Blogging Resources

Hate the New Facebook Changes?

Were you like me, and logged onto Facebook this morning, only to see that it looked DIFFERENT? Ugh, I hate that.

I’ve come up with the theory that Facebook is trying to get rid of old people like me, so it keeps changing things up so I get confused and give up. Just sayin’.

Where are my friends??

One thing I don’t like at all is that Facebook is deciding who is most important to me, and showing me what it thinks is my “top news”- except most of those posts are from people I don’t even want to read about. Um, how is Facebook deciding this? And where are my favorite pages at? I had to scroll down three pages to get to see even ONE of my favorite blogs or pages updates. What’s that about?

Learn how to use Facebook Lists

Anyway, I read a great post today on CEO of Me, Inc. that tells you how to how to How to See Your Favorite Facebook Friends and Pages again with Lists that I thought I’d share. I hadn’t used the lists feature yet, so I’m going to try it out today, and see if I can customize this new Facebook style, and actually see stuff I’m interested in again.

She also links to the Facebook page that explains about how Facebook Lists work, if you’re like me, and kind of confused by it. I must admit, I do like the idea of putting my favorite blogs on a list, my best friends on a list, and my family on another list- so I can check in to see what my favorite people are doing.

UPDATE:

I just found another great post on the Facebook changes too- Hate the New Facebook? Here’s how to Change it Back! More great ideas on how to use the List feature to make Facebook work the way you want it to!

What do you think?

Are you using the List’s yet? Do you love/hate/feel indifferent towards the new Facebook layout? Are you going to add Sunshine and Sippy Cups to your fave list on Facebook? {Of course you are- you don’t want to miss any good stuff, right?} Do you have any great advice on getting used to this new Facebook update?

So, I guess I’ll read up on these lists, and hopefully learn from your tips– and get used to this new Facebook update just in time for them to change it all up again!

And make sure to come by and check out Sunshine and Sippy Cups on Facebook too!

Posted by Meagan Paullin on September 21, 2011 Filed Under: Reviews, Blogging Resources | 2 Comments

Sample: A FREE Child Theme for WordPress- Download Today!

Studiopress has a big announcement…

They released a new FREE Child Theme for the Genesis Framework. Quite appropriately, it’s called SAMPLE.

This will only work if you’re already on the Genesis framework, which seriously, I totally recommend. I’m LOVING the upgrade to this system- amazing.

Get a Free Download of new Sample Child Theme for Genesis today!

If you want to check out the FREE DOWNLOAD of this theme, head to the Studiopress site to read some info, or just click here to get a Demo of the new Sample Child Theme, to see what you think. If you love it, download it today!

What do you think?

Are you going to use this? Wouldn’t it be a fun one to customize? It’s actually meant specifically for bloggers, and there are a ton of really cool features in it. If you decide to download it and use it, leave me a link in a comment so I can check out your site!!

Posted by Meagan Paullin on September 21, 2011 Filed Under: Blogging Resources, Freebies | 1 Comment

Hey Review Bloggers- Check out the Reviewers Retreat 2012!

Double Duty Divas And Great Wolf Lodge are hosting the 2012 Reviewers Retreat– and you DON’T want to miss this event!

About Reviewers Retreat

The 2nd annual Reviewer’s Retreat will be held June 3-5, 2012 at Great Wolf Lodge, Concord-Charlotte, NC. Reviewer’s Retreat is first conference geared specifically toward the issues and challenges faced by bloggers in the product review genre, a topic that is lacking from most conference agendas.

Review bloggers, those who conduct product and resource reviews on their site, will converge to take part in sessions on a variety of topics including brand-blogger relations, website design, perfecting the pitch, statistics, photography and more.

This brand-friendly conference welcomes company and agency representatives as building and strengthening relationships between bloggers and brands is one of the conference’s primary goals.

Join Me At Reviewers Retreat: Click Here to Reserve YOUR Tickets Today!!

Make sure to check out Reviewers Retreat on Facebook too… You can stay updated on the event, speakers, and other fun happenings.

About Double Duty Divas

“Double Duty Divas are moms who do it all! From kids to jobs and even side businesses and blogs. If you’re a mom managing multiple endeavors, you’re a DOUBLE DUTY DIVA!”

I love being a part of the Double Duty Divas– It’s a really amazing community of bloggers! Head to their site today, and click on the Join Us tab up top to apply to become a member. They share great tips, and I learn a lot from the other members. Plus, you have access to great Review Campaigns, Blogger Blasts, and more– Lots of support to help you bring your blog to the next level!

