Wuraola Ademola-Shanu - Women of Rubies

In self development July 7, 2020 By Esther Ijewere

Wuraola Ademola-Shanu: You Need a Social Media Detox! Yes, You!

If you feel like social media has taken over your life, if it preoccupies your mind, or if you find yourself constantly and habitually reaching for your phone, these might be signs that it’s time for a break.

Technology was meant to serve us. We create things, like social media, to make our lives better so we can have more control over the limited amount of time we have every day. But is social media actually improving our lives? Or have we become slaves to our own creation?

How often do you reach for the phone first thing in the morning and check your Twitter notifications? How often when you’re on vacation are you more concerned about taking the perfect Instagram picture than enjoying yourself? How often are you locked in an internet argument on Facebook? A social media detox gives us a bit of clarity into this.

The amount of mental energy we give our phones, specifically social media, could be put to much better use.

Social media, in its inception, was harmless fun. Now, it has evolved to be part of our daily lives. It’s how we consume most of our information, and it influences everything from elections to public discourse.

But social media is not real life. As much influence, or seeming influence, it has, it’s a curated and selective sample of what’s actually going on in the world.

What Is a Social Media Detox?

A social media detox is a conscious elimination of social media use and consumption for a set period of time. Generally, most social media detoxes are 30 days, but some people do 7 days or even a year-long social media detox.

Why Take a Social Media Detox?

If you’re here or you’ve been thinking about taking some time off of social media, you should probably do it, and that should be reason enough.

How to Do a Proper Social Media Detox

Tell people

The first step to taking a social media detox is to tell people.

Tell people you interact the most with that you’ll be offline for a while. This will do a few things.

First, it will keep you accountable. If you’re back within a few days Tweeting or posting photos, the people you told will hopefully call you out on it. This will help you stick with the detox.

Secondly, it will let people know you haven’t disappeared if you wind up sticking with it. Most people won’t really care, and some may not even notice (don’t take it personally!).

Delete the apps and block the websites

The next step is to delete the social media apps from your mobile devices, especially your phone. This step is required. I can almost guarantee you that you will not succeed if you keep the apps on your phone during the detox, or you try to rationalize to yourself that you’ll only check them once a week.

For this to work, you’ll need to disconnect completely. If that seems too hard (or even impossible), try a shorter detox.

You may also want to install an app or tool on your computer that can block out social media websites for you.

Plan what you will do during your detox

The last step is to plan what you will do during your detox and actually fill your time with the things you plan to do.

You may wind up surprised at how much time you’ll find during the day that you otherwise would have occupied with your social media habit.

If possible, try to replace your social media habit with something that doesn’t involve technology. I suggest this because using your phone or laptop to replace a digital habit isn’t really productive.

Some suggestions include:

Reading
Spending time with friends and family
Learning something new (language, hobby, skill)
Working on a side project or business
Exercising, gym, yoga
Meditating and practising mindfulness

But if you need to replace your digital habit with a more productive digital habit, here are a few suggestions:

Download Kindle on your phone and read books during downtime/boredom instead of looking at social media
Listen to podcasts or audiobooks
Write
Take an online course
You can sneak in some bingeing on Netflix.

Benefits of A Social Media Detox

It breaks the social comparison cycle

For example, if everyone you know is getting married and having babies but you’re still single, you may end up feeling isolated and lonely. This can even lead to serious depression for some people. Break away from this unhealthy cycle by taking a break from social media so that you can reconnect with all of the awesome things in your life.

You’ll stop feeling competitive

Even if you aren’t aware of it, social media brings out your competitive side. Each reaction and comment is a measure of how popular a particular post is, which can make you strive to outdo others and even yourself.

This type of competitiveness is not healthy, and it can cause anxiety and depression. Take a mental health break by stepping away from social media for a while!

It’ll improve your overall mood

The amount of time you spend on these sites is directly related to whether or not you feel stressed out or happy.

In other words, if you’ve been feeling highly anxious, stressed out or depressed, this is a good time to take a social media detox. It may feel weird at first, but your overall mood should begin to improve as you stay away from Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites.

You’ll reconnect with the real world

Sadly, people who spend a lot of time on social media sites report feeling lonely and isolated in real life. They are also more likely to suffer from a weakened immune system.

The good news is that even if you’re an introvert and uncomfortable with a lot of in-person interaction, you can boost your mood by simply going out in public. Take yourself to your favourite park or restaurant if you prefer to be alone. You could even go to a movie or concert.

You’ll stop obsessing over your past

Leaving social media behind for a while can give you the space you need to stop obsessing and actually move on with your life. Make sure that when you do return to social media that you take the extra step of blocking exes or anyone else who it pains you to see online. You can also tweak your Facebook memories to remove certain items so that you stop being reminded of them.

The first step to a successful social media detox is merely trying it. Even if you’re hesitant or unsure if you can do it, try it for a weekend. See how you feel after 2 or 3 consecutive days of being off of social media.

Like how you feel? Try a week and slowly progress to a full month.

