Comments (10)

By Little Mummy, January 29, 2010 11:16 am

Over the past few months I’ve been making a few pennies online and it’s a nice addition to our usually fairly tight budget. For the most part we live on one income so we don’t often splurge, but with my minor successes recently we’ve purchased an iPod Touch and an iPhone, both are very cool, although being connected constantly can have it’s downsides.

This month we’ve also enjoyed our first break away alone since Erin was born. We went to Peebles Hydro for two nights and really relaxed.

February will see our most exciting purchase though, after months of deliberation we decided to buy a puppy. We settled on a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel (I think that’s right!) and I set about looking for litters in Scotland. Well last week I found a litter just outside Glasgow that were five and a half weeks old. We drove through to see them and of course they were all adorable but Erin had her heart set on one that didn’t seem to want to leave her alone, we’ll be picking up Daisy on the 9th Feb when she’ll be eight weeks old and ready to leave her mum.

She’s already costing us a small fortune though, I’ve spent nearly £500 so far! I guess I better get back to blogging and earning some more money

………………………………………..

If you’d like to start your own blog you can still join the mum blogger e-course free. I’ve got a few plans for 2010 and it may mean that this course will either close for a period of time, possibly forever so if you want in sign up now and pass the message on.

Comments (29)

By Little Mummy, January 23, 2010 9:29 am

We were going to achieve so much, we were going to have such fun, we were going to make new friends…

So far it’s been a disappointing year. I haven’t yet commented on the goings on anonymously or otherwise. These are my thoughts on what I believe to be the issues.

New Bloggers

It’s hard to be a new blogger, we get it. Join BMB, there are hundreds of bloggers waiting to connect with you there. Join my e-course, weekly lessons will gently introduce you to this crazy blogging thing. Ask other bloggers, most will be more than happy to help. Don’t expect everyone to fall over themselves to be your best friend though, life isn’t like that and relationships take time to build, but you know that, right.

Tagging

Whether you’re tagged in a meme or not is not a measure of your popularity. Some people tag the same people, that’s because they don’t read many blogs. There’s no rules when it comes to tagging, don’t lose sleep over it, as if you would…

Cliques

What may seem like a ‘clique’ is probably merely a close friendship, one that has been built up over time from literally thousands of interactions, online and off. People have friends, you can’t be everyone’s friend. You can’t be in everyone’s group. You won’t be privvy to every ‘in joke’. I won’t make excuses for having friends, but always feel free to butt in on my conversations on here or on twitter.

Controversial Posts

Some people write funny posts, some people write sarcastic posts, and some people like write controversial posts. Posts that stir up debate. If you don’t like that style you can always unsubscribe…

Which brings me onto my final point, don’t waste your time criticising other people’s tweets and posts, quite frankly they don’t care. If you don’t like it you can unsubscribe, block or unfollow.

The Pond

I think it was Dan who said that there were no big fish and no little fish, there were just fish. Anyone who seriously thinks otherwise is deluded. Some of us have been ‘lucky’ I’ll grant you that, but that is all. So never feel like you can’t approach someone because they’re a ‘big fish’.

If you find yourself ‘sizing up’ bloggers based on their Top 100 position, then stop it. The person who creates the list admits this table is just a bit of fun, any change in the metrics used would throw the whole lot up in the air and they wouldn’t land in the same place so take it with a pinch of salt. Yes, some people get more traffic than others, but it’s quality not quantity that counts (unless you want to make money!)

So with all that being said, may we now move on and perhaps start over?

Start by unfollowing or unsubscribing from those people that don’t resonate with you, there are plenty of other fish in the sea. Gravitate towards the blogs and tweets that make you smile and ignore the rest.

Anyone who likes a bit of banter is willing to join my ‘clique’ anytime

* None of my points relate to anyone specifically, they are my general opinions collated from reading many posts on many blogs.

Comments (28)

By Little Mummy, December 17, 2009 9:54 am

This discussion accompanies lesson six of the mum blogger e-course – blog etiquette & commenting.

