Site School: Smarten Up Your Blog

Welcome back, site scholars! This week, I'm excited to share an interview with Dalene Heck of Hecktic Travels, HMI Marketing, Road Trip Alberta, and Road Trip Manitoba – with that many projects, you can see why she and her husband Pete are my kind of people! Dalene and I talk about a grid of monetization strategies you can use on your site (especially travel blogs) based on the kind of visitors you get (locals or non-locals) and how much you want to be an influencer. It's pretty important you actually see this grid, so be sure to check out the show notes here: https://siteschool.co/travel-blog-monetization-strategies/ If you enjoy this episode, be sure to check out another episode next – how about "Acing Affiliates" with Amanda Williams! That's it for this week; class dismissed!

Welcome back, site scholars! It's time for another episode in our series of newsletter ideas to help you get consistent in emailing your community this year. In this episode, we're focused on ideas for June 2023 – though many of them work for other months and future years. You'll hear about 20 different ideas, which is quite enough to be getting on with, eh? You can also read the written format of this episode here, which includes one more idea I forgot to mention in the podcast! Stay tuned for future episodes in this series, and other episodes focusing on how to help you grow and earn more from your site. Class dismissed!

Welcome back, Site Scholars! This week's episode is another case study update – why did I start so many sites in the first half of the year?! In this episode, I'm digging into the details of my Jordan Traveler site (jordantraveler.com) as it has passed the two-year mark. This is an important milestone since it is when I make strategic decisions about the future of my site. If you're curious about this site's performance and what I plan to do next, this episode is for you! As always, don't forget to subscribe and leave a rating or review on your favorite podcast player. You can also join the Site School community on Facebook to keep the conversation going. Class dismissed!

Welcome back, scholars! Today we're talking about something a little different: social media... dun dun DUN! While this isn't a normal topic I cover on the Site School blog, I wanted to share the results of an experiment I've been running on my Facebook Page for the past six months. In this week's episode, we'll cover my history with Facebook Pages (Facebook Pages are dead!), the Facebook Pages experiment I'm running, and the results so far (Long Live Facebook Pages!). I'll also share a Facebook Pages strategy I recommend if you want to try and revive/start your own Facebook Page to support your site. Please consider leaving this podcast a rating and review if you're enjoying it – or share it with someone else who thinks Facebook Pages are dead! As always, you can join the conversation over in the Site School Facebook community. See you next week – class dismissed!

Welcome back, site scholars! This week, we're diving into another case study update – this time for my "pandemic project," aka my Harry Potter site, Follow the Butterflies. I started this site in April 2020 as the world shut down, and it's been a bit of a rollercoaster. In this three-year case study update, we'll look at traffic, blog publishing strategies, taking breaks, and more.  As always, I appreciate your ratings and reviews, and you can join the conversation about this episode in the Site School Facebook community. See you next week; class dismissed!

Welcome back, site scholars – or should I welcome my self back after a break... In any case, we're back in session, getting right on the horse with email newsletters. How did you do in sending your list regular emails in April?  Let's do even better in May! In this week's episode, you'll find two dozen ideas for different newsletters you could send, spreading across literally every niche out there. The only excuse you have for not emailing your list this month? Spell it with me: y-o-u. If you'd prefer to read this week's episode, you can find it on the Site School blog. You can also join the Site School community on Facebook to level up your game with accountability challenges and extra support. As always, I welcome your feedback in the form of ratings and reviews on whichever podcast player you're listening on. Thanks for being a part of the community. Class dismissed!

Welcome back to class, site scholars! Here's the latest installment in the series of "what to send your list" so you can get in the weekly habit of contacting your community by email. In this episode, we're focusing on the month of April 2023 – though this episode will be helpful even if you're listening in future years, as long as you adjust the dates accordingly. There are specific ideas for each week, as well as more general ideas in case not everything makes sense for your niche and business. If you need more ideas, be sure to check out https://nationaldaycalendar.com/, which is a handy website with even more "national day/week/month of" ideas. Additionally, you can read this episode instead of listening, if you head over to the Site School blog. As always, I welcome your feedback in the form of ratings and reviews on this podcast player, and for you to join me in the free Site School Facebook community. Thanks for tuning in and see you next week – class dismissed!

