Mediavine On Air

Usually as a content creator, you're creating blogs, video content, and podcast. But there's multiple avenues to get your content and brand out there. Which all begs the question: have you ever wanted to publish a book? Writing a book is a natural segue for many bloggers, but the journey can seem large and long. In Summer of Live 2019, we talked to two Mediavine influencers who are both published authors: Jen Ruiz of Jen on a Jet Plane and Valerie Stimac of The Space Tourism Guide and Valerie & Valise. Jen and Valerie pack this episode with their honest individual experiences in publishing their own books, and give action-packed tips on how you can get started today. Make sure to tune in! Helpful Resources Jen On A Jet PlaneThe Space Tourism GuideValerie & ValiseBecome A Published Author with Jeffrey Eisner | Mediavine On Air Episode 16The Solo Female Travel BookDark Skies 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QV0CgXjrtC0 Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Happy Thursday, everybody. It is July 11th, and we are in the Summer of Live. I'm Jenny Guy, Mediavine's marketing manager, and it is our month of beyond blogging. So we are talking about the things that tie to your blogging career but might be a little bit outside just the nuts and bolts of operating your website. But we are here and we are so excited today to be talking about book publishing. And I have two amazing guests. But book publishing can seem like a really natural segue for a lot of bloggers. It's an extension of you sharing that expertise that you're already sharing with your audience-- that's sometimes it-- and then other times, it can be the impetus for people to begin blogging in the first place. We've heard a lot of publishers tell us they're great authors, but they aren't able to quite navigate the system and get published, so they decide to start a blog so they can make use of their expertise and their writing skills. But whatever your experiences with book publishing, I'm here with two guests who are both highly successful publishers. We're really excited to have them-- both on their websites and with their books. So first I have Jen Ruiz. Hello, Jen. Welcome. JENNIFER RUIZ: Hi, Jenny. Thank you. JENNY GUY: Awesome. So she is the Mediavine publisher with the site Jen on a Jet Plane, where she writes about affordable female travel solo-- which I think is so fierce and amazing. She's a frequent conference speaker, and she also has her own TED Talk. No big deal there. And, exciting news, she just told me she is doing another TEDx Talk, which I'll have her tell us about a little bit later. But her current TED Talk that's already available for release is "The Power of Flying Solo," which is advocating for travel as a cure for what ails you. She's also a lawyer and the author of the books You Need a Vacation, which is about how to travel with a full-time job, which we all could use, The Solo Female Travel Book, which is tips and inspiration for women who want to see the world on their own terms-- who doesn't?-- and The Affordable Flight Guide, which is how to find cheap airline tickets and see the world on a budget. That last one I just mentioned, The Affordable Flight Guide, just happens to be a number one Amazon best seller. So she has a few things she's worked on. Jen, welcome, and tell us just real quick, what's going on with you in your life right now? I know that I spilled the beans on your TED Talk, but what else is going on? JENNIFER RUIZ: You did. I just got that notification minutes before logging on today. [INTERPOSING VOICES] JENNIFER RUIZ: Hot off the presses, important news. Otherwise, I have a couple of press trips coming up. I'll be, actually, taking a food trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan next week, which I'm so excited about. I worked out really hard today to try to earn my right to eat all the delicious things next week. I have a big move coming up.

With all of the constant shifts in the blogging industry, from social media algorithms to influencer marketing trends, the one thing that stays consistent is your brand. After being a content creator for a while, you realize pretty quickly that you don't have control over many things. You'll never be able to control how many likes you get on a post, or how much engagement your blog pieces get But, you can always optimize your brand to be in the best position possible day in and day out. Back at MVCon 2019, Jocelyn Delk Adams took the stage to talk all things brand. She's the founder of Grandbaby Cakes, a brand inspired by her grandmother which shares classic recipes in a modern and accessible way. In this podcast episode, you'll hear her top tips on how to align your brand with your personal passion and create a community that you love. You don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources Grandbaby CakesJocelyn's CookbookGrandbaby Cakes MerchMediavine On Air Episode 49 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dx1UhSZM6UE&t=115s Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JOCELYN ADAMS: Good morning. Yeah! I'm the only one excited to be here? OK, I just want to apologize for the weather in Chicago. It sucks. I am sorry. [LAUGHTER] I am sorry. It will get better tomorrow. How is everyone doing? Yeah, I feel like I'm doing the Oprah-like thing. Well, first of all, we're going to go from high energy to probably some kind of cooler energy. And we'll go back and forth because this is a serious topic. So for you guys who are blogging a year or less, raise your hands, a year or less. Oh, so everybody is like OGs up in here? [LAUGHTER] Right? OK, so what about four to five years? OK, yeah, y'all need this. You burn out. Anything above that? Oh, my gosh, and you're still doing it. OK, clap for yourselves for real, right? Because this is hard. Staying fired up about your brand is very, very difficult to do. You've got the ebbs and flows. I mean, I'm sure most of you are not waking up every single day like, oh, my gosh, I can not wait to do SEO today. No? No, right? This is difficult. And it's like, oh, my gosh, I cannot wait to go out and do 20 more Instagram shoots today. It gets difficult to stay in the mix. So I have a presentation, and I have all of these thoughts about things you guys can do to externally keep the fire going and internally keep the fire going. But this morning, I had a lot more revelations. It was at like 3:00 in the morning. And I was up with my daughter. And I started writing in what looks like my eighth grade journal. Does anyone still do that? And so I have more stuff to offer too. And the first thing that came to mind for me is that staying fired up about your brand, that's inner work, right? So when you come to these conferences, you're going to learn so much about strategy, about how you can do all of the things, the things that keep your brand growing. But what about the things that keep you invested? What about the things that keep you excited about what you do every day? Because it's difficult. How many of you guys do this full time? A lot of you-- so the first thing I like to do is I recognize the gratitude. Because how many of you guys love what you do, right? Do you ever talk to some of your friends who go to a 9:00 to 5:00 or whatever, work weekends, not like us? But and their jobs suck. [LAUGHTER] Right? That is real. I'm talking about the people who are at the cubicle right now. And they are going to go get coffee. They're going to talk to somebody at the water cooler-- big fun. They're going to be on the phone later. And this is what they do day in and day out. But you guys are here, right? Think about the fun things you get to do. You get to interact with people online. You get to speak to them from your blog. You have this personal voice. You have something to offer. And you get to do all this stuff like work with brands. You get to be creative,

If content creators have learned anything recently, it's that the only constant in the blogging industry is CHANGE. As we usher in the privacy-centric era for the web, the winds of change are blowing more strongly than ever, but what does it all mean for publishers? On this Teal Talk, Jenny is sitting down with Mediavine CEO Eric Hochberger for a no-holds-barred conversation about the state of the blogging industry and everything Mediavine is doing to ensure that content creators not only survive the coming shifts but THRIVE. Make sure to let us know what you think and check out the helpful resources below! Helpful Resources Helpful Resource SlideGrow and First-Party DataExclusive Content with GrowGrow Product TourMediavine x Slickstream https://youtu.be/e4ytEVZRvAs Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello. Howdy, friends. Welcome. Welcome, one and all, to another episode of Mediavine's Teal Talk. For any of our first-time viewers, welcome. This is our live program where we feature experts from around the blogging industry on any and all topics that could help content creators build sustainable businesses. So basically if it concerns publishers, we are talking about it here. I am with you as always as your host, Jenny Guy. So happy to have you here today. We have a very big show for today, so we are just going to kind of speed through our little opening. But I did have to say that believe it or not, however you feel about the various memes announcing it, like it or not, it is already May. Mother's Day is Sunday. 2022, I have to say, is winning the award for Bat Out of Hell years. Like, I don't-- I don't know if anyone-- like, how is it already May? That's insane to me. This is our final episode of Teal Talk before we go on our hiatus for our fifth annual Summer of Live. So I don't know how that happened, but it is happening. It is the truth. And in a world this crazy where time has no meaning, it can be comforting to rely on traditions. And from Mediavine, for Teal Talk, for this show, we traditionally start things and end things with a certain guest. He's here with me today. He's Mediavine CEO and co-founder. Please welcome the one, the only Eric Hochberger back to the program. Eric, welcome. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Thanks, Jenny. Good to have my usual anchor spot. JENNY GUY: It is. ERIC HOCHBERGER: That's the anchor, right? Yeah, OK. JENNY GUY: Yes, anchor. You're batting cleanup, for all you sportsball fans out there. Eric, is this year happening in a bananas, like, flying by crazily to you, too? Are you in shock? ERIC HOCHBERGER: I feel like the last three years, so why make an exception to this year. Don't even-- is it May? That's great. Awesome. JENNY GUY: What does time mean anymore? It doesn't mean anything. And I also-- I've said this repeatedly. I'm sorry for people who are hearing me say it over and over again, but I feel like anything that has happened in the last three years, like significant milestones, shouldn't count. Why? I turned 40. Why? That shouldn't-- ERIC HOCHBERGER: That means I'm not turning 40? Is that the good news? JENNY GUY: That's what that means. That's what that means. It's crazy. OK, everybody. We are going to be talking about some important stuff today. We know you have questions about all of this stuff, because I certainly do. All of us at Mediavine do, so please post those questions for Eric or myself in those comments. We will get them to you. But let us without any further ado, Eric-- we usually have you here to talk specifically about Mediavine updates, but today we have really widened our scope to talk about important things that are impacting the whole blogging, content creation industry. There are some big changes on the horizon for publishers, and we wanted to break them all down. So I want to just start here at the top. I don't know, again, with anyone else, it feels like we've been talking about the deprecation of ...

As a content creator, there's a bunch of milestones. The first blog post you publish is huge. The first time you place ads on your site? Amazing. Finally going full time as a content creator...WOW. Then, there's the first time you land your dream sponsored content gig! Congratulations!! ...Now what? In this session from the Mediavine Influencers Conference in Austin back in 2019, attorney Jamie Lieberman of Hashtag Legal LLC gives tips to negotiate the best deal you can get, the terms of the contract you should include and what you should look out for when reading a contract. Jamie's a treasure trove on knowledge being in the business for over 15 years: you don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources Hashtag LegalNegotiating ContractsThe Art of Negotiating | Mediavine Summer of LiveGetting Legit with Legal | Designed for the Creative Mind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77gPtobP4N4 Transcript MUSIC PLAYING: I just feel so good, good good. Just feel so good, good, good. Just feel so good. JAMIE LIEBERMAN: Y'all just had drinks. Come on. I think it's suspect that the lawyer has to talk after the drinks. I get it, it's not as exciting. We're going to do our best. So, today, we're going to talk about covering your assets. And we're specifically going to talk about sponsored content. And I'm going to talk about it from start to finish. So let me tell you about me. So I am Jamie Lieberman. I've been a lawyer for about 15 years. I run #Legal, which is, like they said, a full-service law firm. We are dedicated to making legal accessible. We work with entrepreneurs. We work with influencer marketing professionals. We work with creatives, content creators. The thread that sort of binds all of our clients is there aren't a lot of lawyers out there who speak that language. And so that is really our goal. There we go. So we're going to talk about contracts. And pretty much instantly, everyone went to sleep, right? We're going to make this as interesting as I possibly can. There's going to be some technical stuff that we talk about. I'm going to leave space for questions, because in a really weird turn of events, people always have questions for the lawyer. So if you do have questions, I will happily take them and answer them as best as I can. Although, famously, I like to answer questions with, it depends, if anyone has ever heard me speak. So I will do my best not to use that answer, but I might. You'll have to forgive me. So I want to talk about contracts from start to finish. I want to talk about the sponsored content deal. So the last time I stood on a Mediavine stage, I talked all about negotiation. And this is a really powerful topic, one that I love more than anything. I love to negotiate. And so I definitely say-- I know all the talks are up on YouTube. I'm not going to spend a lot of time talking about negotiation, but I feel like it's something worth touching on. If you want to go in-depth about negotiation, go to the Mediavine YouTube channel. My whole talk is up there. I have a whole framework. And I am going to offer you guys a chance to download my negotiation framework so you can see it. But a couple points I want to touch on before we get to the actual contract part of this talk. So the most important part of negotiation, and this will help you in your contracts, is research. So the thing that you have to pay the most attention to before you literally do anything-- I mean, before you make a phone call, because we're all going to be making phone calls after this. I know. It's OK. You're going to do it. It's going to-- yes, you are. Yes, you are. Now I know you, and now I'm going to find you. We're going to make some phone calls. So research is our first thing that we want to do. And that can be done in so many different ways. One, you all know each other. We kind of live on the internet, right? So talk to your friends. See what they've done.

One of the best things about being a content creator is doing what you love. But at a certain point, we all hit a wall and have to ask ourselves: How do you stay passionate when your hobby becomes your job? Digital content creation offers the opportunity to share our passions with the world, which is deeply rewarding, but just like any job it has its pitfalls. Clients don't pay on time; internet trolls leave mean comments; and sometimes, the content you work so hard on barely catches an audience. Over time it can start to feel like, well, work. Sometimes it feels overwhelming. What should you focus on? What's the best way to divide your time? How can you tell what's important and what's noise? At the Mediavine Influencers Conference in Austin back in 2019, Andy Dehnart of reality blurred took the stage and tackled this very topic. In this episode of Mediavine On Air you'll hear all about Andy's strategies, techniques, and tools to help you center your focus on what matters most. Check out the episode below! Helpful Resources reality blurredThe Four Tendencies QuizElizabeth Gilbert's FrameworkBird By Bird by Ann Lamott https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ils2qcpz-J4&t=304s Transcript MUSIC PLAYING I just feel so good, good, good. I just feel so good, good, good. I just feel so good. ANDY DEHNART: Oh, welcome everybody. Thank you so much for coming to this session. I know that the competition is Pinterest, which is basically the-- I don't know. That's tough competition. So thank you all for rejecting-- [LAUGHTER] --the Pinterest cult for a moment, at least. You can go back to pinning things in the next 45 minutes. But I'm excited to talk to you today about passion in our lives, and how we work the most effectively, and how we can improve on the stuff that trips us up sometimes. My name is Andy Dehnart. I publish a site called reality blurred. As the title maybe suggests, it's all about reality television. And I've been publishing it since the summer of 2000, so 19 and a half years of blogging now. That was back in the days before there were blogs. Or we called them web logs-- two words-- as I heard someone say yesterday. And most of them were personal diaries, not really about a subject. So I've seen this industry change, and grow, and shift over time. And it's been really exciting to be part of it and really, ultimately, a beautiful experience at first to take my passion for reality television, turn that into something that I create myself, that I control. I'm kind of a control freak. So I love to make everything mine and look exactly like I want it to. And it's amazing. And then also, sometimes, making a little bit of money from it, too, and being able to discover-- and that was in the BM days, before Mediavine was the-- a little bit of money. And then now, obviously, it's become more sustainable and more than just something that can pay for itself. So yeah, all really good, and really exciting. And I think it's such a privilege to be able to do this kind of work and for all of us to be able to share what we care about with the world. That said, over the 20 years-- probably over the time that you've been doing this, however long that's been-- sometimes the storm clouds come in. Sometimes there is an occasional lightning strike or two. So my goal today is to talk through some strategies, tips, techniques, tools that have helped me weather those storms-- if you'll excuse the cliche-- over those 19 and a half years. So let's just talk first about the stumbling blocks and then get those out of the way. So these are basically the things that come up over time and that just trip us up. Maybe they're actually weeds that we need to get rid of. Maybe they're actually beautiful flowers that we think are weeds, and we still have to get over the fact that they're not just weeds that we need to pick out. So let's talk about some of those and what they've been, for me,

It's finally here!  Without further ado, please allow us to introduce Mediavine University, where we teach content creators how to build sustainable businesses.  Our debut course, Growing Traffic, is now live and available to purchase. In honor of that, we're celebrating with Mediavine's VP of Support Heather Tullos.  She and Jenny will be dishing on all things Growing Traffic and Mediavine University (MVU), talking about how the course is set up, the different topics that are covered and what's up next. You don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources Mediavine UniversityHelpful Resources from the liveUsing Heat MapsSpotlight Subscribe https://youtu.be/dKtejvEeBSI Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey. Hello. Howdy. Hi, long lost friends. It feels like it has been about 500 years since we last saw each other. How are you all? Hello. The last time that we were all together for an episode of Teal Talk it was February and cold, and we were having a terrific conversation with two of the founders of Black People's Recipes as part of our Black History Month programming. Now March and the whole of Women's History Month has passed us by and it is already spring. The days are longer and all kinds of things are blooming from flowers to seasonal allergies. And I am suffering on the regs. But I just wanted to first say thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to join us for another episode of Mediavine's Teal Talk. I'm with you as always as your host, Jenny Guy. Our goal with all of the programming we put out at Mediavine is to provide education in service of our company mission statement, which if you don't know what that is, here it is, helping content creators build sustainable businesses. It sounds so noble. And it is noble. We're very passionate about it around here. And I have to say that our topic today falls absolutely in line with our Mediavine mission. And it's really been a dream of mine for a whole lot of years. So I will try to keep any squealing or pinching myself off camera, so y'all don't have to watch. So that's right. If you missed any of the times in the last few days that we blasted it out over social media, we have officially launched Mediavine University, where we teach content creators how to build sustainable businesses. Yes! We need an applause track. OK. Our first course of many is available for purchase right now, and the long title is What I Wish I Knew When I Started My Website About Growing Traffic. And while this one is designed for content creators earlier on in their blogging career, we have many courses coming up that will be perfect for wherever you are in your publishing journey. Our goal with this is to have to be meeting people in different places wherever they are, whether it's they're just getting started or they've been doing this for many years. In fact, part of the reason that we are here today is to ask you, our always incredible audience, what courses and instructors do you want to see on Mediavine University? So say, hey, let us know in the comments. We are taking notes. My incredible team is writing it all down. So tell us, we want to know as always. We always ask you guys what do you want to see? What are your next ideas? And that's what we're here for. So please put that in there. And now that I have been yapping away, and a lot of yapping, it is past time to introduce my wonderful guest with me today, is Heather Tullos, Mediavine's VP of Support. Heather is not only one of the featured instructors in the growing traffic course, but she and I worked together to plot the course out. So it truly would not be happening without her. So I want to welcome you Heather and thank you and the whole support team for all of your support in bringing Mediavine University to life. So thank you. They support they're good at supporting. That's what they do. Let's talk growing traffic and be you,

If you're on the fence about creating original video content, here's a question for you: How would you feel about 5x more audience reach? Yes, really! At Mediavine we constantly talk about the importance of video and it's time to get on board. On a former Summer of Live episode, Meredith Marsh from VidProMom sat down with Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy and talked all things video: she showed us how to take video content beyond YouTube by quickly repurposing it, how she got started integrating content within her own business, and what she'd do different if she was starting today. Make sure to listen to the episode below. You don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources VidProMomThe Video Pursuit Society CourseMeredith's YoutubeVideo Player FAQ & Best PracticesHow to Fill Out Video Details to Improve SEO and RPM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rwQ3zymD-Y&t=187s Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello, everybody. It is Thursday, July 9th. How did that happen? Welcome to the Mediavine Summer of Live. I'm your host, Jenny Guy. How you doing? Tax day, day two, is next Wednesday. Where are you guys at with that, all of that? Are you already filed? Are you filing an extension? Tell us in the comments, what-- if you are all set to go with your taxes, part deux. As a year, 2020 it's been a bit of a doozy. But for today's episode, we are not going to be focusing on all of the less than positive things that 2020 is known for. We are going back to a simpler time, a time before masks and quarantine hair, although my guest today's hair is impeccable, when we kicked off the second Roaring 20s in an all-new decade of video, on an echo, video, video, video. I'll do my own. Here at Mediavine, we have never made our passion for video a secret. We had the Year of Video, which led to a Decade of Video. And, on New Year's Eve, this past year, we celebrated a brand-new Decade of Video. So we are forever encouraging, pushing, pleading with Mediavine publishers to produce more original video content so they can cash in on those industry high CPMs and keep up with advertiser demand for their pre-roll. But those digital advertising dollars are not the only reason to prioritize video creation. Anyone who spends time online-- and with social distancing, that is all of us, all the time-- knows that video is everywhere, on the social media platforms, on all web sites. So create video content, right? What do you have to lose? Record scratch. Video is hard. It can be expensive. And the vast majority of us are doing it solo, without a team of filmmakers standing by to help. So how can you make video easier and, beyond creation, make sure that you're getting the most bang for your video investment buck? Enter my guest, the VidProMom herself, Meredith Marsh. She is here to teach us how to quickly reach a wider audience with multi-platform videos, and I am here for it. Let's meet her. Meredith Marsh is the creator of the Video Pursuit Society, a membership community for bloggers who want to reach a wider audience with YouTube and social videos so they could impact more people and make more money in their online business. Don't we all want all those things? On the VidProMom YouTube channel and blog, Meredith teaches video editing tutorials and camera how-tos while your thriving side-hustle podcast listeners learn about growing an audience and earning passive income as a content creator. Meredith, welcome. Thank you for joining me. MEREDITH MARSH: Thanks for having me, Jenny. JENNY GUY: It is so good to see you. Guys, if you have questions for myself or Meredith, please post them in the comments. We will get them asked. Otherwise, you know that this is kind of special because, as with all Summer of Live 2020, we've brought over our guests and topics from our canceled-due-to-COVID Baltimore conference. So we are going to be sharing the link in the comments from Meredith's slide presentatio...