One of the questions that has come up regarding commenting is whether as a blog writer you should reply to every comment left on your blog.

Some bloggers I know respond to every comment, others reply to some and yet others never add comment replies.

If you’re an established blogger what do you do and why.

If you’re new to blogging what are your thoughts.

As a commenter do you like a response or doesn’t it bother you.

Leave comments below and discuss…

I respond to comments if I have something to say, I don’t answer every comment. Sometimes I don’t feel I have anything to add so I’m comfortable not commenting as I wouldn’t leave a comment on someonelse’s blog if I had nothing to say.

Comments (3)

By Little Mummy, December 9, 2009 3:41 am

I’m sure most of you are aware of the e-course I launched at the end of November. Well it’s grown wings (is that the right saying?) and is now a 35 week course featuring beginner, intermediate and advanced sections. If you haven’t signed up you can still do so for free – Free Mum Blogger E-course

Well, although all the feedback has been excellent, and I’ve only had one ‘unsubscribe’ (from a nice lady who has got herself a new job with more hours – Good Luck in the new job!) there have been a few people asking about going through the course quicker. So I’ve created the Mum Blogger Beginners Workbook which is a 35 page workbook compiling the first ten lessons as well as twenty five tasks to guide you through the process.

You can purchase it below, once you’ve paid your money you will be given a link to download the workbook to your computer.

Find out more about the content of the workbook here.

Comments (21)

By Little Mummy, October 11, 2009 11:49 pm

We all go through it, don’t we?

Those times when you wonder why you bother. Any number of things can bring it on, a slump in traffic, a nasty comment, the housework piling up around your ears (just one more tweet and then I’ll do it). If you’ve ever found yourself wondering if now is the time to make your blogging exit try these tactics, and if you still feel like giving up then you probably should

1. A new theme/widget

It might be that you’ve become tired with the look of your blog, perhaps it doesn’t reflect the current you. It might just take a new photo, an updated about page and a few new widgets, or it may need a bigger overhaul, it’s all the rage you know, over the summer English Mum, Are We Nearly There Yet Mummy? and Dulwich Divorcee have all had makeovers, as have I.

It’s a bit like your hair though, a tidy up can perk you up for a while, until suddenly you decide to get a number two all over and die it red, ok maybe not that drastic (caution woman at work will warn you about making rash decisions) but you get what I mean, be sure before you start pulling the HTML apart

If you’re feeling lacklustre about your blog try a makeover. On wordpress it’s as easy as installing a new theme and customising a bit, but if you want to go all out it’s time to call in the web designers (a wee bird tells me that Are We Nearly There Yet Mummy Laura’s hubby is the go to guy for a facelift of the blog variety, or just a little botox if you’d prefer).

2. New blogs for the reader

Has the community you were once a part of progressed and you feel like you’ve been left behind? It may be time to look outside your current circle and find some new blogs to read. Check out your current blogs reading lists and see who you aren’t already reading. I’ve found some new blogs this way, Insomniac Mummy, Being a Mummy and Rosie Scribble to name a few.

The blogosphere in Britain is growing and it’s impossible to keep up with all the blogs, unless you make it your full time job so another idea is to immerse yourself in the blogs that are local to you – Hi Mother at Large, Mummy Do That and Clinically Fed Up – just a few of my fellow Scottish bloggers.

3. Read blogs in a different niche

Sometimes if we only read blogs in our own niche our own writing may become stale, the same stories and memes go round and round and you run out of fresh ideas and wonder whether you’ve reached the end of the road. Try adding a few blogs that are in a completely different niche, they give you lots of new ideas for posts that you may not have thought of. I read blogs about cookery, finance, blogging, business, entrepreneurship and marketing. None of them are part of the parent blogging community and most of them aren’t based in Britain.

4. Pick a different topic to write about or start a whole new category

Over time your interests change and your kids grow up, when I first started littlemummy.com it was heavily focused on sharing practical information with other new mums. This stage is behind us now and I find myself writing about wider parenting issues but I’m also enjoying dipping my toe into blogging recipes, I may not be that good but I’m enjoying it. I guess what I’m trying to say is don’t get stuck in a rut if you’ve exhausted a topic move on.

