Category Archives: Resources

November 10, 2018 · 12:38 am

5 Practical Ways to Save in the New Year

With the new year just around the corner, you might find yourself thinking about resolutions. Is financial freedom part of those resolutions? If so, having a well-defined savings plan is one of the surest ways for you to reach your short or long-term financial goals.

Even with the best intentions, saving money is not as easy as it sounds. How many times have unexpected expenses popped up and depleted your savings?  Having a solid savings plan and sticking to it, will enable you to realize your goals effortlessly. Here are some expert tips to help you create a savings plan for the new year.

Set Your Goals

It is hard to succeed without a goal. Knowing your destination before embarking on a journey helps you avoid distractions and arrive on time. This is also the case with saving. The first and major step towards saving is knowing what you are saving for.

Maybe it’s the latest TV, tropical vacation or that gourmet kitchen you have been dreaming about. Perhaps you need to save for retirement or your child’s college education. Clearly stating these goals, will give you the vision and motivation to save.

When defining your goals, it’s possible to end up with a long list of things you want to save for. No worries, just go over the list and prioritize them. The best way to do this, is to categorize them according to their urgency. Then, separate long-term goals from short-term goals. When this is done, it will be easy to know what to start saving for first.

Set the Amount and Deadline for Your Goals

You already know what you are saving for, but that’s not all you need to get started.  If you are not sure of the cost of your goal or fail to set a timeline, you may be setting yourself up to fail.

Imagine saving money for your dream vacation only to find out you underestimated the cost. What a huge disappointment that would be to learn you now have to wait months or more longer.

Eliminate any unpleasant surprises by finding out what your goal will cost right after you set it. Having this information will enable you to come up with a specific amount of money that needs to be deposited in your savings account weekly or monthly to reach your goal.

For example, let’s say you want to purchase a car that cost $23,000 by the end of the year. If you want to save monthly, you would need to save about $1,917 per month for the next 12 months to reach your goal and get your car. Knowing the cost of your goals and setting a deadline helps you plan and save more efficiently.

Evaluate Your Current Financial Position

You can’t save what you don’t have. Doing a through analysis of your income and expenses will give you a clear picture of what you are able to save each month. If you have a substantial amount of money left after you pay your necessary expenses, saving will be almost effortless. However, if you are living paycheck to paycheck, saving will be almost impossible.

Make Changes 

If you find yourself discouraged due to the fact, you have little to no surplus money to save, there are some things you can try.

  • Reduce the cost of your target goal; take the car for example, you will need to find a different vehicle , one that will fit your budget.
  • Extend the deadline of your goal; if you are set on that car,  you will have to extend your deadline. If you increase your timeline to 2 years, the amount you need to set aside each month, is cut in half.
  • Change your spending habits; do away with unnecessary expenses.

 Have an Emergency Fund

You never know when an urgent and unavoidable financial need might arise. Setting aside some money to deal with such issues will help you stick to your savings plan.

Sometimes when people are faced with emergency financial needs, they prefer to dip into their savings rather than take out a loan. They will argue that loans from high interest short-term companies like lend up, net credit , cash net USA or  nation21loans.com  will result in more expenses, unlike the savings. When this becomes routine every time an emergency arises, it ends up depleting their savings and forces them to abandon their savings plan.

To avoid this pitfall, try setting aside some funds that are to be used specifically for financial emergencies, so you can stay on track with saving for your goal.

Automate Your Savings Deposits 

It is unlikely for you to spend what you do not have in hand. “Pay yourself first” is an idiom that you might have heard before. It means that you should deposit money in your savings before you spend it on anything else. However, you might find it is harder to do when you have that money in your hand.

A great solution is to set up direct deposit of funds into your savings account. When you do this, you put your savings plan on auto pilot and ensure you stay on track to reach your goal.

Get SMART

The tips above will let you create a SMART new year’s savings plan (Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic and Timely).

  • Specific: You have set a goal and know what you are saving towards.
  • Measurable: You have determined and know how much your goal will cost
  • Attainable/Realistic: An evaluation of your current financial status confirms you can save for the goal.
  • Timely: You have set a deadline for your goal.