What happens when you take seven content creators, each wildly successful with their own sites, and unite them under one website with a very important mission?  The answer is the brand new site Black People's Recipes.  On this episode of Mediavine On Air, Senior Director of Marketing Jenny guy is sitting down with two of the creators, Brandi Crawford of Stay Snatched and Tanya Harris of My Forking Life, to dish about what they've got cooking with their new venture.  We'll hear how the seven women are blending their visions and backgrounds to empower one another and their readers, while building a new online destination for African, African-American and Caribbean cuisine.  Listen to the episode, watch the Teal Talk or read the transcript below! Helpful Resources Black People's RecipesStay SnatchedMy Forking LifeResource List from the LivestreamBrandi's Appearance on Good Morning AmericaTanya's Appearance on BFF with the Chef https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9IZXuQ6O6Y&t=1s Transcript JENNY GUY: Hello. Welcome one and all to another Teal Talk Tuesday in almost March. I have to take a moment and ask an important question. Am I the only one that finds it incredibly rude every single time I'm reminded that we're already almost in the third month of the year 2022? I can't be the only one. I feel assaulted every time. To be perfectly honest I was struggling like pre-COVID to accept that 2008 was not just a couple of years ago anymore. But with everything that happened in 2020 and 2021, like any hope that I had of knowing the date or not feeling just completely attacked by the date went out the window. So that's where I am. So I hope I'm not alone. Anyway, here we are on 2/22/22. It's a palindrome day. I'm your host for Teal Talk, Jenny Guy, and I am so happy that we are all here together, whatever the year or date may be. Today I am joined by two powerhouse content creators who have done something incredibly brave and maybe just like a little bit crazy. They have partnered up with five other extremely successful publishers and done an additional website. So Black People's Recipes debuted at the end of January in 2022, and we cannot think of a better way to continue with our Black History Month content than to hear the story of how it all came to be. So please join me in welcoming back to Teal Talk the wonderful Tanya Harris and for the first time Brandi Crawford. Hello, ladies. Welcome. BRANDI CRAWFORD: Hello. TANYA HARRIS: Hey. BRANDI CRAWFORD: Thank you so much. JENNY GUY: I'm going to read the very incredibly impressive bios for each of them. So Brandi Crawford is the recipe developer and food photographer behind Stay Snatched, where she shares quick and easy healthy recipes that do not compromise on taste. Very important. She's a CPA with a background in corporate finance and financial planning. So her love is real for numbers, data sets, and Excel spreadsheets. She is also the author of the Super Easy Air Fryer Cookbook and has been featured on Good Morning America, Women's Health Magazine, Shape Magazine, Parade Magazine, Essence Magazine, Country Living Magazine, Southern Living Magazine, BuzzFeed, Delish, the Kansas City Star, Kansas City Spaces, Greatest, and more. Brandi, welcome for the first time to Teal Talk. BRANDI CRAWFORD: Thanks, Jenny. So happy to be here. JENNY GUY: So happy to have you. And now for another incredibly impressive person. Tanya Harris Fleming is a mom, wife, attorney, recipe groupie, photographer, and traffic whisperer who took a love of pressure cooker and air fryer recipes and turned them into a full time income on her part-time blog, My Forking Life, which she began in 2016. Devoting between 5 to 15 hours a week to her site, she reached up to 500,000 page views a month and she now averages over a million page views a month. She reached the Mediavine threshold in April 2018 and was able to quit her job as an attorney in 201...

Spring is here and winter is DONE! Well, sort of. But that's not going to stop us from our favorite annual tradition: spring cleaning! Whether it's your office or your bedroom, it's important to stay organized, clean, and throw all the clutter away. As a content creator, your website is no different. On today's episode we have Mediavine's Sr. Support Engineer Manager Jacob Feltner and Once Coupled's Lauren Gray. Jacob and Lauren are talking spring cleaning for your site, with everything from auditing your plugins to their favorite tools to use. This episode is packed with actionable tips so if you learn something, make sure to let us know and share what stood out to you! Helpful Resources Once CoupledOur Help Guide to Site SpeedLazy Loading AdsHow To Do A Plugin Self-Audit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewfe22cAZFA&t=109s Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey everybody, welcome. It is Thursday, March 12. It is a little bit crazy in our world right now. But we are here. I am Jenny Guy. I'm the Director of Marketing for Mediavine and the host of Teal Talk. And I'm very grateful that you are joining us today. In current events, daylight savings time started for most of the US states over the weekend, which coincided with International Women's Day and resulted in more confusion and deprivation for females, perfect. And then in other news, spring starts officially one week from today, the season of rebirth, and fresh starts, and green grass. And I think that that's something we could all do with right now in our lives. I know that on everybody's minds and thoughts right now is what's going on in our world and in our country. But what I'm excited about is we can have a whole hour to just sit in our home pods and talk about our websites and not the big elephant in the room, the virus elephant in the room. I'm so excited. So as I was saying, spring, rebirth, green grass, fresh starts, which means it's time for spring cleaning, which could be your closet, your pantry, pockets of your winter coats. Unless you are me, and you love the dollar pocket lottery to happen when the next year-- you know, when you put on your coat that you haven't worn in eight months, and you stick your hand in the pocket, and you're like, $5. It's-- it gets me every time. But what we're talking about today, us being Mediavine, is your website. Have any of you guys ever done this? A deep and thorough cleansing to get rid of the things you don't need anymore that are just taking up space and weighing and slowing you down. It sounds like a great idea. But how do you make this happen? Enter my amazing guests. Lauryn Gray is the founder of Once Coupled and believes in doing everything with passion and transparency, which mostly means she sends really long emails riddled with exclamation points. Girl, same. She's worked with over 500 plus bloggers on projects from reducing above the fold white space, to taking a site from a zero-page speed optimization score to green. When she's not making your site faster and easier for you to manage, Lauren enjoys crime TV, mojitos, and long walks on the beach with her dog. Hi, Lauren. Welcome back to Teal Talk. It's been a while. LAUREN GRAY: It has been. I think we did a spring talk like this last year. JACOB FELTNER: We lost Jenny. She was the glue. She's what kept it together. LAUREN GRAY: She is. I can't even tell if we're still live. JACOB FELTNER: Yeah, I don't know. Andrew just waved at us. So-- LAUREN GRAY: OK. JACOB FELTNER: --potentially. LAUREN GRAY: So that might mean we're still here. We don't know where Jenny is. JACOB FELTNER: No. LAUREN GRAY: Jacob, should I introduce you? I've got your-- JACOB FELTNER: Dude, that'd be awesome. LAUREN GRAY: --info here. Great. Well, I'm here with Jacob Feltner. He is a Support Engineering Manager at Mediavine, as well as a husband and dog dad. He's an expert in all things Mediavine ads,

Traffic matters. Fortunately it's not the only important metric anymore, but it's still a vital component for website success. Whether you're a Mediavine publisher wanting to increase your revenue or a content creator ready to reach the 50k sessions* and apply, today's episode of the podcast is all for you! Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy interviews guests Jennifer Fishkind of Princess Pinky Girl and Tanya Fleming of My Forking Life know how to grow traffic, as they share their secrets with you on how to build successfully.*Since this episode of Summer of Live, the requirements to join Mediavine have been adjusted. Helpful Resources Princess Pinky GirlMy Forking LifeGrowing Your Traffic - Summer of Live 2018Why All Traffic Doesn't Monetize The SameBehind The Numbers With Brad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsOprOrAnwk Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey, everybody. Welcome. It is Thursday, August 29. I'm Jenny Guy, the marketing manager for Mediavine. And it is hard to believe, but another summer is almost gone. It is Labor Day weekend, which means that our second annual Summer of Live is wrapping up. Crazy, crazy, crazy. So just to remember where we've been, in June, we talked about all things Mediavine. We talked to Create, which is our most valuable WordPress plugin. A couple other things that are coming up. In July, we went beyond the blog talking book publishing, and content creation and philanthropy. And then, all through this month, we've been talking about making it rain. We're basically a broken record when it comes to diversifying your revenue stream. So we talked to video, affiliate marketing, SEO, RPM. And we are closing out this Summer of Live extravaganza with the metric that impacts all of the above metrics, traffic. As I was talking with my - before we started, we all have a love hate relationship with traffic. But I don't think any of us would deny that more of it is better. Traffic - from Instagram's swipe up feature to more lucrative campaigns with brands. Plus, for those that are out there wanting to join Mediavine, we have the traffic threshold of 25,000 sessions in the previous 30 days to work with us for full service ad management. So if we've got anyone out there looking to reach the traffic threshold, post in a comment and say, hi. But I'm got to go my two amazing guests. They know traffic. They know how to grow traffic. And real traffic, not bought traffic. And they're here to tell all their secrets-- or at least some of their secrets-- to our wonderful audience today. First, I've gotten Jennifer Fishkind. She is one of the OG's of Pinterest, where she has over a 3.5 million followers. She shares all things food, entertainment, fashion, and family on her website Princess Pinky Girl. Which, by the way, is celebrating its six year blog birthday today. Happy birthday to Princess Pinky Girl. JENNIFER HABER FISHKIND: Thank you. Thank you, Jenny. JENNY GUY: She came to be a full time blogger after 20 years in the corporate nonprofit industry. And now she blogs full time. And she - blog expertise is one-eighth of Bloggers Tell All, which is the advanced mastermind group for educational - for other influencers who aspire to financial freedom and blogging success. She lives in Michigan with her husband and three boys. Hello, Jen. Thank you for joining us. JENNIFER HABER FISHKIND: Hey, Jenny. Thanks for having me. JENNY GUY: So great to have you today. And my other guest, Tanya Harris Fleming, is a mom, wife, attorney, recipe groupie, photographer, and traffic whisperer who took the love of pressure cooker and air fryer recipes and turned them into a full time income on her part-time blog, My Forking Life. Which she began only in 2016. So for devoting 5 to 15 hours a week to her site she reads up to 500,000 page views a month. She reached the medium on threshold in April 2013, and was able to quit her job as an attorney earl...

There's hundreds of things you need to do as a content creator: strategizing your outreach, building your audience and scaling efficiently chief among them. But how do you do that in today's world, where everything moves at the speed of light? We've got the answer. Enter affiliate marketing, an often underutilized revenue stream. On Summer of Live 2019, Mediavine On Air host and Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy picked the brains of two affiliate marketing experts. Amanda Williams, a Mediavine travel publisher and affiliate ace on her website A Dangerous Business, and Jeannine Crooks, Partner Acquisition and Development Manager at Awin, a global affiliate marketing network. Listen in and get ready to earn as Amanda and Jeannine tell us all in today's episode of Mediavine On Air! Helpful Resources A Dangerous BusinessJeannine's LinkedInAwinMediavine Ads and Affiliate Marketing: Striking the Right BalanceImproving In-Post Affiliate Earnings with Katelyn Fagan: Mediavine On Air Episode 7 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5F3WJ4qhlqI&t=25s Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello. Welcome. It is Wednesday, August 7th. It is the final month of the 2019 Summer of Live. And even though it is hot and dry most places around the world right now, we are making it rain here at Mediavine and continuing our focus on monetization. Welcome and thank you for joining us. I am Jenny Guy. I am the marketing manager for Mediavine. And I have two amazing guests that I'm going to talk more about here in a second. But what we're focusing on today has the potential to be a really highly lucrative revenue stream for content creators. But it also has the potential for being complicated and challenging to get going. We are talking about affiliate marketing. What did you think of when you heard the term? Did you have excitement, dread, bewilderment? Well, luckily, my two incredible guests, when they hear affiliate marketing, they also hear cha-ching, because they know how to earn. They are experts from different sides of this equation. So first, I have Mediavine publisher Amanda Williams. She has one of the top travel blogs on the internet, a Dangerous Business, which she started in 2010. In 2018, a Dangerous Business was awarded a silver award for Best Travel Blog in the 2017-2018 Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition, which is hosted annually by the Society of American Travel Writers, SATW for the acronym. So not only is the content on her site phenomenal, a Dangerous Business helps drive more than $35,000 in sales to its affiliate partners every month. Amanda is also killing it with ad revenue and relationships with brands and tourism boards. Hello, Amanda. Welcome to the Summer of Love. AMANDA WILLIAMS: Hi. Thanks, Jenny. JENNY GUY: Yay. We're so glad you're here. So she's on the blogger side of the equation, clearly. And I also have Jeannine Crooks. She is the partner acquisition and development manager at Awin, a global affiliate network. She is especially experienced in affiliate marketing and internet marketing and creating successful partnerships and developing effective, profitable websites that generate immediate involvement and results. She's a frequent conference speaker everywhere from Affiliate Summit to TBEX and the Military Influencers Conference. She's also a travel writer herself. And her work has appeared in most of the major newspapers across the US and Canada. Thank you for joining us, Jeannine. JEANNINE CROOKS: Well, thank you for inviting me. Glad to be here. JENNY GUY: I'm so excited to have you both here. So I know that there are a lot of questions out there about affiliate marketing. So please make sure to post in the comments. And I will make sure that we ask the questions to my wonderful guests. But let's start with the more general question, ladies. So you're both extremely well-traveled, both literally and figuratively,

Content creators have the power to change the world from behind their laptops. Cheesy? Maybe a little, but that doesn't make it any less true. Unfortunately, creating a safe space for yourself and others isn't going to happen by chance. So, how do we go about this very important work with sensitivity and intention? For Mediavine On Air Episode 42, Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy is joined by Yolanda Evans, Mediavine's VP of People Experience and Diversity. Yolanda shares all the wisdom she's learned from more than 20 years of experience advocating for diversity and inclusion and you DON'T want to miss it! Helpful Resources Helpful Resources SlideHate Is A Virus#ChangeTheFaceThe Tonquise "TQ" Evans '03 Endowed Scholarship"How to Be An Antiracist" by Ibram X. Kendi https://youtu.be/4lZ_1lM5CY4 Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello, everyone. Welcome. Grab a seat. Grab your favorite beverage. It is the middle of the day, but we are not here to judge. It is 2022, and we're still in a pandemic. So we need to take our moments of joy whenever we can have them. Mine today was a iced dirty coconut chai and a cheddar and spinach scone, and I have zero regrets about it. YOLANDA EVANS: Man, that sounds amazing. [LAUGHTER] JENNY GUY: It was so-- it was one of those things when I'm like am I going to take the time to do this. And then I thought, yeah. You know, I am going to take that extra 10 minutes, and I'm going to get this, and I'm going to have it. YOLANDA EVANS: That beats my water and bagel any day. JENNY GUY: You reward yourself post live. YOLANDA EVANS: There you go. JENNY GUY: Mm hmm. Reward yourself post live. That's good. How is everybody out there doing on this Teal Talk Tuesday? I want to take this moment to say thank you for being here. Truly it is my privilege to come here every couple of weeks to talk with industry experts and all of you. So thank you. And I should say who I am. I am your host for Teal Talk. I'm Mediavine's Jenny Guy. It is February, which means it is Black History Month. One of the ways we're honoring the occasion is by sharing some of the incredible Black content creators and Mediavine team members that we are so lucky to work with. So make sure that you're following us on all of our social media platforms, including LinkedIn, if you do that, and YouTube, to catch them and more things that we'll be doing throughout this month. While we are excited though at this opportunity to share a light on these talented individuals, our goal is to ensure that we're pushing for awareness, equity, and inclusion year round. As content creators, we're in a unique position of influence and can affect real change, but sometimes we might not be confident in how to provide support sensitively, which is why I am so excited for my conversation with our wonderful guest today. Yolanda has joined the Mediavine team in the Summer of 2021 and has already proven herself a maker and educator at our organization. I'm going to read her impressive bio. Yolanda Evans serves as Mediavine's VP People Experience and Diversity overseeing the people operations department and department staff. In this role, Yolanda leads the overall strategic direction of all people-related programs within the company, including talent acquisition, talent management, and all diversity and inclusion initiatives. She brings more than 20 years of experience to Mediavine. In her most recent position at Syniti as the VP of talent acquisition, she played a key role in the company's growth as the business scaled from 400 to 1,400 employees during her tenure. In her leadership role at Syniti, she also helped to initiate the company's Diversity and Inclusion Council and launched the Black Employee Network, BEN, & Friends as the executive sponsor. Yolanda, thank you so much for making time for us. YOLANDA EVANS: Absolutely. No, thank you for having me.

February is Black History Month, and for the next few weeks we want to not only share the wonderful work that Black and Brown creators are producing in the industry, but hear their thoughts at large on where we're heading.On today's episode of Mediavine On Air, we're not just hearing from one creator - but three.In late 2019, Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy sat down with Beth Santos, CEO and Founder of Wanderful and the Women in Travel Summit, TaKenya Hampton of the website Kenya Rae, and Martinique Lewis of Audacity Fest and the Creative Lead of Nomadness Travel Tribe.The three ladies told us all their thoughts on diversity in the content creator world, how we can better be advocates for inclusion and how we can share and spread the spotlight to marginalized communities, giving them the space to lead and prosper.Make sure to listen to this episode and check out the transcript below! Helpful Resources Nomadness Travel TribeWanderfulWITSKenya RaeMediavine's Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYN4_h2diuU&list=PLVy2vgUysJwuQ7KuAkPgD6DsCVjvNCkVJ&index=4&t=280s Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello, and welcome, everybody. It is Thursday, October 17. And I am so happy to be back with you guys for our first official fall episode of "Teal Talk." I can't believe it's fall, y'all. I am Jenny Guy. I'm Mediavine's Marketing Manager and your host today. How is everyone doing? It's been a while since we talked. And it is now Q4, which is the quarter I feel like we all talk about until it is here. And then everything is so insane during that time, with all the personal stuff, that business is hard to come by. So basically, it's already 2020, if anyone was wondering. It's the end of the year. It's a new decade. But to get to the matter at hand today, I have got a super impressive lineup of guests with me today. As you can see, we're doing three guests. And they're all incredible. They took a break from being industry leaders to talk about a topic that is near, dear, and very important to all of our hearts. We are talking about diversity, inclusion, and access within the blogging industry today. I'm going to introduce our guests. But just to remind you, first, thank you for being here with us. Second, if you've got questions for us and the panel, please feel free to just post them in the comments. And we will make sure to get those asked. So lots to cover today. I want to introduce everyone. First, I'm going to start with Beth Santos. She is the founder and CEO of Wanderful, a global community and lifestyle brand that specializes in helping all women travel the world. Wanderful reaches a diverse audience of over 100 million each year through chapter events in 50 cities, an international home-sharing network, which is super cool, global summits, and small group trips-- a thriving membership community and dynamic online content and forums. She is the creator and host of the Women In Travel Summit-- which I've been to twice, it's amazing-- a leading event for women, travel creators, and industry, happening on two continents each year, and co-founder of hashtag At The Table, a national dinner series and community for female founders. She lives in Boston. Hi, Beth. Thank you so much for joining us today. BETH SANTOS: Hi, Jenny. Thanks for having me. JENNY GUY: Absolutely. All right. Our next wonderful woman, TaKenya Hampton is the blogger behind Kenya Rae, an online food and DIY outlet where good food doesn't take all day. And it sounds like some food is ready now, maybe, in someone's microwave. I don't know. Could be something delicious. Dessert could be its own meal. And dessert is also in a war with breakfast for the meal of the day. She has been in the blogging space since 2011 and watched it go through many changes. She also serves as a resource to fellow bloggers on the Mediavine Publisher Support team. Hi, Kenya. Welcome.