Welcome to class, Site Scholars! What do you do with a site you no longer love? It's tough to say – and your situation may be different than mine... In my two-year case study update for my Great Plains Travel Guide (https://greatplainstravel.com/), I'm taking a look at how a six-month winter break affected the site, and what I plan to do next.  I don't typically cover selling sites as I've never done this before, so let's talk about it and learn together. As always, you can join me in the Site School Facebook community to discuss this episode and join in our April content challenge. Class dismissed!  

Welcome back to class, site scholars! We're back for another episode in the series of "what to send your list." In this episode, we're focusing on the month of March 2023 – though this episode will be helpful even if you're listening in future years, as long as you adjust the dates accordingly. In addition to providing multiple suggestions for what to send your newsletter each week of March, this episode also covers why to email your list every week.  If you need more ideas, be sure to check out https://nationaldaycalendar.com/, which is a handy website with even more "national day/week/month of" ideas. Additionally, you can read this episode instead of listening, if you head over to the Site School blog. As always, I welcome your feedback in the form of ratings and reviews on this podcast player, and for you to join me in the free Site School Facebook community. Thanks for tuning in and see you next week – class dismissed!

Welcome to class, site scholars! January is a busy month for case study updates – both my London On My Mind and Discover Sausalito sites hit milestones in that month, and that means I have case studies to share. (LOMM is episode 14, if you want to listen to that one too.) In today's episode, we're focusing on my three-year case study update for Discover Sausalito. I share the origins of this site – why I started it – how it's performed and grown, which content is working, and my strategic takeaways after three years of running a site that I designed to be small... but secretly hoped would be bigger by now. If you want to read more or see the numbers I share in this case study, you can find a written 3-year Case Study on the Site School blog. Also, please consider giving this podcast a rating and review on whatever platform you're listening – it helps the pod reach new bloggers looking to learn, grow, and earn more from their sites this year. The free Site School Facebook community is also a spot you can find me, participating in monthly challenges, talking about AI in SEO, and much more.  That's it for this week; see you next Thursday... and class dismissed!

Welcome back to class, site scholars! In today's episode, we're taking a look at my London site – London On My Mind, https://londonmymind.com – and how it's performing at the two-year mark. In addition to sharing some site stats, I also dig into what I've learned and what my main areas of focus will be in the coming year. After listening, I'd love to hear what you think – will I be able to focus on the areas I've suggested? Will I get distracted by other priorities or sites? You can always join me in the Site School Facebook Group to sound off! Also, I'd really love it if you're able to leave a rating and review on whichever podcast player you're using. Help grow the reach of this podcast and make the internet a better place! That's it for now, see you next week – class dismissed!

Welcome to class, scholars! This week is a brand new type of episode, focused on what to send your email list this month – that would be February 2023 if you're scrolling through the back catalog. In this week's episode, I share four main ideas and several more thought-starters to give you plenty of inspiration to write weekly emails to your newsletter list. Yes, 2023 is the year you're going to start sending weekly emails – it's time! This episode is specific to February 2023, but can also provide you general inspiration for other months (though I plan to release a podcast episode like this every single month) and for future Februarys (2024, 2025, you get the idea). Want extra credit? Don't forget to leave a rating and review on your podcast player so more smarty pants site owners find this podcast.  That's it for this week – class dismissed.

Welcome back, scholars! Ready to up your affiliate marketing strategy in 2023? This one's for you. I recorded this interview with Amanda Williams from the travel blogs A Dangerous Business and Cleveland Traveler back in 2021, but the advice is as good as ever. In our chat, we discuss affiliate marketing strategies, how to choose affiliates, what to look out for, and more. We also talk about products – yes, real, live, physical products – and how to brainstorm ideas to come up with products you can sell through your site.  In this episode, we also mention a few items I said I'd link, so here they are: Recommended affiliate platforms like ShareASale and CJ Affilimate, a handy software for tracking all your affiliate sales (I've tried this since our chat but didn't find it worth the investment) Printful, a great service for drop-shipping physical products Candace Rose Rardon, the artist we mention whose work is inspiring – even if you're not able to commission her for your site Amanda's affiliate course, Affiliate Marketing for Travel Bloggers That's enough homework, right? Class dismissed!

