Hello there! Welcome back to Blog Staycation 2014! Are we having fun yet? There have been some fun topics already! I know I am learning a lot! Yesterday I wrote about scheduled posts and why they are a blessing! Today I want to talk about the importance of using photos in your posts.

Bloggers come to the internet to talk about a variety of topics. Anything from experiences to DIY tutorials. With our words, we create a picture. Because we all think differently, we all create different pictures in our minds. This is where inserting a photo would be helpful. We want to create a picture of our topic, but we also want to show what it is we are talking about.

If I were going to write about a crafting project and I told you all about it, how to make it, and what it SHOULD look like at the end, do you think you could do it? You probably could. But if I added some photos, you would be able to see the finished project. You would know what it was supposed to look like at the end.

Same thing goes for an experience. Anyone can write about their experience at a concert, but would you want to read it if there were no photos to go along with the story? Humans are very visual creatures and we enjoy to see what you saw in those moments. A good writer can create that picture for you, but in certain scenarios when you are talking about something that happened, it is best to provides photos.

When deciding to use photos, it is best to use your own. You do not want to get yourself into a situation where you used someone else's work and did not give credit for it. There are sites out there that allow you to use their photos for free, but they don't always have what you want. I suggest taking your own photos and editing them from there. You are probably thinking,  "Really? I don't know how to take photos!" That's okay. It is really easy to take a basic photo for your blog.

First thing you want to do is make sure you have enough light. Natural light is best. This is why you see a lot of bloggers outside when they are using photos in their posts. The natural light will show true colors and won't make everything look yellow. If you absolutely can not go outdoors, open up your curtains and blinds and let the light come in. Turn on an overhead light and use a backdrop. You can create a backdrop easily if you are just photographing small items. Use white paper. The white paper brightens up your photos which eliminates the yellow cast you tend to get indoors.

If you are photographing yourself it is easiest if you have someone to take the photo for you, or invest in a tripod for your camera. The same rules apply here as above. Move on outdoors or come inside and stand in the natural light. See the difference below?

Left photo there was no natural light, right picture I stood in a well lit area with a white background

Once you are done creating your photo, if any editing needs to be done I recommend PicMonkey or Canva. They both offer free options that have basic options for your needs. Both programs are user friendly and help you along the way. I suggest playing with the options to get a feel of what they offer and what you want. You can change colors, add text, add icons, and the list goes on.

Now you are all set to add photos to your writing. Paint that picture and then show it to us. I hope this was helpful and it gives you an idea of why using photos are important and why good photos matter. You do not have to run out and buy a fancy camera right away. I took both photos above with my smartphone. Just play around and see what you get!

Are you using photos now? How do you take them? Do you enjoy mini photo shoots? Tell me below!


Although Blog Staycation 2014 is nearing the end, that doesn't mean you can't continue to learn new things for your blog. I hope to see you all around again! I have enjoyed sharing content with all of you!

Welcome back to another day of Blog Staycation 2014! Yesterday I talked about why it is so important to interact with your readers. Today I want to talk about how to manage a blog with a full time life. For me personally, it is REALLY hard to post everyday on top of social media to go along with it.. I work a very demanding job that keeps me in the office about 10 hours a day. However, I still manage to get my post live AND social media in all day while I am working. I do this with scheduled posts.

Scheduling your posts ahead of time does not work for everyone, but I find it to be a blessing When I get free time I sit and write all of my thoughts down. Those thoughts become my blog posts for the next week. Now that I have blogs ready to go, all I have to do is schedule them to go live on the specified day. Easy peasy!

We all know social media is a HUGE part of blogging today. We need social media to alert readers of new postings and projects, to inspire, to gain new readers, and the list goes on. If you manage a full time job, have children, other responsibilities, or just want to have a real life outside of your blog, scheduling social media posts is the way to go. It allows you to have a social media presence without having to spend all day at your computer.

Facebook now allows scheduled posts. You have to have a fan page for this option. The option is easy and before you know it all of your posts are ready to go. All you have to do is click on the clock (Diagram below) and choose your date and time. Voila! You are all set. No more sitting on Facebook all day!


There are a bunch of programs out there to help you manage Twitter. I personally have used Twuffer and Tweet Deck. I prefer Twuffer, but Tweet Deck also helps you manage all of your tweets on top of scheduled tweets. I have also heard good things about HootSuite. These programs are similar to scheduling posts on Facebook. You type in your post, pick a date and time and it saves it and schedules it. The picture below shows how to schedule a post using Twuffer.

Hi everyone! Yesterday we kicked off Blog Staycation 2014! As promised we will be bringing you  tips on getting your blog organized and ready to interact with your readers. I could find no better way to start of this event, than to talk about why it is SO important to interact with ALL of your readers.
I understand that not everyone who gets into blogging is looking for mass amounts of readers, but it would be nice to go have SOMEONE looking at your daily posts. As bloggers we need other peoples opinions on what we are writing. The content we put out is hard work. We take time out everyday to bring the best content we can to the internet for the world to see. There is no reason why we shouldn't ask for feedback and get to know our readers.

Asking for feedback is important. If you don't ask, you won't know. A few ways to do this is:

• Host a poll: Ask your readers questions about your blog. Be specific because chances are if they are willing to take your poll, they will give you honest feedback.

•  End of post questions: Ask your readers questions in relation to the post. This will strike up conversation and help your readers relate to your content, and you get to know your readers.

•  Use Social Media: Social media is a great way to connect with readers. You can ask for feedback with simple tweets like "I love reading about food, what about you?" or "I love so and so's blog, who do you read?" Questions like these will engage your readers to tell you what they like without feeling like you are being pushy. 

Talk to your readers! Interacting with your readers gives you a feel for what they like and why they read the blogs they do. Make sure you follow these tips to keep your readers coming back:

• REPLY TO COMMENTS! This is a biggie. If you aren't replying to your readers, they have no real connection to you and probably will not be back. 

• Reply to E-mail: Whether it be a simple compliment, complaint or collaboration, reply to your emails. Replying to a compliment will show you care about you readers and are excited that they are excited. Sometimes that complaint can make your blog better. More eyes on your content can see things that you may miss. Maybe a business opportunity comes up, but you are not interested, replying that you are not interested is professional rather than ignoring it. There may be something in the future you are a fit for, and they will consider you again.

• Participate in chats: Whether it be Twitter chats or Facebook chats, get involved! You get to meet other bloggers and readers this way. Host your own or participate in ones already established. Either way you are interacting and getting feedback.

Help your readers: Helping our your readers in anyway you can, will always bring those readers back. Positive actions bring positive feedback:

• Bloggers: If your reader is also a blogger, visit their blog! Leave comments! Help them the way they help you.

• Shops: Do you have a reader who has a shop? Visit the shop. Buy something if you find something you love. Give them feedback.

•  Ect: Engage in anything your readers throw at you. Maybe they are hosting a blog hop, or a link up, or even an e-mail chain. Check it out. This doesn't mean you have to get involved, but at least give it a chance. You may find something new and exciting you never would of though of on your own.

 So what do you think? Do you interact enough with your readers? Is there something on this list you need to work on? In what ways do you interact with your readers?

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you are enjoying Blog Staycation 2014! Make sure you follow along on Twitter with #blogstaycation!