Reader
I like software tools. They help us do our work. They often even give us new ideas for cool things we could be doing, which is actually one of the reasons I enjoy browsing through the gazillion plugins they have for the WordPress platform.
Not being a noob by a long shot, I’m particularly fascinated with the prevalence today of non-localized software and applications we all can practically tap into and use, as long as we have a decent Net connection for our work computers and even mobile devices.
Fun, productive stuff!
Two posts in today’s issue fall into what I would normally automatically categorize as just Tools back in the day. After wrestling a bit with how best to manage and present that information, I finally decided, “You know what? To heck with Tools. I’m more interested in — and it’s actually more useful to know — how they’re used.”
So that’s how these software tools, services and solutions are going to be presented here from this point on: how they’re being used categorically. The focus is the application, not the tech.
Our info sources will no doubt even revisit these tools repeatedly over time, as they get put to work doing many different things. Now for us that’s where the value is folks, looking at the many different ways we can put a hammer to work, not oohing and aahing over the hammer itself.
I think it’s a mindshift that makes a heck of a difference. And the move to Net-based “services” plays more than just a minor role in that shift. Just some interesting things to ponder.
Well, enough of that, let’s do some reading and learning!
— EES
Please Share the Love!
Social Media
7 Social Media Strategies Authors Use to Sell More Books
“You no longer need to rely on the traditional press system for a successful book launch… and you don’t need a million dollars in marketing money to reach your goals. With a well-thought-out social media plan… you can promote your book to millions of potential readers.”
Create Social Media Images with Canva and Pablo
“90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual. Visuals are processed 60,000 times faster in the brain than text.”
How to Create a Custom Poll on Your Facebook Timeline
“Follow these step-by-step instructions, and you can create a great looking poll that will get engagement. You can even copy-paste it for a later poll campaign, and customize where needed.”
Publishers are finding (modest) success with Facebook groups
“[A]side from driving audience loyalty, publishers are working out what Facebook groups are actually useful for: shaping editorial strategy, generating leads, audience research and to supplement email newsletters.”
Marketing
![facebook-ad-preferences-who-targets-you[1]](https://wordpreneur.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/facebook-ad-preferences-who-targets-you1-167x130.png)
Big Changes to Facebook Custom Audiences: What You Need to Know
“Custom Audiences have long been a platform-defining feature for Facebook ads… They allow you to hit hyper-targeted subsets of the (still massive) Facebook-using population…”
How and Why to Clean Your Email Subscriber List
“[I]t stands to reason that once you start growing a list, you want that list as big as you can get it, right? Actually, it’s a little more complicated than that.”
The 10 Best Sites for Market Research
“Market research is the act of gathering and analyzing data about the position of a product or service in a market. It looks at information regarding current customer interest and potential growth.”
Free
Build Your Own Wicked WordPress Themes
This valuable free ebook is perfect for front-end Web designers looking to branch out from building static sites or simple PHP-based projects into the world of WordPress theme development.
DownloadWebdev & Traffic
SEO for the Mobile Index
“The first thing you should do is… see what percentage of traffic visits your site from a mobile device. If you don’t get any mobile traffic, your site may not even be in the mobile index.”
Web Page Infographic Creation
“[H]ow to make an infographic quickly — even if you are a klutz with image-creation software.”
Free
Content Marketing: 11 Steps to Engage, Entertain, and Inform
This free guide will show you step by step how to keep your audience engaged, entertained, and informed with your content.
Download
Small Business Guide to Facebook Marketing
This free guide teaches you what you need to know to make Facebook part of your digital marketing.
Blogging
4 Questions to Help You Start a Successful Blog
[E]very year, I see bloggers start from scratch and build massive online communities that help their work spread. All it takes is some intentionality and a little generosity.”
5 Reasons Blog Posts Fail
“You think of a great idea. You spend hours researching and writing. You meticulously work to get the formatting just right. You hit publish and wait for the shares and comments to flow. And you wait. And you wait. And nothing happens.”
How to Write a Series for Your Blog (and Why You’ll Want To)
“Some bloggers feel writing a series of posts is more daunting than writing individual posts. But it’s often easier to come up with ideas for a ten-post series than for ten standalone posts.”
Free
The Ultimate WordPress Guide
Learn how to master WordPress in the next 30 minutes.
Set up your blog or website on a WordPress platform.
Download
