be a lucrative additional stream of revenue. There are benefits for both food bloggers and users: - Simple, quick ebook creation! - Marketing included, so not as much legwork for food bloggers. - Better experience for the end user. - All the different parts of creating a digital book in one convenient place.

Being able to define your brand and tell your story in an authentic way is extremely important for food bloggers. But how easy is it to do?! Beth Taubner from Mercurylab talks us through points that make it much less daunting. Inside the episode you'll hear about: - The importance of defining your brand in a really authentic way. - Exercises you can dig into TODAY that will help you dig deep and understand your brand in a new way. - How to tell your story through photography and motion.

Kristie Hill is a Pinterest expert and she joins us in this episode to share all her insightful knowledge about the powerhouse platform. Food bloggers will find massive amounts of value inside! Kristie answers the following questions plus so many more! - How many pins should I post daily? - How can I refresh old pins to make them more appealing? - Is Tailwind worthwhile? - Are video and story pins worth my time? - How do I know which boards to pin to? - How much of my own content vs. others' content should I pin? This episode is PACKED with value! See you inside!

Food blogging is an intense job that never sleeps, which is why it is so important to step away for extended breaks. In this episode Megan shares about her own experience taking time off, how it has positively impacted her business (as well as happiness and productivity!) and also how YOU can do it, too! - Be prepared for work/tech detox! - Doing this will help you give up control and let creativity flow. - See time away from work as an opportunity to form new habits. - Learn the steps you need to take to make this happen for your own business! It's worth it!

Finding quality, reliable freelancers can be a struggle for food bloggers, but it doesn't have to be! Listen to this episode to get Emily's incredible tips. - Think of hiring freelancers like it is a marketing campaign! - Remember that the best freelancers are very selective about what they are looking for. - Very clearly define the person you are looking for to fulfill the role. - Emily has FIVE secret and incredible questions to keep in mind as you develop your next job posting!

Food bloggers NEED community and connections in order to find success in their businesses! We are launching the Eat Blog Talk community platform on 8/11/20 to help you get past the loneliness, isolation and overwhelmedness. - Join us in the community for access to mastermind groups, challenges, resources/service provider directory, exclusive podcast episodes, AMAs and more! - Join during our launch period in order to take advantage of special bonuses and discounts. There is such a huge need for food bloggers to feel connected within a community because without connections, it is really hard to make progress. This platform is going to fill that connection piece of the puzzle and it is packed with value and other awesomeness. OUR MAIN FOCUS: Helping YOU go from feeling lonely and overwhelmed to connected and confident.

Tajda gives food bloggers so many great ideas for ways to turn food photography into a profitable business, in addition to capturing food blogging photos. -When exploring new avenues for revenue with photography, create a separate website. -Reviews and testimonials are important when branching out. -Take advantage of all of the free information available to grow and learn. -Other options for photography: restaurants, stock imagery, mentoring, create courses, product photography.

Kristen grew her blog very quickly and with very basic, affordable (or free!) methods and resources. Let's learn from her! - There are so many free options available for creating and supporting content creation. Kristen has a long, helpful list for you! - Tips on how to grow Pinterest and your blog traffic organically. - Always keep your user in mind. This is the basis for everything and magic comes from this simple principle! - Gratitude and audience are everything.

Yumna has a MAGIC when it comes to growing an audience quickly on any platform. Within the episode, she gives us her secrets and also talks about why food bloggers should be on TikTok. -Getting people to truly CONSUME our content is key for massive growth on all platforms. -Think through to completion and be YOU as much as possible. -Do the work + have a positive mindset = success -Listen in to hear why Yumna believes content creators should be on TikTok specifically!

Timothy Ferriss packs value in his book The 4-Hour Work Week. Megan talks through her favorite 7 lessons gleaned from this classic business book that can help you to achieve greater success in your business: - Work less, earn more! - It's not about the money. It's about fulfilled desires. - Stop being a slave to email. - Try going on a low-information diet. - Outsourcing is life-changing. - Focus on the 20%. - You fill the amount of time designated for any given task.