Linda has been a great example of this, she had a blog which only focused on news and information about twins, there came a point this year after writing hundreds of posts on the subject where she felt she’d had enough of writing solely about that topic, she re-branded her blog as more personal and now writes about anything from parenting to business and even short stories. Her blog has soared up the Top 100, it can be done, don’t give up before you’ve explored all avenues or you may regret it.

5. Look back over old posts

Reviewing old posts often reminds you why you started, y’know before the spam, the bad pr pitches and everythingelse that’s crap about blogging.

6. Step away and take a break. Take the week off.

If all else fails it’s time to take a hiatus. If after a month you still can’t be bothered it’s time to make your blogging exit.

Please add any other ways you’ve combatted blog fatigue…

Comments (5)

By Little Mummy, July 22, 2009 3:21 pm

I have quite an interest in small businesses, especially when they are run by parents, you can read about businesses like this in my mumpreneur series.

I’ve made my points about PR people contacting me with various promotions, and it isn’t the PR people themselves but their approach that has been the issue. On a more positive note I’ve had some great direct communications with small businesses with which I’ve done interviews and promotions with, like my recent relationship with Frugi. We’ve done an interview which helps them tell their story but the reason I like doing them is to inspire and educate budding mumpreneurs, Frugi also sent me some samples of their product for Erin which I’ll get around to photographing soon. What I’m getting at is that this is the kind of organic relationship I like to encourage, something for everyone and I’m sure that Frugi and Littlemummy.com will work together again sometime in the future, the door has been left open.

If you’re a small business owner and want to promote your business via parent blogs I’d recommend you start by reading my post on the three things that need to be present to make a blogger want to work with you.

Here are some further points to consider when approaching blogs;

1. Quality not Quantity

Don’t just go after every blog you can find, consider your product or offering and do some research to find a good fit. Approach blogs that have children the correct age for your product or try and get a feel for the bloggers hobbies, tastes and interests. Given the size of the parent blogosphere I don’t think you want to work with any more than around ten blogs, and I would say that is an absolute maximum, if I were in your shoes I’d go after five that were an excellent fit and make your offer to them and their readers more special. If you have a very exclusive offer choose one blog and let them know they are the only blog that you have approached, this is a particularly good option depending on the kind of promotion you’re thinking of.

2. Do Your Homework

Email your ‘chosen ones’, keep your first contact brief. Introduce yourself and your business. Demonstrate your knowledge of their blog, don’t say ‘I really like your blog’, we don’t believe that crap anymore, instead describe what you have to offer and refer to the information you have gleaned from your research. Say something like; I noticed you live just outside of Edinburgh and you have a preschooler, I have a four year old myself and know how difficult it is to keep children occupied over the summer and wondered if I could send you my product X to try. I would appreciate any feedback. You should avoid asking for a review where possible, bloggers blog, and if they can find something remarkable to say regarding your product they will, and if they can’t, well…sometimes it’s best they don’t blog about it, if you know what I mean

3. Promotional Strategies

Have a specific promotional idea in mind but be open to suggestions, the blogger knows their audience the best and will know what will and will not go down well. Most promotional activities to date have revolved around unpaid reviews, usually for free samples. Here are some other strategies you may consider, what bloggers are open to will vary wildly so proceed with caution and try and figure out what sort of promotions they have done before.

Unpaid Review – This is the most common and involves you providing a complementary product that may be reviewed by the blogger, a positive review can never be guaranteed.

Paid Review – You provide a product and pay the blogger a fee, which may range from £20 – £50 to write a review, a positive review cannot be guaranteed, however most bloggers carry out honest and balanced reviews.

Competition/Giveaway – You provide a ‘prize’, the blogger carries out the competition on your behalf. This model has been predominantly unpaid, however, I think we may begin to see a move away from that shortly due to the effort involved. A fee of around £25 – £75 may be considered an acceptable range. These giveaways can be promoted on the blog, in a newsletter, via twitter and facebook.