With a solid savings plan, you are on your way to achieving your financial goals and attaining financial freedom.

This is a collaborative guest post. The views and ideas do not necessarily represent those of Mommy Ramblings.


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October 31, 2018 · 3:01 am

How to Help Kids Be Internet Awesome #BeInternetAwesome #ItsCoolToBeKind

I was compensated for this post as a blogger who is part of the Forward Influence Network. As always my words and views are 100% my own. 

As the month of October is coming to a close, I think it is important to remind ourselves that it is National Bullying Prevention Month. Let’s hope that we carry the message through every month of the year, because bullying, especially on the internet, is prevalent.

Wouldn’t it be nice if we all did our part to spread some kindness online. There is something about the ability to hide behind a computer screen that brings out the worst in some. Online bullying and hateful behavior is real, and it can cause real hurt and have devastating consequences.

Be Internet Awesome:

Be Internet Awesome (BIA) is Google’s free multifaceted program designed to teach kids the fundamentals of digital citizenship and safety, so they can explore the online world with confidence. You can find the program in both English and Spanish and consists of an ISTE standards aligned curriculum, ready-made Pear Decks for each lesson, Interland – an adventure-packed online game about digital safety and citizenship – and plenty of resources for educators and parents.

BIA will help families and students to learn how to make choices that disempower bullying behavior and create healthy, productive spaces to interact.

Some Important Facts About Bullying:

  • 28% of students have experienced bullying personally.
  • 71% of students have witnessed bullying directly.
  • Only 20% – 30% of students notify adults about bullying.
  • Over 50% of parents are concerned about their child being bullied.

If you are an educator, you should check out the teacher curriculum online. A family guide is coming soon, in the meantime, the Interland games   covers each of the 5 areas for Internet awesomeness shown below. It will give you vocabulary and talking points to help you have family discussions that help build a strong foundation for your kids’ safe, successful use of the Internet. The ability to have honest and open-minded conversations with your kids is the most important tool to keep them safe online.  

In the curriculum you will find helpful ways to open up family dialog that will help you encourage one another to step up and become “upstanders”. Upstanders are people who help the person being hurt when they see something hurtful happening, and help turn negative situations into positive ones.

You can play Interland with your kids and put your kindness skills to the test at g.co/KindKingdom, but don’t stop there. Learn more about how you can Be Internet Awesome at g.co/BeInternetAwesome and tell your kids’ teachers about the online curriculum so they can introduce these activities in the classroom.

I implore everyone to help make a positive difference and to start today by spreading kindness online. It is an easy thing to do, and it can make a real difference. Let me know how you are spreading online kindness in the comments. Together we can make the Internet a kinder place. Won’t you join me?

 


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October 19, 2018 · 7:23 pm

Shop The GPO Bookstore For All Kinds of Government Publications

Did you know that you can get all kinds of publications from the Federal Government, at the U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO)? If you have not heard about this, check it out at Bookstore.GPO.Gov now. You can find publications for adults and kids on all kinds of topics including fire safety, wildlife, national parks, NASA and so much more. They even have some on sale for half price or less.

Check out my video for an in-depth look at some booklets I recently received.

When you browse the bookstore online, you will be amazed at the variety of Government publications from this agency that opened their doors over 150 years ago. Beyond the publications, the agency produces the Congressional Record, Federal Register, the nation’s passports, and other Federal Government documents. It also maintains the Federal Depository Library Program to ensure public libraries nationwide have access to Federal published information. If you are in Washington, D.C. you can visit the physical GPO Bookstore.

The books for kids feature games, puzzles and activities that are fun and educational. These books can accompany your trip to a National Park or to be used when teaching kids about important environmental issues. Check it out and let me know what you think in the comments.

GPO Bookstore


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April 19, 2018 · 9:29 pm

Signed, Makes it Easy to Send Real Cards In Your Own Handwriting

Do you like the ease of choosing and sending cards online, but want a way to make it more personal? I did, I found that with Signed. Signed is an online card concierge that allows me to choose a custom greeting card, write my own message, in my own handwriting and then have it sent to the recipient by regular mail. The entire process takes just a few minutes.

