How would you like to get your own blog reviewed and also get a link back at the same time? As bloggers we are always looking for good ways to get people to read our blog, comment on it and also give a link back to it.

I stumbled across a blog entitled, The Kindle Blog Report, and Marguerite will review your blog, give her honest opinion of it's content and whether it has value to the public, and link back to you. Her blog is mainly about sites and books that are good to view on the Kindle, the popular wireless reading device from Amazon but she also touts her site as the Original Blog Review Blog.

No matter what kind of blog you run Marguerite has a category to put you in.

And, not only does her review share with the public what your blog is about, she also gives her honest opinion about the content of your site (her review is not about what your blog looks like), and gives her readers excerpts from some of your posts.

I suggest you check out her blog and contact her to get a review of your blog today.

Every blog owner should know just how visitors find your site and where they are coming from. You should also know what search terms are used to find your site.

It is VERY important to make sure the right visitors are finding your site. You do not want to waste your marketing efforts on trying to get just anyone to visit your site when you have a specific niche you serve almost exclusively. But how do you find out who is visiting and if they are finding what your site is all about?

The answer is simple, but simultaneously complex: search analytics.

A lot of people do not understand just what search analytics are. Simply put, search analytics comprise the study of:

• what any given visitor does while they are on your website
• what search terms they use to get to your site
• and how they actually find your site (through searching, social media, or another site)

Every time someone finds your blog they may stay for a few seconds or they may stay on for an hour, depending on a variety of factors. Does your site offer great content? Or is it more like a classic “squeeze page,” with a little bit of ad copy and an entreaty to sign up for an e-mailing list? No two sites are precisely the same, and this leads to a great deal of different potential tweaks.

This is where search analytics companies come into play. There are several different companies, which offer a highly varied range of content. Most every type of software available (including that which is native to some web hosting providers) tells you the basic information. Three things that are very important to know are unique visitors, duration of visit, and user impressions.

Obviously, a unique visitor is just any person who clicks onto your site. A user impression is whether they clicked onto a particular page, where a particular ad might be displayed. And visit duration tells whether they stuck around long enough to really check out your offerings… or just gave it a once over, a shaken head, and a disappearing act.

Two of the best companies for identifying the more nitty gritty information on your site are Google Analytics and Omniture. However, they function in different ways.

Google’s software is just that – it can track “the numbers,” but it has no brain. If you have a marketing background, this might be enough for your purposes. However, Omniture stands out a bit because their professionals actually review the number their software puts up, and make specific recommendations based on their knowledge and your intended niche.

Knowing exactly how a visitor finds you is one of the best ways to start targeting what you write on your blog to help those visitors find you everytime they search for a keyword or keyword phrase.

Here is a list of mom blogger conferences coming up sometimes in 2010. If you know of other blogging conferences that are a good fit please post them and I will update the list. They don't have to be specifically for mom bloggers but I would like them to be for blogging, networking, or learning how to make money online.

There are other types of blogging conferences that make a good fit as well. I have included whatever I can find and what others have sent me including fashion blogger and foodie blogger conferences

Will you be attending any of these mom blogging conference? I am attending BlogHer in NYC. I would be happy to hook up with you while I'm there.

January

Chicks Who Click
A one-day Social Media Conference for Women incorporating networking, education and empowerment with like-minded women, achieving great heights in the area of Social Media.

Denver, Colorado
January 23, 2010 (one day)
8:30am-5:00pm
Cocktail reception to follow-5:30pm
$225.00- includes, conference, breakfast, lunch and networking.