About Wuraola

Wuraola Ademola-Shanu is a copywriter, content creator and content strategist who help professionals, consultants and business owners align their stories with their ideal clients, refine their sales funnels and expand their online reputations. She is also a proofreader. You can connect with her via her IG page @thecopywritingchic

Content source: Bellanaija

In self development July 7, 2020 By Esther Ijewere

Wuraola Ademola-Shanu: The Ultimate Guide To Guest Posting For Beginners

If your pitch is accepted, the next thing to do is write your guest post. Especially if it’s the first time you’re writing for a site, you want to make it better than your best.

Do you want to guest blog on your favourite sites or become a guest blogger and don’t know where to start from or what to do?

Guest blogging is a strategy where you write for other blogs that could help you get enhanced traffic, quality backlinks, and increased brand exposure.

To become a guest blogger, you need to do the following:

Know Your Objectives

An effective guest blogging strategy starts with knowing your objectives. You have to know where you’re headed and what you intend to achieve before becoming a guest contributor. Examples of objectives might include:

Driving traffic to a specific landing page (or to your site in general) to get more leads and sales.
Building awareness of your brand, products, and services
Improving SEO by attracting inbound links.
Positioning yourself as an authority in your field to command premium prices and get speaking engagements.
To land a job or consultancy role.
Increasing email subscriber numbers or your social media audience.

It’s extremely important that you have a goal in mind. This will help you know what type of content to post and the type of bio to craft.

Find Blogs/Websites You Want to Guest Post For

Before you start writing your guest post, you need to find the right blogs to target. Below are several methods you can take to find potential guest posting blogs:

Conduct a search on Google

Performing a focused Google search can help you find the right blogs. To search for a blog on Google, you must bear ‘Search Term’ + ‘Search value parameter’ in mind. E.g:

Keyword + ‘guest post’

Keyword + ‘write for us’

Keyword + ‘guest article’

Keyword + ‘guest post opportunities’

Keyword + ‘this is a guest post by’

Keyword + ‘guest contributor’

Keyword + ‘want to write for’

Keyword + ‘submit blog post’

Keyword + ‘guest column’

Keyword + ‘submit content’

Keyword + ‘submit post’

Keyword + ‘suggest a post’

Keyword + ‘submit an article’

Keyword + ‘contributor guidelines’

Keyword + ‘become a guest blogger’

Keyword + ‘guest blogger’

Keyword + ‘become a contributor’

Keyword + ‘submit guest post’

Keyword + ‘submit article’

Check out the websites influencers in your niche are guest posting for

Some influencers in your niche disclose the other blogs that they write for. This can ultimately lead you to an exclusive list of quality blogs you can also guest-post for.

Form a Connection with the Site Owner

If the site you intend to contribute for is owned by someone you can directly pitch to, it’s important that you establish a connection with them first.

Unless the topic you’re pitching is extremely relevant and the content is mind-blowing, I’d precommend that you do not copy and paste guest post pitch templates you see online, as most of them are generic and do not tell the site owners that you’ve done our homework or make the effort to personalize your pitch.

So, how do you establish a relationship with these site owners?

First, get to know their site and the type of content they publish by following them on social media or by subscribing to their newsletters. This will help you get updated on the latest new happenings in their lives or business.

Also, read their content consistently for a few weeks, or longer, so you understand what matters to them and their audience. If they list their top-performing or featured content on their site, check that out, too.

Connect with site owners on social media so you can tag them when you share their site content. Share anything you really love and include a comment so it’s not just a plain link.

Comment on their blogs, sign up for their email marketing newsletter and respond to their emails. You need to form a genuine relationship with these people. Don’t fake it; they’ll figure it out and then you won’t achieve your goals.

Choose a Winning Topic

Once you have a good understanding of your target site, and what matters to the site owner, it’s time to find a topic to pitch.

You should already know what’s popular on the site. Now, think about how you can add value by:

Responding to what’s on the site
Providing additional information on a popular topic
Writing something new on a topic that’s likely to be popular with the audience

If the site has guidelines for pitching and writing, read them. If you don’t, site owners might just reject your pitch before even reading it.

Send Your Pitch

For your guest blogging strategy to succeed, it’s important to avoid generic guest posting pitches. Like I said above, most people can spot a generic message from afar. That is why you need to do your homework, so that you’ll be able to craft a winning pitch that’s personal to each site owner with very little effort.

What are the rules for sending pitches?

The first rule is to keep the pitch short and to the point. Site owners, especially those with authoritative sites, get a lot of pitches, so don’t waste their time.

Second, use their name. Most site owners won’t read pitches from people who can’t be bothered to research this basic contact detail. So, if the site owner’s name is Wuraola, your email should start with “Hi Wuraola” or “Dear Wuraola.”

Third, include the post title. In fact, some successful pitches use this in the email subject line and as a secondary heading within the body of the email. For instance, if I wanted to pitch this topic to a site owner, my email subject line would be ‘The Ultimate Guide To Guest Posting For Beginners’ instead of ‘Guest post pitch – XYZ site’.

If the person you’re pitching loves your title, you’re halfway to a successful pitch.