Let me show you how simple it was to choose, personalize and send a birthday card to my son, Ethan. I went to Signed’s website to choose my card.

I could choose by occasion, gender, age, relationship style or feature.

I wrote my message on a blank piece of paper and then took a photo of it with my phone. Then I could easily upload my photo to the Signed site. 

Once uploaded, I could position my signature and approve the way it looks. After that, I entered my son’s name and our mailing address. I was able to choose when I wanted the card sent. It arrived right on his birthday as I requested.

 

He was so surprised to get a card that was sent from his dad, myself and his siblings in the mail. He loved the design too!

 

All of Signed’s cards are designed by artists based in the USA.  The cards have the artist’s name and information printed on the back.  There are over 2400 custom designed cards by over 80 artists. Cards are printed in the USA on fine art paper that is made in small batches in Utah.

Cards can be ordered and sent from the comfort of your couch for only $4.95. That cost covers everything including the original stamp and USPS delivery.

You can stay in the loop with Signed on Facebook and Instagram. Let me know what you think of this great way to shop for and mail greeting cards.

This is a sponsored post and I was provided with an allotment of greeting cards in exchange for my honest review. As always, my words and opinions are 100% my own.

 

 


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October 5, 2017 · 9:32 am

Why Even New Bloggers Should Never Work For Free

As a professional blogger, social media influencer and digital marketing strategist for almost 10 years, there is something that really gets under my skin.  I rarely see it myself, because I nipped it in the bud many years ago. However, blogging forums are peppered with posts from new bloggers sharing how they received an email from a PR rep asking them to promote a service or app without any mention of compensation. Even over the internet, I can see the quivering lip of the new blogger, as they meekly ask, if this is okay.  Some will try to justify it by saying  they really have no right to ask for compensation, because their blog is brand new.

It isn’t just bloggers, who are routinely asked to “donate” their services. Photographers, Magicians, Vocalists, Graphic Artists and DJ’s  are often asked by friends to provide their services for free. These well meaning friends will even go so far as to tell them it will be great experience, they will make new contacts and build their portfolio. The way they spin it, they should be so grateful to provide their services for nothing. When people get something for free, they don’t put much value in it. By accepting the gig, they are putting a nail in the coffin of their career. The bottom line is, if they want to be treated like a professional, they need to start acting like one!

Even the newest blogger needs to quit acting like their work has no value, and their time is not precious.  This is easier said than done because many newbies have a hard time standing their ground. They may even try to justify taking the job for free, telling themselves it is a portfolio builder.

I will-not work for free

I tell new bloggers they are going to need a strong backbone. Next , they need to respond to the email  with confidence.  Their response should let the PR rep know that they think the app or service sounds like it would be a great fit for their blog audience and social media followers.  Further more, they need to explain they are skilled at creating buzz worthy content that will drive targeted traffic to the brand’s website and social media accounts. Lastly, they need to ask what the compensation is for promoting this content on their blog and social media channels,  I guarantee Gloria from  XYZ Media is getting paid to find the bloggers and social media influencers to promote this, so why shouldn’t they?

I also prep them about how to respond if they receive a reply from Gloria stating the client has a very small budget and while they are not able to provide compensation for this campaign, they have many other clients and may contact them in the future for paid promotions.

Now, they say that for a reason, they want the new blogger to think, if they throw this away, they will never hear from this agency with any other opportunities.  It usually works like a charm, and the rep gets free promotion that they then charge their client for. To make it worse, the blogger goes on the agency’s  “Will Blog For Free” List.  Their name will never make it to big budget clients, because by accepting the free gig, it showed the rep  they are not a professional blogger.

The bottom line is, if  you  want to be taken seriously, you need to respond confidently, that you can definitely create buzz worthy content to promote the product or service, but you don’t work for free. Go even further, turn the tables and ask them if they work for free? Don’t be afraid, let them know, you are well aware they are not a volunteer at XYZ Media.

