That’s right! We’re celebrating the holidays a little early this year by having a massive giveaway! Enter for your chance to win a
Welcome to the sixth in our “Women In Biz All Around WordPress” feature that will run the 1st Sunday of every month. It’s a new series where we spotlight amazing women and the ways in which they have used WordPress to spread their message, sell their products, or provide valuable services.
The hope is to inspire other midlife women to build their online businesses and find what we’re all looking for; financial freedom, a lifestyle they love, and excitement they may have been missing! All of these women are clients of mine who have inspired me over the years and I think they will inspire you as well.
This month I want to introduce you to Doreen McGettigan from DoreenMcGettigan.com. Doreen is an Author, a Writing Coach & a Writing Consultant. If you’ve ever thought about writing & publishing a book then Doreen is someone who you absolutely need to know!
For years, she has been a blogger who has lent a helping hand to other women who dream of becoming an Author. Offering advice & support to anyone who takes the time to listen. These days, though, she’s taken that a step further and by opening her own consulting business she can work with clients one on one giving them useful advice, important tips, and ideas that you may not have even considered!
Just like with anything in life when you put yourself in the hot seat you look for advice from the pros that have come before you and that’s exactly what Doreen is. A consummate professional, an encouraging consultant & also a pretty amazing friend. We’ve been blogging buddies for a long time, meeting at a Blogging Conference years ago, but after winning a contest in 2016 she became a client and has been ever since.
Let’s hear from Doreen:
A little over a month ago I cut the cord from MailChimp and turned to a new email service provider called EngageBay. Let me tell you how it’s going!
I am going to say that there is a learning curve but once it’s figured out I see it upping my email game extensively. It’s a totally different experience than what you’ve gotten used to in MailChimp, but with that being said it’s more intuitive, it’s more professional & it’s definitely more creative.
It’s the whole ball of wax in a single platform. Here is a list of packages & the included features. Just look at this list:
They have even bigger plans if you need it!
If you’re on my subscriber list you have probably been a couple of crazy newsletters, but once I figured it out I’ve been creating sequences, automation, and creating interest tags. Whether you sign up here ⇒ & if you haven’t you absolutely should or you’re a do it yourself kind of girl and sign up over at Wandering Web Designer it all goes to the same place but different lists and different sequences.
I have three websites and being able to keep all of my lists together in one spot has helped me keep focused and it’s also inspired me to do more with my subscribers.
I know that some of you are ready to break up with MailChimp & I hope this gives you that push!
Not only is Engagebay offering you (my readers) a 10% discount but for a very limited time, I am going to offer to set up your account COMPLETELY FREE if you sign up for a paid account. NOT VALID FOR THE FREE ACCOUNT. USE COUPON CODE: IZ9mC83u
YOU’RE PROBABLY SAYING ARE YOU CRAZY???!!!???
Yes, I am!
WHAT IT INCLUDES:
THIS DEAL WILL NOT BE OFFERED AGAIN SO IF YOU’RE ON THE FENCE SEND ME AN EMAIL (Rena (@)theblogging911.com)WITH ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. Or just fill out the form to the side that says ‘Let’s Talk’!
*This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase a subscription I will earn a small commission that will in no way affect your cost.
I know! I know! I never thought I would utter those words, but hey times change and if you don’t change with them you’re left behind in the dust thinking would’a, should’a or could’a. Part of being a successful entrepreneur is being able to be flexible. You have to be able to pivot quickly to stay current.
I’ve used MailChimp for years and I’ve referred many, many clients to them, but since making major changes this year it’s become increasingly clear that it’s not the best choice for email marketing for a small business owner.
One of the very best parts of being in my business (& also a total tech geek) is I sometimes hear from companies who have something different. Businesses who are innovative & what I feel would be an amazing asset to any business, not just my own.
Believe me, I also turn down quite a few.
It's very important for @blogging911 to be the place to find honest information that you need to run your business and become successful in this online world. I need you to be successful for me to be successful whether your client or a… Click To TweetSo let me recap for the skimmers out there:
I’ve been using Engagebay for almost a month now and haven’t even begun to take advantage of all that they offer.