You can find them on Facebook too!

Get your tickets at a discount!

Join me as a member of the Double Duty Divas today– And don’t forget to reserve your ticket to the Reviewers Retreat 2012 today!! I’ll see you there….

Posted by Meagan Paullin on September 5, 2011 Filed Under: Fun Stuff, Blogging Resources | 2 Comments

{Blogging Tips} Tips for Running Successful Giveaways

In the previous post, {Blogging Tips} How to Host a Giveaway, I covered some of the basics of why you should consider running giveaways on your blog, how it benefits you and your readers, and most importantly, how to connect with partners to sponsor fun prizes!

This post will go over some of the “nuts and bolts” of setting up your giveaway… How to make sure it’s fair, some tips, and how to promote it so people will find it.

Rules and Regulations:

There are a few types of rules that need to be considered when running a giveaway. One, if this is part of a product review, remember to add a disclaimer to the page, with a “received a sample product to try, but all opinions are my own” type of message. Or, if it’s simply a donated prize, I still like to add, “This giveaway is sponsored by XYZ company and the prize will be fulfilled by them,” or something of that nature.

There, there are YOUR rules. How do you want your giveaway to run? If you are the one shipping the prize, do you want it to be open to US only, or will you open it up to Canadian residents too, or even worldwide? If you’re working with a sponsor, this is an important question to ask them before posting your giveaway. It’s frustrating for a reader in Canada to read your giveaway post, and not see it listed as to whether or not it’s open to them.

So, make sure to add your rules to the giveaway post- Here is an example: “Giveaway is open to residents of US and Canada, 18+. Giveaway starts on June 22, 2010 and ends on June 30, 2010 at midnight. The winning entry will be verified. Winner will be chosen by Random.org, and will have 48 hours to respond and confirm, or an alternate will be chosen.”

You want to make sure the date is clear, because someone might stumble across an old post and not realize it’s closed. {I have dates on mine, and still have people leave entries on old giveaways!} It’s important to verify the winning entry, to make sure they followed your rules. Example, if you have a mandatory entry, did they complete it? If they say they are a facebook fan, are they? Make sure everyone plays by the rules.

Next, there are some wordpress plug-ins that you can use to choose winners, such as And the winner is…, and I may start using that. I just use Random.org, which is super simple to use. Do you have 200 entries in your giveaway? Then enter 1, and 200 in the generator box, hit “generate”, and it gives you a winning number. Find that comment, and you’ve got your lucky fan!

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How to promote your giveaway:

Running a giveaway is a lot of work, so you want to make sure that you promote it well, to maximize the benefits that both you and your sponsor will get from it.

Adding your giveaway to contest listing sites can give you a major boost! Here are a few that I use:

Online Sweepstakes: This is by far my favorite, and is always one of my #1 sources of traffic for giveaways! You have to set up an account, but it’s free and pretty simple. Online Sweepstakes Sign Up.
Prizey.net: Another site where you’ll need to set up a quick account, but very easy to use. Prizey.net Sign Up.
Contest for Moms: Submit your giveaway for a free listing in their directory, or pay for a featured listing. Contest for Moms Sign Up.
Giveaway Scout: You have to set up an account, and link back to them from your site, {by adding their button}. This site is super cool though; they automatically search all registered sites, and send out daily newsletters with new giveaways, coupons, or freebie posts. I’ve been in it many times. Giveaway Scout Sign Up.

Another great way to promote your giveaway is on blog linkys. I’m sure you’ve seen these… It’s super easy, you just go to the linky, add the direct link to your giveaway, your email, and the name of your event, and hit submit. The linky will automatically add you to it! Easy peasy.

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Some great linkys:

Ice Fairy: This is my “go-to” linky list. Check it out, Icefairy’s Master List, and you could spend all day finding new linkys. You can go straight to the sweepstakes sites to list your event, or search blog linkys by day.
Savings Lifestyle: This is another big list of blog linkys, and you can search by day. Savings Lifestyle Linky You can go to this one daily, and link up.
Brag all About it: She has a great Sunday link up! Sunday Linky.
Golden Ticket: Great low entry linky, if you have 200 entries or less. Your Golden Ticket Linky.
Mommy’s Sweeping: Another low entry linky! Momma Sweeps.

There are TONS more out there too. If you have a linky that you host on your blog, or even a favorite one that you use regularly, share the link in the comments!