I’m not saying you should never volunteer for worthwhile things, but make sure you are not being taken advantage of. The perception some have of bloggers, is that what we do is so easy, or of such little value, we should be glad to have some content to post.  They want us to think, they are really doing us a favor.

It is the exact opposite, bloggers are powerful influencers brands can plug-in with to have their product or service promoted to the blog’s audience which likely is their target market. Bloggers have the  power to create and amplify stories, experiences, services, images and ideas through their posts as well as ingniting a social media fire storm of tweets, pins, posts, likes and shares on every major social media channel.

Start valuing your work! The next time you get an email from any rep or agency trying to make you feel special because they picked you to promote their client for free, just ask what the blogger compensation is.  Go on, you can do it.  Be proud of your work.  When you feel the butterflies, just ask yourself if the client they are pitching you about is paying them for their services.  You know the answer is yes, so why would you let them take advantage of you?

Have you ever dealt with someone asking you to do your craft for free like they were doing you a favor?  How did you respond?  Please share your stories, I would love to hear them.

 

 

 

 


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September 27, 2017 · 1:41 pm

Budgeting For A Family Is Hard With Debt

Starting a family and raising kids is expensive. Being part of a family, and properly providing for everyone, isn’t something that generally leaves you with a lot of money to spare. Disposable incomes have largely dried up in the last thirty years. If you want to stay out of debt, you’ve got to be frugal.

Unfortunately, many people starting out don’t realize the costs involved in having a family. They continue to spend money the way they did before having children and soon fall into debt.

If you’ve already got debt hanging over your head, getting what you want requires going deeper into debt. Many understand this in an esoteric way, but it doesn’t hit home immediately. It is not hard to understand, how they  soon find themselves tens of thousands of dollars “in the red”, as the saying goes.

Living Beneath Your Means

The key to being debt free as a family is to live beneath your means. You want to prepare meals at home using ingredients that were purchased as cost-effectively as possible. You want to avoid making big purchases that will put you deeper into debt, and cut unnecessary spending.

If you live beneath your means long enough, you’ll be able to buy that new car or new appliances. On the contrary,  if you don’t live beneath your means, you will be lucky if you can finance an older car.

Many who have neglected living under their means, have found themselves in steep debt. If you want to get out, you’re going to have to exercise some serious discipline. You can start small. Cut out the fast food, cut out the expensive coffees and cut expenses related to entertainment.

Use the internet. Get a library card. Pursue cost-saving activities that don’t require a lot of money. If your family goes to Starbucks twice a week and gets a five-dollar coffee for everybody, a four-person household could be spending $40 a week on coffee alone, that is $160 a month. Cut that out, find a better way. Make the coffee at home.

Additional Areas Of Savings

Next, look at your other expenses. One drastic, but effective, step you might take, could be to sell the mortgage on your home. This may not be ideal, but a four-person household can comfortably live in a two-bedroom apartment. Additionally, you can get about the same floor space in a “tiny home”.

If you sell your mortgage and put the money into a tiny home, then all you’re paying annually are property taxes—which will likely be much diminished from what they were. You can do this for a few years to get out of credit card and loan debt, then upgrade to a larger house once the big debts are paid off.

You could also visit sites like www.debtacademy.com to find debt solutions so you and your family can live a debt-free life. Consulting professionals can help you identify areas of spending that can be cut from the budget, resulting in a quicker way out of debt.

Overcoming The Worst-Case Scenario

Still, there will always be situations where no amount of cost-effective living can overcome debt. In these scenarios, you may want to seek outside help through crowdfunding campaigns on Plumfund for example.

Between cutting unnecessary costs, seeking professional assistance, and getting funding through the crowdfunding when those methods don’t work, you can get out of debt; it just may take time.

This is a sponsored guest post that does not necessarily represent the ideals or views of Mommy Ramblings.

 


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September 25, 2017 · 12:58 am

My Blogging FAQ Answered For You

When someone finds out I work from home as a blogger, they are usually very intrigued. Their curiosity leads them to ask me several questions. After answering the same kind of questions, literally, hundreds of times, and my good friends and colleagues constantly telling me to make a post about it, I am  finally doing it!