When starting the new year, there's a lot of things you have to get in order for your business to thrive. More often than not, you're doing the job of 5+ people as a content creator.Enter automation. Automating work frees up time and helps you focus your attention where it's needed. Erin Chase from 5 Dollar Dinners joins Jenny Guy, our Senior Director of Marketing, in a conversation about what automation is and how you should treat these products and services as an "invisible employee". From determining what tasks you should automate to what services could be the right fit for you, you don't want to miss it! (This past episode of Summer of Live was brought to you by BigScoots, a service that offers completely hands-on managed WordPress hosting. Visit their website at https://www.bigscoots.com/) Helpful Resources 5 Dollar DinnersErin's Meal Planning WorkshopFreezer Friendly Dump Dinners CookbookFreezer Cooking ToolsWhis-Kid Cooking Lessons https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8DkDp-0WcM&t=125s Transcript JENNY GUY: It's Thursday, August 20, which means that summer is winding down. Sad face for some of us. Some people are all fall and have been waiting for Halloween to begin. Since I have an awesome food blogger on today, I decided that we should kick off this episode with food talk even though she's not really here to talk food. So for your hello, welcome, post in the comments, what end-of-summer produce are you making the most of while it still lasts? Or are you canning? Tell us in the comments what late summer goodies your loving. Gifts, emojis, recipe links, whatever butters your bread with late summer produce, drop it in there, and that's what we're talking about today. And while you are spamming us with comments I wanted to let you know that this episode is brought to you by BigScoots. BigScoots offers completely hands on managed WordPress hosting purpose built with WordPress in mind to deliver industry leading performance and reliability. They proactively dig deep into your specific WordPress website to find optimizations and page speed performance improvements that other hosts just don't have time for. As your WordPress partner, they will be laser-focused on your individual site catching issues before they impact you or your site's visitors. And are always working hard behind the scenes to ensure things are secure and running smoothly without having to be asked. For more information on BigScoots, check out their website. We're going to share that in the comments for you. We are so glad to have BigScoots. They're so fun. Oh, yay. And we're already getting wonderful comments from people what they're doing with their late summer produce. We've got white nectarines. Yeah, Carol Bryant. Good call. Tomato cucumber salad. Yep. Canning salsa, diced tomatoes, pasta sauce, and pickled okra, Rachel. You're putting us all to shame. OK. I will go. I will go back to the food in a minute. But for the topic at hand, as I already mentioned, my guest is a pretty big deal in the blogging world. And for her specific food focus she really emphasizes saving home cooks-- their sanity, their money, making their lives easier. And she is here today to do the same for all of our audience websites. Free up your time and your energy so you can focus on the high level and high priority tasks in your business with automations. And I have been wanting to sing the-- [LAUGHS] do you know the Pointer Sisters song? (SINGING) Automatic. I've been wanting to-- every time I say, automations, I want to go, (SINGING) automations. Every time. So just so you know. Erin Chase is here. She is the founder of $5 Dinners and 5dollarmealplan.com, grocerybudgermakeover.com, myfreezeasy.com, and author of The $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook series. She is on a mission to help busy, overwhelmed home chefs learn to spend less money on groceries and get organized in the kitchen. Her courses and membership programs have helped tens o...

2022 is here! NOT 2020, too.Curious about what's on tap for the largest exclusive full-service ad management firm in the United States? Us too! Today on Mediavine On Air, we hear from Mediavine CEO Eric Hochberger. From the actual death of third-party cookies and the future of programmatic advertising to the features you've been asking for, Mediavine's Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy asks it all -- and it's an episode you won't want to miss. Helpful Resources Helpful Resources Slide2022 Roadmap: It Takes All of UsGrow: Introducing Subscribe and the Spotlight Widget Universal Player: One Video Solution to Rule Them AllMediavine's Content ChallengeCreative Ways to Use Create https://youtu.be/0JJh9gKdxmo Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello. Hey, hi. Welcome, one and all, to our first episode of Mediavine's "Teal Talk" of a new year. I can't even believe it. But you've got an old host. I am Jenny Guy, and I am still here. You are stuck with me. Hello, welcome. Guys, it's 2022, which sounds way too close to 2020 2, as in another leveled-up version of 2020. And I don't think there's a single one of us who want that. None of us. None of us want that. So I guess my question is, are we still within our trial period for this year? Because I am not sold on keeping it. Anybody? Yeah? How about you guys? How about everyone's coming in now, kind of rolling in? Hello, welcome. Say hi. Tell us how your new year is going. Are you off to a grand start? Did you make resolutions? Are they on track? Tell us. Tell us how you're doing. Say hi and let us know. I sincerely hope that you had a beautiful holiday season and that you are starting the new year invigorated. But as always, on this show on "Teal Talk," we are here to talk about content creation. So it is our time to quiet the noise from all the various current world dumpster fires and focus on our businesses for a little while. So friends, as far as good news and exciting announcements, my guest today has brought both. Please join me in welcoming Mediavine CEO Eric Hochberger back to the program. Hello, Eric. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Thank you. So does that make me an old guest? I've been wondering that since your intro. JENNY GUY: I mean, I'm an old host. You're an old guest. We're old-- we're experienced. We're vintage. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Experienced guest, great. OK, love it. JENNY GUY: Yeah, we're very experienced. Everybody's saying hi. Yes, we have people saying they want to cancel their subscription as well. We understand. OK. So what we're going to talk about today is all of the developments we've got going on. Eric put out a great blog post earlier this year, as is tradition. I think this was our fifth, our fourth or fifth, yearly roadmap, which tells us where we're heading in the coming year. Our other co-founder Amber puts out a recap at the end of the previous year, and then Eric puts out our roadmap for the coming year. And most of our questions come from that, along with some things that people have asked in the different groups. But if you have questions, as always, for Eric or I, drop them in the comments, and we will do our best to get to all of them. OK. So I'm just going to dive in. We OK with that, Eric? Actually, we had a request for a baby story. Do you have a baby story for us? ERIC HOCHBERGER: Who did that come from? JENNY GUY: Sarah. Sarah Auerswald said she's off to a great start, hoping you are, too. Give a quick story about the new baby Eric. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Oh. The new baby Eric? Is that what we're calling it-- JENNY GUY: No-- [LAUGHS] I think there is-- ERIC HOCHBERGER: I mean, that's fine. JENNY GUY: I think there was a comma. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Oh, a comma, comma. JENNY GUY: We were missing a comma-- new baby, Eric. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Because I didn't know. Maybe she knew, because this one actually does look the most like me of any of my girls.

It's a new year. Which means our favorite thing is coming up...That's right: taxes!Jokes aside, whatever the due date, we ALL must eventually pay taxes. And it's no joke that taxes for freelancers and creative business owners are often more complicated. Last year Amy Northard, CPA, joined Mediavine's Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy on Teal Talk to walk us through taxes as a content creator, and how to start off the new year on the right foot. You don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources The Accountants for CreativesAmy's Youtube"How Do I Reach a Real Person at the IRS?" ArticleAmy's Instagram https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-j7YtM9XvA Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: So that's a great answer. But I have gotten word from my team that we just showed up on live. I don't know why it took five minutes for us to get going, but we are just now going. So we were having a fun private conversation just about a minute ago. Guys if you are just-- you're not just joining us. We've been here. But we just got live. So that was a fun thing that just happened that has never happened before. I am here with Amy Northard. She is a partner at Amy Northard CPA, the Accountants For Creatives. And she was just explaining how she works with bloggers. We're here to talk about all things taxes. The question I ask you guys to post on if you're here with us in the comments is, have you already done your 2019 taxes yet? Or are you more or are they wait till the last minute kind of person? And Amy was explaining what it means to be an accountant for creatives. And can you just go a little bit more over about how you do work with bloggers? And some of the specific things that, questions that they bring to you? AMY NORTHARD: Yeah. So we work with bloggers virtually, bloggers all over the US. And we do it through video calls, phone calls, emails, those sorts of things. But we work with them to work on things like cash flow, savings for taxes, saving on taxes-- not only being prepared for taxes, but also how can we reduce that, how much you're paying on your income. So we try to help in all aspects of things related to taxes, bookkeeping, those sorts of things. Because you never want to get to the end of the year without knowing or having an idea. Otherwise, it can be really stressful. So helping them throughout the year, instead of just being that one-- the account that you just talk to once right around April. Prepare people a little bit. JENNY GUY: OK. So we just got a comment from Melissa Greeley Olivieri, I just want to make sure I'm saying it right. She says, no, she has not done her taxes yet. She's in Canada. And this is her first year doing them as a blogger. She's terrified. And she doesn't even know where to start. So we'll get to you in just a minute. But let me start out with this question that might kind of address everyone broadly. Since we're all creatives, pretty much everyone that's watching is a creative in one sense or another, most website owners of their own. Could you tell us any common struggles or mistakes that you see content creators making regularly with their taxes or just general accounting. AMY NORTHARD: I think, two big ones. One is not worrying about your bookkeeping throughout the year, and just saving that for once the year wraps up. And the reason I think that's a big mistake is, like I just mentioned, you want to throughout the year what you can expect for taxes. So forcing yourself. Getting in a good habit of maybe once a month, or at a minimum once a quarter, sitting down giving yourself a chunk of time to get that taken care of. And just kind of like make that the day. You act like you are your business's SEO or CFO. And spend time really treating it like a business. Even if you consider your blog a hobby, treat it like a business. Because the more you treat it like a business, the more you could potentially bring in through that venue.

A new year means new beginnings. Today's On Air episode is all about that.Alison Gary worked for a long time in corporate America - a decade to be exact - before she went full-time with her blog, Wardrobe Oxygen. Often we talk about what it takes to maintain your business as a content creator, but what about the most important decision? The decision to go full-time?In today's episode you'll learn how Alison made this decision and all the work that led up to it. You'll hear how she taught herself from the ground up, the conversations she had with her husband that helped her make the jump, and what she learned along the way.You don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources Wardrobe OxygenAbout AlisonAlison's InstagramAlison's Interview with us! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69QTElDz7Us Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello, everybody. Welcome, welcome, welcome. It is Thursday, February 7. This is Teal Talk. I am Media Minds Marketing Manager Jenny Guy, and we are so excited to be back with you for another Thursday installment of our series. I am thrilled to be introducing you to Alison Gary. She is my guest this week. She is the owner and founder of the blog Wardrobe Oxygen. She is an essential resource for any woman who is wanting to up their wardrobe game and get themselves to the next level without spending an arm and a leg. Alison, thank you so much for being here. ALISON GARY: Thank you for having me. I'm excited to be here. JENNY GUY: We're so thrilled to have you. And, of course, you look fabulous. Naturally, I knew that I was going to have to up my game a little bit. I'm wearing a flannel shirt, but I thought that I would need to up my game a bit, do some makeup. I knew you'd look wonderful, so you look fabulous. So Alison, tell us a little bit about your journey. Tell us a little bit about your site. Talk to us about your audience and how you've evolved. You told me a little bit before the broadcast about how you went from where you began to here. ALISON GARY: Well, I had a desk job, and this was in 2005. And I was hired for a specific contract, and the contract hadn't been signed yet. So my new boss was like, just look busy until we get the contract. And I had seen something on Dateline or 60 Minutes or something about blogging, because it was the hot new thing. And I was like, oh, that'll make me look busy at work. And I had several years under my belt working in apparel as a personal shopper, as a visual merchandiser, and so I decided to write about what I knew really well. and it started getting traction, and I started getting followers, and it kind of grew from there. And now, it has been, yeah, since 2005. So we're going on my 14th year with Wardrobe Oxygen. And now, it's really kind of evolved as I've evolved over the years, and it's real-life fashion advice for grown women. So it's ways to live a stylish life regardless of your budget for every body size, every shape, every age, every lifestyle , and every personal style. JENNY GUY: That's an awesome empowering mission statement for a blog. I love to hear that. I'm so glad that you're here with us. And so the reason why, other than the fact that you're wonderful, that we have you on this broadcast today is to talk about going full-time with your blog, which is something you just very recently did. You're telling me-- so I know that there are a lot of people out there who want to hear how this happened, why this happened, when they're ready to do it. And I know it's got to be a personal decision for each person. So tell us, I know that you said that you originally had multiple blogs, correct, and you combined them. ALISON GARY: That's right. I started way in the beginning with what is Wardrobe Oxygen now and a personal blog, and got rid of the personal blog when the other blog started gaining traction. Then I went with another outfit of the day blog. And then when I had my daughter,

What's better than an ugly holiday sweater party? A whole lot of education for content creators — while wearing ugly holiday sweaters. Back on Teal Talk in 2021, we closed the year with a bang, prizes and an extremely good sport: Google's Head of Creator Relations, Paul Bakaus. He joined Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy to discuss everything from Web Stories, resources for content creators, how creators can sustain their career and much, much more. You don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources Facebook Live HandoutGoogle for CreatorsEnglish Google Office Hours with PaulGoogle Web Stories: What You Need to KnowGoogle for Creators Twitter https://youtu.be/U4D4whh43cQ Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello, everyone. Welcome to Teal Talk, and happy holidays to one and all. Welcome, welcome, welcome. Believe it or not, we've reached our final episode of 2021, and I have been fortunate enough to be with you for every single one of them. I'm your host for this magical hour, Mediavine's Jenny Guy. And today we've got ugly sweaters, although in the case of my guest, I wouldn't call it ugly so much is just fascinating and amazing. But more on that later. We have great prizes, and we have another incredible guest that is generously sharing their wealth of essential knowledge for content creators. And speaking of a wealth of essential knowledge for content creators, have you heard of Google? Maybe. Possibly, once or twice in your life. They have a plethora of resources for us that, frankly, it can be tough to know where to begin, where to jump in, where to tackle all of it. Not to worry, though. That is where my next guest comes in. Please welcome Paul Bakaus to Teal Talk. Paul, thank you for coming. PAUL BAKAUS: Thank you for having me. JENNY GUY: All right. I'm going to not be mesmerized by your sweater and I'm going to read your very impressive bio. One moment, please. Paul Bakaus is an entrepreneur, creator, advocate, developer, and product manager. As the head of Creator Relations at Google, he and his team are helping content creators, designers, developers, and decision makers to create better, faster, more immersive and more convincing digital content. I think we all want that. Prior to joining Google he created jQuery UI, the world's most popular tool to build user interfaces on the web, and the Aves engine, the first interactive HTML5 game engine later acquired by Zynga. That is quite impressive. Again, Paul, welcome. Thank you for coming to Tealk Talk. We're so glad to have you. PAUL BAKAUS: Yeah, thank you for having me. It's great to be here. JENNY GUY: We're so excited to talk about all the different things. I'm going to get through a couple of announcements. Also one of our audience members just asked if it was a teepee on my head. It is not. It's like a stocking hat, but it's like a rigid stocking hat. So I don't know. There's a lot of movement happening there. OK, so reminder, audience. You guys submitted so many questions in advance for Paul that we are not going to be taking questions live. We have a lot to talk about. But if you do have questions for Paul, keep posting them and we can maybe entice him back for another episode. PAUL BAKAUS: Yeah. JENNY GUY: So we're just saying that-- PAUL BAKAUS: I'll try my best. JENNY GUY: Thank you, Paul. We appreciate it. OK, and everyone else keep your eyes on the screen for chances to win prizes during the episode today. But without any further ado, let us get into it. Google. As you-- I saw you nodding when I was talking about this in the intro, Paul. You have an incredible vast array of resources for content creators. And as we said-- as I said in the intro, it can be overwhelming. Where would you recommend we get started? PAUL BAKAUS: Yeah, I guess we-- in some ways, we made it more overwhelming, because we added another one. But to be honest, I would say the content-- the reasons that we hav...

This year is coming to a close and so is Mediavine On Air Season 1. 2022 is upon us, so how do we make the upcoming year for ourselves, regardless of what's going on? On Mediavine On Air Episode 35, we're listening in to Siobhan Sudberry from the BeFree Project. Last year on Teal Talk she joined Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy in a conversation on creating a road map for finding fulfillment in life. This episode is full of great lessons, including learning how to take a personal inventory, create a balanced life through friends who hold you accountable, positive affirmations, setting SMART goals and more. Don't miss it! Helpful Resources BeFree ProjectBeFree Project Podcast107.3 The Wave's Interview with SiobhanJoin the BeFree Inner Circle!Don Miguel Ruiz - The Four AgreementsGirl Be Free Affirmation Card Deck Free Your Mind Journal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2pPEyG_4fo Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello, friends, Happy 2021, question mark. It is the first episode of Teal Talk in a brand new year, which feels eerily like last year and wearing a dumb disguise to me. Is anyone else having that feeling? I'm Jenny Guy, Director of Marketing for Mediavine, and the host of Teal Talk, the show about the business of content creation. I have the amazing opportunity to bring in experts from across the field and make them talk to me about ways to make content even better and more easily, plus earn more money while doing that, to boot. So what's not to love? And it has, as we said, been a month-- about a month since our last episode. And in that time, we've had the holidays, and a new year, and more world insanity, and more cheese consumption than any of us wanted or needed. So I'm not sure where we all are, how you guys feel, but my new year fresh start needs a fresh start. So like it's like the vacation you need after you go to Disney. Anyone else experience that? So I'm calling for a do-over. And I would love for those who are with me to say, aye, in the comments, or say whatever you want in the comments. Just say hi to us. And luckily, my guest today is the perfect person to help us hit the reset button on this year and get us headed in a healthy direction. Siobhan Sudberry, welcome to Teal Talk for the first time. I'm going to read some really impressive things about you before we get down to business, if that's OK. SIOBHAN SUDBERRY: Thank you so much for that. I mean, this is amazing. So thank you. JENNY GUY: We're so excited to have you here. Siobhan Sudberry is a Community Cultivator Founder of the BeFree Project and host of the BeFree podcast. She teaches women how to get unstuck, gain clarity, and cultivate the life they desire on their terms. She's passionate about empowering women and encouraging them to show up for themselves and take action in their life. She hosts in-person and virtual events called the BeFree Meetup, and has an exclusive online community called the BeFree Inner Circle where women find their forever friends and get accountability doing their personal growth work. Welcome to Teal Talk. SIOBHAN SUDBERRY: Thank you. Thank you. Hello, everyone. I'm so, so, so excited to be here and to have this conversation at the top of the year. So thank you for having me. JENNY GUY: We are so excited, and I am calling this a do-over. I wanted to ask our audience before I ask you our first question. Do you guys do New Year's resolutions, anyone out there? And if so, how long have they lasted for you this year? And do you-- could you use a little bit of a do-over for you? That's the first question for you. And I'm going to talk to Siobhan. So tell us more about your journey and the BeFree Project. I think it's one of the coolest things I've ever heard is that your job is to inspire people for a living, which is amazing. So please tell us how that all came about. SIOBHAN SUDBERRY: Yeah.