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Do’s and Don’ts for Giveaways:

Ok, every time someone posts their do’s and don’ts, there is someone who disagrees. I’m ok with that. I’m just giving my opinion as someone who entered tons of blog giveaways before starting my own… The things that I love, and the things that prevented me from entering. If you have different thoughts on these, feel free to share in the comments, so people can get different views!

DO make sure that the giveaway is easy to enter. The mandatory entry should be somewhat simple, like- “Check out XYZ website and tell me another favorite product”, not, “Check out XYZ website, tell me your favorite product, then go to their Facebook page and leave them a comment and follow them on Twitter”. I’ve seen this before. It’s great to give lots of bonus entry options, but make the mandatory one simple and easy to understand.
DON’T have your CAPTCHA’s on! I’ve given up on entering in so many giveaways because I got tired of fighting with the CAPTCHA every time.
DO remind people that they should leave a NEW, seperate, comment for each new entry. One comment = One entry. Don’t leave one comment listing all of the tasks you did, or it’s just one entry. A lot of people don’t understand this.
DON’T forget to share your giveaway on your own Twitter and Facebook pages, both blog and personal!
DO give people a giveaway entry option to get a bonus entry by sharing your giveaway to their own Facebook and Twitter. This can really help get your giveaway out there quickly!
DON’T forget to pick your winner promptly when the giveaway ends, contact them right away, and ship the prize quickly. I’ve had a couple of times where life got in the way, and I shipped a prize a little late… And I hate making someone wait! So plan ahead, to make sure you give yourself time to get it wrapped up.

I’d love to hear what you guys think… And what your best tips are. Please share some of your thoughts in the comments: Is there something that stops you from entering giveaways, or something you find confusing? Do you agree/disagree with my list? Do you have a tip that you’ve found to be super helpful?

Also… RAFFLECOPTER. This is the hot new thing in giveaways right now. I don’t have much to share, except that like most of you, I love it, and it makes me MUCH more likely to do the bonus entries in a giveaway. So much faster and easier. I just got an account with them, and will be using it for the first time very soon…. Until then, I’d love to hear feedback from those of you who ARE using it: Have you had any problems with it? Is it easy on the bloggers side too? Any tips?

Thanks for reading, and I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

{Blogging Tips} How to Host a Giveaway

Hosting giveaways is a LOT of work, {I never realized back in my pre-blog days how much work went into it} but, for me, it’s one of the most fun parts of the job! I love, love, LOVE being able to send out an email to a fan, telling them that they will be getting a super cool prize, and it’s great to get those “Thank you” emails back after they’ve received it too.

One of my first giveaways...

What are the benefits of hosting a giveaway?

Maybe you’re thinking, “Ok, Meagan, you just said that putting together a giveaway is a ton of work. Why would I even want to do one then?” Fair question, right? Here are some of the many benefits you get:

It is a GREAT way to meet new faces! Linking up your giveaway on a bunch of sites will help to drive some new traffic your way, which is a goal that most of us have.
It can help you grow your social networks. Allowing people to get bonus entries for following you on Twitter and Facebook is a really great way to gain new fans!
It can help you with your stats. A giveaway boosts your traffic, meaning lots more visitors to your site. You often gets loads of people sharing your link on other networks, to share the giveaway with their friends. That means more faces seeing your link, and more links in can help your stats a ton! I went from a page rank of 0, to a 3 {woah!!} after joining in the super fun Blog Hop 2011 last month!
You can build great partnerships with brands and other bloggers. Brands love giveaways, since it’s an easy way for them to get a ton of positive exposure, and gain new followers, without much work on their part. And it can be the start to a long-term relationship {that sounds like you’re dating, I know…} with the brand, which can be really beneficial to you and your blogging goals. Plus, meeting other bloggers during link-ups or blog hop events can lead to some great new ideas and networking!

How to Partner with Sponsors

So, now you realize, “Hey, a giveaway DOES sound like a great idea for my blog! But where the heck will I get a prize from?” Well, you have many options…

Supply the prize yourself. Yep, spend your OWN money, and put together a fun prize for your fans. I did this with bunches of my prizes in the beginning. I was lucky to have been a giveaway junkie, and had a few cool {but un-needed} prizes that I could give away. The rest I bought myself.
Approach someone directly. There are tons of Etsy shop owners looking for a way to promote themselves, and I know a lot of my friends have said that they are nervous to approach a blogger about a giveaway… So reach out to some of your favorite shops and see if they’re interested! Once you’ve got a little bit of experience hosting giveaways, you can contact bigger companies too, and see if they may be interested in partnering with you.
Join some great networks! I am a member of a TON of blog networks, and I learn so much from them. Many of these networks share cool new opportunties for reviews and giveaway with their members- You find the ones that would be a good fit for you and your readers, and apply for it. Then, the company will contact you directly if they’re interested. Love it.