This post will cover many of the questions I have been asked over the nearly ten years I have been blogging. If you are looking to start a blog or just want to learn more, you are in the right place. Grab a cup of coffee or tea and get cozy while I give you answers to my most frequently asked blogger questions. If you still have questions after reading this, leave them in the comments and I will answer them for you.

Why Did I Start My Blog?

Believe it or not, earning income from my blog was the furthest thing from my mind when I started it almost 10 years ago. At that time, I did not even believe people could make money from blogging. I started my blog to share my photos (I am a hobby photographer) and tales of our family (I am a wife and mother of 5) with others. I also wanted to create a sort of online scrapbook/journal of our lives for us all to be able to look back on.

How Did I Start Working With Companies?

A little less than a year into blogging, I started connecting with companies and doing product reviews. I was bitten pretty bad by that bug, and it became a conquest for me to see what kind of products I could get to review. Adding giveaways really brought me traffic. I have to laugh, in the beginning I was so lost. I had some amazing giveaways too and because I was so new, the entries were low, so I started to get some loyal fans who loved the high chances of winning.

Shortly after I started with reviews and giveaways, things started to take off. My pageviews shot through the roof over the course of a few weeks. I was getting many high-end products that more established bloggers were not getting, and the reason was, because I used my advertising and marketing background to my advantage. I have many years of experience dealing with companies and so I knew how to approach them. I did not follow any of the other bloggers, I decided to use what I learned in the corporate world and approach things as a confident, professional entrepreneur. My confidence and digital marketing experience helped me to connect with companies and led to great partnerships.

What Sets My Blog Apart From Others?

I have always loved writing, and that along with my insatiable love of photography was another thing that set my blog apart. I saw so many bloggers putting up generic posts with stock photographs. It turned me off, and it turned companies off. When a company wants a top promote a product through a blog review, they want to see authenticity.

Other bloggers were so obsessed with numbers they were churning out content at record speed and their blogs lacked any personal flair.  From their posts it was evident, they did not even open the box or try the products. They copied and pasted most of the content in their post right from the company website. Around this time, media contacts and PR agencies were getting wise, and knew that engagement was more important than exaggerated stats.

Does A Large Number of Followers Guarantee Your Success?

Many bloggers felt blogging was a numbers game and the blogger with the most followers on social media wins. They took it so far as to use services like Fiverr to buy tens of thousands of bogus followers for their social media accounts. The problem was, since they were fake followers, they did not engage with the content. What good is that to a company? PR agencies and media contacts are wise to that now and care more about engagement. Smaller bloggers with good engagement are a better choice than a blog with inflated numbers of fake fans.

What Kind of Feedback Did Companies Give You?

Companies told me they appreciated the authenticity of my blog content.  There was no doubt we were using the products, because my detailed photographs and original content clearly showed that.

I had converted part of my third floor to a photo studio shortly after my fifth child was born. I upgraded cameras, bought some Alien Bees lights, got a ton of props and backdrops and was in my glory. When I started blogging my studio came in very handy. Companies loved my photos, and I know it led to me landing products that some would have said, were out of a new bloggers league.

I was getting Stokke Tripp Trapp high chairs 2 at a time plus holding giveaways for the same products. I received all kinds of designer clothing, jewelry, lighting fixtures for my house that cost thousands of dollars, area rugs, appliances large and small, furniture and so much more.

How Did You Start Working With Blogger Networks?

From that point, I began to really get noticed and companies started coming to me. I joined a few blog networks, became an Amazon affiliate and was having a great time.

I started receiving emails from a major blogger network that I signed up with.  They had different campaigns you could apply for. Up to that point, I had been dealing direct with companies. I was also a staff writer for a children’s trade publication that introduced me to many established and up and coming companies. This blog network kept asking me to go to a brief online meeting so they could show me how their site worked. I literally dragged my heels on attending for about six months. I finally went, and literally a week later they asked me to write a post for a major television network.

