Welcome to episode 54 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! In this episode, Bjork talks with Jeni Elliot from The Blog Maven. Jeni Elliott knows that just doing the work isn’t going to turn your business dreams into a reality. Instead, she’s a proponent of doing the right kind of work, using both tactics and strategies to achieve your overarching goals, and maintaining a work-life balance. She got her start not in the blogging world, but in the business world, where she helped small business owners meet their goals. As an avid blog reader, though, she found that she could apply her strategies to blog businesses and see profound impact. So, she made The Blog Maven her career’s work, and along the way has learned what it takes to turn a blogger into an entrepreneur. In this episode, Jeni shares: How you can have a business and still have a life Why a good website isn’t the only thing you need Whether or not “making money” is an acceptable blogging goal What the difference is between a blogging tactic and a blogging strategy What tactics entrepreneurs can use to build their business If food bloggers should think of themselves as a source of recipes How you can find a niche that your audience is interested in Why finding solutions is different from providing recipes Resources: ConvertKit The Blog Maven If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!

Welcome to episode 53 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! In this episode, Bjork talks with someone most of us are probably familiar with, Pat Flynn from Smart Passive Income. Do I even need to introduce Pat? I mean, he’s kind of an online business celebrity. In the world of passive income, Pat has come to embody what it means to run a passive income business. If you haven’t heard of passive income before, definitey check out Pat’s website where he talks a lot about it. This episode doesn’t go too deep into the intricacies of what passive income is. Instead, Pat talks about what he’s done to determine whether a passive income business idea will really take off - whether or not it will fly. He talks about his two passive income business and how they continue to bring in money today after creating them years ago. He talks about how he can manage with so many things on his plate while still adhering to The One Thing that Jay Papasan talked about in this episode. In all, it’s a really incredible episode, so let’s just jump right in! In this episode, Pat shares: What he would do if he had to start over again How reading a dating book helped him learn how to meet people Why getting laid off was the best thing that ever happened to him How you can do many things while only focusing on one at a time How he makes passive income with two niche websites Why people don’t find success How he gets real feedback from his audience What you can do to see if your business idea is viable Resources: The Game by Niel Strauss Videofruit Internet Business Mastery IBM 68 | Cubicle Escape Story with Cornelius Fitchner Green Exam Academy Smart Passive Income Evernote The One Thing 047: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results with Jay Papasan Secutiry Guard Training HQ FoodTruckr.com Will it Fly by Pat Flynn foodbloggerpro.com/survey If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!

Welcome to episode 52 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! In this episode, Bjork talks with Megan Gilmore from Detoxinista.   We all know that writing a cookbook is a LOT of work. From the recipe development to the photography, a cookbook author is a busy bee. One thing you might not know, though, is that the author is also expected to presell copies of their book to their audience before it even publishes. As you might imagine, this can be quite the task! When Megan Gilmore, the author behind Detoxinista, set out to presell copies of her first cookbook, they expected the average number of sales - somewhere around 500 cookbooks. Instead, she blew everyone at 10 Speed Press out of the water with a whopping 4,000 cookbook presales - the largest presale in the history of 10 Speed Press. Today, she’s here to tell us how she did it. In this episode, Megan shares: How she got her first book deal What the difference is between an advance and royalties Why a cookbook deal isn’t necessarily a good way to make money, but is a good business decision Why cookbook authors run presale campaigns What she gave away as part of the preorder campaign How she raised awareness about her book before it was released How she promoted her book once it was officially released What the writing process is like What you need to do before you create a cookbook   Resources: 015: How to Find Your Voice and be Heard in a Noisy World with Dianne Jacob Lutefisk Just Say No mug Physique57 Detoxinista Every Day Detox by Megan Gilmore Detoxinista on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!  