You've heard of SEO Like a CEO. Today we're bringing you SEO Like a Google Pro. As in THE Pro. On the next episode of Teal Talk, Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy is joined by Google Search Advocate John Mueller. Yes. That John Mueller. SEO expert translator extraordinaire. Listen in as Jenny asks John questions about updating existing content, images and videos for your site, the best way to structure your site and general algorithm questions. You don't want to miss this episode! Helpful Resources Helpful Resources SlideGoogle Search ConsoleImproving Rankings with Google Search Console AnalyticsSEO Friendly URL StructuresJohn's Twitter https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FA_vlmROqc&lc=UgyMwGZSSoKh34lAFyl4AaABAg Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello. Hello, everybody. And welcome to a very special edition of Teal Talk, the show about the business of content creation. I'm with you, as always, as your host, Mediavine's Jenny Guy. And today you might notice it is Wednesday, November 17, as opposed to our plan of Tuesday, November 16. But that is all right. It is OK that we are so grateful that our guest was able to reschedule. Sometimes the internet is an unpredictable place. And that is part of why we are so thrilled to have our guest here today. But as you know, next week is Thanksgiving in the US. And ordinarily, I would ask a question or two about your plans for the holiday, maybe get into a healthy debate about stuffing versus dressing, really important questions. But today, we don't even have time for the briefest of bantering. That is because of my guest, who is joining us live from his home in Switzerland. I have to say that we have been extremely fortunate over the course of four seasons on this show to talk with some of the most influential and knowledgeable people in the industry. But I've got to say, even with all of our incredible past guests, today is special. I already told him that I would try not to geek out, so I am working on myself. As a result, the format of today's show is slightly different. Just a little housekeeping. We asked you to submit questions in advance, and you guys have showed up. In fact, if I asked everything that was sent, we would be here for five hours. Instead, myself and my team have put together a list of questions that we hope covers a wide range of important current CEO topics. So in order to get to as many of those topics as we can within our time restrictions, I won't be taking questions live. Please keep commenting with your questions and feedback, though, as they may show up in a future episode if we are able to convince John to return. So without any further ado, let us get SEO advice from the source. Today, I am joined by the one and only John Mueller. I'm going to read his bio real quick just to wow us all. John Mueller joined Google in 2007 and works in Zurich, Switzerland, where he coordinates Google Search Relations efforts as a Search Advocate. He and his team connect the Google internal world of search engineering to those who create and optimize public websites. Together, they help to bring an understanding of the external web ecosystem to internal teams and help publishers, like us, make awesome websites that work well for users and search engines. OK, here we go. Our first question. John, welcome to Teal Talk for the first time. JOHN MUELLER: Hi. Nice to be here. So cool. JENNY GUY: Wonderful to have you. Thank you. OK. Christine from Taste of Maroc. Do we run-- we're starting with a section on updating existing content, which is something we preach a lot of here. All right. Do we run the risk of losing rank on a top post if we make a minor update, such as adding an internal or external link, correcting a typo, adding a custom excerpt, breaking a long paragraph into two paragraphs, et cetera? How about adding additional photos to a post? JOHN MUELLER: No problems.

When you work in an industry as new as influencer marketing, it can definitely feel like the wild west. Although the FTC is passing down regulations for content, there are still so many questions: How do you find the right brands to work with? How do you properly disclose the influencer/brand relationship? How much do you charge for sponsored work? Luckily, there's Danica Kombol and the Influencer Marketing Association. The IMA is on the scene to drive growth in influencer marketing, advocate on behalf of influencers, marketers and consumers by ensuring ethical standards are met and serve as the go-to resource on best practices, measurement standards and trends. Listen in today on Episode 33 of Mediavine On Air, as Danica joins Mediavine's Senior Director of Marketing Jenny Guy to discuss the state of the influencer industry and how the IMA is here to support our work. Helpful Resources Influencer Marketing AssociationDanica's Website"How To Properly Disclose Sponsored Work" ArticleHashtag Legal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HyxRWbkBRqo Transcript [THEME MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello, everybody, welcome. Hard to believe as it is Wednesday, November 20. We are a week and a day away from Thanksgiving, and we are into our final two episodes of Teal Talk in the decade. What the heck? I am Jenny Guy. I am Mediavine's marketing manager, and I am the host of Teal Talk. And I think everybody knows that when we work in the relatively new and ever changing influencer industry that we work in we can struggle to know where to turn when we have questions about things like legalities, pricing ourselves and our work, what are the best practices, and my guest today is an incredible resource for anybody who is involved in the influencer marketing industry. Danica Kombol is the CEO of Everywhere Agency, which she founded in 2009, as well as the founder and CEO of Everywhere Society. Everywhere Agency's purpose is helping brands build better stories through social media. She brings her extensive background as a television producer and public relations executive to her work with influencers and brands. You'll recognize Saturday Night Live, Kids in the Hall, and VH1 among the shows she's worked on. We've heard those names. She's also a blogger herself on her site Danica.me and the founder and CEO of the Influencer Marketing Association, which she founded in 2018 as the official Trade Organization committed to protecting the authenticity and ethics of influencer marketing. We could continue talking about all of her accomplishments and awards for quite some time, but then we'd be out of time to actually talk and answer your questions. So I'll conclude by saying she's a frequent conference speaker in the influencer space, and she resides in Atlanta. Danica, thank you so much for joining us today. DANICA KOMBOL: Yeah, thanks for having me, Jenny. I'm really honored that I get to come in before the end of the year and be part of Mediavine and know what an incredible support you are for influencers and how valued you are to influencers, so comrades in influencer love. JENNY GUY: Absolutely, we love influencers here at Mediavine. And you love influencers, and you've been involved with them for so long, which, actually, is a perfect segue into my first question that I wanted to. But guys, just a reminder, if you have any questions for Danica, please just put them in the comments, and we will get them asked. But let's start out here. Without being offensive, you are definitely an OG in the influencer industry. DANICA KOMBOL: Drop the mic. Love it. JENNY GUY: Yes, and you've been-- so how long have you been involved in working with the influencer industry, and how did you transition? I listed some of those amazing programs that we all recognize that you've worked on as a television producer. So how did you make that transition to here? DANICA KOMBOL: OK, so two questions,

A well-told story can stay in someone's mind for their whole life. As a blogger you want to find the right balance between telling and selling your story. Gee Nonterah from the Create and Prosper Podcast joins Jenny Guy, Mediavine's Senior Director of Marketing, in a conversation about communicating your story in a way that is both relatable and profitable. She offers some great tips for creating a community of superfans that you can start implementing today! Helpful Resources Repurpose Like A Pro: Mediavine On Air Episode 4Gee's YoutubeGee's InstagramGee's WebsiteGee's Podcast https://youtu.be/Ez8zX6gar7U Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Guys, it is already November. It is November 5, Thursday to be exact, which means that the holiday season is practically upon us, and this dumpster fire of a year is almost over. Can you believe it? This is Teal Talk, and I am your host, Jenny Guy. I'm Mediavine's Director of Marketing. And I have a very important and seasonal question for you. Where do you fall on the Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah scale? Have you already decorated? Are you listening to the music already? Are the Hallmark movies on repeat like they are for some of the Mediavine teams? Say hi to us in the comments. Weigh in. Tell us where you fall, because it is a super important and polarizing topic. I personally am of the opinion that whatever you want to do in 2020 is perfectly valid. If you want to do Christmas before Halloween, yes, do that. If you want St. Patrick's Day in November, fantastic. If it provides you and yours with a modicum of joy this year, I say just go for it. I'm also in favor of normalizing full celebrations for random holidays. So in that spirit, I would like to say, Happy Men Make Dinner Day! Did any one know that was a thing? Because it is. I did research on all the random holidays. Today is Happy Men Make Dinner Day. Yes, it's a thing. We're going to share the link in the comments. It is the first Thursday in November, and there are rules. And to make things more inclusive, I'd like to change it from men to whichever partner doesn't normally cook. And if you normally cook for yourself, order from a locally owned restaurant. I don't know. Just celebrate. Celebrate your life. Have a great Thursday. That's what we're here for. I know I'm celebrating today because, one, we don't have to talk about anything that's happening in our nation for an hour. My guest and I were just talking about that. But I am very much celebrating because my returning guest is the wonderful Gee Nonterah. She shared so much good stuff during your Summer of Live episode on repurposing content. And we kept having to rush through certain topics, and we didn't have time. And we kept saying, we'll talk more about that later. And she was kind enough to come back and talk about the concept of story selling and email marketing, which we will go into more in a second. But hello, Gee! Welcome back. GEE NONTERAH: Hi. I'm so excited to be back. JENNY GUY: I'm so excited to have you because you're awesome. I'm going to read her bio because she is an impressive lady. She is a former registered nurse and medical scientist turned blogger, freelance writer, and YouTube creator. She is the host of The Create and Prosper Show which helps bloggers and writers create amazing content and build profitable businesses. She started My Online Biz Journey in 2014 to chronicle her journey into online business and succeeded in using that blog to attract clients for a social media content creation business. You can find her currently on geenonterah.com where she's passionately helping her audience make a living and build a powerful and authentic personal brand with their writing. When she's not creating amazing content, she likes to watch spy movies. What up? All right, Gee, hello. I'm going to start out with a question for our audience. Tell us,

Q4: It's heeeeere. And it can be a ghoulish time for content creators. But never fear: The Mediavine Support team is here to guide you to scary good earnings this year. On this episode of Mediavine On Air, Ghostess with the Mostest Jenny Guy is joined by devilishly good Director of Support Heather Tullos. She's bringing all her top RPM-raising tips to ensure all treats, no tricks for the holiday season. You don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources Heather's Presentation + Helpful Resources SlideHow To Set Up Universal PlayerAd ViewabilityMediavine Ads and Core Web Vitals FAQ https://youtu.be/gg9s13g_9BY Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello, and welcome, foolish mortals to another episode of Mediavine's Teal Talk. I am your host, your ghost host, Jenny Guy. Today is Tuesday October 26, which means that it's Scorpio season, and Halloween is Sunday. You might have noticed that things look a little bit different around here today. We are going all in on celebrating the spooky season, and we're so glad that you're here to celebrate with us. If you are here with us live, there are some hair-raising prizes for you to win this episode. So make sure that you're paying attention, and all will be revealed in good time. Again, welcome. We are so glad that you are here. And speaking of the spooky holiday season, it also happens to be Q4. And if you've been a content creator for any length of time, you know that Q4 can be a little spooky for us. It's marked by increased advertiser spend and a slew of influencer marketing campaigns. So it has the potential to be the craziest and most lucrative time of the year. But how do you ensure that your Q4 is all treats and no tricks this year? Leave it to my guest for today. Morticia Addams, Director of Support, Heather Tullos, is here. After running a successful blog for the last 10 years, she transitioned to helping build and lead the Mediavine support team, kicking all the ass and taking all the names, while rescuing all the dogs. Seriously though, adopt, don't shop. Heather, welcome back. I mean, Morticia. Excuse me. I'm sorry. HEATHER TULLOS: Hello. Hello, Cruella. You look amazing. JENNY GUY: As do you look incredible. You look like you're in gray scale, and I am dying. OK. So friends, as I said, pay attention. Make sure you're paying attention to the screen. I won't tell you why, but you just need to be doing it, and also paying attention to everything that Heather is telling you. She's going to give us some of her top tips. If you have questions for the Mistress of Support, please drop them in the comments. She's going to, like I said, share some top tips and a presentation to start us off. But we will definitely be opening up the floor for your questions later. All righty, folks. I'm going to turn it over to Heather. We're going to get this presentation going, and let's do it. HEATHER TULLOS: Hi, everybody. It's me. I feel like you know me. Today, you might not know me as well. [LAUGHTER] And in case nobody told you, Halloween is my very favorite holiday. So I'm super excited that I got to work with our excellent marketing team to put this presentation together. Also, shout out to Rosie for this beautiful presentation. I cannot take credit for any of it. Yeah. So we're going to talk about making more in Q4. I feel like it's a popular topic. We've had a lot of changes in the last year. The approach to how you're going to make some more money might be a little different than it was in years past. Some of our advice has changed. And so let's talk through some of the differences and some of the ways that we're going to help you make some more money. Hopefully, I will give you a few tips and tricks that you didn't know already. Tricks and treats, straight from the spooky land of money. JENNY GUY: If you haven't met our mascot, this is Leaf. And they are wearing a farmer costume. As you can see,

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused not only economic, environmental and health impacts on the world; but emotional impacts as well.In this episode of Teal Talk originally recorded in April 2020, Litsa Williams and Eleanor Haley from What's Your Grief discussed the different ways people grieved the worldwide shutdown, and provided evergreen practices for how to cope. We were also joined by then Head of People Operations TQ Evans. Since this recording, TQ passed away after a long battle with colon cancer in April 2021. Her light shines bright in this episode as she relayed how her family and her coped with the problems of the world -- and her spirit shines through Mediavine as we cope with her loss, and continue to honor her memory. We love you TQ. Helpful Resources What's Your Grief?Eleanor and Litsa's Blogs on Grieving...Remembering Chief Diversity Officer Tonquise "TQ" EvansAnnouncing the Tonquise “TQ” Evans '03 Endowed Scholarship...MBU Empowers Campaign"Leading with Heart" Blog Post https://youtu.be/KdD-n6bsEOk Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey, y'all. It is Thursday, April 23. It is approximately day 473 of quarantine, for those keeping track. This is Teal Talk, and I'm your host Jenny Guy. I'm the director of marketing at Mediavine, and, more importantly, I have finally fulfilled my childhood dream in this quarantine and become a carbohydrate. And that's when I'm not getting really emotional over all the new COVID-19 quarantine commercials, so that's fun. So welcome. Say hi to us in the comments if you're hanging out. [MOWER STARTS] Oh, and good, the lawn service is starting, so that's perfect. And we said not to come today, so good good good. Tell us how you're holding up at this point because it is not an easy time right now. I also wanted to-- I told all these awesome ladies before, I am wearing a dress on the top, and then I am wearing lizard pajama bottoms on the bottom. So I am the definition of a mullet, I am business on the top, party on the bottom. So now that we've gotten all of that out of the way, we have people working from home and teaching their kids for the first time. We're cooking all of our own meals and producing more dirty dishes-- than, I mean, I never even thought-- it's unbelievable how many dishes there are. It's insane. And we're reconfiguring milestone celebrations, and missing family, and worrying about the state of our wallets and the world, and in light of all these bizarre firsts and struggles, we brought on some experts to help with work-from-home wellness and mental wellness in general. And I'm so glad they're here, I'm going to introduce them. First, I'm with Mediavine's Director of People Operations, TQ Evans. TQ joins us live from her home in Richmond, Virginia. She has been the director of People Operations with Mediavine for nearly two years. She's got a master's degree, along with several other professional certifications in HR management and leadership, and that means a lot of initials behind her name. Her background specialty entails partnering with small to mid-sized startups and successfully building and teaching their people-ops team from the ground up. She also is a birth doula, a wife, a mom of four human kids, and a new mom to three backyard hens, fondly named Aretha, Gladys, and Patti. She is an avid urban gardener, has a passion for health and wellness, and, most recently, is the recipient of the unofficial Neighborhood Quarantine double-Dutch Award. What is that? Hi TQ, welcome. TQ EVANS: Hi Jenny. I look forward to getting into that-- oh, do you want me to tell you now? JENNY GUY: Yeah please, what is that? TQ EVANS: Oh yeah. So I started just doing different activities with my neighbors, like virtual activities. And we're taking it back to-- we're all 80s babies, and we did jump rope, double-Dutch. So my neighbors and I started-- we bought hula hoops and all these things,

Big thought of the day: You can circumvent social media algorithm woes by shifting your focus to BUILDING A COMMUNITY on these platforms. On this episode of Teal Talk S4 originally recorded back in September, Jenny is joined by Paul Gowder, founder of the website Powwows.com. By implementing his engagement strategies and forming genuine personal connections with his followers, Paul sparked the creation of a Pow Wow Nation, tens of thousands strong. In Mediavine On Air Episode 29, Paul will share ways to grow community through social media and then how to expand beyond the walled gardens. You don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources Helpful Resources SlidePowWows.comPaul's WebsitePowWows.com Facebook Page https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iySNpkEEBqw Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey, guys. How is Tuesday treating you so far? Is it fall-like in your neck of the woods? In Oklahoma, it has gone back to the mid to upper 80s with some 90s sandwiched in there for fun, so the only place I can wear fall fashion comfortably is in air conditioning. So a big welcome to you from my home, a.k.a. the meat locker. This is Teal Talk, and I am your host, Jenny Guy. It is so great to see you today. Is anyone else also in absolute shock that it's October later this week? Does that feel wrong? Like, how did that happen? Isn't it still 2020? Paul, like, are you continuously-- PAUL GOWDER: The whole last two years, you can't really tell where we are in time, yeah. JENNY GUY: It's wrong that I'm aging, but I can't tell you what's happened or any of it. It's so bizarre. It's so, so bizarre. But the good thing, the silver lining-- I don't know if anyone else-- I love fall. I think it is-- it's one of my favorite seasons. And on top of that, I don't know that there are any content creators that don't love Q4. It is such a wonderful, magical time for us for a number of reasons, and we've got a lot of really exciting programming planned for you guys coming up to help you make the most of this time when advertising spend is going to be at its peak for most of the niches that we work with in the lifestyle spectrum, just to make sure that all of that top content that is going to have eyes on it is performing at its max. So we will have all of those things happening and coming your way in the coming weeks. And then this week, keep your eyes peeled for our earnings calendar, which is coming out to let everybody know how to maximize those days when spend is traditionally higher. So we'll be sharing that shortly. But for today, what we're talking about is a different way of looking at social media. And we're very excited to have Paul Gowder with us here. Rather than talking about trying to go viral or trying to beat the "A" word that we talk about so often, with Facebook particularly, the algorithm word, we're going to come at this from a different direction and come at it from the building of a community. And I am so pleased to have Paul Gowder with us today. He is the founder of Powwows.com. He graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1994 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and again in 1996 with a master of public administration. Paul enjoys traveling with his wife and daughter, including over 30 trips as a family to Walt Disney World. That is something I can get behind, 10 out of 10. Have you been in the last, strange 18 months? PAUL GOWDER: Several times, yes. JENNY GUY: Yeah? PAUL GOWDER: Yeah. JENNY GUY: Hey, that's awesome. And is Galaxy's Edge as amazing as everyone says it is? PAUL GOWDER: Rise of the Resistance is the best thing Walt Disney World or Disney Company has ever built. It's unbelievable. But I mean, you can see, I'm a Star Wars person, so it's-- JENNY GUY: Yes. PAUL GOWDER: --incredible. JENNY GUY: I have been admiring Paul's background for a while now, and I'm dying to go to Galaxy's Edge. So what we're going to do, guys,

What do you know about virtual assistants? Hiring one can be a vital resource for an overworked content creator, and becoming one can be an untapped revenue stream for another. For the season finale of Teal Talk S3, we welcome Kayla Sloan, expert VA and creator of the well-known course $10K VA. She is on hand to talk "Everything VA", whether you're interesting in hiring or becoming one. Make sure to tune into our 28th episode of Mediavine On Air below, or scroll down to watch the original video and read the transcript! Helpful Resources Kayla's 6 Figure Systems5 Steps To Become A VA WorkshopKaylaSloan.comNegotiating Contracts with Jamie Lieberman | #MVCON19 ChicagoGrayson's free WordPress courseHow To Hire A Freelancer — Answers the basic questions about hiring a freelancer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyLeK9tFj-U&t=1s Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hi, y'all. It is Thursday, May 21st. And believe it or not, we are heading into Memorial Day weekend. What does a holiday weekend look like during coronavirus? Well, buckle up, buttercups, because we are about to find out. Welcome to Teal Talk. I'm Jenny Guy, your host and the director of marketing for Mediavine. And I asked this right as we were getting started, but for those that are trickling in and joining us now, hello. Post in the comments and tell us what you're doing for this holiday weekend during the pandemic. How is it different from what you'd usually be doing for the official kickoff this summer? If it's changed at all, let us know in the comments. And then in news of other hard to believe milestones, today's episode of Teal Talk is the 17th in our second season, as well as our season 2 finale. What? That's crazy. We have had almost 80 lives since we started producing these a little over two years ago, on every topic under the sun that's relevant to content creators. I get to talk with super smart experts about SEO and beanie babies and learn, and it's honestly, it's the best job. And we wouldn't be here without the support of my team, and you guys are awesome audience. So thank you from the bottom of my black little heart for watching. I appreciate it. And enough with the feelings now because my boss hates sappy stuff. So let's get onto the topic du jour. What do you know about virtual assistants? Have you been one? Are you trying to hire one? What is your experience in this area? My guest here today is here to help us with everything VA. She knows all the things, and it's past time to meet her. Kayla Sloan is a business coach for virtual assistants and a business systems and outsourcing expert. Kayla has been working with successful entrepreneurs since 2014. Her one-on-one consulting program Six Figure Systems helps online business owners scale with systems and building a virtual team. She's also the founder of 10K VA, her flagship program where she teaches virtual assistants how to earn up to $10,000 per month working online. Welcome. Thank you for joining us, Kayla. KAYLA SLOAN: Thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited to be here. JENNY GUY: We're excited, too, to have you. We chose this topic because we were looking for things that we hadn't covered and that might be interesting to people during this very strange time that we're in. So starting out, everyone in the comments, post in the comments. Tell us about your experience as a VA or hiring a VA or anything VA. And if you've got questions for Kayla, shoot us a comment, and we will make sure to get you taken care of immediately, or as quickly as we can. So as I said in the intro, VAs are kind of your thing. So let's just say, why do you love them so much? How did you get into the VA life? Tell us a little bit about your experience. KAYLA SLOAN: Yeah, so my experience was that I kind of got into the VA thing, so to speak, a little bit on accident, actually. I started blogging back in, I think it was 2013,

