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Monetizing a Blog – 4 Mistakes I Wish I Hadn’t Made

April 15, 2015 by Kathryn 30 Comments

hostgator logo

I’ve been blogging for almost six years now and have been making a full time income doing it for over three years. It’s taken a lot of work, a lot of learning and a lot of mistakes to grow my little website into a real job, but it’s been worth every second!

If you’ve ever wanted to make money blogging but weren’t sure how to get started, you’re not alone! And when you launch your website, these four tips are ones that I wish I had known when I first started my blog. While I still managed to grow a successful business, these tips would have gotten me there even faster!

4 mistakes not to make when monetizing a blog

Spring for Proper Hosting

I didn’t want to take money out of my family’s budget for something that I wasn’t sure would be profitable, so when I first started blogging I used the free Blogger.com platform. Of course, as my website grew I quickly realized, like so many bloggers before me, that not owning and self-hosting my website was going to be detrimental to my business both because of the limited SEO customization that affected my traffic and the limited advertising options.

I then had to go through the hassle of moving my site and all my content to a WordPress website hosted by HostGator. I would have saved time, hassle and money by starting with HostGator in the beginning! And because HostGator offers easy one-click installation of WordPress, design services and 24/7 live support via chat, phone or email, launching my blog with HostGator would have been even easier than starting on Blogger! [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blogging Tagged With: blog monetizing mistakes, blogging income, blogging mistakes, blogging tips, business, earn money, earn money blogging, hostgator, hosting, mistakes, monetize, monetized blog, monetizing, monetizing a blog, money, self-hosting, Snappypreneur, tips, wordpress

Choosing Interac Debit and Interac Flash Help You Support Your Favourite Local Businesses #YourChoiceMatters

November 19, 2014 by Kathryn 51 Comments

One of the things I love most about living in a small town is the connection I have with the people in the community. I’ve been in the same town since I was born so many of my friends and neighbours have known me ever since I was a young child. And now, as an adult, many of the people I know from my school days have started their own families and businesses in the community.

The main street of Lumsden is where the vast majority of the town’s businesses are found and most of them are locally owned and operated. It goes without saying that I have a close personal connection to many of them. In fact, my friend Lasha, who was one of the members of my graduating class, owns and operates a fabulous bakery in one of the street’s oldest buildings. And my younger brother’s former classmate Deanna runs a great massage therapy and aesthetics shop just a few steps down the street.

fourth and james bakery [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blogging, Events Tagged With: business, debic, enterpreneurs, flash, holiday, holidays, interac, interac debit, interac flash, interac twitter party, local, party, small, small business, support, support local business, twitter, yourchoicematters, yourchoicematters twitter party

Make Organizing Your Goal in 2014 with the Simply Plan All-In-One Planner-Giveaway

January 6, 2014 by Kathryn 121 Comments

I am not a naturally organized person. In fact, for many years I was probably one of the most disorganized people imaginable. That started to change when I had kids. Keeping some sort of a routine is just a necessity when you’re a parent, like waking up early despite the fact you’re a night owl. When I started my blog, my organizational skills increased again. I do well with deadlines and so I set them for myself when running my site.

blog calendar before
The calendar I used last year for scheduling blog posts. It worked, but I needed an upgrade!

In previous years, I used a slightly haphazard but mostly effective system for managing my website and my household. Blog posting dates were marked on a paper calendar I kept at my workstation. Payments I was expecting were marked down in a separate small notebook. Kids’ activities were listed on a separate paper calendar in the kitchen. And school activities were remembered simply because I hung the school calendars the boys brought home on the fridge.

school calendar
If it wasn’t for the school’s monthly calendar, I wouldn’t know when anything happened!

Three calendars, one notebook and I was at the limit of my organizational abilities. Anything beyond that, such as meal planning or goal-setting? It just wasn’t going to happen. In fact, even using a paper calendar to record blog features was starting to become ineffective as my site got busier. Then Simply Plan, the ultimate All-In-One Planner, came to my rescue. This planner is a must-have for any busy mom. While the roomy layout of each day with plenty of space for blog organization was instantly appealing, that’s just the start of the benefits of the Simply Plan organizer!

simply plan all-in-one planner [Read more…]

Filed Under: Reviews, Reviews and Giveaways Tagged With: all-in-one, all-in-one planner, budget, business, goals, household, household organizer, mom, mom organizer, mom planner, moms, multi-purpose organizer, new year's goals, oganize, organization, organizer, plan, planner, setting goals, simply, simply plan, simply plan 2014, simply plan all-in-one planner, simply plan book, simply plan organizer, simply plan planner, time management

Vistaprint Deals Helps You Save Even More on Great Business Products from Vistaprint

June 28, 2013 by Kathryn 4 Comments

One of those products that almost every adult needs is high-quality business cards and I am no exception. I used to just have a few cards to hand out to potential employers when I was working as a freelance writer, but after starting my site I found that I needed quite a few more business cards. As a blogger, I was handing out cards to readers, companies and fellow bloggers so the fifty cards a year I used to order simply wasn’t enough any more.

vistaprint deals business cardsI wanted cards that were high quality but I didn’t want to spend a fortune either. So I was delighted to discover Vistaprint Deals, which offered huge savings and discounts on all kinds of products from Vistaprint. Vistaprint offers customized business cards, magnets, stickers, clothing and all kinds of other personalized products to help promote a business at incredibly low prices. And best of all, users can find money-saving Vistaprint coupons at the Vistaprint Deals website to help people save even more! [Read more…]

Filed Under: Articles, Uncategorized Tagged With: business, business cards, card, cards, coupon, coupons, deals, marketing, money, promote, promotion, save, savings, small business, vistaprint, vistaprint coupons, vistaprint deals

A Golden Opportunity to Join Saskatchewan’s Newest Home Party Business with Gold Party Canada

April 27, 2012 by Kathryn 18 Comments

Move over Tupperware and make way Pampered Chef because there’s a new home party business on the rise and it is taking Canada by storm! Gold Party Canada is already operating in every other province across Canada and last night as part of the company’s Saskatchewan launch, I was able to attend an information session to see exactly how this new home party opportunity works.