I remember seeing the price they were going to pay me to string together some words and was floored. That was the first time I was paid for creating content on my own blog without reviewing anything or holding giveaways. They just wanted me to write about the channel.

After that post, I was getting picked frequently by that network, and I had joined others. I started working with several blogger networks and was being chosen for all types of campaigns. Some were more creative like creating recipes, throwing parties or coming up with crafts and tutorials using the products they were promoting.

Did That Lead To Other Opportunities for You?

I was asked by that first blogger network to teach a time management course for bloggers. I was paid very well to create my curriculum and produce a video course.

After my course was published to their blogger university, they selected me to be on their creative council. I was one of four bloggers paid to brainstorm and come up with marketing campaigns for companies like Nabisco,  Pepperidge Farms, Coca-Cola, Hershey’s and more.  It was fast paced, with a quick turnaround time and I thrived because, I work best under pressure. I was a natural because my marketing and advertising background gave me the insight needed to outline the best ways to meet the company’s goals.

Along the way, I was asked to write as a staff writer for other sites and it provided a significant stream of income. I believe in multiple streams of income, and it helped to get my name out there, and looked good on my resume.

What Kind of Advantage Did Your Experience Give You?

My years in social media marketing and advertising  helped me to be hired as a consultant for a very large company where I work to evaluate the effectiveness of social media advertising. I do that a few hours a day and I am a staff writer for a major retail coupon site. I not only write three blog posts a week for them, I write website copy for them and post about great deals. I like the variety, and I have a great deal of freedom with my writing on their site, allowing met to put my creative spin on things.

What Do I Have Planned For Mommy Ramblings?

I am currently working on some huge projects for my blog which I will be revealing very soon. They are things that have not been done before, and I am majorly excited to be working on them with some amazing companies. I consider myself very blessed by the opportunities I have been given. I do work very hard, and if you are looking to become a blogger, you will need to work hard.

Is Blogging an Easy Way To Make Money?

If the only reason you want to start a blog, is to make money, it will probably be a drudgery for you. I would even go so far, as to advise you to look into something else. I feel that way because I have seen countless others start a blog because they think it is an easy way to make money. Many of them do not even like to write. When they find out the amount of work and time they need to put in, they soon become frustrated. It is not long after, they throw in the towel.

It is easy to see the ones who are not in it for the long haul. Go to any blogging group of new bloggers, and you will see post after post of whining want-to-be bloggers complaining that they have been blogging a whole month and are not making any money. I have to laugh, when I read posts like that. The next thing they say is that they are giving it 3 more months before they give up. I want to tell them to just save themselves the headache, and give up now.

How Do People Set Themselves Up To Fail?

Once you say you are going to try anything for a set period of time, you already have one foot out the door. You have to have, a failure is not an option attitude if you want to succeed at anything.

Are There Other Ways To Work From Home Other Than Blogging?

It is said, that making a living doing something you love is priceless.  I totally believe that, there are many ways to make money with your passion beyond blogging. The internet has opened a lot of doors that we never would have dreamed of , and blogging is not the only way to work from home.

Many people are doing well on YouTube creating video content about  everything you can imagine. You will find videos showing people how to organize their homes, sharing what they bought at the store in a shopping haul, demonstrating home repairs or craft projects and so much more. If you have a a passion for something, you can bet others do to and that is how you find your audience.

I Still Want To Start A Blog. How Do I Get Started?

If you still want to start a blog, the next step is to read my post-How To Start A Blog In Fifteen Minutes. 

Some of the links in the post above are affiliate links, if you purchase through these links, I may earn a commission. All of the links in this post are products or services that I recommend because I truly believe they are the best and would recommend them whether or not I earn a small commission from them. 

 

 


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September 24, 2017 · 11:31 pm

Tips For Planning A Community Charity Event

Are you planning to raise money for your community? Although some online platforms such as Plumfund.com allow you to raise money online, some people still prefer the traditional way of fundraising.

If you are one of those people, here are some tips that will come in handy when planning a charity event:

Choose Your Target Audience

Once you decide who your target audience is, the event type, venue, and theme options will fall into place. For instance, if you want money to help the homeless in your neighborhood, whom will you target? Is it a general event to which you will invite everyone or do you plan to invite a specific group of people only?