For years, I’ve touted MailChimp’s simplicity and its features vs. cost ratio. I’ve written tons of blog posts about them, but I cannot in good conscious recommend them anymore because those features that I was so excited about disappeared behind a cloak of upgrades and price increases.
For real this company is no joke in the internet marketing arena. I grabbed this in case you want to know more about them:
Unless the software is easy to use, you’ll rarely get anyone to use it.
Most business automation software is klutzy, costly, hard to implement and harder to use. Even if you manage to set up multiple standalone software for separate processes, they will most likely not be able to inter-communicate.
At EngageBay, we take the ease of use issue very seriously – so we developed an integrated marketing, sales and support friendly automation (with a free CRM thrown in for good measure) software that’ll make sure everybody in the organization is on the same page and moreover, they love using it. And what is amazing is that this costs much lesser than you’d imagine, so it won’t burn a hole in your pocket. Moreover, even an absolutely non-technical individual can set it up in a few minutes.
We are a young team of dynamic marketers, sales pros and development aces, helped by a very inclusive and dynamic leadership.
Today, over 5,000 companies trust our software to run their businesses. We have places to go yet…
Here is Engagebay pricing compared to MailChimp below.
Sign up for an account if you’re ready to take your email marketing to the next level! That email sequence, course or challenge you’ve been thinking of creating, or maybe you need to make a pitch to a list of sponsors or even create that sales funnel that will put your business on the map.
What do you think? Are you ready to up your email marketing game?
WANDERING WEB DESIGNER IS HAVING ANOTHER GRAND OPENING SPECIAL! RIGHT NOW SAVE 25% OFF ALL EMAIL SEQUENCES!
**This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase a subscription I earn a small commission that will in no way affect your cost. I only promote products or services that I use myself or have used in the past and sincerely believe in.
I get it! I love color, all colors, and when I come across a pretty new color palette or an amazing font comes across my desk I start designing in my mind automatically and before I know it I’m putting the changes on my own sites or those of my clients.
I don’t always practice what I preach! SSHHHHH! Don’t tell anyone, but I struggle with branding because I get bored so easily. You’ve heard me and a whole lot of other experts tell you that consistent branding is necessary for brand recognition, but nobody tells you that IT’S SO DAMN HARD!!!
I’m constantly experimenting and if I could spend my days making graphics I would. That’s my favorite thing in the whole world! Speaking of…Did you know my DIY BLOGGING/TRAVEL site WanderingWebDesigner is having a grand opening sale and now until Jul 31st you can get 30 custom graphics for $30!!! That is a hell of a deal 50% off of the regular price! Better hurry though this amazing offer ends 7-31-19. If you looking for web design tips, travel recommendations, or your just trying to figure it all out by yourself then this is the site for you!
Anyway, back to branding. I get bored easily so changing out designs for graphics or website graphics seems like a necessity to keep my business looking fresh and user-friendly. I love pretty pictures (can you tell) so whenever something catches my eye I have to have it. I have a fabulous subscription to Styled Stock Society where I get all of my images exclusively for this site. I pay a small fee once a year and every month I get so excited to see the new images in the library and there’s no limit. As you can see I’m a huge fan of the flat lay desktops.
The best place to find professional images, videos or music for your website or social media is Shutterstock. You’ll find anything you’re looking for from foodies to fashion. You can use free sites like Pixabay or Unsplash, but free doesn’t always cut it when you need to create consistent & professional branding. As a special gift to you, they are going to give you a 10% discount just for being a loyal reader! Use this link and bump your game up!
Best professional stock images on the market.
Choosing the right imagery & graphics is just as important, if not more important than copywriting, color palettes & font choices. When creating a brand you want your ideal customer to feel a certain type of way when they see your content. Let’s face it, today’s world moves at warp speed and we need to keep up. People no longer read, they visualize and scan so having the right imagery is really the only way we have to stand out and grab attention.
For example, I want my clients here on The Blogging 911 to feel confident & empowered. The way I accomplish this is by connecting the technology to run their businesses and setting up system automation to save time & money while giving their clients & customers great user experience. I work with mostly females because I love what I do so much & I want you to love what you do just as much. It’s life-changing. For me to be a success you need to be successful.