Gold Party Canada is an innovation among consultants because it’s the only home party business in Canada that women can actually make money for attending! By combining the business of buying unwanted gold and silver jewellery with a home party format, women can enjoy a night out with friends, indulge in some fun and laughter about past fashions and leave with their pockets full of cash! There’s a bit of a stigma attached to the whole concept of buying gold so I was curious to see exactly how the process worked. Luckily for me, Gold Party Canada has made transparency and professionalism its trademarks and the company was ready and waiting to show me exactly how a party is run.

gold party canada graphic

With some scrumptious appetizers and a glass of wine in hand, I sat down with Rhonda, one of Alberta’s top Gold Party Canada consultants, to see how the jewellery is evaluated. The process is quick, accurate and very interesting. First the gold is rubbed gently on a piece of lava rock to transfer some of the gold residue to the rock. Then a mild acid is used on the residue. Depending on the strength of the acid, the Gold Party Canada consultant can judge whether the jewellery is 10, 14, 22 or 24 karats. If the 14-karat acid eats away the residue, the piece is 10-karat gold. If the residue remains under the 14-karat acid but wipes off along with the acid, then the piece is 14-karat gold. If any residue remains, testing continues with a stronger acid. The final step after determining karat is to confirm the finding by looking for the jeweller’s stamp on the piece.

Then the fun really starts! Once the pieces have been sorted, they are placed on a scale and weighed. The weight is multiplied by the current purchase rate and partygoers get to find out just how much that little handful of unwanted jewellery is worth. The average woman’s outdated jewellery is worth about $500!

What really struck me about Gold Party Canada was the fact that the consultants operated with complete openness. The high price of gold has led to so many mail-order gold-buying services but unfortunately, once your gold is out of your hands and, most of the time, out of the country, the company buying it is free to offer you much less than you should actually be receiving. Gold Party Canada is a Montreal-based business and the individual consultants live in the provinces in which they operate. Their goal isn’t to make a quick buck and vanish; they want to operate a business that provides benefits to everyone involved and they do that very well. In fact, because ensuring a buyer’s happiness is so important to the company, consultants are trained to return any pieces to which people seem to have an emotional attachment.

So what does that mean for you? Jordan, one of the founders of the company, was kind enough to sit down with me and run me through the basic model of the Gold Party Canada business. First of all, unlike almost any other consulting business, Gold Party Canada doesn’t charge a start-up fee. The equipment needed to test and weigh the gold jewellery is loaned to its consultants by Gold Party Canada and the money to buy the jewellery is also provided by the company, so consultants don’t have any out-of-pocket expenses for being a part of the business! Hosting a party is just as lucrative, with the hostess earning 10% of the total gold sales!

gold party canada money

And if you already work as a consultant for another home party business, Gold Party Canada is a great way to help increase your party revenue too! The company’s consultants will accompany you to home parties and help provide guests with some extra spending money in one room while you show off all the newest merchandise in another. With a pocket full of unexpected cash, most women are only too happy to spoil themselves with some of their favourite products! Best of all, you and the party hostess will each earn 5% of the total sales!

I was incredibly impressed by how passionate and energetic the consultants of Gold Party Canada were about this business. They haven’t had an easy job since mail-order gold buying has cast such a negative light on the concept of buying gold. But with their transparency and commitment to satisfaction, the consultants have been making fans and changing people’s views across the country. And listening to the stories about people’s surprise and delight when they bring in their gold is so much fun; it’s almost like hearing about an episode of Antiques Roadshow! One woman at the information session last night had recently attended a party and she shared a story about her thirteen-year-old daughter receiving $70 at a party by selling an outdated chain her mother had given her!

This is an exciting home business opportunity for women all across Canada but if you’re a fellow Saskatchewan resident, you’re extra lucky because this is a great time to get in on the ground floor of a business that has been a huge success in every other province. I had the chance to speak to two of the consultants that were among the first Gold Party Canada consultants in Alberta and they are so happy that they were able to work with Gold Party Canada right from the start. In fact, they recently hosted the second-largest party in the company’s history, resulting in $35,000 in sales! And since there’s no start-up cost, you have nothing to lose by giving it a try.

If you have the chance to attend one of the company’s parties or information nights, I highly recommend checking it out for yourself. In fact, there is an information session on Thursday, May 3rd at 7:00 at The Ivy in Saskatoon, SK, so pre-register by clicking here and see for yourself what Gold Party Canada is all about. It’s natural to be cautious with businesses like this so seeing how the process works for yourself and having the chance to get answers to all your questions is a great way to put your apprehensions to rest. That way you can feel completely confident when you get involved in the only home party business that lets women make money instead of spending it! To learn more about Gold Party Canada, sign up as a consultant or host a party, contact an agent near you by calling 1-800-927-5118 or emailing info@goldpartycanada.com.
mommy kat and kids rp2

Filed Under: Articles, Money Tagged With: business, buy gold, consultant, gold, gold party, gold party canada, home party, saskatchewan

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