February

Blissdom
February 4-6, 2010
Nashville, Tennessee
Cost: $299

Evolving Influence Fashion Blogger Conference

February 15, 2010
Conference 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Wine & cheese reception 6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Helen Mills Theater
137-139 West 26th Street (between 6th and 7th Avenues)
New York City

Mom 2.0
February 18-21, 2010
Houston, Texas
Full Conference: $449
Networking Events Only: $150

March

South by Southwest
March 11-16, 2010
Austin, Texas
Prices range from $325 to $920

Bloggy Bootcamp
March 6, 2010
9:00 am to 4:00 pm
Pier 5 Hotel in Baltimore
Cost: $89 includes lunch
Registration Form: You can find that Here
Limited to 85 registrants

Fitbloggin (for fitness, diet and healthy lifestyle bloggers)
March 19-21, 2010
Baltimore, Maryland
Conference: $99.99 (ends March 1, 2010)

Camp Blogaway (for food bloggers)
Foodies, chefs, caterers, Mom Bloggers, cookbook authors and more, take note: May 14-16, 2010 is THE weekend when bloggers from across the country will convene near Big Bear in the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains of sunny Southern California for intense learning and sharing.

May 14-16, 2010
San Bernardino Mountains, South California
$325

June

EVO Conference
June 24-26, 2010
Park City, Utah
Full Conference: $249 Early Bird until Feb 23rd
Networking Events Only: $75

August

Blogher
August 6-7, 2010
New York City
Full Conference: $198 Early Bird until Feb 28th
Cocktail Parties: $50

September

Type-A Mom
September 23-27, 2010
Ashville, NC
No registration info available yet

October

Blogalicious
October 8-10, 2010
Miami, Florida
No registration info available yet

Blog World Expo
October 2010
No registration info available yet

Izeafest
October 2010

2010 Mom Blogger Conferences

#asw10 When I went to the Affiliate Summit in Las Vegas last week I made sure I had brand new business cards to carry with me. I also setup a new email address with Gmail. I didn't want to give out my regular email because you had so many cards out when you go to a conference. Many times you just drop your business card in a bowl to try to win a prize and your email address ends up on someone's list. Gmail is free so you might want to consider having a separate email address just for this purpose.

I came up with a little trick too. On my new business cards I advertised all of my blogs on the back. I put the name of my blog, the URL, and a one line phrase that told what that blog was about. Then, on the front, I put my regular contact information and a photo of myself. It only cost an extra $4.99 to have it put on 250 business cards.



Everyone gets so many business cards when they attend a conference that when you get home you forget who gave it to you. Now, those people will see that picture of me and immediately remember they met me.

Vista Print just came out with Mom Contact cards. They cost $1.99 and you get 100. You could use these to advertise your blog as well. Or, just go with their traditional business cards which are usually free for the first 250. I think the mommy contact cards probably have more mom related graphics to choose from.

About the Mommy Contact Cards from VistaPrint

Our mommy cards are great for busy moms on the go. They’re like business cards, but for moms! Hand out to babysitters, teachers and parents. Socialize in style! Share all of your important 411 to everyone you know and meet. Perfect for networking, dating and more.

The cool way to share your contact info:

• Great for busy parents, kids and coaches
• Create in minutes; receive in as few as 3 days
• Full-color printing on matte or glossy card stock
• Perfect if you are a mom blogger too
• Get your Mom Contact cards for $1.99 now
  

About shipping: Even if they tell you that the slow shipping method will take 3 weeks, don't believe them because they often come in half the time. So you can save yourself some money by choosing the slower shipping method. Of course, if you need your purchases quicker you will have to opt for the faster shipping.

About Vista Print
Vistaprint offers small businesses everything they need to market their business. We offer high-quality printed marketing materials, promotional products and marketing services such as copywriting, design, websites and postcard mailing. Vistaprint keeps their prices low because over 8 million people use them every year. Volume selling keeps them competitive.

#asw10 Last week I ran a survey to ask some mom bloggers how they are using affiliate programs on their blogs. Here are some of the results of my survey. This is very helpful information for bloggers and affiliate companies alike.

I asked mom bloggers what kind of affiliate programs they use on their site, what they would like to see in the future, what kinds of problems they face, and what they would like affiliate managers to know about them and their blogs.

What Affiliate programs do you currently use on your site?

The majority, around 90% like using Amazon to refer people to and make money from. Amazon has an affiliate program. You sign up and then you can promote all kinds of products readers like. During the holidays I did well promoting free music on Amazon and magazine deals. I earned money when readers went to Amazon and purchased what I suggested or saw something that caught their eye and make a completely different purchase. As long as I sent them to Amazon I earned a commission whether they purchased the product I suggested or not.