Welcome to episode 51 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! In this episode, Bjork dives into the intricacies of branding with Aaron Scott from Your Brand Week. For some new businesses, branding can be an afterthought, or even something that isn’t thought about much at all. In reality, though, your branding can be the first and last impression that a visitor can have about your business. A logo can convey meaning, type can encourage continued reading, and colors can invoke emotion. When it all comes together, your branding can be a powerful tool for your business. Aaron Scott and his wife, Amanda, recently launched Your Brand Week, a boutique branding agency geared toward helping small businesses create meaningful brands in an affordable and efficient manner. Today, Aaron chats with Bjork about what a cohesive brand is and how it can impact your business. In this episode, Aaron reveals: How they found clarity about what direction their business should take How they turned a service into a product What branding is When rebranding is necessary What you should be thinking about when designing a logo How to know if your branding conveys the correct meaning for your business Why typography is so important How to use different fonts on your website Why complimentary colors aren’t the best choice when choosing colors What your brand guidelines should include Resources: Built to Sell by John Warrillow SPI 158: How to Productize your Service-Based Business Google Fonts Adobe TypeKit Adobe Color Moo.com - FBP members get a discount! yourbrandweek.com/foodbloggerpro for $1000 off blog branding Your Brand Week on Twitter & Facebook Pickles & Honey If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!

Welcome to episode 51 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! In this episode, Bjork talks all things video with Tim Schmoyer from VideoCreators.com. We’ve all heard it recently: video is the new thing. Get into video. Video is key. Okay, okay. We get it. We need to get into video. But once we make that commitment and dive right in, how do we get people to watch it? And beyond that, how do we get them to keep watching it? Keeping viewers engaged with your video is extrememly important. The longer they watch your video, the more interested they are in your content, and the more positive signals they send to YouTube (or whereever you upload). Tim Schmoyer, founder of VideoCreators.com and long-time successful YouTube Vlogger, is here today to share his secrets to creating engaging videos that your viewers just can’t peel their eyes away from. In this episode, Tim shares: What his very first video was like How he comes up with new content every week The most important thing video needs to have How to keep a person’s eyes glued to the screen The best kind of video cuts for YouTube How long your videos should be How to satisfy viewers’ expectations within the first 15 seconds How to prepare before recording a video Whether or not you need a team to be successful   Resources: Frame.io Find Your Voice Upwork Video Creators on YouTube Videocreators.com Schmovies on YouTube If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!  

Welcome to episode 49 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! In this episode, Bjork chats with Allison Schaaf from the meal planning service PrepDish.   Allison Schaaf started her entrepreneurial adventure with two key components: a focused goal and great branding. But what has kept her going in creating a business that brings in hundreds of thousands of dollars every year was something else entirely. In a word: Accountability. Allison found a while back that working with business coaches has helped her business skyrocket. And while the coaches helped her get to where she is today, she also discovered that accountability of any sort, from a coach to a friend to a dedicated group, is what helps her set and achieve her goals. In this episode, Allison shares: The very first step she took when starting her new online business What set her apart from other similar businesses How she worked through struggles at the beginning How she gets the word out about her business What she learned from her business coach and how it’s helped How an accountability group helps her reach her goals The process she uses to set strong, realistic goals Resources: Entrepreneur on Fire episode 1310 with Allison SPI episode 201 with Allison 047: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results with Jay Papasan InfusionSoft CrateJoy MailChimp WooCommerce Leadpages prepdish.com/pro If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!

Welcome to episode 48 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! This week, Bjork interviews Dustin & Lacey Baier from A Sweet Pea Chef. A few years ago, A Sweet Pea Chef was floundering. Dustin & Lacey had grown it to the point where it was getting expensive to maintain, but they hadn’t unlocked the secrets to turning it into a successful business. They bounced from great idea to great idea, but just weren’t able to get anything to stick. Until, one day, an internet passer-by pounced and described how inferior they were to the competition. Little did they know, this angry email would lead them down a path that would help them properly monetize their website and start turning things around. Since then, Dustin & Lacey learned how to say no to good opportunities to focus on what’s most important, cracked the code for viral vide, and took A Sweet Pea Chef to new heights. In this episode, Dustin & Lacey share: Why they almost gave up their blog How they narrowed their focus and eliminated most of what they had worked on How an angry email inspired them to do better Why they decreased the amount of content they were putting out Why they decided to focus on video How they work together as a team and balance each other out How they approach sponsored posts when many opportunities are for processed foods Lacey’s advice for getting over perfectionism with video Resources: foodbloggerpro.com/sweetpea Stripe Baremetrics ClickFunnels A Sweet Pea Chef Take Back your Health Academy Married to your Business A Sweet Pea Chef on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest & YouTube Episode 47.5 If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!  

