11 Blogging Questions and Amazing Answers

by Mavis Nong on October 5, 2011

Last night, I was invited to share my blogging secrets on a live webshow, hosted by my good friends, Chris and Susan Beesley.

Unfortunately, it didn’t go as planned – yes, things happen. We had a technical problem with the headphone/webcam – there was no sound at all from my end.

Anyway, the show had to go on. The audience was great and very patient.

It’s not all lost though, my blogging slot will be re-scheduled. Keep your eyes peeled!

Chris and Susan ended up taking some blogging questions which I’ll be answering in this post.

Read on, as you never know what you don’t know.

1. How many views do you get each day/month/year and is there a way of tracking this information?

I use Google Analytics to track my blog’s performance and stats.

As the old saying goes: “A picture is worth a thousand words.”

Here’s the screenshot of my pageviews for 4 September to 4 October 2011:

2. Is WordPress the best platform to use?

WordPress is a well-established blogging platform and has the best support team as well as help sections. Very easy to install, configure and work on.

Check out more reasons why you should choose WordPress:

3. Where do you get content for your blog posts?

I go out there and see what people are talking about and what problems they have:

Visiting internet/network marketing forums such as Betternetworker andWarriorForum. Checking out the questions and discussions and turn them into ideas that I can write about.
Visiting popular article directories like EzineArticles, Articlesbase, GoArticlesetc, to see what people write about.
Paying attention to questions and what people talk about on social media sites.Twitter has a “search” option which you can use for any keyword in your niche to check out conversations and gather ideas.
Following blogs in my niche to see the kind of content they produce. I also pick up ideas from the comments and turn them into posts. I tend to notice poor blogging practices when I visit different blogs, then I write about them and provide solutions.
Using Google’s free tools such as “Alerts”. I set the keyword(s) and get email notifications of stuff that Google picks up around my keyword(s).

4. Can I sell stuff in my blog posts?

Absolutely! The key is to do it the right way without ticking your readers off.

You can write reviews on other products or promote yours. See how I do this successfully:

5. How do you promote your blog?

I share the exact strategies that I use to promote my blog posts and drive a surge of traffic back to my blog, in my blogging courses.

Here are some of the strategies that I use:

Social media sites, namely Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin.
Smaller and more personal niche bookmarking sites such as Blokube, Blog Interact and so on.
Broadcasting my new posts to my list as part of sharing value with my subscribers.
Commenting on the other blogs in my niche.
Content syndication as a great way to create quality backlinks to my blog.

6. Where do you get images to put in your blog posts and is it ok to get them from Google?

Picsearch.com
Istockimages.com
DumbJerks.com
ICanHasCheezBurger.com

You should always check the rules regarding publishing images on your blog. Some of them require permission or their link in your post or payment beforehand. Others have no restrictions at all, so you can use them freely.

I don’t use the Google images because of the copyright issues.

I love using funny and unusual images to create curiosity. You want people to look at the image and wonder what the post is all about

7. How do you get traffic to your blog?

I use the same strategies as shared above. See #5.

8. What services do you use to get your blog out there, pinging sites etc?

If you have a WordPress blog, pinging content gets done for you automatically. I bet you didn’t even know that. This is really good as we’re all busy and we love automated stuff, right?

But the problem is, WordPress also pings whenever you edit and update any existing post.

So, if you edit a post 10 times then WordPress will send 10 pings. It doesn’t matter how small or big a change you make, WordPress always pings whenever you edit.

And, you don’t want that, because if you edit your blog a lot then your blog will be banned from pinging services because of excessive pinging.

See how to solve this WordPress pinging system and grab my pinging sites list.

9. What anti spam service would you use for comments?

I used to get countless spam comments every single day. Thankfully, some of them used to get caught by Akismet and were not showing up on my blog.

However, some of my regular commenters were getting flagged by Akismet as spammers and I just hated spending a lot of time deleting the spam comments and retrieving the genuine comments.

I then came across a great plugin called GrowMap Anti-Spambot Plugin and installed it right away. I went from hundreds of spam comments a day to a handful. And, I ditched Akismet for good!

The good news is, CommentLuv Premium comes with 8 plugins including the GrowMap Anti-Spambot plugin. Talk about killing 8 birds with one stone!

