Setting Up Your Feedburner Email Subscriptions

I recently went back into my Feedburner account and configured some things that I simply had NO IDEA needed to be configured in order for people to receive the email subscription! So, there are probably a ton of people who have subscribed and are not receiving it. :(

Sorry! If you have subscribed to the Mommy Rantings newsletter subscription and you have yet to receive your daily dose, be sure to sign up again. I have managed to work out the bugs!

Here's what I found out:

In the Feedburner account, choose the blog that you want the email subscription configured for. Click on the "Publicize" tab. This is where you can choose many of the nifty options for your email newsletters. In the left hand column, click on "Email Subscriptions" - "Subscription Management". This is where you choose the language that your email newsletter is sent in, get the widget for the subscription form, and view the email addresses of the people who have subscribed to your newsletter.

Customize!

Under Email Subscriptions, Communication Preferences, you can customize the subject line of your newsletter and how the confirmation email will appear. Email Branding has yet some more customizations that you can modify. Under Delivery Options, choose the time zone that you reside in and the time you would like your newsletter delivered to your subscribers.

Automatic Tweets

Did you know that Feedburner will automatically tweet your posts? Now, still under the Publicize tab, select Socialize. You can add your Twitter account here and anytime you publish something new on your account, Feedburner sends out a tweet for you, under the account that you specified.

Activate!

My issue was that I did not activate my choices, so people were not receiving the email newsletter. :( So, remember to click "Activate" at the bottom of each page in your Feedburner account.

Analyze

If you are "into" analytics, like me, go to the Analyze tab and you will see how many subscribers you have, which posts they clicked on and how many views and clicks your posts have received in your newsletters.

Troubleshootize

Having trouble? They also have a Troubleshootize tab to help you find solutions to your problems.

There are definitely more options available in the Feedburner account setup, but these were the ones that I found to be the most useful for my needs.

Let me know if this post was helpful and be sure to sign up for the Mommy Rantings newsletter to stay "in-the-know". :)

How to Make a Facebook Welcome Page

Okay, so I am very proud of myself! Blogging is more than just writing in this day and age...it's an art form, it's managing a business...and it's constantly and consistently learning new concepts and applying them. Here is my newest endeavor:

 

In case you don't have any idea what this is, it's a Facebook Welcome page! Can you see why I'm so stinkin' proud of myself? Okay, for a couple of months now, I have been searching the Internet, trying to figure out this new FBML (Facebook Markup Language), to no avail. I've played around with it and...well, I just don't give up when I get something in my mind!

And those of you who know me also know that if I struggle through something, I will surely turn around and share it with you once I've figured it out! So, how do you make your own Facebook Welcome Page for your blog or company?

It's actually quite simple! (Wish someone had told me! Actually, someone finally did...Business 2 Blogger sent me an email, as I subscribe to them, and the email said to go to Pagemodo...so, there you have it!)

Pagemodo is the Trick! They are Super Cool!

Go to Pagemodo (don't worry, if you're only planning to do one page, it is free!) and sign in with Facebook. Easy enough, right? Give them the permissions that they need to access your info - and don't worry if it brings up your personal Facebook account. You will have a chance to pick which Facebook account to put it on later in the process, as Pagemodo asks you questions for the implementation step. 

From here, you choose a template and start working on it! You can change the colors, fonts, add your own pics and wording, and basically customize it to be "your own".

Pagemodo will implement your self-designed Welcome Page for you once you are completely happy with the design...oh! and, if you make any mistakes (like I did) and you don't notice until after your page is up on Facebook, just log back into Pagemodo and "update" your page. Quick and simple. 

Wait! You're Not Finished!

So, your Welcome page is up on your blog's Facebook account, but you want your new visitors to land on that page when they first come to it, right? I assume that's the whole point of a Welcome Page.

Okay, click on "edit page" in the top left hand column of the Facebook page, right under your logo (or photo). Then, (and I understand these pages might look or be named differently, as this was difficult to find for me, according to other people's instructions) find "manage permissions". 

Here is an image to help you out:

Where it says, "Default Landing Page", select "Welcome". Sorry the image is so blurry! Hopefully you can figure this out. If not, contact me! I'll try to walk you through it, but it's fairly simple. Don't forget to click on "Save Changes" at the bottom of this screen.

That's It!

Now, when new people come to your blog's (or company's) Facebook page, they will immediately be greeted with your self-designed Welcome Page!

After all this time and research, this is all I had to do. !?!?!?! LOL

Let Me Know!!!

Hey, if this blog post helps you, stay tuned for more "blogging" tips!

Also, leave me a comment and follow on GFC, Facebook and Twitter! I would love to hear if my tips work for you!

Giveaway Blogs: Increase Your Twitter Followers Quick!

Are you starting a Giveaway or review blog, but experiencing trouble obtaining sponsors because you don't have enough Twitter followers? (Don't worry! I'll be writing another post for Facebook fans and GFC followers in the near future, too!)

You finally get in touch with the right person in the company that you've been dieing to work with as a sponsor for your blog and they ask you:

"Can you tell me the stats for your blog? Twitter followers, Facebook fans and GFC followers?"

And your heart sinks because they tell you that your blog "did not qualify"...



I stumbled across some advice last night (on New Year's Eve, of all nights!) and tried it out...and over NIGHT, I increased by more than 50 Twitter followers! And, that is just the first night!