Three other top affiliate programs for mom bloggers that ranked high on the list were Commission Junction, Logical Media, and My Savings. I will be writing an article about affiliate programs that work well for mom bloggers in the future and I will cover each program in depth.

Next on the list were Coupons/Brandcaster, Escalate Media, Juicebox Jungle, LinkShare.com, and ShareaSale.

The full list of affiliate programs that I listed along with others that were suggested by bloggers will be featured in my post on affiliate programs for mom bloggers.

Remember, this is just a list of affiliate programs by rank. That doesn't mean these programs work for mom blogger. If I were to do a more in depth survey asking what they like and don't like about each of these programs you would be surprised at some of the answers I think. The programs available versus the programs that work are two different topics.

What types of affiliate offers work on your site?

I also wanted to find out whether leads, sales, or impressions (CPA) worked the best for mom bloggers. An overwhelming majority said leads worked the best. And, as a follow-up question about what they would like more of, the overwhelming majority said leads once again.

A lead is a type of program or individual offer you promote on your site through either an ad or within a post that earns you a flat rate when the reader clicks and fills out a form on the destination website. I will be writing an in depth article on what all of these type of offers are and how you can use them on your mom blog so stay tuned for that.

What kind of products or companies would you like to promote on your blog?

Here is just a sampling of what some of the mom (and one Dad) bloggers told me. There were a wide range of answers for this question. I think the offers that each mom blogger wants depends on what works for either their target audience or what they write about. A mom blogger who writes about coupons and grocery store savings might not need fashion offers and vice versa.

• Free samples
• free e-books
• coupons/discounts (mentioned multiple times)
  
• free trials of services, contests/giveaways
• Low-cost items that offer real value to readers
• Educational
• household
• consumables
• natural
• planners
• online shopping sites like Target.com
• Food
• health and wellness
• weight loss - quality companies that don't seem "fly by night" or spammy
• beauty
• fashion
• technology
• contests and sponsors that are legit; nothing where the end user has to complete a bunch of offers to enter or participate
  
• Children's clothing
• educational
• home management tools
• photo deals
  

What specific problems do you have working with affiliate programs, if any?

Connie from Brain Foggles writes:

My biggest complaint is that pay limits are too high. For a blogger who focuses on writing and can only promote once in awhile without spamming my readers, I'd like to see smaller payout minimums like $25. I've dropped programs who won't pay until I reach $100. I'm not offered programs based on impressions or leads. That would inspire me even more (I am already working on this) to increase traffic to my blog if I was involved with programs like these.

Here are other random responses to this question.

• Ad codes with flash that won't display within blog posts.
• non-payment, too long of a wait, impressions being "off"
• takes too long for them to pay!
• They definitely take too long to pay out. Most affiliate programs are not consistent. They offer a lot of great things one month and nothing the next. Affiliates want bloggers to write about their products and then ask that no text links be used.
• As a blogger, using flash ads just looks hokey. I'd love more ads geared toward our readers...which means no flashing neon lights!

Can you see a trend here? Some affiliate companies take too long to pay. I know of one who is notorious and I have all but dropped them. I was making about 20% of my affiliate income through them and because they take 90 days to pay and often have to be sent an email reminder they are wasting my time. I can bet you they don't accept that from the companies that advertise through them. Why are we expected to wait 90 days when you probably get paid sooner? We are the ones making money for them. And this company is one of the biggest mom blogger favorites out there. And, I work with many affiliate companies and my experience is almost all pay on time but a select few.

And why is this affiliate company a favorite? Because no other affiliate company is offering what they do. Are you listening affiliate companies? I see a niche marketing forming.

Another problem that plaques many of us is this:

They offer a lot of great things one month and nothing the next. Affiliates want bloggers to write about their products and then ask that no text links be used.

Christina from Northern Cheapskate

What affiliate offers do not work and why?

From Lori Loomis Moms by Heart

Moms are pretty savvy today - and our credibility as bloggers would be compromised if we promoted anything that was not in their best interest. For the most part, moms want to learn, improve themselves, save money and find shortcuts. If offers don't appeal to these needs, they won't work. So "as seen on TV", credit card/mortgage stuff, get rich quick stuff. Items with high shipping or full retail prices don't work for me either.