Set Your Goals

Once you define a specific project idea and decide to go through with it, you will need to set some clear goals. Make sure your goals are SMART –  specific, attainable, measurable, timely, and realistic. How much money are you willing to spend in organizing this event?

Choose The Event Type

When you know the type of people you want to invite, come up with an event that will resonate with your target audience. Start by doing some research to find out the events that have been successful in your community. Once you find some inspiration from previous events, you should be motivated to go a step further.

Find Collaborators

Find team members who will take over tasks before getting in touch with external vendors. You need to get in touch with caterers, wholesale bulk candy suppliers, and drink suppliers. Make sure you keep in touch with all these people to ensure they are playing their part.

Create A Budget

Once you have a list of external vendors and assign tasks to teammates, start coming up with a budget. Include the expenses needed to hold the event and consider your fundraising goal. When writing down the final number, leave some room for unforeseen costs.

Draw Up A Marketing Plan

If you already have a budget for the event, it is time to publicize the event so your target audience knows about it. Come up with some enticing ways to convince them to attend the charity event. You can use direct emails, social media, and flyers to let people know about it. Do not underestimate the power of word-of-mouth.

Create A Timeline

The deadline for making plans falls on the day of the charity event. Before that day arrives, keep yourself occupied with plans to make the event succeed. Coming up with a timeline will help you to keep things simple.

Follow Up

When the event is over, you need to get some feedback from the attendees. You can send an online survey to people who attended, asking about their thoughts on the event. Do not forget to thank everyone who helped you make the event a success. This is very important, especially if you want to maintain great relationships with your supporters and vendors. Thank the vendors even if you did not like their work; just make sure you find other vendors for your next event.

Organizing a charity event can be a challenging feat that requires a lot of effort and time. If you do not have enough time to plan it yourself, consider using an event planning software. When you do this, make sure you check in on the progress occasionally. Moreover, do not shy away from asking your friends and family for help.

This is a sponsored guest post, it does not necessarily represent the views or ideals of Mommy Ramblings. 

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September 23, 2017 · 1:50 pm

How To Start A Blog In 15 Minutes

So, you want to start a blog, this step-by-step guide will get you started with your domain name, blog server and website in about 15 minutes.

What Kind of Blog?

Think about what kind of blog you want to start. Maybe you already know, and that is good. If not, the first thing to consider is, the type of blog you want to start. Do you want to have a niche blog that will limit you to one topic or do you want a more general blog that gives you the freedom to post about different topics?

There are pros and cons to both.  A niche blog on a subject you are knowledgeable about can help build your credibility as an expert. Some say they rank better and are easier to make money with than a broad subject blog. However, others will say that a broad subject blog allows you to appeal to a larger audience and get more new readers from search engines thanks to the wide range of topics.

In the end, I believe if you are sharing great content, your followers will come whether you have a niche or broad topic blog, so blog about what you like to write about.  It is always easier to write about what you know and are passionate about. 

Own Your Domain 

Next,  you need to think of a name for your blog and register your domain URL. You might think you would rather skip buying your own URL and start blogging on a free site like Blogger or WordPress.com. If I can offer my first piece of advice,  it would be to start with your own domain name on self hosted site. I speak from experience as someone who started on wordpress.com. Within 6 months of my blog taking off,  I switched to a self hosted WordPress.org blog for a number of reasons.

First, it allowed me to add sidebar ads and affiliate links to monetize my blog as well as being able to use plugins which helped me to customize my blog easily. When you switch platforms, you have to transfer all your content from one platform to another. Many bloggers are not comfortable moving their content over, and so they have to hire someone to do the transfer for them.

Luckily, I am tech savvy and performed the transfer myself or I would have had to shell out a few hundred dollars to have my site transferred. Beyond that, when you do switch, you have to build up your stats again. All of that could have been avoided had I just started on a self-hosted WordPress.org site in the first place.