Seriously, I'm not even sure if these companies understand that Twitter followers, Facebook fans, and GFC followers should NOT be the way to "judge" a blog. There are so many tips and tricks to increase your blog's following...and the fact that blogs have 1000 GFC followers, 1500 Facebook fans, and 2000 Twitter followers doesn't necessarily mean that all of those people are avid readers of your blog, but...

They want the numbers, so let's give them their numbers! (And, you'll get some blog followers, too, if your tweets catch their attention!)

Don't Pay For Followers and Fans!

You are going to find plenty of pay-for-follower sites that will promise to increase your Twitter followers, but why pay someone when you can do it yourself?

Here's What I Did

There are also methods that can be used to auto-follow (or follow back automatically), and this is part of the trick that you will use to get those followers! The best advice that I found was to follow the people that have the most followers. Look in your niche on Twitter and follow the 5 top "big boys" (or "big mommas") on Twitter - you'll most likely get a follow back, but even if you don't, you will be added to their "newest follower" list and pop up every time someone looks at their page (well, of course, that is until someone else takes your spot).

I also found a list here of the Top Twitter Users, listed by number of Twitter users. What did I do with this list? The instructions said to follow from the bottom of the list, on up. I started from the top of the list and am working my way down. I have no idea what I'm doing, but I can tell you that I'm getting a new Twitter follower at least every half hour now. As a matter of fact, I just checked and during the course of typing up this post, the QueenBMomma has increased her Twitter followers by 5, and I didn't even do anything...they just keep coming!

Adding An Auto-Tweet

You've probably noticed that as soon as you follow someone on Twitter, you might get a very fast response thanking you for the follow and directing you to their website, blog, etc. These are normally auto-responses to new followers and many use SocialOomph to not only send people an auto response when they are followed on Twitter, but also auto-follow them back.

Now...I'm not a fan of auto-responses. To me, they are generic and not very genuine and, although the world is progressing to more automated systems, I won't be sending any auto-responses to followers on Twitter. If they follow and they like QueenBMomma's Tweets, they will make their way to the blog anyways. Right?

Show Me a Little Love

If these tricks work for you, come back and leave a comment and follow QueenBMomma on Twitter for the follow-up blog posts on adding Facebook fans and increasing your GFC followers within the next few weeks.

Happy New Year! Here's to a brand New Year with new beginnings and a lot more followers!

I Think I'm Figuring This Blog Thing Out

You will notice that I figured out how to put the "Tweet"-y thing on my blog, so everyone can Tweet away now. I'm learning these blog gadgets and finding my way through the blog world, with widgets and gadgets and do-dads and thinga-ma-bobs. If you're still figuring out your way around the Blog-O-Sphere and haven't got a clue how to get that Tweet button on your Blogger blog, here is the trick: Tweet Button.

I'm so proud of myself. Yay, me!

Do You Want To Add A Statcounter to Your Blog?

Also, if you are interested in tracking your stats (how many visitors you get, which countries your visitors are coming from), go here.

I am sooooooooo trying to learn as fast as I can, raise 6 kids, do my daily projects and blog for the Mommy Ranters out there that come back faithfully and visit.

Drum Roll For the Shout Outs!

I want to send a shout out to my visitors! Okay, of course, a blog written in the U.S. will have the most visitors based in the U.S. But, I know you are all scattered around the country, so West Coast, East Coast, Midwest, and everyone else in the U.S....thank you for coming here!

To my surprise, I get a lot of hits from India, Belgium, and Hungary! Thank you for visiting!

Denmark, Canada, U.K. and Saudi Arabia...you're the next runners up...Thanks for your loyalty!

Finally, Brazil, Pakistan, Argentina, Greece, Malaysia, New Zealand, Guadalupe, Italy, Ukraine, France and Israel...someone visits Mommy Rantings from each of these countries every day. Thank you so much!

I watch my statcounter religiously...and feel very blessed for every visitor that I get.

Leave Me A Comment...Shout Back

Please leave me a message and let me know where you are visiting from. I am so tickled that you are all so loyal!

Another Shout Out

I want to mention a few blogs that I have found found me and give them a shout out this week for being some cool blogs. (Not to mention these are my recent visitors, so I feel like spreading some love).

Let's start with Coupon Cent Sisters...thank you for all of the cool deals. If the economy stays the same, we're really going to need you!

Help Tawna on her journey to her goal weight. She's got some great ideas for you mommas that want to work off some of that (comes with the territory) mommy weight.

A dear friend from high school (and please don't search for our group Prom pic on my Facebook...), Jenny has some yummilicious recipes on her Never Enough Thyme blog.

Visit MamyBelle and her precious little Baby Belle and ride along their journey of life.

Mormon Surrogate...this woman will sure be blessed in her life. You'll have to visit her to see why.

Pumpkin Butter...you've got to see the eyes on this little girl!

Mom's Me Time is just about to undergo plastic surgery...ummm, I think that came out wrong...the blog is about to get a facelift. Yes, that's what I meant. Stop on by to get a quick peek at the "before". (Can't wait to see the "after"!)

I Need To Back-Track Through My Follower List..and I Will, Mark My Word!

For now, though, I hope you enjoy bopping through the blogs on this list. Pop by and let me know what you think about them!

Don't forget to tell me where (which blog and country) you are visiting from!!! Thanks!