Here are other comments from bloggers.

"Ones that don't have a large selection of products or that don't offer enough products for my readers. Also programs that don't offer sales that I can promote."

"I have not had success working with affiliate programs outside of Amazon."

"Programs that look scammy to readers."

"Insurance, software downloads (toolbars), and dating offers."

"Anything that sounds remotely like a scam... i.e. Cash For Gold, Lose 30 Pounds in 2 weeks, get rich by working from home, etc."

Conclusion

When we (mom bloggers) offer something on our site, whether through content in a post or in an ad, we take responsibility, for that content. If the offer is not legitimate, is scammy, or does not provide value to the reader we definitely hear about it. If the reader clicks on something and they do not read the fine print; their credit card gets charge; or they start receiving tons of junk mail, we hear about it. Yes, it is not our fault but we feel responsible in some way. This is why we are so picky about what we are provide both through content and advertisements.

As you see from these results, mom (and Dad) bloggers are smart, savvy and understand that what they offer is a direct reflection on them and that the offers need to fit with their blog's overall intent. Affiliate companies need to pay attention to this huge group of bloggers who have growing power and influence. More quality offers need to be created around this demographic and if the current affiliate companies cannot provide this then new companies need to be formed.

As mom bloggers we pick from the pool that is available to us and at this point more mom-related affiliate companies need to come out of the woodworks to find us because in my opinion many programs are not even geared towards what we write about. However, I know I have limited knowledge of what is available and as I learn and find new programs I will share them to my fellow mom bloggers.

Other Bloggers who participated but were not directly quoted include:

• Anne-Marie from This Mama Cooks!
• Heather from Freebies4Mom
• Angela from A Simple Kinda Life

If you are a fashion blogger you will want to join the IFB, or Independent Fashion Blogger where you can talk with other fashion bloggers in the Forums and get help with how to:

Create Your Media Kit: This is the year you get serious about monetizing your blog... here's some tips on creating a media kit that will help you get sponsors!

Note: Even if you aren't a fashion blogger you will want to read this article on how to create your media kit. This is something every blogger should have in case they are approached for direct advertising for their site.

How to Cover NYFW... When you are not there: You'd love to cover fashion week...but you may not be able to actually get there, check this post out to get some handy advice on what you can do to have unique fashion week coverage on your blog.

IFB Poll: What gadgets to use for your blog? Are you glued to your desktop? Blog straigt from your blackberry? Find out what other bloggers use.

More about The Independent Fashion Blogger site

Independent Fashion Bloggers (IFB) cultivates a community for fashion bloggers to share their experiences and create a resource so everyone can build a better blog. We do this by posting helpful articles, host a community linking group, forums and our newest feature, LittleBirdie, a platform to connect bloggers and PR in a safe an mutually beneficial way.

Some of their current services include:

• The IFB Social Network – Find other bloggers in your niche, city, country or just find other like-minded fashion bloggers to share your content with. The IFB social platform gives you a place to ask questions, get answers, as well as set up events and promote your blog.
• Links a la Mode – a weekly round-up where bloggers submit their top posts for consideration. Approximately 20 stories are selected each week. This has been a huge traffic and SEO driver for participants.
  
  
• Weekly member e-newsletter – features a blogger spotlight, highlights from the forums and Links a la Mode. This is how IFB became monetized (through a sponsorship with Gilt).
  
  
• Fashion Week Dress Up Soirees in New York and London earlier this year – over 100 bloggers at each event – prizes donated from independent designers to consumer tech companies like HP and T-Mobile. Modepass sponsored the NYFW event.
  
  
• Little Birdie – a query service where bloggers submit story interests and the information is sent to subscribers every week via e-newsletters (generally PR and independent fashion companies). To date there are over 300 subscribers and there are around 70 blogger submissions per week.

You don't have to join to read the fabulous articles they have on their site or even the Forum but you do need to join if you want to post on the Forums or receive their email newsletters. It's free to join so why not join now!

photo credit: Independent Fashion Bloggers IFB