When you're a digital content creator, you're very much a one-man (or woman) band. From video to SEO and copywriting to social, there are so many 'crucial' skillsets you're expected to have that it can be next to impossible to decide where to focus your valuable (and limited) time. Well, we've got one word for you: PHOTOGRAPHY. This skill is relevant in almost every blogging niche and stepping up your photography game has benefits in so many other areas of your business. Plus, it's FUN! Jennifer Borget is a content creator and well-known photography expert. In fact, she teaches for Canon. She came by for an episode of Teal Talk back in February 2021 to break down her process and offer up some advice on how to improve your photo taking skills. Make sure to catch today's Mediavine On Air episode and check out the video interview below! Helpful Resources Cherish 365Jennifer's Free Canon ClassWork With Jennifer...Alt Text SEO — Find out many reasons why alt text is importantNational Day CalendarNavigating the New Instagram — LaShawn Wiltz Teal Talk EpisodeHow Many Images Should You Have in a Post?Jennifer recommends the app, Snapseed https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skL1Jwb3Djo Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Happy Thursday. It is February 11. And since the last time we talked, that lovable groundhog/jerk-face Punxsutawney Phil gifted us with six more weeks of winter. JENNIFER BORGET: Dang. JENNY GUY: That revelation brought a great big duh from me because winter is on full display right outside my window here in Oklahoma, and I am not a fan. What is the weather like in your neck of the woods? Say hi in the comments and tell us why you think cold weather is stupid, or if that's just me. Maybe you love cold weather. I don't want to hate on you if you love cold weather. Just say hi, and tell us what the weather's like. Thank you for joining us for today's episode of Teal Talk. I'm Jenny Guy. I'm Mediavine's director of marketing and your host on this show, all about the business of content creation. Sometimes we're asked how we come up with so many different topics and guests for the show. And the truth is, there is never a shortage of relevant topics for content creators because there are so many things that you guys are expected to know about. And all of them are essential. SEO, copywriting, video, taxes for small business owners, first party data, the list just goes on and on and on. And as content creators ourselves at Mediavine, we are very well aware that it can be overwhelming to decide where to focus your limited time and energy. However, dedicating time to our topic today is a no-brainer. Photography is relevant to pretty much all digital content creators regardless of niche. Improving your images pays dividends on your website and social media, which leads to more traffic which leads to more revenue. But how do we get those improvements? My guest today is the perfect person to show us the way. Jennifer Borget is a former journalist turned award winning digital creator. At Cherish 365 she chronicles her life as a mom of three, covering everything from parenting to education to home to diversity and inclusion, all through the lens of encouraging others to cherish every day. Welcome to Teal Talk, Jennifer. JENNIFER BORGET: Hi. [LAUGHS] JENNY GUY: Thank you so much-- JENNIFER BORGET: Hi, Jenny. JENNY GUY: --for coming. JENNIFER BORGET: Hi, Jenny. No, thanks for having me. I'm really excited. JENNY GUY: I'm so excited, yep. JENNIFER BORGET: And you're always so informative so honored to be on this end. [LAUGHS] JENNY GUY: Well, we're honored to have you. We couldn't ask for a better expert. If you guys have questions for Jennifer or me, post them in the comments. We will make sure that we mention them to her. OK, before I start quizzing Jennifer, I have a question for the audience that will help us guide this conversation.

Content creators, we're hurtling towards magical Q4, so it's the perfect time to make sure we're in a mindset for success.  On the Teal Talk season 4 premiere, Jenny is joined by Jessica Formicola, a site owner and former psychotherapist, college professor and coach. Jessica is bringing all of her expertise to this episode to ensure we're blogging like the business owners we are.  Whether it's diversifying income streams, putting together business plans or delegating and hiring staff, Jessica is bringing her data-driven, work smarter not harder approach. Make sure to catch Episode 26 of Mediavine On Air! Helpful Resources Helpful Resources Presentation SlideSavory ExperimentsBrand Like A Boss Course"Affiliate Marketing Content That Sells" Article https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alt0dg44BdY Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey, everybody. Welcome to the season premiere of Teal Talk. [IMITATING TRUMPET] It's very exciting. This is kind of an anticlimactic. I guess I was a trumpet. I'm not really sure what I was going for there. But I'm your host, Mediavine's Jenny Guy. So excited to welcome you to another wonderful season of our show about the business of content creation. Our fourth season, as hard as that might be for all of us to believe, it is the truth. Another thing that is also true and hard to believe, it is already September 14. How? How is it our-- how? Football has started back up. Homecoming is around the corner. I am constantly being encouraged to purchase a shacket. I don't know if I'm alone in that. All of which begs the very important question, have you broken the pumpkin seal yet? Say hi in the comments, and tell us the date that it becomes appropriate in your mind to start ordering all of the pumpkin drinks. Tell us hi. OK, in other news-- and speaking of the year flying by, I got an email yesterday that informed me that it is only 48 days to Halloween and 73 days to Thanksgiving. So I guess what I'm saying is happy New Year. Welcome, 2022. I guess, 2022, please be kind. Our standards are very low or whatever. Really anything that you do is fairly passable. OK, but hold up. Before we fly headlong into a new year, we have Q4 revenue to earn. The best time. There's still a few weeks remaining for content creators to get their ducks in a row for the top earnings time of the year. And part of that, let's be real, should include mental preparation. Enter my awesome guest for our season premiere. It is Jessica Formicola. She's a Mediavine publisher with her website, Savory Experiments, and she's here to ensure that we are approaching everything that we do with a business owner mindset. Hello, Jessica. Welcome. JESSICA FORMICOLA: Hi, I'm happy to be here. JENNY GUY: We're so glad to have you. I'm going to read your very impressive bio. Jessica is a former psychother-- it is. I always am so-- she's the former psychotherapist turned author, business coach, photographer, recipe developer, spokesperson, TV personality, globetrotter, and contributor to parade Better Homes and Gardens, MASHED!, and The Daily Meal, food and travel. She provides training on how to mentally transition to small business owner using strategies from cognitive behavioral therapy. These reframes will help expand your business and make more money. Yay. OK, so, incredibly impressive bio, guys. Before I jump into questions with Jessica, if you have anything you want to talk to us about, mindset shifts, prepping for Q4, all of that stuff, drop them in the comments and I will ask Jessica. But I'm going to just dive in with my stuff to kick us off. As the host of this show, as Teal Talk and the Summer of Live, both going for four seasons now, I've had the opportunity to speak with a lot of really incredible people and read quite a selection of interesting bios. But I have to say, yours is up there as one of the most fascinating. So I like to go beyond the bio and learn more abo...

Thinking about extending your blog brand to YouTube? Billy Parisi, founder of Billy Parisi Media and Visual Culture Inc, joins Jenny Guy, Senior Director of Marketing in a conversation about his firsthand experience in determining what works and what doesn't when it comes to growing your channel. In this episode, Billy shares his top tips for getting started plus helpful inspiration and resources. Don't miss it! Helpful Resources Billy's PresentationBilly's WebsiteBilly's Youtube ChannelBilly's Recipes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvXKB65_zgU Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey. Hello, everybody. Hi. Happy Thursday. It's May 20. And that means it is time for another episode of Teal Talk. Hello. I am your host, Jenny Guy. And believe it or not, it is rapidly approaching Memorial Day weekend and the official start of summer. Does anyone have big plans for next weekend? Does anyone have anything exciting going on? Lake? Cookouts? Tell us about it. Are our summer bods ready more importantly? Do we care about that anymore? Personally I am in camp. So happy that vaccinations are readily available and normal things are slowly beginning to happen again. And that's all that matters to me. So summer bod or not, I'm happy about it. But I did purchase some sunless tanner just to cover my bases. Try to be a little normalcy. That's normal for me. I'm translucent. I did eat at a restaurant the last couple of weeks. Almost cried. Went to the dentist. And it was practically a religious experience. I think the hygienist was freaked out by how happy I was to be at the dental office. But I was just very-- and don't get me wrong. I'm in no way saying that everything is peachy keen and COVID is over. I know that's not true at all. But compared to the wasteland of last summer, it feels pretty nice to have a little more security and a little bit of hope and all of those things. I don't know how you guys are feeling. But if you're just joining us, again it is Thursday, May 20. I am Jenny Guy, the host of Teal Talk. And I would love to hear if you have plans for Memorial Day. And like it or not, the truth is the year is flying buy and with it, potentially many of our goals that we set for ourselves in January. I don't know if you're a January goal setter. But it's almost halfway through the year. And I find no shame here. I congratulate all of us for just surviving. But if one of your goals for 2021 was to grow your YouTube channel or even if you're just a little YouTube curious, today's episode is absolutely for you. We have got Billy Parisi. And he's here to share all his top tips plus a very special offer for anyone who is ready to up their video game. So let's meet Billy. Billy, welcome to Teal Talk. BILLY PARISI: Hey, thanks for having me. Appreciate it. Good to see you. JENNY GUY: Thanks for coming. It's great to see you too. OK, I'm going to read your highly impressive bio so that we can all be highly impressed. Ready? Here we go. Branching out into the digital and social landscape after 15 years as a chef in the culinary industry, Billy Parisi is a true culinary media entrepreneur. His work has been seen on network television, online with unique views in the millions, as well as across new and emerging media channels. His company, Billy Parisi Media and Visual Culture Inc is a boutique digital and social agency specializing in cooking, food and beverage content creation that is proven through experience and analytics. Very impressive, Billy. BILLY PARISI: Thanks, Jen. JENNY GUY: I'm humbled. OK. If you have questions about YouTube, we have some that we were gathering in the group and on the public Facebook page. But if you have questions for Billy or me, drop them in the comments. We will get them filtered. But to start out with, I have a question for you. Everyone out there watching coming in, do you have a favorite YouTube vlogger? And if so,

So you're thinking of getting into e-commerce and asking yourself, "Where should I start?" There are many layers to starting an online shop: choosing a platform, legal issues, finding your niche and so much more. Today, we've brought in an expert. Lizz Porter from More Than Thursdays & Pew Pew Lasercraft joins Jenny Guy, our Senior Director of Marketing, in a conversation on how your passions can turn into products. Hear Lizz's story about how she applied her skills from blogging and product creation to running a successful Etsy business. As always, remember you can not only listen to the podcast but watch the accompanying Youtube video and read the transcript below! Helpful Resources Pew Pew LasercraftMore Than ThursdaysAn Interview with Jamie Lieberman of Hashtag LegalLizz's S'mores SticksRunning an Effective Mastermind... | Summer of Live 2020Everything VA | Teal Talk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kODVC16qVr4 Transcript JENNY GUY: It is Thursday, January 28th, which means it's time for Mediavine's Teal Talk, the show about the business of content creation. I'm Jenny Guy, here as always, as your host. And I know I always say this, but hosting the show is truly one of my favorite parts of this job. Partially, because it requires me to actually put on makeup and wear a normal shirt and know the date and be a real person twice a month, which is-- it's very rare. But I do have to know those things. But mainly, this is the bigger part, because it gives me the opportunity to chat with some really incredible and inspiring people in the content creation industry. I learn so much from our guests and from you guys in the audience, every single episode. So thank you for being awesome. I'm very grateful that this is what we get to do. On today's topic, while a lot of things have gone away over the past 11 months, I've been talking with Lizz about that, right before, my guest today. One thing that has definitely stayed around is our ability to buy things. And while the economy and everything in that realm is grateful for this fact, my personal bank account is not. I don't know if I am the only one who is shopping more than ever now, because it's one of the only normal things that we can actually do, I feel the need to internet shop constantly. But I made a really concerted effort during the last holiday to shop small. Etsy, local businesses, there are so very many talented makers in the world. So I wanted to ask everybody out in our audience, say hi, and tell us, what are you currently purchasing? What are you buying? Do you have a favorite small business or product line that you're loving these days? And bonus points if it is a Content Creator blogger turned product maker. Please tell us in the comments. We would love to hear all about it. And if you have questions for myself or my guest, who I'm about to introduce, please post them there, as well. For example, I-- these earrings that I'm wearing are a custom design from our fantastic guest today. Her name is Lizz Porter. Her product business is Pew Pew Lasercraft, which makes me giggle every time I say it. And she knows firsthand that physical products can be a very lucrative revenue stream. She is here to share all her tips and tricks so that you can explore branching out with making your own products in 2021. So let's meet her. Lizz has been a maker since before that was a thing, going back to her Girl Scout days. Blogging at More Than Thursday since 2005, she expanded into a product based business in 2018, when she launched Pew Pew Lasercraft. Got to do it. An accessory and a company for those who don't take life too seriously. Lizz, thank you so much for joining us today. LIZZ PORTER: Thanks for having me. I'm super excited to be here. JENNY GUY: And we're excited to have you. Where are you joining us from? LIZZ PORTER: I am in Northern California. So I am smack in between Sacramento and Reno. So like,

You've heard of SEO, but have you heard of Discovery Optimization (DO)? With Discovery Optimization, you can grow your social media accounts by focusing on how your target audience uses social media to discover content. Ciaran Blumenfeld of Hashtracking and Juiced Social is here to speak about Discovery Optimization and strategies for growing a niche social account for your business. Some of her tips might surprise you and make you be more intentional with your business account. Make sure to listen in on this episode of Mediavine On Air! Helpful Resources Ciaran's PresentationHashtrackingHashtaglistsKeyword Scarcity and Hashtag Abundance Article https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qAamCZjWFA&t=2s Transcript JENNY GUY: Hello, everybody. Welcome back to the Mediavine Summer of Live. I'm Jenny Guy. I'm here every week talking with industry experts and getting their best tips for your business success. It is Thursday, July 30. Today is the International Day of Friendship, plus National Cheesecake Day. Is that a coincidence? I think not. If you can't be with your friends in person today, enjoy a cheesecake with them on Zoom. Make the best of the situation. July 30, which is crazy, also means it's almost August, bringing us back to school. My guest and I were just talking about that which, in the time of Coronavirus, means rapid social media debates. How often in the last week have you wanted to delete your social accounts and go off the grid, but you can't because it's your job? I cannot be alone. There have to be people. There have to be other people out there who are feeling this. Even in the best non-Covid of circumstances, most people would say that they have a love-hate relationship with social media. And that is especially true for website owners and content creators. Historically, social media has been a great source for driving traffic until those pesky algorithm shifts whack us and our traffic nosedives overnight. Mediavine always encourages bloggers to make social– or solid SEO a priority as organic traffic is typically the most reliable source. Although we do know that there are Google algorithm shifts. But that is not what this episode is about. We will not derail and talk Google algorithm shifts. But who out there has felt personally victimized by a social media algorithm shift? Who in the audience? Comment and tell us what platform, and how you were impacted slash how big of a drop you saw. But record scratch. What if there was a different way for bloggers to use social? According to today's guest, there absolutely is. And she's here to tell us all about growing niche social accounts that deliver real site traffic. Let's meet her. Ciaran Blumenfeld is CEO and founder of Hashtracking, a social media analytic service and Juiced Social, an AI-enhanced service that publishes optimized hashtag lists for 2,000 plus topics. She is an OG blogger at Momfluential. She was named one of the 15 most powerful moms in social media by Working Mother Magazine and has been featured in Forbes, the New York Times and Fast Company. Follow her on Instagram. We'll share that link and share her website. Welcome to the Summer of Live, and thank you for applying to speak in Baltimore and for doing a ‘rona pivot and being game for a Facebook live. CIARAN BLUMENFELD: Well thank you for having me. I'm a little bummed that I didn't get to go to Baltimore because I went to Johns Hopkins, and any chance to go back to Baltimore is always exciting for me. But– JENNY GUY: Oh my gosh, it's such a great city. CIARAN BLUMENFELD: Yeah, love Baltimore. I hope we get back there sometime. But this is great too. JENNY GUY: I mean, we're making the best of it. We had an awesome site visit there about a year ago, and we were like, Baltimore, hidden gem. This is amazing. And the crab, and the– everything. It was a great city. We were pretty excited about it.

Oh, SEO.  Oft maligned, mangled and misunderstood, it's nevertheless pretty mandatory for achieving sustainable success as a content creator. But with all of the contradictory 'expert' advice out there, how do you separate the real important from the real big nothing?  That's what we're here for. On Episode 22 of Mediavine On Air, and our last episode of Summer of Live 2021, Mike Pearson of Stupid, Simple SEO and Mediavine CEO Eric Hochberger joined me, Jenny Guy, to weigh in on today's most popular theories and advice. Don't miss it! Helpful Resources Above the Fold SEO Blog PostStupid, Simple SEOSummer of Live 2021 Video PlaylistHelpful Resources Handout https://youtu.be/8i8OMAjEqqA Transcript [ROCK MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey. Hello. Welcome one and all. It is Wednesday, August 18, which means it's time for another live here on the book of faces. I'm Jenny Guy, your host, and Mediavine Senior Director of Marketing. How's everybody doing today? Summer is coming to an end so across America we've got kids going back to school, either virtual or in-person. And today's mind boggling fact is that another season of Mediavine's Summer of Live has flown by, and we are here today for our season finale of our fourth season, which is also equally mind boggling. It has been a wild and wonderful ride that I've been privileged to take with you all so thank you. Now, we're going to close this season out with a bang. No show for content creators would be complete without spending a good amount of time covering today's topic, SEO, or search engine optimization, that acronym that makes the interweb go round. It's an essential skill for anyone who wants to make a living on the world wide web, and as such, there are countless experts, courses, books, webinars, social posts all promising to make you a lot of money and an expert in the topic. And I would say, at least probably half the time, they're offering conflicting advice. So that's a lot of fun for all of us in our pocketbooks. So what is fact, what's fiction? How do you know where to go for reliable information and sound educational advice? Say Hello to my little friends. That was my Al Pacino from Scarface. Sounds good, right? One of my guests today is a familiar face around here, a Mediavine co-founder and CEO Eric Hochberger. Eric, welcome. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Hello, Jenny. Fun to be back in a couple of weeks later. JENNY GUY: I know, I know, we were so much older and wiser now than we were two weeks ago. And while this is his first time on a Mediavine live, my other guest is no stranger to most content creators. Mike Pearson is the founder of Stupid Simple SEO where he helps bloggers scale their traffic and income with SEO. Mike, welcome. MIKE PEARSON: Thank you, Jenny, for having me on. That was quite the introduction video. I am pumped to be here. JENNY GUY: We are pumped to have you, we are excited. Everybody, knowing this is going to be a wild and crazy live, we are ready for your comments and questions. We will get to as many of them as we can, but what we are going to start with is both of my esteemed guests today contributed some popular SEO myths that they hear a lot when they're talking with their clients, when they're in the Facebook groups, everywhere. So we're going to raise them, raise the issues, and have a discussion about them. But like I said, if you have a question, drop it in the comments. And I'm going to start out, actually, by asking you a question, which is, what is your biggest challenge when it comes to SEO? Drop that in the comments, say hi, and let's get going. First of all, this one is from Mike, and you know what, here's what we'll do. I'll share Mike's myth, have Eric start, and then have Mike weigh in. We'll do that. Mike's first myth is speed, site speed, is a crucial ranking factor. All right, Eric, this is tailor made for you. MIKE PEARSON: Emphasis on crucial, crucial.