10. How do you deal with comments – do you answer them?

Yes, I answer every single comment on my blog. See for yourself:

I went from zero comments to over 10,000 in just a few months!

I’m very busy, however, I create time to interact with my readers…

I treat new comments on my blog like new emails. If you keep checking and replying to your emails every 5 minutes, then you’re not going to be productive, are you?

So, I have two slots (30 minutes each) in a day – in the morning and afternoon to reply to my readers’ comments and it works very well for me. Sometimes it takes less than 3o minutes to do that.

11. How do you get a thumbnail for your blog post when you share on Facebook instead of this ugly blue gravatar thing?

The one mistake that many people make when sharing the links to their posts on Facebook, is to use images that are not related to the posts e.g. banners extracted from their blogs, gravatars etc.

They are not appealing and enticing to your audience.

As you can see from the image above, you need to choose the right thumbnail by using the arrows. In this case, I have a choice of 21 thumbnails including the other images on my blog.

If you don’t have a suitable image, then tick the box (No Thumbnail).

Many Thanks

I would like to thank Chris and Susan Beesley for giving me the opportunity to answer these blogging questions.

If you want to participate in their weekly live webshow and learn how you can take your business to the next level of success, then join us for free!

Want to Learn More About Blogging?

If you want to learn more about successful blogging and how you too can create an amazing blog just like mine, be sure to check out my blogging courses.

See you on the live show next Tuesday!

To Your Blogging Success,

“Like” Me on Facebook

Tagged as: blogging questions, blogging secrets, blogging success, how to blog, successful blogging

This Post Brought To You By Mavis Nong

Mavis Nong is the creator and author of Attraction Marketing Online. She is on a mission to help you to add the key ingredients for success in your business with her "Online Marketing Success Formula" report. Get it NOW!

Facebook comments:

{ 65 comments… read them below or add one }

Dennis October 5, 2011 at 2:46 PM

As i was going through your interview with Chris and Susan Beesley, I came across a point that “Is WordPress the best platform to use?” in same way or other, it made me to think then what about Blogger and TypePad service…? No doubt that Wordpress is a great site for hosting your blog but i would like to know what do you feel about Blogger?
As well as i would like to know that if Wordpress sends a ping whenever you update or edit your blog, does Blogger do same?

many thanks for sharing such valuable information…

Mavis Nong October 7, 2011 at 11:24 AM: I’m not familiar with those blogging platforms.

Reply

Lu Pupko October 5, 2011 at 2:58 PM

Hey, Mavic. Thanks for sharing this value info with us….
And about pinging… We can stop pings to respond when we adding our posts after we submit it.
In this post I share a plugin you can use to prevent pinging in the future.

http://workwithlu.com/2011/07/link-building-tips-for-newbies/

Mavis Nong October 5, 2011 at 3:44 PM

Thanks, Lu. How does it compare with the one I recommended here: http://www.attractionmarketingonline.com/pinging-content/

Lu Pupko October 7, 2011 at 7:04 AM

Thanks for sharing this, Mavis.. Really cool info. I got more pings now thanks.
Lu Pupko invites you to check..7 Fatal Mistakes In Network Marketing

Mavis Nong October 7, 2011 at 11:06 AM: You’re welcome, Lu.

Reply

Radu October 5, 2011 at 5:01 PM

Hey Mavis,
Wonderful info here. You provide value like crazy everyday. #6 is a very helpful suggestion. I used to dw my images from google or freedigitalphotos.net. So, your resources are very welcome
I had the same issue with Akismet until I discovered GASP. Great plugin.
Thanks for all the suggestions and also for the tips in your blogging ebook. Many gold nuggets there:)

Wish you a great day,
Radu
Radu invites you to check..How to increase your productivity online

Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 3:54 PM: You’re welcome, Radu. Glad to hear that you find my tips helpful

All the best,
Mavis
Mavis Nong invites you to check..Blog Post Writing – How to Write Content That Grabs Your Reader’s Attention

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Aarti October 5, 2011 at 6:04 PM

These are basic questions and have been asked by people again and again. I know people keep changing but questions remain same.

Riya October 5, 2011 at 6:12 PM

Hi Mavis,

Once again nice article… with general questions and their suitable answers.