Great Blogging Networks to Join

It’s been a while since I signed up on most of these sites… I remember quite a few asking if someone refered you to them, and some of these sites have an approval process before you’re accepted. Feel free to mention that you learned about them here if you want to. {Also, because I didn’t know this before… Right click the link to each network, and it’ll pop it open in a new window. That way you can keep this original list to come back to, and check out all of the sites. I can’t believe that I just learned this, so sharing in case someone else can use a new tip too.}

GiveawayBlogs: A new network that I LOVE… and NOT just because I won a Wii in one of their awesome giveaways. {but it did make me love them more :)} They connect business with bloggers, and help you find great giveaway opps! Sign up here.
Blogaholic Network: They have a great group you can join and connect with sponsors. Check them out, Blogaholic Network Sign Up.
Broadcast Bloggers: Sign up here, and start finding new opportunties. Tons of stuff here to check out, you’ll love it.
Mom Spark Media: You have to pay for a subscription to join Mom Spark Media; You can sign up here. It’s totally worth it! I love getting notified when new members join, so if you’d like, you can use the code: SUNSHINEANDSIPPYCUPS in the referral box. They give you access to paid post and guest post opp’s, new review and giveaways to host, live chats and webinars, and more.
One2One Network: “O2O member bloggers have the opportunity to get a ‘first look’ at our clients’ latest offerings, review cool new products, provide readers with discounts and the for the business minded, an opportunity to build their brand engagement resume.” Sign up here.
MamaBuzz: Helps you find new review opp’s! Sign up.
Bloggerdise: Sign up here, and once you’re set up you can choose the offers you want. Easy to use!
The Brand Buzz Network: I don’t have too much to say about this one, since I haven’t used them much. Which reminds me that I should take the time to check it out better, lol. Sign up here.
Mom Bloggers Club: SO MUCH great info on this site. You will love it. Join here.

Now you’ve got a prize, and now how fun and effective a giveaway can be for your blog, your readers, and your stats…. Next you’ve got to learn the basics of setting it up, how to ensure the winner is picked in a way that is fair, some tips, and most important- How to promote it so people will find it! I’ll cover all of these in the next post… I’ll get it finished up first thing in the morning to share!

{Blogging Tips} Earning an income with your blog- Part 1

There are tons of ways to earn an income from your blog, if that is one of your goals. For me, my blog started out as a fun way for me to share all of my tips on getting daily freebies, finding sweet deals, and winning giveaways. But when I lost my job, I decided to focus on the blog as a business, and see if it could help me stay home longer with my new baby girl while still paying the bills.

Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate Marketing is when you are compensated by a company for promoting their business. There are tons of different ways that this can work.

Click here to view a larger version.

[Image provided courtesy of the Sugarrae affiliate marketing blog.]

Direct affiliate relationships with companies: Some companies let you sign up {often through an affiliate management site} to promote their store or site directly, and you earn a percentage of sales on every purchase that someone makes, if they arrive at the site from one of your affiliate links.
Finding Partners: A great way to find new affiliate partnerships is to check out some sites for companies that you already love, and look down at the very bottom for something that says Affiliate Sign Up. That will either bring you directly to an application, or most likely, to a management company like Revenue Curve, Commission Junction, Pepperjam Network, or one of the million other sites out there.
Not for Newbies: I signed up for a few of these when I was a brand new blogger, but I don’t advise doing this until you’ve had your blog for at least 6 months. After you sign up and are approved for a site like Commission Junction, you get to choose companies to partner with, and you apply for that opportunity. Many of the companies I liked didn’t accept me because I was so new. Plus, most of these sites require you to reach $100 in revenue before you can cash out, which is really discouraging when you’re brand new. Most of these partnerships only pay you when someone makes a purchase, which is good and bad. Good = You can earn some big profits when you use this type of affiliate relationship effectively. Bad = If you have really low traffic, it’s going to take a long time to earn enough to cash out.

Great Options for New Bloggers:

Here are some of the sites that worked really great for me right away, and that I’m still using today to share quality content, deals, and sites, while also earning some income. Amazon pays you a small percent of anything purchased through one of their links, but since they have such great deals and huge selection, it’s an easy way to find great things to promote.