Banner – A more traditional form of advertising involving displaying a hyperlinked graphic in the sidebar. These are usually sold by the month/quarterly/yearly for fees start from around £20

Advertorial – You provide an article or feature and pay to have this placed as a post on the blog, usually with linkbacks. This isn’t something that has happened much yet but I’d estimate that a fee in the region of £25-£50.

Newsletter Marketing – Only a small amount of parent bloggers currently have newsletters. Newsletter adverts could be placed for a fee of perhaps £25 and upwards.

Blog Sponsor – This would involve being the sole sponsor of a whole blog, this may include your logo in the header, a banner advert as well as ongoing joint promotions. I’ve only heard this model being used in America. I’d hazard a guess that a fee in the region of £500 – £2000 per year would be sufficient for this to happen.

Promotion via parent blogs in Britain is still fairly new but if you want to grab some serious attention do something different, something groundbreaking. Disney did it with their bloggers trip but it doesn’t take a huge budget, build the relationship and be creative. Good Luck

Comments (14)

By Little Mummy, July 15, 2009 3:10 am

This post is in respone to A Modern Mother’s post on a potential PR blackout.

The debate on reviews, competitions and giveaways on blogs runs and runs. I think that three simple things need to be present for these relationships to flourish.

A Relationship

As bloggers we want to be wined and dined a bit, we want a PR person that knows a bit about our blogs and perhaps the names and ages of our children, they know roughly where we’re located and a few things that we’re passionate about.

There seems to be an emerging trend of ‘blanket’ offers that is being perpetuated at our group hangout British Mummy Bloggers. I don’t think these shout-outs are particularly helpful, some of the problem is that there is too much of the same stuff being talked about in the blogosphere and it’s getting slightly dull. I don’t want to read ten blogs all talking about hand soap.

I’m taking the stance that unless I’m very interested in the offer I will not be responding to blanket offers anymore.

I understand that if PR’s only focus on a few blogs per promotion then I’m gonna miss out on a lot of cool stuff, but you know, I’m cool with that, why not share it around a little and I’ll gladly read about other people’s exciting experiences and enter contests (as long as I don’t have to give feedback, see below).

Something For The Blogger

This may be a hobby for us parent bloggers but if you want us to review a product or run a competition there needs to be something in it for us. As someone said, it may have been Susanna “you don’t work for free so why should we?”

The perks when reviewing Disneyworld are obvious, when you want me to do a shampoo giveaway, not so much. I need a little extra incentive to get involved.

Something For The Reader

Most of us parent bloggers write for ourselves but when we’re running giveaways or competitions or doing reviews we’re trying to give something of value to our readers. If there’s nothing in it for the reader, ie a free product, a chance to win something or valuable information then it’s not going to happen, not over here anyway, and that includes the kind of offer that I seem to be getting a lot of at the moment, which goes something like this.

Hi Littlemummy,

Love your blog. (Don’t they all say that!)

I’m working with X company and they have brought out this super-duoer, amazing, best yet, shampoo.

We’re looking to reach mums and dads through influential bloggers like yourself and hope that you will be able to help us out…

We can provide five bottles of shampoo for you to giveaway but we would like feedback.

Eh, no, so not up for this kind of thing, no relationship (see above), nothing in it for me (see above), and something small for reader, but then the insult of all insults they have to work for it too. Yeah, it’s not gonna happen, and PR companies may be getting away with this kind of tosh at the moment but it won’t last forever.

I’ve had lots of fun over the past few months, I’ve been to Disneyworld and Bunchrew House. I’ve received various things from DVD’s to food samples to children’s clothes, and we’re looking forward to our trip to Butlins in October. All these things are lovely, but if they stop tomorrow then so be it.

Many PR people (not all, there are many good ones out there, and yes Kerry at Digital Outlook you’re right at the top of that list) are going to need to raise their games if they are to succeed in promoting their wares in our corner of the blogosphere.