Mavis Nong October 5, 2011 at 7:13 PM: Thanks, Riya.

P.S. Would love to see your smiling face with your comments.

Reply

Blackberry Tracker October 5, 2011 at 6:14 PM

That is a good numbers of pagewiews.

This are good guides and thanks for sharing this. But one thing what is the difference between Wordpress.com and Wordpress.org?
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Mavis Nong October 5, 2011 at 7:19 PM

Thanks, Blackberry.

I did share a link regarding the difference, in the post. Here it is again: http://www.attractionmarketingonline.com/wordpress-blogging-platform/.

Blackberry October 7, 2011 at 4:08 PM

I will look in your other post.

Thanks for the response, really appreciate it

Mavis Nong October 9, 2011 at 8:28 AM: You’re welcome, Blackberry.

Reply

Grady Pruitt October 5, 2011 at 6:14 PM

Another awesome post, Mavis!

I think I need to add some sites to my ping list because i don’t think I have many set at the moment, so I’ll have to check out that list in a minute.

Twitter and Facebook are great ways to get people to your site, if you do them right. Another great way is commenting on other blogs. Interacting with others on the web is the way to go! When I started doing that daily, I literally tripled my traffic in less than a week.

Thanks for sharing!
Grady Pruitt invites you to check..Broke? Find More Money to Build Your Wealth!

Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 3:56 PM: You’re welcome, Grady. Thanks for sharing your traffic results.

All the best,
Mavis
Mavis Nong invites you to check..How to Put List Building With Blogging on Steroids Starting Today!

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Erika Harris October 5, 2011 at 6:29 PM

Very insightful, Mavis. I especially liked #6 (You always have the best images:-). I’m guilty of using Google images, so I’ll look into the sites you suggested. I also liked #8. I’m still not sure how the “ping” thing works, but I know I’m “pinging” something, so I’ll read your post on the subject for more info.
Erika Harris invites you to check..The Worst Thing About Network Marketing

Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 3:57 PM: Great plan, Erika.
Mavis Nong invites you to check..20 *HOT* Lead Generation Strategies You’re NOT Using on Your Blog

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Ilka Flood October 5, 2011 at 6:53 PM

Hi Mavis,

Great tips! Even found some new golden nuggets I can implement. I was amazed that you found the time to answer all of those comments you get. Now I know your secret and will be implementing it myself

Thanks for sharing these incredible tips with us!

Be blessed,

Ilka
Ilka Flood invites you to check..No More Faceless Blog Commenting on The Enlightened Networker

Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 3:59 PM

Glad to hear that, Ilka. How have you been?

Al the best,
Mavis
Mavis Nong invites you to check..Blog Post Writing – How to Write Content That Grabs Your Reader’s Attention

Ilka Flood October 12, 2011 at 7:42 PM

I am doing much better. Thanks for asking, Mavis, I truly appreciate that!

Have a blessed week!

Ilka
Ilka Flood invites you to check..New Directory for DoFollow Blogs Sweeping the Blogoshere

Mavis Nong October 13, 2011 at 9:51 AM: Great… Thanks and you!

Mavis

Reply

Karen October 5, 2011 at 7:10 PM

#5 How to promote your blog… I find that word of mouth is the best way to go. Love social networks such a Facebook. Also I have found that posting on other nitch blogs also got some traffic to blogs.

Mavis Nong October 5, 2011 at 7:41 PM: True

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Jean-Luc October 5, 2011 at 7:29 PM

Amazing numbers about your comments
I’m impressed
I’ve written almost the same numbers of posts, but i have only 50 comments…

Mavis Nong October 5, 2011 at 7:40 PM: Thank you.

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Adrienne October 5, 2011 at 7:36 PM

Great info you shared with us Mavis. I’m sure that the webshow was a good one even if you had problems on your end. I have learned a lot from you over the course of this year. You have really exploded on the blogging scene and everyone should take notes from you.

Appreciate all these great tips.

~Adrienne
Adrienne invites you to check..Fabulous Goodies For My Blogging Friends

Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 4:01 PM: Awww… Thank you so much for your kind words and encouragement, Adrienne.

Appreciate your continued support

All the best,
Mavis
Mavis Nong invites you to check..How to Put List Building With Blogging on Steroids Starting Today!