As a food blogger, there's one key ingredient to your success: taking delicious photos of your recipes. But how do you do that with the seemingly endless competition and incredibly complex Google algorithm? In this episode of Mediavine On-Air, Stephanie Keeping and Melodee Fiske of Pretty Focused break down their system of taking amazing photos that drives pageviews and expands their audience. Using real life examples and statistics on how a few principles for their photos greatly increased their popularity, this episode is great for food bloggers that are just starting out or trying to recalculate their business. Make sure to listen to the full episode and let us know what you think! Helpful Resources Stephanie and Melodee's PresentationPretty FocusedPretty Focused Courses https://youtu.be/uspLQAVGi6E Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey, everybody. Welcome. Hello. Say hi. Welcome to another episode. Sorry, we were in here just totally getting down-- MELODEE FISKE: I love it. [LAUGHTER] JENNY GUY: --during the intro. And we were adding each other through the-- yeah, I mean, if you can't start with a little dance party, I think you're doing something wrong. MELODEE FISKE: Just go home. Just go home if you're not going to dance. JENNY GUY: True that. That's very true. Well, welcome to another Mediavine Summer of Live. I'm your host, Jenny Guy. And as we saw from that beautiful intro, it is summer. But regardless of how we feel about it, summer is just flying by. So my first question for you guys, and for my guests, is, how are you making the most of it? How are you enjoying summer? I have personally been on a bruschetta kick. And there's nothing like summer produce. And in my humble opinion, cooking is the most fun around the holidays and summertime. So I made some with tomato, basil, and red onion. And it was dinner. I broiled my bread with Trader Joe's garlic olive oil. And then I drizzled with my homemade balsamic syrup. And I was like-- I was feeling very-- MELODEE FISKE: Summer. JENNY GUY: I felt very-- yes. I felt summer. The pictures were very colorful. Of course I had to take pictures. STEPHANIE KEEPING: Yeah. MELODEE FISKE: Right. JENNY GUY: I mean, because if-- MELODEE FISKE: What else would you do? JENNY GUY: Why would I make food if I wasn't going to take pictures of it? Eating is-- MELODEE FISKE: Photos, or it didn't happen. [LAUGHTER] JENNY GUY: Exactly, exactly. So I mean, what's the point of life if you're not capturing-- it's dumb. MELODEE FISKE: Exactly. JENNY GUY: Why would I go to a restaurant if I wasn't-- yeah, it's silly. But for publishers, social media is a terrific way to showcase their content and grow their followings. But the question is, how do you create a compelling image that actually brings people in, makes them click? And you guys, my guests are here to help. Let us meet them. So, Stephanie Keeping and Melodee Fiske were moms who wanted to stay at home with their kids. A kitchen, a camera, and a computer helped them do it. Melodee, a former teacher, had two little kids, loved her job, and still wanted to be able to contribute financially to her family. As a hobby photographer for several years, starting her own thriving home-based photography business seemed like the answer. Stephanie was in a similar boat. She'd quit her corporate job and was building a blog, Spaceships and Laser Beams, so she could stay home with her young son. But she was burning the candle at both ends as she balanced photography, growing page views, and building brand sponsorships and social following, giving an amen to all of my content creators out there. STEPHANIE KEEPING: Yeah. JENNY GUY: Feel it. Mhm. MELODEE FISKE: Yeah. JENNY GUY: Melodee felt burned out working as a wedding and portrait photographer and wanted to work more with bloggers and influencers to establish her business on her terms,

Anyone else need a CliffsNotes version of all the things happening at Mediavine?  We're glad it's not just us! From ad tech and video innovations to Google bombshells, it's been a busy few months. So on this episode of Summer of Live, Mediavine CEO Eric Hochberger is here with all the latest details. From Grow.me to Trellis to a lot of information covered about universal player, make sure to bring a pen to this episode because you don't want to miss it! Helpful Resources Eric's PresentationTrellisGrow.meUniversal Player https://youtu.be/7aMWG03Ri5Q Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello, everyone. We are here. Welcome to another episode of Mediavine's Summer of Live, our ninth episode this season. I'm your host, Jenny Guy, asking the most important question. And it's really the only question that matters on Wednesday, August 4. Have you eaten a chocolate chip cookie today? That's right. It's National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day in the United States, which is a holiday I think we can all get behind. Regardless of our many differences, chocolate chip cookies unite us all. Eric, yes? ERIC HOCHBERGER: Yeah, I ate some raw chocolate chip cookie dough last night, if that counts. JENNY GUY: Did you? Yes. That is amazing. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Oh, so I'll have it today. OK. I messed up the holiday. JENNY GUY: That's OK. I mean, you might not have known it was a holiday. Were you aware of this magical day before just now? ERIC HOCHBERGER: I was not, but that is wonderful news. I was celebrating early. JENNY GUY: [LAUGHS] ERIC HOCHBERGER: Celebrate often. JENNY GUY: Yes. Often and early. I have not eaten a cookie yet today, and I feel like I've blown it. It's like wearing pink on St. Patrick's Day. It's wrong. So I'm very fortunate that I happen to know a whole lot of amazing recipe creators plus internet sleuths, so please say hello by sharing your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe in the comments. And maybe, Eric, do you do the-- you need some safe-to-consume raw-- ERIC HOCHBERGER: Oh, no, it's not safe to consume. It's-- JENNY GUY: He's doing-- OK, good. Good. Good. ERIC HOCHBERGER: I live, like, on the edge. It's raw eggs, everything in there. JENNY GUY: We have no-- he's not afraid. So just post it all, no holds barred. Say hey. Post your chocolate chip cookie recipe, yours from your grandma, a dear friend. All are welcome. We've been doing polls on all of our social media accounts. We have some people that are very firm that it's chocolate chip cookies only. Like, or chocolate chips only. Then we have on-- I believe it's on Facebook that people are saying no walnuts. Like, no. Where do you stand, Eric? ERIC HOCHBERGER: Definitely just chocolate chips. JENNY GUY: Just chocolate chips. Fair. Fair. ERIC HOCHBERGER: No question. JENNY GUY: Well, he likes to keep it simple, but also keep it potentially salmonella-y. So it could be either, on the edge. And speaking of cookies that unite us all while you guys are sharing your recipes, how about that departure of third party cookies in Chrome, that cookie-pocalypse? That is still happening. Content creators have been freaking out about this for a while. So naturally, we've been talking about the situation and Mediavine's multi-pronged solution for what feels like ever. But when we want to make sense of this crazy world that we live in, chocolate chip cookies or cookies disappearing, and get to the heart of all the happenings in the industry and at Mediavine, we head to the source, Mediavine Co-Founder, CEO, and resident pagespeed and Shih Tzu fanatic, Eric Hochberger. Eric, welcome back to the Summer of Live. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Thank you. Thank you. Good to be back. JENNY GUY: It's good to have you. OK, so what are we going to talk about today? We have a whole lot, right? ERIC HOCHBERGER: Yeah, wow. Besides just chocolate chip cookies? JENNY GUY: Besides-- ERIC HOCHBERGER: OK.

"TikTok isn't for content creators." Have you or anyone you know said this before? Amy Flanigan of the website Belly Full, with her 600k+ TikTok followers, is here to change your mind. A graphic designer turned food writer and photographer, what Amy initially started as just a "hobby" has turned Belly Full into a full time business with millions of visitors every month. When she took up TikTok, she quickly found the same success and is here to tell us how she did it. Join us in this episode of our Summer of Live series to get Amy's top tips for expanding your brand by getting real with your audience! Helpful Resources Belly FullBelly Full TikTokThe Kelly Clarkson Show AppearanceAmy's PresentationAmy's Instagram https://youtu.be/AHAl-bO1rQc Transcript [ROCK MUSIC] JENNY GUY: Hello, everyone. And welcome, one and all, to another episode of the Mediavine Summer of Live. As hard as it is for me to believe, we are already to the end of July. And so, those back-to-school ads that we've been seeing for weeks are actually applicable now, as kids across the country will be returning to school in some form or fashion in the coming weeks. Question, was I the only nerd who thought this was one of the best times of the year, shopping for school supplies, selecting first-day outfits? I was all about every part of it, both as a student, and later, as a professor. This was like magic time. Amy, what about you? Did you enjoy? Did you enjoy that stuff? AMY FLANIGAN: Yes. Absolutely. JENNY GUY: OK, good. Thank you for not making me feel like a sad little Hermione here all on my own. AMY FLANIGAN: Oh, no way. I mean, my kids will even admit that they love going back-to-school shopping and picking out their folders and pencils and everything. It's the little things, right? JENNY GUY: And how important was that, like, making the decision for the lunch box? Like, this is going to impact my entire year. AMY FLANIGAN: Yes. Yes. JENNY GUY: If I choose wisely, or you are going to be in trouble for the entirety of third grade, clearly. AMY FLANIGAN: And even the color of those folders and your binders was all about how to prevent being teased. But yet, you want to be unique. Yeah. JENNY GUY: Totally crucial. Like, yeah, very, very important. But before we get into all of that, there are still a few weeks of glorious summer freedom before the fall semester kicks off. And I would love to know how everyone is making the most of it. And I would suggest learning more about the social platform with the slogan, make your day, which certainly ended up being true for me when I was doing a little research for this episode and promptly fell down a rabbit hole of puppy videos for way too long. Like, I was just next, next. That is right. Today, we're talking about TikTok, the short video app that swept the world during the height of the COVID shutdown. And while all of us definitely needed its popular dance challenges to get through that rough period, the question remains for many of us, is this platform for content creators or not? So it's important. For everyone that's out there watching, do you have a TikTok account? Have you ever created a video for TikTok? Tell us in the comments. And while you guys are giving us your answers, I'm going to introduce our amazing guest who is crushing the TikTok game. Amy Flanigan is the recipe developer and video-maker behind the popular website Belly Full, mixing food and fun into everyday life. After only a couple of months using the platform, Amy's TikTok reached over 500,000 followers and continues to grow. Join her as she shares her experience and helpful tips. Amy, I'm so glad that you are with me today. AMY FLANIGAN: Ah, thank you for having me. I love it. JENNY GUY: You're a delight. OK, here's what we're going to do. I'm going to drop your slides in. She's going to talk about TikTok. And then, for any questions that you guys have about TikT...

There's one platform that all bloggers know can be difficult. That's right: Facebook. But Facebook isn't as hard as it seems, and on today's podcast episode we have an expert with a proven track record to show us. Melanie Ferguson from Southern Crush At Home joins Jenny Guy, Director of Marketing at Mediavine, to share proven strategies to transform Facebook from a headache to an additional revenue stream + traffic source. No matter if you're a Facebook master or novice, Melanie has tips that will grow your blog and finally shut down those fears! Join us as she lets us in on her process, and stick around to hear her answer listener questions on how you can grow your audience. Helpful Resources Southern Crush at Home — Melanie's blog.Melanie's PresentationMelanie's Instagram https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFlHCS8P6OQ&t=277s Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey there, everyone. It is Wednesday, June 30. And that means it is time for another episode of the Summer of Live. So come one, come all. Climb aboard that teal van that we just saw. We go live on Facebook every week during the summer featuring experts from across the blogging industry on any and all topics relevant to content creators. I guess in this van scenario, and in the trailer that we just saw, that makes me the driver, which is perfect for all my childhood dreams of becoming like Otto from The Simpsons. Please don't call me Otto though. I am Jenny Guy, your host for Mediavine's lives. And thank you for joining us on today, this most sacred of days. If anyone hasn't told you yet, it is social media day. Yes, it's a real thing. And it is an especially appropriate day for content creators because so much traffic can be generated for us on these different platforms. And it is also especially appropriate for our topic for today's show. But before we get into all of that, tell us audience, what is your most successful social platform for earnings and or driving traffic to your website? So say hi in the comments. Tell us those things and we will see, have a little platform battle like West Side Story. The only most list, however, that today's topic might make is I would say maybe the most complained about social media platform for content creators. That is right. We are talking about Facebook, also known as Zuckerberg Squali. It's not known as that. I just made that up. But it could be called that. I think that everyone would acknowledge that Facebook has the potential to be an extremely powerful tool when it's used well. I think the issue with that is figuring out how to use it well since it has felt like a moving target for so many of us for a long time now. However, my guest today is here to help. So let's meet her. Melanie Ferguson, welcome. She is the creator behind the blog Southern Crush At Home. She loves home decor, crafts, and collaborating. She started the blog after her home decor storefront flooded and slowly transitioned her entire business into the online space. She quickly found a way to drive blog traffic and sales through the power of social media. And she is here to unlock all of these secrets. Melanie, welcome to the Summer of Live. MELANIE FERGUSON: Oh, Jenny. Thank you. I'm so excited to be here. Can you tell? I'm over here dancing and making hand signals. I'm so excited to share. So-- JENNY GUY: I'm so excited that you are here. This topic is fascinating. I can't wait to hear more about it. I'm going to go ahead and get your presentation going and we will go for it. Also living for her background, which of course, I mean she has to represent as an interior person. But it's beautiful. Here we go. MELANIE FERGUSON: Thank you. Thank you for the compliment. Yeah. So let's get excited, guys. I know there's so many things to be unexcited about when it comes to Facebook. But today, we're going to give it a break. We're going to get excited about Facebook and all the opportunities that Faceboo...

Did you know that Pinterest and Google interact quite a bit? Both are search engines and some of your Pinterest traffic may actually be Google traffic. In Episode 17 of Mediavine On Air, I was joined by Amy Locurto from Living Locurto and Amy's Circle for a chat about how using Pinterest like a real user can boost your Pinterest results. She shares her five secrets on how to drive users to your site and the successful ways she's used it for her own blog. Make sure to listen to the episode in full and let us know what you think! Helpful Resources Living LocurtoAmy's CircleAmy Locurto's 5 Pinterest Secrets and How To Gain Traction with Them Presentation Our Youtube Channel -- where you can find other Summer of Live and Teal Talk episodes! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fknNd0OLwZQ Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey! Hello, everyone. How are you doing today? Holy cannoli, it is Wednesday, June 2nd, which means it's summertime. So we are doing the only thing that we could possibly do, which is kick off our fourth annual Summer of Live. Yes, sound effects, applause, applause, applause. Yes, we are so excited. I'm Jenny Guy, and as hard as it is to believe, this is my fourth year hosting our summer extravaganza, where the weather is hot, but the content is hotter. One Facebook Live featuring an industry expert a week for the next three months. Due to COVID-19, last year was all about the pivot, a word that we swore none of us would ever say unless it was in regard to that Friends' episode. But we asked all of our speakers from our canceled conference in Baltimore to move to the Facebook Live format. But this year, we're masked, but we are on the road again with a new day, same time. We'll be on Wednesdays this summer. We'll have you out in an hour or less with all the knowledge you can cram into a lunch break. And we also took applications for the first time ever this Summer of Live, and we are so, so glad you did. You guys were eager to share your expertise with our audience. And so we have some amazing pitches to go through. Our theme for the month of June is growth, and we are walking directly into the lion's den with our first topic and speaker. It is Pinterest, the platform all content creators love to hate. My guest today wants to ask you, Are you frustrated with Pinterest and can't seem to gain momentum? Tell us the comments. That's because Pinterest has changed, and doing the same thing you've always done is most likely not going to work anymore. Amy Locurto, former speaker for Pinterest, current DIY blogger, and Pinterest strategist, has the secret you need to know about today to up your game for more traffic and sales from Pinterest. Hello, Amy. AMY LOCURTO: Hi Jenny! Thanks for having me. Hi, guys. JENNY GUY: Thank you so much for coming. Oh, here come the frustrated comments. I knew they would come. AMY LOCURTO: Be nice to me! Be nice. JENNY GUY: Oh, they will be so nice. We will be so nice to you. We're just so excited to have your expertise here to shed some light on this. Everybody, if you have questions for Amy, please post them in the comments. I'm going to start out by reading a little bit about her, and then she is going to present to you. Not to worry. This slideshow will be available to you after the program. We'll put it into the comments. We will also have a special offer that we will make available to you in the comments. But first, a little bit about my amazing guest today, her first time on a Mediavine live. She has been a graphic designer for 25 years a, DIY lifestyle blogger for 13 years at livinglocurto.com. She focuses most of her time now as a business coach and Pinterest strategist at Amy's Circle, a mastermind community with resources to help bloggers and online business owners increase their income. Amy was the very first Pinterest ambassador traveling to various social media conferences as Pinterest's official speaker.

It's rare that we here at Mediavine go a day without saying "diversify." We talk about content creation in all forms, whether it's blogging, photography or video — but what about a book? Today's episode of Mediavine On Air takes us from screen to page. Our guest for this episode is Jeffrey Eisner, creator of Pressure Luck Cooking, an easy-to-follow Instant Pot recipe video blog. He's published two cookbooks and been featured on Good Morning America, Rachael Ray and the Food Network. During this chat, Jeffrey shares the details about going from dreaming about a book to publishing one, giving us some helpful tips along the way. Let's turn it over to Jeffrey! Helpful Resources Pressure Luck CookingJeffrey Eisner's Blog to Page Presentation https://youtu.be/l0XATCfLItg Transcript [MUSIC] JENNY GUY: Hey! Hello, everybody. Welcome. Welcome to the fourth episode in Mediavine's fourth Summer of Live. But what's the Summer of Live? I'm so glad you asked. In a nutshell, it's where we go live once a week for the whole summer, featuring expert guests on anything and everything that will help content creators build sustainable businesses. I'm with you as always, as your host, Jenny Guy. Thank you so much for joining us. And a special welcome to first-time Media viewers. Hello. And welcome. As a nod to today's wonderful guest, and topic, please say hi in the comments. And tell us about a cookbook that you cannot live without. Drop that in the comments. Tell us a cookbook that you cannot live without. And we will see what you guys have. I'll tell you, though, we are sticking with our June theme of growth. However, today's topic is somewhat nontraditional. It is a rare month that goes by without us saying "diversify your revenue streams" at least once. And today our topic goes even deeper than we typically do with diversification, with earnings. We are talking about publishing a book. And we already know that content creators are passionate experts in their field, making you guys ideal candidates to write within your niches. But how do you go from dreaming about a book to done and published? My guest today is here to help. Jeffrey Eisner is the creator of Pressure Luck Cooking, a leading acclaimed and easy-to-follow Instant Pot recipe video blog. Featured on the Food Network, Good Morning America, and Rachael Ray, he creates his famously flavorful recipes at home in Queens, New York. His first cookbook, The Step-by-Step Instant Pot Cookbook, which was released at the height of the COVID pandemic, became an instantly lauded international bestseller within a week of its release, hitting numerous charts, including USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, and the Toronto Star. He was the bestselling debut cookbook author of 2020. In April of 2021, he released his second cookbook, the much anticipated The Lighter Step-by-Step Instant Pot Cookbook, which became the number one paperback book on USA Today and Publisher Weekly's bestseller lists. It features a slew of more health-conscious recipes, tailored to those on keto, paleo, gluten-free, and diabetic-friendly lifestyles. This is amazing! I'm so glad that you're here. I'm living through your wallpaper. Jeffrey, welcome. JEFFREY EISNER: Thank you so much, Jenny. I feel like I'm talking to a celebrity, because I watch you all the time. And you are fabulous. So it's an honor to be here with you. JENNY GUY: You are beyond fabulous. As I said, the wallpaper is famous. I'm so excited to hear everything. I want to ask you what Rachael Ray is like, but we'll save that for later. I'm going to pull up your presentation so that you can share. And let's just get going. JEFFREY EISNER: OK, let's do it. OK. Now, as I just said, I watch a lot of these series. And a lot of the time, we get invaluable advice on how to keep ourselves relevant, how to continue to earn, how to do best practices being a blogger,