The other three affiliate programs work very similar; you choose an offer, post the graphic or link to your site, and earn money either when someone clicks on it, or when they sign up for a cool offer you’ve shared. Easy peasy!

Amazon: Learn more about their easy to use program, and sign up as an affiliate, Amazon Sign Up.
MySavings Media: Promote brand name coupons and free product samples on your web site or blog. Great selection of offers and companies to promote. Click Here.
Escalate Media: Very user friendly, with amazing service and support. I participated in one of their live webinars/chats, and it was super helpful. Sign Up here.
Logical Media: Get $25 free in your account when joining through this referral link. Click Here.

Tips for Affiliate Marketing

There are a million places to learn some great tips for maximizing your affiliate earnings; check out some sites like Copyblogger, Savvy Blogging, and Blogelina are some of my favorite resources for blogging tips and great info.

Here are my best tips for getting started with affiliate marketing:

Promotion tips: Only promote a service/offer/company that you would use yourself. You want to be promoting things that you already love, and new things that you find that YOU want to use too, and not spreading around a bunch of random offers just to make some cash. If I read a blog, and they start promoting offers that are sorta spammy, or start posting about companies that aren’t at all relevant to me, I’ll stop following them. You’re FIRST focus is sharing quality content. Find affiliates that can help add to that, and you’ll make your readers happy! Reading about a hair club for men? Not helpful to me. Reading about a really awesome sale on Diapers from Amazon? Very helpful :)
Use ’em yourself: If you use sites like Escalate or MySavings, sign up for the sites that you share with your readers! Example: I only promote survey sites that I personally use, so that I know they’re legit. I would NEVER promote something to my readers that I don’t know much about. Once in a while I come across something that looks cool, so I share before I fully check it out… Big mistake. I once shared what LOOKED like a cool giveaway, but once I tried to enter it, I realized it was FILLED with spammy offers! Yuck.
Always remember… The offers should be providing a benefit to your readers! Ask yourself, “Why am I sharing this link?” Is it a cool brand or product that you think your readers would love learning about? A great sale, or cool freebie site? Make sure you are sharing because your readers will benefit, not because you might make some money. {I mean, obviously earning an income is your goal. Just make sure to do it the right way, you know?}

Ok, so all three of those tips are kind of similar, but good stuff to keep in mind!

Ad Networks:

You can also set up an account with an ad network like Google Adsense, to earn some income on your blog. This can be a pretty easy way to earn, since you usually just set up these ad’s in your header, footer, or sidebar, and then earn money per click or action taken by the reader. It’s the same idea as affiliate marketing, except that you’re not choosing the ads or companies, the ad network chooses for you.

Google Adsense: Get started with an account here- Adsense Sign Up.

BlogHer Ad Network: I haven’t used them yet, since they are not accepting blogs in my category right now. But I’ve heard really great things about them. BlogHer Ads.

Federated Media: I haven’t used this yet, but I’ve heard good things about it. You can sign up here and learn more about how it works.

Sell Your Own Ads!

A lot of bloggers also sell their own ad space, and this is a great option to consider. I plan to start offering paid ad space soon, {I’m in the process of getting a whole blog redesign done by Angie over at Strosgirl Designs, and am waiting until I get the new site launched!}

Selling your own ad space can be a great way to earn some consistent revenue, but has some challenges too. You need to decide how much to charge, what size of ad space to offer, and what the terms will be. This is something that will be TOTALLY different for every blog, and every blogger. The best tip to help you figure it out is… How much value do you think you can provide to the person who buys that ad space? What would YOU pay for that same space on someone elses blog? This will help you determine not how much you can get, but how much is FAIR to charge.

Conclusion:

Adding some affiliate marketing or ad space can be a really simple way to start earning revenue from your blog; it can also be a way to earn a real income once you gain some traffic! The options are endless… You can start with a service like Escalate Media that is super user friendly and easy to get started with, or use a site like Commission Junction to partner with some top brands. Every blog is different, and will have different goals, so check out a few places to find the best fit for you!

Time to share!

I’d love to hear what networks you guys use, who you’re happy with, who you think could use improvement…. Do you sell your own ad space? What advice do you have to share? Lets get some chat going on in the comments section! I love learning from other bloggers :) And if you know someone else that could benefit from this series, feel free to use the share buttons to add this to facebook or twitter.