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Julie Beacum October 5, 2011 at 7:48 PM

Great post Mavis as always on Blogging Questions Answers. We can never get enough great information and I can always find that on your site. Thanks for always sharing great tips!!!

Julie
Julie Beacum invites you to check..World Ventures Dream Trips

Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 4:01 PM: You’re most welcome, Julie. Thanks for stopping by.

All the best,
Mavis
Mavis Nong invites you to check..Blog Post Writing – How to Write Content That Grabs Your Reader’s Attention

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jigar doshi October 5, 2011 at 10:00 PM

some simple and great answers those were.
btw, i knew about the pinging service in wordpress
regarding commentluv, it costs 40$ which approximately accounts to 2000 INR. my monthly pocket money is also isn’t that much. so, for me, being a student, it’s difficult to invest in that plugin.

Mavis Nong October 7, 2011 at 11:13 AM: Great to hear, Jigar. Welcome to my blog!

I’m sure you’ll grab it when the time is right for you.

Mavis

Reply

Elena Forbes October 5, 2011 at 10:32 PM

Great Post, I always learn more about blogging here! I too, recently found GrowMap Anti-Spambot Plugin…Amazing!!! No more spam!
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Mavis Nong October 6, 2011 at 7:35 AM: That’s great to hear, Elena. Nice to see you here

All the best,
Mavis

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Giles Wells October 5, 2011 at 11:51 PM

I didn’t know that WordPress sends a Ping for everytime your update your posts. I’ll be careful of that from now on. Will definitely read further into it on your post about pinging.

Heard that you could get into a lot of trouble if the image you used in trademarked. Thanks for the info on the picture sites.

Looking forward to the webinar. Keep me posted.

Great post Mavis. I’m really glad you shared it with us.
Giles Wells invites you to check..Why Your Prospects Won’t Join You!

Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 4:03 PM: Yep. If you install the free plugin I recommend, you’ll be fine

Thanks for stopping by, Giles.

All the best,
Mavis
Mavis Nong invites you to check..Blog Post Writing – How to Write Content That Grabs Your Reader’s Attention

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Oren Pardes October 6, 2011 at 1:47 AM

Another great post, Mavis! I currently use Akismet – and am not always sure if what was “caught” is spam or not. Most do not have a Gravatar – but then, neither do all those who post “legitimate” comments. Many of the links are obviously to sites I would not want to send traffic to – yet sometimes what they wrote (as a hook?) was pretty good. Is there a way to selectively “do not follow” and/or what are your thoughts about approving a comment but removing the website link(s)? I currently use the free version of CommentLuv. Is the box below confirming I am not a spammer part of CommentLuv Premium – or something else?
Oren Pardes invites you to check..Change You Can Believe In?

Mavis Nong October 6, 2011 at 7:41 AM: Thanks, Oren. With CommentLuv Premium you’re in control of who you want to give the link juice (DoFollow enabled or not).

I do remove the links if I’m not happy with them, you know what I mean.

Yes, the box is part of CLP. FYI, it’s going to be much expensive when it returns next month. You can read more about its genius features here: http://www.attractionmarketingonline.com/commentluv-premium-review/.

All the best,
Mavis

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Jonathan October 6, 2011 at 4:20 AM

Girl I can’t stop telling You how I admire Your consistency, You are a true blogger with some of the best info, keep it rollin Mavis, good show.
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Mavis Nong October 6, 2011 at 7:43 AM: Thanks very much for your kind words and encouragement, Jonathan.

Lovely to see you here

Mavis

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Ryan Biddulph October 6, 2011 at 4:36 AM

Hi Mavis,

Way cool insight here.

I learned a new thing about your pics directories. I use Flickr creative commons…might have to take a look at some of your offerings.

#3 is beyond key. Get out there! Visit forums. Read niche blogs. Read comments. Check out what people are asking. These are the topics of the day. Write about them.

Thanks!

Ryan
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Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 4:04 PM: You’re welcome, Ryan. Glad to learned a thing or two here

All the best,
Mavis
Mavis Nong invites you to check..How to Set Up a New Marketing Funnel and Kick Butt in Less Than 7 Days

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Oliver Tausend October 6, 2011 at 8:44 AM

Hi Mavis,

cool stuff, I definitely learned a lot. Thanks for pointing out copyright issues with images. It’s so easy to infringe copyright, especially with photos.