Because when you purchase our design or branding package you don’t just get a fresh, modern look. You get the full experience where you’re in the driver’s seat to your own destiny. Right now, I’m throwing in a lot of Summer bonuses that don’t normally come with the design/branding package.
If you’re new to WordPress you will receive a detailed video explaining the various parts of your new website and best practices when it comes to using it. Even if you’ve used WordPress you might like to watch it and maybe find out things that you didn’t know.
Another reason now is a great time for a redesign is because we’re in the Summer Slumps, those few months every Summer where people have nothing on their minds but spending time with family & friends, enjoying vacations, or just lounging by the pool! Get ready for the busy holiday seasons now. Create a plan from publishing new content to creating a sales funnel, email sequence or setting up a shopping cart & Facebook ads.
I only work with one client at a time so that I can give them a 100% personal service. So you better hurry, spots fill up fast! A re-design is more cost-efficient than a build because the foundation is already there which means it costs less & takes less time than a standard web design/branding package. Turn around is generally 2 weeks instead of the 4 to 6 weeks it takes to build out from scratch.
Which means it’s a perfect time to freshen up that website, dust off the cobwebs, add a much-needed enhancement, upgrade your website security, or just move things around. It’s the perfect time to put a content marketing plan in place.
I’d love to talk to you about your ideas, dreams or wishes! Need something other than web design? Need to connect analytics or maybe set up an email sequence? Check out the shop over at WanderingWebDesigner.com
*This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase I will earn a small commission. It will in no way affect your pricing.
Ready to start building out your sales funnels? There are just a few things you need before you can get started. Here are some of the most popular options when it comes to putting together both free and paid funnels:
Lead Pages—when it comes to building opt-in pages, LeadPages.net is one of the most powerful tools you have at your disposal. They’ve tracked and tested a variety of page styles to determine which ones convert best, and they make it easy for you to build similar pages for your funnel.
It does come with a monthly fee, though, so before investing, you’ll want to be sure you can recoup your investment.
Instabuilder—similar to LeadPages, but without the monthly investment. Instabuilder is a plugin for WordPress that allows you to create your own funnels. It includes several funnel templates and a drag-and-drop page builder that makes it easy to get just the look you want.
AWeber—Probably the easiest email manager on the market today, AWeber is the choice for many small business owners, not only because it’s simple to use, but because it’s also economical. Starting at less than $20 per month for up to 500 subscribers, AWeber offers both autoresponders and broadcast emails, list automation, and segmenting, so you can send emails exactly when—and to whom—you want.
AW Pro Tools—an add-on to AWeber, AW Pro Tools gives you added control over your list management by automatically removing unsubscribes, moving subscribers from one list to another based on the link they click, and other useful automations.
PayPal—The simplest of all payment processors, PayPal allows you to take payments online for a very reasonable fee. It will also act as a simple shopping cart.
Ontraport—Another email manager, Ontraport offers shopping cart functionality as well, so you can create powerful funnels that are fully integrated with your sales process. The benefit here is that you don’t have to try to synch your cart with your email system, since it’s completely self-contained.
Infusionsoft—Probably the top tool for any business model, Infusionsoft is an all-in-one solution for customer management, funnel setup, mailing list, and even membership sites. It’s priced at the high end, but if you can (and will) use all its power, then Infusionsoft is well worth the investment.
You can see that you have a lot of options when it comes to building out your sales funnels, but what are the must-have items? At the most basic level, you must have:
A way to create web pages. A simple WordPress website will fill this need, with a little bit of work. LeadPages or Instabuilder are nice to have, but not essential, especially if you’re just getting started.
A way to capture email addresses. AWeber is definitely the top choice here, but others include MailChimp, Constant Contact, and iContact.
A shopping cart. PayPal is as easy as it gets when it comes to shopping carts, but other options include 1 Shopping Cart, Woo Commerce, Infusionsoft, and aMember.
I recommend you start small. Build the funnel framework as simply as you can, using tools that don’t cost a fortune. Once you have a few funnels up and running, you will be able to see where they can use improvement, and how the tools available to you can help make your funnels convert better and work more efficiently.