Challenges are such a great way to build connection and trust with your audience. Denise tells us why and also how to do this. - Consider running a short, free challenge to start. - This is a great way to give your audience a built-in community. - One to two weeks is a good challenge length. - Test different topics with different times of the year to see what works best with your people. - Keep it simple and don't focus too much on the numbers. - This is a great way to establish yourself as an expert and build trust with your audience.

Your email list needs your attention! There is so much value in nurturing your email subscribers and Matt Molen tells us both WHY and HOW to do it. - Your email list is an insurance policy against algorithm changes. - A thriving email list gives you a valuable way to engage with readers and also build your brand. - Matt talks through the EASY process of creating a quick start guide so you can deliver value to your readers TODAY.-Having a thriving email list gives you a valuable way to engage with readers and also build your brand. - Deliver value to your people by offering an opt-in they actually want. Quick start guides are a great way to do this. - Matt talks through the EASY process of creating a quick start guide so you can get started with this today. - You do not want to ignore this part of your business!

Micro-influencer programs provide a great way for bloggers to network and also to nurture their businesses. Alexis Watts from SideChef talks about why this is something that should be on your radar as a food blogger. -Micro-influencer programs allow us to lean on others' partnerships, resources and knowledge. -This is also a great way to network with like-minded entrepreneurs. -These programs can help bloggers grow more quickly, find partnerships and have access to educational resources. Tune in to hear all the information Alexis has to offer!

Food photography is an ART! There are many ways to hone your skills in order to tell a more complete story about the food you're capturing. Jena talks us through a few GREAT tips and tricks: - Consider photographing a few weddings! This will immediately make you a better photographer and business owner. - Practice practice practice (then practice some more)! - Surround yourself with people who can teach you and encourage you. Networking is such a huge part of the equation. - Jena also gives advice for monetizing food photography!

Tasty style videos (aka "hands in pans" style) are still important for your food blogging business! Join us in this episode to get the HOWs and WHYs. - Tips about how to start making Tasty style videos. - How to monetize. - Be entertaining in order to stand out! - Use the "see and smell" concept to make your videos more appealing.

There are many business books available that contain a ton of helpful information and insights. There is no reason not to dig into a few new books that will help you grow your business. Here is a small sampling of our favorites: - Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller - Launch by Jeff Walker - The 4 Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss - The 12 Week Year by Brian P. Moran - Atomic Habits by James Clear - The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron We have 40 total recommendations for you so listen in!

Making our blogs, social channels and videos more accessible is a hot topic and for good reason. Join us inside the episode to hear a user experience design expert talk about how to make your content more accessible. - Bethany talks about the background of web accessibility and why it is important and relevant. - Add alt text to all blog images. - Jump to recipe buttons are a must! - Videos should be captioned. - Consider adding alt text to photos on social media, as well. There's so much more information waiting for you in the episode!

Having a sustainable blog and business is so important right now! Laurie from Cook It Media joins us in the episode to help us figure out ways to stay relevant and sustainable. - Laurie defines what is required to be a successful blogger now and what the future holds. - Strategy is so important and understanding your brand story is crucial. - How influencers can better understand and grow their target audience. - Advice for influencers on how to build a solid content strategy.

If you have ever considered creating an ebook, this episode is a must-listen! Kelly's story with creating successful ebooks as a way to create a lucrative passive income stream is inspiring. Her goal: work less and make more $. - Do not wait until you are an expert. Get started NOW! - Find a topic by asking your audience what they want. Kelly has a specific strategy for this part of the process! - Kelly provides all the details, from pricing to length to marketing tactics and more!

Data is our world! As content creators we need to protect our data by storing and backing it up efficiently and regularly. Here are a few pointers from the episode, but be sure to listen for more! - Get AppleCare+ or other warranty for every laptop you purchase. - Business insurance policies can save you if equipment is lost, damaged or stolen. - Utilize the cloud as much as possible. - Use a combination of external hard drives and cloud backup services for properly backing up your data.