Underpromise and overdeliver is one of my favorite maxims. Unfortunately, the marketing teams for the vast majority of blogging tools out there don't seem to agree. So, how do you find which tools actually deliver on their promises without breaking the bank?  Pinterest strategist and founder of the website Arts and Budgets, Latasha Peterson, joined me on the Summer of Live 2021 and shared 15 of her favorite free or cheap tools that she's used to grow her traffic and create nine flourishing income streams. I knew we had to turn this Facebook Live into a podcast episode ASAP, so here we are! I'm Jenny Guy, your host of Mediavine On Air, wishing all our listeners a big welcome. If you want to follow along with Latasha's awesome presentation while you listen, we've got it linked below. Now let's get going with the wonderful Latasha!  Helpful Resources How To Grow A Blog On A Budget PresentationPublisher Interview: Latasha Peterson of Arts and Budgets — Learn more about Latasha! Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hidey ho, audience. It's Wednesday, June 16, and I'm so happy to welcome you to the third week in Mediavine's fourth annual Summer of Live. I'm Jenny Guy, your host throughout each and every season. What the heck is a Summer of Live, you ask? I thought I heard you ask that. It's this crazy thing that we do at Mediavine every summer, where we go live on Facebook every week for three weeks-- three months. Three months. Bringing you experts from every corner of the content creation industry. So, reminder that if you cannot capture the episode live, if you're watching on a replay, the replays are always available for free on Mediavine's Facebook page. And then once we edit them, we put them up on our YouTube channel. And finally, they could end up as a podcast episode for our new podcast Mediavine On Air. We'll also be sharing our guest presentations in the comments at the end of every episode, because our goal is to make it as easy and painless as possible for you to consume the content and learn. That is our goal. Hello, everybody. Thank you for tuning in. I always love to watch our animation that Senior Graphic Designer, Susanna, made. It just makes me so happy. So, so far this summer we have talked about Pinterest with Amy Locurto and affiliate marketing with Jessica Turner. And this week, we're talking tools. Tool time, for any of my other geriatric millennials. Remember Home Improvement ? Specifically, tools that help your business without costing a fortune. We're all about growth in June. So, let us start out with a question for the audience. Say, hello. Some of you already have. And tell us, what app do you believe has helped you out the most in growing your business? Post it in the comments. And while those answers are rolling in, please allow me to introduce my guest, who is joining me for the first time on Mediavine live, but is no stranger to us and our audience. She's here to give us the lowdown on the apps that you need to grow your business on a budget. Latasha, welcome to the Summer of Live. LATASHA PETERSON: Hi, Jenny. I'm so happy to be here. JENNY GUY: We're so happy to have you. All the way from the Windy City. Let me tell you a little bit about Latasha before we get started with her presentation. So Latasha Peterson is a wife, mom of three, side hustle coach, Pinterest strategist, speaker, and the founder of the blog Arts and Budgets . Because of her love for helping creatives find ways to build multiple streams of income while following their dreams, she created Arts and Budgets to help individuals find the best and most profitable side hustles for them. She currently helps ambitious side hustlers monetize their blogs and websites by using online strategies, and with the power of Pinterest. Arts and Budgets currently gets over 100,000 monthly viewers each month and has over 40,000 followers on social media. From her side hustle,

In my opinion, there are those who admit to having imposter syndrome — at least sometimes — and then there are fibbers. Welcome, audience, to an episode of Mediavine On Air where we talk a bit about the f-word. That's right, feelings. I'm your host Jenny Guy, and in late 2020 I had the privilege to sit down with two powerhouse Google employees, Julia Li and Bianca Jochimsen. They both know a thing or two about starting out as non-techies and rocking it in a tech world. Which is something quite a few content creators can identify with. We discussed the root causes of imposter syndrome as well as specific strategies and action items to kick it to the curb. Now let's show imposter syndrome who's boss Helpful Resources The Disciplined Pursuit of Less — An article to guide you upward in your career.#IAmRemarkable — Google's initiative empowering women and other underrepresented groups to celebrate their achievements in the workplace and beyond. Watch the video here or check out the transcript below. Be a Boss and Kick Out Imposter Syndrome [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: It is Thursday, October 22, which means we are back with another episode of Teal Talk. I'm Jenny Guy, the Director of Marketing for Mediavine, and your host for the show, where it is my privilege, along with my team, to find experts from all corners of the content creation industry and make them talk to me for an hour. It is a chance to interact with the outside world which in 2020 is a rare gift. Or something we were actually talking about with my guests before we started, being with you guys every other week throughout the year and every week during the Summer has certainly made a huge difference in my personal sanity. So I just wanted to say, thank you for the opportunity to be here and to be with you guys. It is a treat, and it is certainly a treat to be here with my guests for today. It's a big day on Teal Talk. We've got exciting guests covering a really huge topic for everybody. So without any further ado, like it or not, as bloggers we live in a tech world. With your ad manager, your hosting company, your site designers, you might feel you're at a disadvantage due to a lack of technical expertise and always having to pick things up as you go. Today we're talking with Julia Li and Bianca Jochimsen, they're from Google, guys. They're both longtime, somewhat unexpected, Google employees who routinely interact with some of the best minds in the industry. And they are here to talk with us about overcoming imposter syndrome and balancing being a badass in the work space, while simultaneously building really meaningful relationships. So let me introduce them if I can say their names. We'll try. Julia Li is a channel partner manager. She manages a portfolio of web channel partners, who help publishers with site monetization, and leads the strategy for growing North America's apps channel partners business. She's been at Google for almost six years, working on both the buy side and sell side advertising teams. In addition to being a partner manager, she is a facilitator for search inside yourself-- a two day mindfulness course founded at Google. And a core member of the Greenglers sustainability team in New York. Welcome, Julia, thank you for being here. JULIA LI: Thank you so much, Jenny. I'm so glad to be here. JENNY GUY: Glad to have you. All right. Bianca leads the global Google Certified Publishing Partner program which certifies the most trusted partners on Google's publisher part products. We are also one of those few GCPP. She is originally from Germany, joined Google in 2012 in Dublin, Ireland. And in her previous roles, managed teams and programs that supported Google Ads customers. Bianca is also a career guru and an innovation coach at Google and leads innovation workshops for Google's and NGOs and executives. Welcome, Bianca. Thank you for being here.

Content creators, do you ever feel like Google hates you? The logical part of you knows this probably isn't true but you keep getting the sensation that the latest algorithm shift was specifically designed to decimate your traffic? If you can relate, this episode of Mediavine on Air is for you! We were joined in spring 2021 by Mediavine CEO Eric Hochberger, along with Nora Schlesinger, CEO of Growth Machine, which is an SEO-focused content marketing agency linked in our show notes. Basically, two SEO powerhouses, totally at our disposal for an hour and we got INTO it. We talked keywords, links, site structure, algorithm shifts, analytics, Page Experience, basically anything and everything under the SEO sun.  Helpful Resources Link Handout filled with resources related to the liveAhrefs — An SEO resource recommended by NoraSEO Like a CEO — A blog series on how to improve a website's search engine optimization (SEO) Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Howdy, friends. Welcome to Teal Talk. I'm Jenny Guy. I'm the director of marketing for Mediavine, and with you as always as your host for the show, which is all about the business of content creation. It is March. Y'all, I don't know how that happened. And even though I keep seeing the memes-- I don't know if you guys have seen them, the ones that are "How can it be March 2021 when it is still March 2020?" Because that is exactly how it feels continuously to me. I know, though, that it is almost midmonth. And so it's a little bit delayed. But since this is our first time together, I'm going to ask, did the month start out like a lion or like lamb for y'all? Tell me and let me know. I talked a little in the last show about this, about how this spring feels special to me for a number of reasons. And that is continuing on as March goes on, I'm pleased to report. And it's not only because we are inching closer to May and all of those NSYNC memes that never fail to crack me up, the Justin "It's going to be May" cracks me up every year. It never gets old. But there's the longer days. There's the nicer weather. We've got the vaccine distribution happening. I am feeling cautiously optimistic for the first time in a while. So how are you guys doing out there? Tell us in the comments. Are you are you feeling optimistic about the spring? Does it feel different for you? Let us know. And while we are checking in with each other on the start to our spring, let us also check in on everyone's feelings with respect to our favorite acronym as content creators, and that is SEO. If you create digital content, there's no way you haven't heard it. I have personally heard it so much that it sometimes loses its meaning for me. It's like when you say a word over and over and over again, and then it stops meaning things. But the reason for that constant bringing up of SEO is its importance. Simply put, SEO is make or break for digital businesses. But for many of us, SEO is murky, and Google algorithm shifts can seem downright malicious if you don't know what the heck is going on. So there is definitely a reason people pay thousands of for courses and audits from experts, but the question we're here to answer today is, does it have to be hard? How can we keep the Google gods happy and ourselves sane? And that is where my two guests from today come in. I'm about to introduce them. But while I'm introducing them, answer me this in the comments, please. On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate your SEO expertise with 10 being an SEO ninja and 1 being-- Eric and I were having a pretty deep conversation about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles before we started. But what is the opposite of a ninja? Or what is better than a ninja? Don't answer those. Answer 1 to 10 if you're good at SEO. 10 being the most confident in your skills, and 1 being I don't know Google or what SEO stands for. While I'm doing that, let me say hello to my wonderful guests today.

Today we'll start off with a question: What is the one audience that you own? That's not subject to algorithm shifts and is one of your greatest assets? It's your email list, and if you're not focused on cultivating it, you're definitely leaving money on the table in more ways than one. We originally shot this episode back in April of 2021 with the incredibly savvy Regina Anaejionu. She's the author of the bestselling content planner, Epic Blog, as well as the founder of Publish Your Thing, an online destination to help authors, bloggers, speakers, and other content creators and experts make the most out of their intellectual property.  Guys, we packed so much into less than 60 minutes -- from using paid social to grow your list to segmenting your audience and avoiding the dreaded FREE ZONE, Regina covered it all. Enjoy! Helpful Resources Link Handout resources shared from the liveNewsletter Lessons You Can Use: 7 Steps to Grow Your Email Marketing PresenceRegina's InstagramRegina's Twitter Transcript JENNY GUY: Hello, hello, hello, hello. I'm saying hello to every single one of you. I'm not going to do that. Because that would not be expedient. But I am very, very glad, and wish I could say hi to every single person that's joining us. Because we are so grateful to have you for another week. It is Thursday, April 8th. Which means it's time for another episode of Teal Talk, the show about the business of content creation. I'm your host, Jenny Guy. How is everyone doing today? Hello, hello. It is April, which means it's officially spring, and National Card and Letter Writing Month. I was not aware of that before today. Am I the only one that still really loves almost nothing more than a handwritten letter or a card in the mail? There is just nothing better than something written in somebody's handwriting, with a stamp that you get in the mail. You feel so fancy. It's a lot of fun. And our 2021 equivalent of that, that you can send to all of your audience, is email newsletters. I know this can be somewhat of a fraught topic, because as content creators, I'm sure that there is not a single one of us who has not heard the-- your email is just so important, because it's the one thing you own. So who out there has a list? Who out there is sending emails regularly? Who has a list and doesn't know what to do with it? Is email really worth all of the trouble and the expense of the platform? To answer that question, and we definitely will, enter my amazing guest for today. REGINA ANAEJIONU: is the author of the bestselling content planner Epic Blog, as well as the founder of Publish Your Thing, an online destination to help authors, bloggers, speakers, and other content creators and experts make the most out of their intellectual property. Regina has been interviewed for publications such as Fast Company as an innovative entrepreneur-- infopreneur. I've never heard that one. After building online schools with over 20,000 students, growing an email list of 50,000 subscribers, and generating more than $1 million in revenue her first few years selling courses and books online. $100,000 in profit coming from a single book, which is amazing. Her mission is to help passionate creators publish more, earn more, and create meaningful change. Regina, welcome to Teal Talk. REGINA ANAEJIONU:: I'm so excited to be here. Thank you, Jenny. This is like one of my favorite topics, so I'll try to contain my-- JENNY GUY: We're so excited to have you. And I love you. I love that. To hear that. Because you are passionate about it, and that is very apparent. And I want to-- let's incite some passion in our viewers. Let's get them on the email newsletter train. Starting with this. Guys, this is a question for all of our audience. Are you currently sending out an email newsletter to your followers? If yes, how often? If no, why not? Tell us what your pain points are.

Greetings content creators and welcome to another episode of Mediavine On Air, the podcast just for you. RPM, or revenue per mille, is often mistakenly thought of as the amount or way that a website earns. While this is not the case, RPM is a math equation that provides an overall picture of how your website is performing. We had two amazing Mediavine publishers on the Summer of Live in 2019, talking about ways they've optimized their site and content to maximize their earnings. And since their tips are evergreen, they're every bit as applicable today as they were a couple of summers ago. Courtney O'Dell of Sweet C's Designs and Aimee Shugarman of Shugary Sweets are Mediavine OGs and on top of delivering real talk about earnings, they are also both just a blast to spend time with.Now, let's make it RAIN! Helpful Resources What is RPM — and How Mediavine Calculates it.What is Header Bidding? — Learn how bidding on ads has changed over the years. Ad Revenue By The Seasons — Why does spending differ throughout the year?Google PageSpeed Insights — Check your site speed and site health using this tool from Google!*Since filming this episode, we've found that Jump to Recipe can impact revenue for the better! Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey. It is Thursday. It is the Mediavine Summer of Lives, and I am so excited about today. We are unlocking RPMs with two OG Mediavine publishers. They've been around since almost the beginning. And they are going to give you all their tips, tricks, and and strategies [INAUDIBLE] So if you guys would go ahead and introduce yourselves first. I'm here with Courtney and Aimee. Courtney, you want to go first? COURTNEY O'DELL: Sure. I'm Courtney from Sweet C's Designs. And I have been with Mediavine since just after Mediavine started. I think I'm number, like, 75. JENNY GUY: And Aimee, would you give the same thing? AIMEE SHUGARMAN: Yeah. I am Aimee from Shugary Sweets. And I have been with Mediavine maybe number six? [LAUGHS] So 2014. From the very beginning as well. JENNY GUY: That's so great. And will you tell me about your blog first? Your brand? Kind of that journey in a nutshell? AIMEE SHUGARMAN: Sure. So I've been blogging since 2011. And I mainly do sweets. But a few years back I ventured into savory as well. And surprisingly those do much better on Pinterest. So yeah, that's it. And your blog's name? Shugary Sweets. Excellent. And Courtney, same question to you. COURTNEY O'DELL: Well, I actually started off as a craft blogger. And really quickly branched into food, because everyone has to eat. And I realized I was really lazy, and didn't love doing crafts all the time. So I still do a little bit of lifestyle stuff. I branched out into a lot of travel stuff. I'm always traveling. And I'm still doing a lot of food. So I have really bad ADD, so my blog kind of does too, and I just kind of-- if I'm into it, I write about it. JENNY GUY: I really love that, and I'm going to-- so since I have you guys captive for an hour, we're going to talk about RPM. But other things. So I just want to branch out. Courtney, some people say you have to niche. And you just said, you don't niche at all. So tell me how that works, and what you would say to someone who said you can't niche and be Successful? COURTNEY O'DELL: I honestly wouldn't worry too much about it. If you don't feel into your blog, nobody is going to feel into it. So I have gone through periods where I'm writing what you're supposed to write. Where you're writing so-and-so copycat recipe, or this, or that, or-- I tried forever to get virals. Just-- I'm not good at that. If my heart's into it, it's not going to happen. I am a lot of things. I'm really bad at being fake. So you have to be really, really into something. You have to show Google you're an authority on it. And you have to get your readers really excited about something you're excited about. ...

Hey content creator friends, welcome to another episode of Mediavine On Air! Today we're answering the question: Can you make lightning strike twice? In other words, once you've got one successful website, can you use your expertise to make a second? And third? And fourth? Karly Campbell of Buns in My Oven and That Low Carb Life and Kristy Still of Mommy Hates Cooking and Air Fryer Fanatics have replicated their success and doubled their fun, and probably stress, with additional websites. When we originally filmed this episode in winter 2020, we were days away from the pandemic shutdown, making it an especially important time to focus on new revenue streams. But let's be real: It's never a bad idea to consider.Karly and Kristy were amazing -- answering all the questions about choosing second site topics, realistic time investment, cross promoting and more. Helpful Resources Redesigning Your Blog — Why you should redesign instead of rebrand and how to pick an ad-friendly theme. SEO Like A CEO — Each installment of this blog series discusses strategies for improving a website's search engine optimization.What is Content Syndication? — Learn how to syndicate in the most beneficial way. Mediavine's Second Site RequirementsTheory of Content Episode 47 – The One About Duplicate Content and Keyword Cannibalization Transcript JENNY GUY: Welcome, everybody. Hello, hello, hello. It is Thursday, February 27th, and I'm Jenny Guy. I'm the director of marketing for Mediavine. And just to talk about a couple of current events, we have a leap year coming up. I don't know if anybody knows about that one. It's Saturday the 29th of February. I actually have a friend who has a birthday on that day. I'd never met anyone who had a birthday-- right? It's weird. She's very excited because she actually gets to celebrate her birthday this year, so there's that. Do you guys-- does anyone out there have any plans? Post them in there. And then how is the year going for you guys so far? Has Q1 been a hard hit financially after the crazy boom of Q4? We've heard a lot of comments from our audience that they take Q1 as a time to renew and rebuild and refresh, and potentially take on some of the bigger projects that they don't have time to do during those crazy busy holidays. And one thing we kept hearing about over and over again on social media and in the Mediavine Facebook group was that people were asking about second sites. And they were wanting to start them, or has anyone had experience with them, and that's why we're here today. I have brought in two amazing Mediavine publishers who are already rocking the socks off of their second sites. And they're here to share their expertise with you, and they're here to tell us if it's really the truth to double your pleasure, double your fun with a second site. So let us meet our guests. Guys, thanks for being here with us today. Kristy Still. Kristy is a native Oklahoma gal, living in a little slice of country in Oklahoma with her truck driver husband and her two kids. She has turned her intense dislike for all things culinary into a thriving business as a content creator and is now the owner of two sites, Mommy Hates Cooking and Air Fryer Fanatics. Welcome, Kristy. Thanks for being here. KRISTY STILL: Thank you. JENNY GUY: And also, Oklahoma-- we found out bizarrely when we invited Kristy to be on the live that she and I live 15 minutes away from each other in Oklahoma, which I don't know-- but we're, like, book club, coffee, wine. We're so excited. Super excited. Well, thank you for being here with us. And then our other guest is Karly Campbell. She started her career as a content creator with the incredibly successful site Buns in my Oven. And just to be clear, those buns are of the yeast variety, not the human. She is also the owner of the site That Low Carb Life which she runs with her high school sweetheart husband.

Welcome to another episode of Mediavine On Air. We recorded our Teal Talk season 3 finale in late May with Mediavine CEO and Co-founder Eric Hochberger. The topic was Mediavine Updates and the hour was PACKED with anything and everything that's happening in the blogging industry. We talked about Core Web Vitals and Google's upcoming Page Experience algorithm shift, we covered third-party cookies and our first-party data solution Grow.me + the Google bird, FLoC. We also dished on Jump buttons and SEO, our forthcoming solution for smaller websites and of course, would any episode of Teal Talk be complete without Trellis talk? We covered all of these topics and more during this episode, answering all audience questions. (If you want to ask our guests your own questions, you'll have to tune in Live.) Helpful Resources Link document with links discussed during the live and others.What is Grow.me? — Learn why Grow.me is important especially when third-party cookies go away. Grow.me FLoC — Testing Underway at Mediavine Transcript [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hello. Hello, everybody. How's it going? It is Thursday, May 27, which means not only that it's time for another episode of Teal Talk, but it is the Friday Eve of Memorial Day weekend. Summer is here. I don't know if you guys-- Eric, was this a thing with you when you went to college and it was Friday Eve and your weekend began on Thursday? Like, whatever classes you had on Friday were just, why. ERIC HOCHBERGER: You had classes on Friday? That sounds terrible. JENNY GUY: Usually, like, one. It was like a lecture, like a big one. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Oh yeah. JENNY GUY: But Friday eve, you went to the bars on Thursday when you were legal, right? That's a thing? ERIC HOCHBERGER: I was never legal during college. True story. I know. JENNY GUY: Oh, wow. ERIC HOCHBERGER: I know. JENNY GUY: We'll uncover more on that later, guys. Hi, I'm Jenny Guy, your Teal Talk host. How is everyone doing today? Hello, Sarah. Hello, everybody else as you're coming in. Are there any plans for Memorial Day weekend? I can't believe it's already Memorial Day. I have a couple of recipes that are calling my name that are not good for you but will taste amazing. And last night I came to a very important decision regarding my summer plans. The word is charcuterie. Slice it, stick it on a plate, enjoy. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, elevensies, It's never a bad time for charcuterie. So my important question for my lovely audience today-- where do you like to get your charcuterie supplies? Do you get from local? Do you order online? Do you have recipes for your favorite accouterments? Tell me in the comments and help me make my snack dreams come true. In other news, today is our Teal Talk season three finale. How the heck did that happen? I don't really know. Three whole seasons of me getting paid to talk to experts from around the industry and ask them my questions, and more importantly, ask them your questions. And for our season three finale, we couldn't think of a better person who our audience has more questions for than my guest here today. It is Eric Hochberger, Mediavine CEO co-founder, programmer, Shih Tzu lover, and one of my most favorite guests. Eric. Welcome to Teal Talk. Thank you for making time for us today. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Thank you for having me. I feel like I've had a season finale before but I love it. Appreciate it. I think you have-- you always like-- it's tradition. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Oh, good. JENNY GUY: It's traditional. I have a ton of questions for you. I know our audience has them too. Feel free to fire away whenever you guys have them. We will get to them. But firstly and maybe most importantly, Eric, charcuterie thoughts. Do you have them? Favorite purveyors, favorite items. ERIC HOCHBERGER: I'm actually trying to think about this charcuterie for breakfast.