Welcome back to class, Site Scholars!  Piggy-backing off last week's episode about SEO resolutions, here's an episode focused on the lessons I learned in 2022, how I'm applying them to all my sites going forward, and a complete, comprehensive, I-swear-this-will-work strategy for YOUR site(s) in 2023. If you prefer to read instead of listen, you can find a written version of this episode over on Site School.  I also mention a guide to creating eBooks partway through the episode. Here's the link to that resource. Lastly, I mention my BOSS spreadsheet – literally the key to my success running each and every one of my sites, and something that has helped many other bloggers take control of their sites to make smarter, strategic decisions. Want your own BOSS? Check it out on Teachable. Happy New Year, scholars – and that's it for this time, class dismissed!

Happy New Year, Site School listeners! Here's a podcast to kick your year off on the right foot – it's focused on the six areas of SEO that you should focus on in 2023. Naturally, it includes EEAT and Page Experience scores, but you might be surprised to learn a few of the other areas I think are essential for your focus in the next 12 months. This episode is available in written format on the Site School blog. And you can connect with me and other site owners in the Site School Facebook community. Please consider leaving a rating and review if you've enjoyed this podcast; it helps me reach new listeners and help more site owners grow and earn from their sites this year. That's it – class dismissed!

Welcome to class, Site School podcast listeners! As we cross into the new year, here's a new version of my strategy for setting goals. Instead of setting traffic or income goals, this episode covers how to identify actions you can actually control that will help you reach the next level on your site. Setting goals around those actions will help you grow and earn more from your site – and that sounds like a great way to start the new year! Please don't forget to leave a rating and review – until next episode, class dismissed!

Welcome to class, Site School listeners! In today's episode, I'm providing a peek beneath the hood of my Eat Like Bourdain site (https://eatlikebourdain.com). I started this site about 18 months ago, and it's been a different kind of adventure. In this episode, I'll compare the traffic, email subscribers, and total earnings for my site at the 12- and 18-month marks, plus dive deep into my strategic takeaways and goals going forward. In particular, I spend time talking about how using internal linking as an SEO content strategy can be a powerful way to grow. You can read this recap and review all the numbers over on the Site School blog. I also reference EEAT, which you can learn more about in Episode 6 (EEAT: The Future is Now) and Episode 4 (Expertise, Authority, and Trust: The Future of SEO).  Lastly, I talk about my Bourdain podcast idea, and how I hope to get creatively un-stuck from that soon – and will be sure to put together a podcast episode update when I have more to share. Class dismissed!

Welcome to class, Site School listeners! Today, we're timely: this episode (released originally in mid December 2022) is all about preparing for the December Traffic Bump. Not sure what that is? It's the last week of December when everyone wakes up and starts searching for new information and ideas – it usually results in a boost in traffic during the last week of the year leading into January, which is often one of the biggest traffic months for many bloggers and site owners. In this post, I cover 8 to-dos that you should try and squeeze in before December 26th... or take notes on to ensure you're ready for next year's December Traffic Bump. If you want extra context on these tips, check out my full written guide to preparing for the December Traffic Bump on the Site School blog. See you next week; class dismissed!

Welcome back to class, Site School listeners! Here's an update to my recent episode (#4) all about Google's E-A-T – now E-E-A-T – and what you need to do, to adjust your SEO strategy. (Spoilers: Nothing!) This is a shorty episode so nothing to take notes on or click here, but I'll be back soon with another full-length episode. Class dismissed!

  Welcome back to class, Site School listeners! In this episode, I'm giving a case study update on my second blog – that is, the second-oldest blog I run – Space Tourism Guide. STG turned five years old last month, and is definitely in a different stage of its life as a creative project and mature website.  In this case study update, I cover: the growth (and losses) I've seen in the last year on this site strategic takeaways I have at this milestone my plans for the coming year, including some helpful tips if some of my areas of focus sound like a good idea for your site too Here are some of the links from today's episode: Space Tourism Guide, if you want to check out the site A written version of this episode, my 5-year case study update on Site School Publish Press Revisions, the podcast I recommend for managing updates on your site. Please don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the Site School podcast on whichever podcast app you're listening on – this helps us reach new site owners and bloggers who need to smarten up their blogs too. That's it for now – Class dismissed!