The next thing to do is to describe the post briefly. Say what it will cover in a couple of sentences or a few bullet points. Tell them how your post will help their readers.

Finally, show them why you’re the right person to write the post. You don’t have to send in your resume, just drop in some badass points on why you’ll make a great contributor.

P.S. Here’s a sample of a guest post pitch you can use or tweak to suit you.

Email subject line: THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO GUEST POSTING FOR BEGINNERS

Address site owner by name: Dear Wuraola or Hi Wuraola

Familiarity with the site’s content: I noticed that you’ve been publishing a lot of content around blogging and can’t help but create a blog post that would be beneficial to your readers. I know they love blogging tips (looking at the comments after every post you publish and the number of reshares)

Qualifications for writing/why you’ll make a great guest blogger: and since I’m a content creator, I’d love to create a topic that aligns with your readers’ needs.

Brief post synopsis/outline: Over the years, there’s been plenty of speculation about the death of guest blogging, but the tactic remains one of the most effective ways to promote yourself and your business. From freelancers like Elna Cain who used a guest blogging strategy to make a full-time income from freelance writing and Buffer used guest blogging to attract 100,000 customers; guest blogging is indeed a powerful content marketing tool.

Last paragraph: Wuraola, would The Ultimate Guide To Guest Posting For Beginners be of interest to you?

Salutation: Sincerely, Linda Jones

(Optional): I love The Copywriting Chick Blog. Thanks for being an amazing resource!

So, here’s the pitch:

Dear Wuraola,

I noticed that you’ve been publishing a lot of content around blogging and can’t help but create a blog post that would be beneficial to your readers. I know they love blogging tips (looking at the comments after every post you publish and the number of reshares) and since I’m a content creator, I’d love to create a topic that aligns with your readers’ needs.

Over the years, there’s been plenty of speculation about the death of guest blogging, but the tactic remains one of the most effective ways to promote yourself and your business. From freelancers like Elna Cain who used a guest blogging strategy to make a full-time income from freelance writing and Buffer used guest blogging to attract 100,000 customers; guest blogging is indeed a powerful content marketing tool.

Wuraola, would The Ultimate Guide to Guest Posting for Beginners be of interest to you?

Sincerely,

Linda Jones

P.S: I love The Copywriting Chick Blog. Thanks for being an amazing resource!

Write Great Content

If your pitch is accepted, the next thing to do is write your guest post. Especially if it’s the first time you’re writing for a site, you want to make it better than your best.

Here’s what you need to do:

Craft an Amazing Headline

Start by taking a look at the headline in your pitch again. Even if the site owner loved it, it won’t hurt to come up with some alternatives. A great headline includes the benefit(s) for the reader, uses action words and taps into emotion.

Link Appropriately

Ideally, your guest post will have a great link profile, which helps with SEO and building authority. That means you should include relevant internal and external links in the guest post you’re writing. Within the content, link to great content from the site you’re writing for, and useful resources on external sites. This helps give the content a good link profile, which is also good for SEO and building authority.

Include Images

Finding images can be tasking, especially if the site owners have a lot on their hands. So, except they tell you that they’d rather insert the images themselves, you should add them. You can get free images from Pixabay, Unsplash and Canva.

Format the Post Correctly

Finally, format the post so it matches others on the site. Observe how and where they use subheadings, capitalization, bold text, lists, etc. The less work you give site owners to do, the more of an asset you are.

Craft A Bio That’ll Blow Their Minds

You need to work that bio because it’s where you get to link back to your own site/social media page and resources. Options commonly offered include:

A single link to your home page
A link to any page/resource on your site
A link to your site plus a social media link
A couple of web and social media links

Be Responsive

You wanted to be in the limelight and now, you’ve got the opportunity. Leverage it and do not put it to waste. Respond to comments on and mentions of your post.

Why? Apart from the fact that it’s good manners, it’s also a great way to connect with your new audience and achieve some of your set goals. Who knows? You could land a client or clients. Or even a beneficial partnership/collaboration deal.

Blog owners will also be happy if you’re responsive, making it more likely they’ll be receptive to new pitches, or will suggest ways you can contribute further. This moves you even closer to achieving your goals for your guest blogging strategy. And if you aren’t able to respond to posts on their sites, you can get traffic or DMs on your social media pages, email or websites. Be sure to respond to them.

Promote Your Content

Content promotion is a key part of your guest blogging strategy so more people read your content and follow it back to your site. You can promote your guest posts via email, on your social media pages or website. Also, encourage your subscribers and followers to visit, comment and share.

Write More Guest Posts

Don’t stop at one guest post and call it a day. The more posts you write, the more online presence you have, and the more people think of you as an authority. That leads to more invitations to write and participate in events, more traffic to your site, and more leads and sales.

Of course, if you’re writing a lot of guest posts, you’ll need a way to keep track of them. That’s why it makes sense to have a guest blogging calendar.

An easy way to do this is to create a new calendar in Google Calendar and add the titles and due dates of any guest blogging commitments.

Source: Bellanaija