We live by the idea that knowledge is power and there's not a better place for Mediavine publishers to go for all the knowledge about their site performance than their Dashboard. Our amazing engineers joined forces with the Support team for a total Dashboard revamp in spring 2020 and so of course, we had to have Director of Support Heather Tullos and Mediavine CEO Eric Hochberger on a live to share strategies for making the most of all the new metrics.  From page-level data to revamped health checks, plus enhanced accessibility features and ad unit reporting, we cover it all on this episode of Mediavine On Air. Helpful Resources What is CPM? — Why is CPM important and how does it play a role in publisher earnings? Page-Level Reporting in the Updated Dashboard.Website Accessibility — What it is, and why everyone benefits from it. Open Marketplace — The foundation of programmatic ads.Updated Ad Reporting — More ad data at a higher accuracy!28 Ways to Improve Your RPM Transcript: [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Happy Thursday, guys. It is the seventh day of the month that we are for now and forever more calling meh. Today is episode 16 in the second season of Teal Talk. I'm your host, Mediavine director of marketing, Jenny Guy, what up. Say hi in the comments and tell us what you're doing for the moms in your life this Sunday. That's right it is for anyone who missed it, mother's day on Sunday. Corona can't stop Moms. Moms, grandmas, aunts, any of those special women in our life that care about us and shape us and deserve our love and gratitude. We also recognize that it's kind of a shitty day for some people, so please take what space you need and be gentle with yourself. And speaking of all of the gentleness, how are you guys doing out there in the upside down. Are you still isolating? I'm in Oklahoma, and we're opening our state up some. So what have you been occupying yourself with during this time? I am basic and unashamed about it, so I have been making myself sourdough starter. And I've made the best brownies and waffles of my life, and a loaf of bread so big that it could take over the city. Speaking of all of those things, what about my guests. I'm guessing one of them has been baking like me, and the other has probably not. You guess which one is which. Eric Hochberger, again, you're with me again, Eric. What's up. ERIC HOCHBERGER: I am obviously the baker, so I could not. JENNY GUY: He's baking all the time. He is obviously the Mediavine co-founder. He's the CEO. He's a computer programmer, as you can clearly see from the degree on the teal wall behind his head. And how are you doing today, boss? ERIC HOCHBERGER: Oh, good. How you doing, Jenny? JENNY GUY: I'm living the dream, every day. And then we have a beautiful new face on Teal Talk. We have Mediavine's director of public support, Heather Tullos in her car. How are you today, Heather? HEATHER TULLOS: I'm good, hello. I have definitely been baking like my life depends on it. Also currently hiding in my car, because quarantine means that I cannot escape my house full of dogs. So we don't need to talk to them right now. I'm here to talk to you. JENNY GUY: Which is such a bummer, that we can't talk to the dogs. Will you give everybody a brief who are you and what you do, since it's your first time on Teal Talk? HEATHER TULLOS: Yes. I am the director of support. So I'm here to help answer questions and work with our whole support team. I've also been blogging since 2011, and I was the Mediavine publisher before I worked in the support department. So, yeah. JENNY GUY: Yeah, and she's just got some-- [INTERPOSING VOICES] JENNY GUY: We're so glad you're here, this is amazing. Today we're talking about a new development in the Mediavine world that we're pretty excited to talk about, which is dashboard 2.0. Who doesn't love a glow up, to be honest. And those are hard to come by these days in corona times.

Welcome to another episode of Mediavine On Air with your host, Jenny Guy.  One of our favorite sayings around here is: Diversify your revenue streams! Now, that might sound odd from a company that provides full service ad management, but our company mission is building sustainable businesses for content creators. And a business relying on only one income stream is just not sustainable.  This interview happened in the Summer of Live 2020 and our guest was the wonderful Katelyn Fagan. She's a blogger at the site What's Up Fagans and an instructor on her Best Blog Courses, where she loves to teach bloggers how to make more money. Katelyn shared some absolute gems for optimizing existing posts to maximize affiliate revenue, the best link type and placement for conversion, Amazon Affiliates and more.  Now, to the earnings! Helpful Resources View Katelyn Fagan's Affiliate Marketing Slides.WordPress Gutenberg — Should you switch to WordPress Gutenberg?Mediavine Ads and Affiliate Marketing — How to find the right balance.Shorter paragraphs — Increase your RPM by shortening your sentences and paragraphs. Mediavine's Create Plugin — Learn more about our WordPress plugin for content creators. Watch the video here or check out the transcript below.  Improving In-Post Affiliate Earnings JENNY GUY: Hello, guys. I am Jenny Guy, and I am the Director of Marketing for Mediavine. How is everyone doing? Katelyn and I — our guest today just had an awesome experience where she was in black and white. So there was a wrong — she kind of looked like Paranormal Activity, the movie, if you've seen that. But we're all good now, which is awesome. Katelyn is cool as a cucumber. But today is Thursday, June 25th and we are so glad to have you with us and for us to have the opportunity to be with you today for another episode of the Mediavine Summer of Live. We have got quite a few common refrains around these parts for content creators, and one of our most popular ones is diversify your revenue streams. We say it all the time. While Mediavine ad management is our primary offering as a company, we strongly believe — and I will look directly into the camera on this one — that ad revenue should not be your only source of revenue. Please. Affiliate marketing can be a very lucrative part of your blogging business strategy. But it takes some work to be successful Enter today's guest, Katylen Fagan, in color — thank god – and she is here to talk about improving in-post affiliate earnings. I'm going to introduce Katelyn. She is a wife and homeschooling mom of five kids who is currently pregnant with her second set of twins due at the beginning of September. What? We can talk more about that later. She grew up in Wisconsin but currently lives in New York. She graduated from Brigham Young University in 2011. Over the last seven years she's built up a successful blog business while growing her family. That's kind of the understatement. Her website is "What's Up Fagans? which is dedicated to resources for family-focused living. Along with helping families better manage home and life she also loves helping bloggers make more money, especially through affiliate marketing, perfect for today. She and Katie Clark run a free blogging Facebook group and have created several blogging courses for new-to-intermediate bloggers, which can be found at BestBlogCourses.com. And she's got a special offer for you guys today — 10% off of any of those courses, of her courses, with the code SUMMER OF LIVE, all caps. So SUMMER OF LIVE. We'll drop the link n the comments for you guys to go check out. And please visit to learn more. And welcome, Katelyn. Thank you for being amazing and also for handling all of the craziness with aplomb and calm. We appreciate it. KATELYN FAGAN: Yeah. Yeah, thanks for having me on. I'm so excited to share this with you guys because I didn't get to go to Baltimore this year. So yeah.

In our latest episode of Mediavine On Air, Lena Gott from What Mommy Does and Stephanie Keeping from Spaceships and Laserbeams talk about their top traffic tips. From post and image SEO to Pinterest best practices, this episode covers a whole lot of ground. Learn how to increase your traffic and keep viewers on your site from these experts in episode 6 of Mediavine On Air. Related Resources Spaceships and Laserbeams — Stephanie Keeping's blogWhat Mommy Does — Lena Gott's blogKizoa — A video/movie making appSemrush — A tool used for SEO research JENNY GUY: Hey guys, welcome to another episode of Mediavine On Air. I'm your host, Jenny Guy. Today we are talking about traffic, not the academy award winning movie from 2000, but the people who come to your website. Like money, traffic is one thing most of us always want more of, but how do you get it? For this Summer of Live episode, originally recorded back in 2018, I was joined by veteran bloggers and instructors Stephanie Keeping and Lena Gott. Stephanie is creator of the wildly popular website Spaceships and Laser Beams and Lena is the face behind the website What Mommy Does and her courses at Adventures in Blogging. These ladies loaded the episode with action items to turbocharge your traffic growth. So be prepared to take a lot of notes. If you like what you hear, like and follow Mediavine on Facebook and never miss another broadcast. And of course, subscribe, download and give us that sweet ratings love wherever you're listening. If you want to connect with our guests, we have links to them in our show notes. For now. Let's grow that traffic. You're listening to Mediavine On Air, the podcast about the business of content creation. From SEO to ads and social media to time management, if it's about helping content creators build sustainable businesses, we are talking about it here. I'm here On Air host, Mediavine's Jenny Guy. We've already got a bunch of people saying hi to us. It is Thursday. It is summer. That means we are live at the Mediavine Summer of Live and I'm beyond. I know I say this every week. But I am beyond excited about this week's guests. We're talking about how to grow your traffic. And I've got two incredible experts. It's one of the questions we're asked every conference everywhere we go. How do I get to the 25,000 sessions, traffic threshold for Mediavine and I couldn't have two better people on here I have Lena Gott of What Mommy Does. And I have Stephanie of spaceships and laser beams. Well, I want to let you guys talk and say hi, yourself first. Lena, you want to you want to start us out? LENA GOTT: Well, my name is Lena. And I've been blogging for about 10 years, a few years for someone else. And then about seven on my own site. My main site is what mommy does and actually have, where I write about personal finance, family, family finance, fun with kids, things like that. And then also for the past couple years have had a second site that's just a Thinkific learning course for bloggers called adventures in blogging, where I teach bloggers how to get more traffic and more income, while not working as hard because a lot of bloggers I know are stay at home moms like me trying to fit in blogging in between juggling family and everything else. And so that's what I focused on and actually use my degree for that I'm a CPA by trade. And blogging is just the thing that I decided to do instead of going back to work as an accountant, this is what I do full time now. JENNY GUY: Awesome. And Stephanie STEPHANIE KEEPING: Yeah, I am I blog at Spaceships and Laserbeams which originally started as an Etsy store. And now I don't have an Etsy store. I just have a blog. And funny how those things work. I also I answer questions daily, along with seven other bloggers at bloggers tell all which is like a membership and reference site and Facebook group that we basically we tell any question,

Google's Page Experience update is coming this summer, with Core Web Vitals as key components. Andrew Wilder of NerdPress and Eric Hochberger, CEO of Mediavine, join Mediavine's Director of Marketing Jenny Guy in a conversation breaking down Core Web Vitals and what this update means for publishers. Learn about the many things publishers can do right now to get ready for the algorithm shift! Helpful Resources NerdPress — WordPress technical support Core Web Vitals Checklist — Google Page Experience checklist for bloggers The Hollywood Gossip Passes Core Web Vitals — Learn how they passed and how you can too! Live Links Document — Contains all the links related to the Live. [MUSIC PLAYING] JENNY GUY: Hey, everybody. Hello, all. Welcome. Grab a beverage. Take a seat. Or switch things up if you've been sitting all day and stand up for a stretch. As Tabitha Brown says, that's your business. It is Thursday, April 15, which means it's time for another episode of Teal Talk. I'm Jenny Guy, your host for this show all about the business of content creation. Thank you so much for joining us. How is everybody doing today? Are you like me? Are you fighting daily battles with pollen? Anyone else looking outside the window and seeing the yellow dust blanketing all of the things and just deciding it's an inside day, cut your losses? That is me. I don't know what to tell you other than that it's spring and we are all in misery. So that's happening there. So let's switch from a least favorite subject being seasonal allergies to a most favorite subject being amazing memes. At Mediavine, GIFs are our love language. And our custom emoji collection in Slack is quite impressive. But I hold a special place in my heart for a good meme. And every year around now, I don't know if anyone out there is like me and a fan of this, but every year around now, the greatest meme of all time starts surfacing. It reaches a fever pitch right around May 1. Do you know the one I'm talking about? I am paging NSYNC fans. Sing it with me. It's going to be May. I crack up every time. It doesn't matter what time-- it's always right on time for me. I don't know how you guys feel about that meme. I love it. If anyone out there wants to express their wrong opinion in the comments and share a meme that they think is better, please feel free. But this is the best meme for me. I'm kidding. We would love to have your meme. Say hi. Share a favorite meme. Please drop it in the comments. We can all use a great meme. OK. But I promise that this conversation has relevance to today's show topic. It is not just because I personally adore the Justin Timberlake meme. No what else is going to be May? Like it or not, Google's algorithm shift to page experience and the dreaded Core Web Vitals is headed our way next month. It's May. That's right. It is dominating the Facebook threads and bloggers' nightmares. So of course, we're here to break it down for you and talk through it with my experts, Mediavine CEO, SEO expert, and long time Google fanboy, Eric Hochberger is here to discuss how Mediavine is solving for ad related CLS issues for our publishers. Welcome, Eric. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Thank you. I did not know I was a Google fanboy until this moment, but I am. We know it. JENNY GUY: We know you are. ERIC HOCHBERGER: Ignore my Apple phone. It's nothing. JENNY GUY: I mean you do tend to say things like, I did SEO in high school. You're-- ERIC HOCHBERGER: Oh, that's because I'm a Metacrawler and Alta Vista fanboy. But they're not really cool anymore. JENNY GUY: They went out of fashion. How do you feel about the Justin Timberlake meme? ERIC HOCHBERGER: I believe you know from karaoke that I'm more of a Backstreet Boys fan. JENNY GUY: That's fair. That's very fair. I don't know. There aren't any good Backstreet Boy memes out there. Somebody needs to get on that. And then let's meet my other guest.

Are you making the most of your content? Most people will publish one blog post, share a link on social media and call it a day. But they're wasting a prime piece of content real estate! Gertrude ‘Dr. Gee' Nonterah of My Online Biz Journey and host of The Create and Prosper Show, joined Jenny Guy, Mediavine's Director of Marketing, for a Summer of Live episode to teach how to take one blog post and turn it into 15 different pieces of content. You worked hard on that blog post, make it work for you.  Helpful Resources Gee's Youtube Channel — Tips, resources and strategies for writers and authors.Gee Nonterah's Website — Learn how to make money as a content writer and self-published author.The Create and Prosper Show — The show that helps bloggers and writers create STELLAR content and build PROFITABLE businesses. Hosted by Gertrude Nonterah Transcript:  JENNY GUY: Hello, everybody. Today is Thursday, June 18. Father's Day is Sunday, and it has been a long minute since we've been together on a Live. A whole lot has happened in the United States since then, and sadly, none of it is new. We're not here to talk about the racism that pervades all aspects of our lives, and I am certainly not the person whose thoughts need to be shared on this topic. But, as the host of this program, I'd be remiss in not acknowledging the pain that so many people have experienced and are currently experiencing. As a company, Mediavine has said we stand with you, and we are backing that statement up with action. If you're a Mediavine publisher, we ask that you consider signing up for our no end date PSA campaign. We'll share more information on that in the comments. This is just the beginning for our company. Our People Ops department is working behind the scenes on more ways we can contribute, which we hope to announce more about soon. We know that there is much work to be done. While the deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery are currently known and spoken of in the media, we want to acknowledge that there are so many more that didn't make the headlines. We stand with each and every person who should be alive today, as well as their families, and hope that this horrible catalyst will lead to real and lasting societal change. Now, I'm going to pivot to our topic of today and our wonderful guest. But first, I'm going to ask everybody in the audience a question. Are you getting the most out of your blog content? One of the biggest problems we hear newer bloggers complain about all the time is, how do I come up with content to keep up and continue to be relevant years from now? Most people publish the blog posts, share a link on social media, and call it a day. But my guest today is here to help you repurpose that content like a pro, and turn one blog post into 15 pieces of content that keep working for your business 24/7. Gee Nonterah is a former registered nurse and medical scientist turned blogger — no big deal — freelance writer, and YouTube creator. Gee is also the host of the Create and Prosper Show, which helps bloggers and writers create amazing content and build profitable businesses. Gee started My Online Business Journey in 2014 to chronicle her journey into online business, and succeeded in using that blog to attract clients for a social media content creation business. You can find her currently on geenonterah.com, where she's passionately helping her audience make a living and build a powerful and authentic personal brand with their writing. When she is not creating amazing content, Gee likes to watch spy movies. Hi Gee, thank you so much for joining us. GERTRUDE NONTERAH: Hello, Jenny! Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here! JENNY GUY: I am so excited. I'm excited about her amazing dress, her incredible earrings and her incredible knowledge. We're going to have a really good time, and she's in San Diego, which makes me so jealous. Before we get into the nitty, gritty, meaty stuff,

On this episode of Mediavine On Air, we've got SEO experts Joshua Unseth and Morgan McBride for you. They're here to answer your frequently asked questions and share tactics they've implemented that have resulted in growth in both traffic and revenue. Learn the most effective way to find the best keywords for your site, how many posts you should be putting out a week and much more! Helpful Resources Cornerstone Content — A blog post about the foundation of a blogger's content strategy.SEO Like A CEO Series — A blog and video series that discusses strategies for improving a website's SEO.Charleston Crafted — Morgan's Site.Simple SEO Keyword Research Course — Morgan's SEO Course.Theory of Content — Joshua's Podcast.Mediavine's RPM Challenge: A 3-part optimization challenge for improving your ad revenue. Transcript [THEME MUSIC] JENNY GUY: Hello, everyone. Welcome. It's hard to believe, but it is Thursday already. You're almost through the week. It is August 15th. We're almost through the summer. I'm Jenny Guy. I'm the marketing manager for Mediavine. We provide full-service ad management for content creators. And if you aren't aware, if you haven't been looking at your calendar closely, you wouldn't know, but the countdown to Labor Day is on. And it means that our second annual Summer of Live is winding down-- sad face. I know. Not to worry though. After today, we've still got two more episodes left. And we are spending all of our last few weeks on-- and all of our energy, all of our time, all of our content is to giving you as many monetization strategies and tips as we possibly can. Just to give a little shout out here, over 1,000 of you have already watched last week's episode on affiliate marketing, which is super exciting. And I have got a Black Eyed Peas' kind of feeling that this week's episode will top those numbers. Because why? Because we are talking about the topic and all topics for anyone looking to earn in the digital space. There is one acronym to rule them all-- SEO, search engine optimization. Whether you're filled immediately with excitement or dread, the word "SEO" gives every influencer all the feels. I've got two amazing guests here that are going to drop all their knowledge on you and make you an SEO ninja in no time. So I'm going to start introducing them now. I'm so grateful that they're here. First, Morgan McBride is a Mediavine publisher with Charleston Crafted, where she and her husband Sean blog about crafting their dream home in Charleston, South Carolina. They've been blogging since 2012, but often felt like their traffic was falling into that big black hole of the internet, never to be seen or heard from again. After joining Mediavine in August of 2018-- happy one year, Morgan-- MORGAN MCBRIDE: Thank you. JENNY GUY: --Morgan dove headfirst into learning about SEO strategy. She has more than tripled Charleston Craft's organic search traffic in less than a year. And it continues to grow. She also recently launched her Simple SEO Keyword Research course that helps bloggers pick the best keywords to target for SEO sources. We will talk about that a little bit more later. And one of her primary resources that she uses for SEO education is co-hosted of by my next guest, who I will introduce here in one second. Morgan, thank you so much for joining us today. MORGAN MCBRIDE: Yeah. I've been looking forward to this for weeks. I'm excited to be here. JENNY GUY: Yay. We're so happy. I've been looking forward to it too. MORGAN MCBRIDE: You're sweet. JENNY GUY: My next guest is the co-host and co-creator of the Theory of Content podcast. He's also an SEO expert from way back in the day. In fact, he started his career as an SEO consultant-for-hire and is now the director of marketing for AlarmGrid. He has worked to optimize the sites for numerous brands, including Dollar Days, BraSmyth-- I have questions, we'll address that later-- TuneCore,