Register Your Domain 

After you chose your domain name, you have to register it. The first step is to make sure your domain name is available. Go to BlueHost and click GET STARTED.

You will then be taken to a page that shows you the plans. I know you will be thrilled to see that it is not going to cost you an arm and a leg to get started when you use BlueHost. They have some amazing deals on their already low-cost hosting.

The great thing is one domain name is included with any hosting package you pick. The thing I love about BlueHost is that for their Plus, Prime or Pro hosting plans you  can host an unlimited number of websites with them for the same price.

That means you pay the same low price a month to host 10 sites as you would 1 site. If you want to branch out in the future and add more sites, you will not have to pay any extra. Right now, the Prime plan is the same as the Plus and so, it is a no brainer to go with the Prime. 

Choose your plan and it will take you to the next screen where you can check to see if your domain is available. Just type the name in the new domain box and click on next. If your name is available, you are golden. If it is not, they will give you some alternatives or you can think of something else.

Once you have a name that is available you can advance to the next page where you will fill in your information.

 

There was a nice surprise on this page. As I was scrolling down, a pop up appeared with an offer to save even more. It said I could get 3 years for the price of 2. The new price was $4.95 a month, and as you can see, it is quite a savings.

The other great thing is with the Prime membership, many extras other companies charge you for things like domain privacy protection, site backup pro  and domain registration are FREE. You can add SiteLock security for just $1.99 a month, and I would recommend it. Okay, you are all set, just hit submit and we can move on to the fun part.

Install WordPress

Once you have checked out, you will get an email from BlueHost that will have your login information. Once you have that, you are ready to log on to your BlueHost CPanel.

The second icon on the first row under the heading WEBSITE is what you will click to install WordPress.org.

You will be advanced to another screen where you will click the down arrow to select your website and it will show up as the domain for installation. Click NEXT.

On the next page, you will fill out your site name which would be the name of your blog, your admin name that you will log on to WordPress with and your WordPress Password as well as, your admin email. Acknowledge the terms of service and click NEXT.

While WordPress is installing, you will see a bunch of themes on the page. Don’t worry about those and just wait until the installation is complete. I will go over themes once you log into your WordPress site. There are many free themes available as well as some like Genesis that many bloggers use because it is so easy to work with.

When the installation is complete, you will get an email with everything you need to log on to your new WordPress site. 

As you will see in your email, the address for your login will be http://www.YourDomainName.com/wp-admin. When you enter that address, you see the log in screen below.

Choose A Theme

Log in and look at the sidebar, you will see a paint brush icon and the word APPEARANCE. Click it and you will see THEMES. When you click that, you can have fun browsing themes for your blog. There are so many to choose from . There are many free themes you can choose from or you can go with the very popular Genesis Framework.

Genesis is very flexible and makes it easy to customize your blog easily whether you are a novice or advanced developer. The Genesis theme provides a secure, search-engine-optimized foundation that takes WordPress to places you never thought it could go, for a one time purchase price of $59.95. Once you purchase this theme you can use it on as many sites as you have, at any time. That is a super value!

You can then get a return customer discount on a Child Theme that works with your Genesis Framework. There are Child Themes for Lifestyle Blogs, Food Blogs, Business Blogs, Real Estate Blogs and more.

If you are looking for a low cost logo or custom blog theme etc, check out Fiverr. You can find some great graphic artists on there as well as virtual assistants or any other services you need to help you build a great income producing blog.

When you start making that income and need some user-friendly accounting software to help you manage payments, send invoices, manage projects, track time and so much more, try the free trial of FreshBooks. They are helping the self employed and small business owners, including bloggers to easily manage and run their business.

See, that was easy wasn’t it. We will cover more about customizing your blog and the best plugins to install but the hardest part is done! Give yourself a pat on the back, I am really proud of you!

 

Some of the links in the post above are affiliate links, if you purchase through these links, I may earn a commission. All of the links in this post are products or services that I recommend because I truly believe they are the best and would recommend them whether or not I earn a small commission from them. 

 


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August 2, 2017 · 7:50 pm

Easy Plum-The Amazing Store You Need To Know About

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