That’s my tuppence, and from now on I’ll sifting the offers and if any one of the above isn’t met then for me it’s a no go, and as I said if that means no more freebies then so be it, I’m not a performing seal. Here’s a little video of a performing seal to lighten the mood, and cos it’s my blog and I’ll put up whatever I bloody well want.

Comments (3)

By Little Mummy, July 1, 2009 4:32 pm

I’ve done a few courses on blogging and related media now, the most recent one I’ve been doing is with Caroline Middlebrook who is based in the UK.

The course is called the Bloggers Bible and is delivered via email. The course is split into 49 units and you receive one unit per week. This course is ideal for the beginner and intermediate blogger, all of the content I’ve received so far was covered in Yaro’s course however that was a paid thing so I think this is a good deal, free is always good

Caroline includes general lessons in blogging as well as more techincal advice, each ‘lesson’ has actionable content that will help you to become more proficient at the technical side of blogging as well as grow your audience.

Click here to view more details

Comments (9)

By Little Mummy, May 29, 2009 12:26 am

Well, it’s all happening in the blogosphere at the moment isn’t it. Did anyone miss the double page spread in the Times? If you did the links are here;

Mums the word in cyberspace

Mummy bloggers hit Disney

Two great articles, and not just because I get a mention in both

The debate about reviews rumbles on with the majority favouring the ‘if we all pick our freebies wisely there is space for the review thing in the British blogosphere’.

A point that has been raised further with myself both publicly and privately is how honest we can afford to be when it comes to reviewing.

Today I was quoted in the Times from the angle of the fact I’m not scared to say what I think about a product, I won’t go out of my way to be nasty or derogatory but I will say it how I see it;

In a review of Aveeno products on littlemummy.com, Douglas wrote: “First up the colloidal oatmeal bath. Every time I mention colloidal I think it sounds like a nasty hospital treatment. I have to say the reality wasn’t much better. Then there was the disposable potty. “Basically, I thought it was rubbish,” she says

I believe the only way forward is complete honesty, otherwise we can kiss goodbye to future opportunities, companies are relying on us to tell the truth, as the Times puts it today “when companies plug in to a network of mummy bloggers they are in effect getting in on the mother to mother conversation” the trust and honesty involved in those conversations comes at a price, for some companies with a strong product it means an excellent marketing opportunity and for those with weaker products, well, yeah…there are gonna be some casualties. But that’s life, and business, it’s survival of the fittest and I don’t think we need to concern ourselves with the effect that our review has on a product, as long as we’re being honest to each other we are fulfilling our remit. Besides, the companies are well aware that there is a risk involved when they approach blogs for reviews;

Companies maintain that all news is good news, when it comes to blogs. “If they don’t like the product, that’s good feedback for us,”

So, in response to the question ‘Would I lie to you?’, no I wouldn’t, not ever, because my priority lies with you the reader, because if you don’t believe me I won’t get the reviews anyway. And if I don’t believe you…

So we’re all gonna tell the truth and nothing but the truth , right?

Comments (8)

By Little Mummy, May 13, 2009 8:31 am

Okay maybe not, but I do have an exciting new gig that may bag me a few more freebie trips, what with Disney World becoming a dim and distant memory I need something to keep me in freebie trips.

Introducing Have a Lovely Time, the latest travel blog brought to us by Linda of You’ve Got Your Hands Full fame. My exciting news is that I’ve joined her team and will be the correspondant (her words not mine!) for anything that may come up in Scotland. Exciting eh…

And my first trip is this weekend! Myself Alex and Erin are off to Inverness for an overnighter at Bunchrew House. I was expecting a wee B&B (which would have been nice) but this place looks the business and the menu looks to be excellent, as if I haven’t had my fill of fancy food over the past couple of weeks.

So I’ll let you know all about it early next week, in the meantime if you know anyone that needs a review in Scotland get them to contact Linda – Linda@passionatemedia.co.uk, it’s much appreciated