Congratulations to your wild success !

Be blessed

Oliver
Oliver Tausend invites you to check..Network Marketing Legend Michael Dlouhy – Why You Should Care About ‘Success In 10 Steps’

Mavis Nong October 6, 2011 at 9:30 AM: Thanks very much, Oliver. I appreciate your kind words and ecnouragement

All the best,
Mavis

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Nicky October 6, 2011 at 9:30 AM

Great tips Mavis – and look at you! – TV/RAdio star !!
Nicky
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Mavis Nong October 6, 2011 at 10:07 AM: Thanks very much, Nicky! Who would have thought?

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Mohammed October 7, 2011 at 9:31 PM

@ Dennis – the big drawback of using Blogger is that you don’t own or control your own website. Yes, it’s free, but you can buy very inexpensive hosting. I don’t think either people or the search engines give as much credibility to a blogger site because of this, too. Wordpress blogs are also set up for maximim onsite SEO, too.

Mavis Nong October 9, 2011 at 8:23 AM: Agreed, Mohammed.

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Arti October 9, 2011 at 8:46 AM

Great tips! I cant believe there is something new and valuable that I take back alongwith me, every time I stop by here! Thanks Mavis

Mavis Nong October 9, 2011 at 9:39 AM: You’re welcome, Arti. Keep coming back!

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Carl Ashton October 12, 2011 at 12:57 PM

Great tips Mavis! (again)

Loving your blog and simple easy to implement tips and tricks

Carl Ashton.
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Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 1:05 PM: Great to hear that, Carl.

See you soon

Mavis

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Ana October 12, 2011 at 12:59 PM

I’ve seen what Blogger is all about, but I still prefer WordPress. It’s the most famous platform for a reason!. Although, I didn’t know that it sends ping every time. Thanks for that!

Mavis Nong October 12, 2011 at 1:04 PM: My pleasure, Ana. I couldn’t agree with you more about WordPress.

All the best,
Mavis

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Robin October 23, 2011 at 4:35 PM

Hi Mavis, my first time here. I was wondering if there is a way to offer my readers a coupon? For example, is it appropriate to email a company and ask them to post a coupon for my readers on my blog? It’s a google blog. Thanks.

Mavis Nong November 3, 2011 at 12:45 PM: You can write a post about it, offering it to your readers, Robin.

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John February 19, 2012 at 8:41 PM

I have a blog concern. My blog is doing okay and has attracted a good number of contacts. However, there is another blog that doesn’t like what I stand for and is slandering me. It has threatened as a comment on my blog “I will link your blog over there and let folk read for themselves your true nature”.

Now, it is complete nonsense, because he wants me to withdraw an article he doesn’t like. I have no issue with him condemning me on his blog. However, I am unsure by what he actually means by the term “I will link your blog over there”. As it is some kind of threat, I am wondering if he is referring to a blacklist or something which could unfairly blacken my character. Is it a threat that I need to take seriously or is he talking nonsense?

Mavis Nong February 19, 2012 at 9:53 PM

Hi John! Welcome to my blog!

I wouldn’t worry about that… Google would never blacklist your blog if a bad neighbourhood site links back to you. Why? It’s very easy for people who don’t like you to link back to your website from the bad neighbourhood sites.

See how to handle negative and hateful comments: http://www.attractionmarketingonline.com/negative-hateful-blog-comments/

Best,
Mavis

John February 19, 2012 at 10:04 PM

Thanks Mavis

But what does the term “linking back” actually mean? How do you “link back”?

Mavis Nong February 22, 2012 at 11:29 PM

You’re welcome, John. This will shed some light: http://www.attractionmarketingonline.com/wordpress-blog-optimisation-link-building-exposed/

John February 22, 2012 at 11:38 PM

Thanks Again Mavis

I had a quick look. Looks good. When I have time I will study it more

Mavis Nong February 23, 2012 at 1:36 PM: You’re welcome, John.

Reply

Mae April 24, 2012 at 7:02 PM

HI, Mavis! I am inspired by your online journey. I hope I can do well with my online marketing career too. I really like what you have shared about the automatic pinging done by WordPress. WP is indeed a great platform and I’m glad we are using it.