Welcome to episode 47 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! In this episode, Bjork interviews Jay Papasan, coauthor of the New York Times Bestseller The ONE Thing.   If you’re anything like me, there are always more things to do than we have time for, and prioritizing what to work on every day can be really tough. As a result, we’re pulled in so many different directions working on different projects that we find it really difficult to make any measurable progress on any one thing. If this describes you, you are not alone. Jay Papasan and Gary Keller discovered that this was a problem that faced so many of their employees and coworkers at the Keller Williams Realty group. After Gary worked for years with his employees to help them discover the things they should be focusing on, he and Jay, a NYT bestselling book editor, came together to write a book about it, called The ONE Thing. Today, Jay joins Bjork in an interview that is sure to change the way you are thinking about your projects and priorities. In this episode, Jay shares: How he went from Real Estate professional to book author Why defining a single priority can help move you forward How saying no to opportunities can be relaxing How to make sure you get your priority done Whether you can make yourself a morning person How to know what to focus on when there are so many different areas of life that need attention How to take huge goals and make them manageable for today What the #1 thing is that makes people succeed Resources: TheOneThing.com JayPapasan.org If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!

Welcome to episode 46 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! In this episode, Bjork talks with Kate Kordsmeier from the blog Root & Revel about her successful freelance writing career. While many of us dream about the days when we could find enough success with our blogs that we could write for magazines like Cooking Light and Conde Nast Traveler, Kate’s already been-there-done-that. With a little experience in copywriting and a lot of drive, Kate was able to quit her full-time job and double her income with freelance writing - before she ever had a food blog. In this interview, Kate shares a lot of tips and tricks she’s learned along the way so that you, too, can try your hand at freelance writing. In this episode, Kate shares: What the hardest part of freelancing is when you’re first getting started (hint - it’s not just writing excellent pieces) An example pitch she recently gave a magazine (and got the job for) How to find editors to contact Whether or not you should follow up after pitching When in the process you talk about payment Whether or not you should work for free What the dynamic is between web and print media Why she’s building a blog instead of just freelancing   Resources: Texture app ed2010.com Ed2010 Human Resources Contact Info Media Bistro Boomerang for Gmail Six Figure Freelancing by Kelly James-Enger Will Write for Food by Diane Jacob The Anti 9–5 Guide and My So-Called Freelance Life by Michelle Goodman Kateparhamkordsmeier.com Root & Revel Kate on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Be sure to review us on iTunes!

Welcome to episode 45 of the Food Blogger Pro podcast! Thisweek,Bjork interviews Tony Rulli from Intentional Spark aboutadvertisingon Facebook. In today’s day and age, the internet can bereallynoisy. There are ads all over the place for productsyoumay or may not be interested in, all sorts of conpanies askingyouto buy their products, and more and more things to look ateveryday.So what makes you pay attention to the few things that catchyoureye? A lot of the time, what makes you pay attention isrelevancy -the thing that caught your eye has something to do withyou andsolves a problem you already have.So, if you’re selling a product, promoting your company, orjustwanting to get the word out, the best way to get people topayattention is to target the right people in the first place.While this sounds complicated, Facebook actually makes itprettyeasy! Listen in to today’s podcast with Tony Rulli to learnhow toleverage Facebook’s powerful remarketing tools to help youcreatean income from your blog.In this episode, Tonyshares:His first foray into selling products onlineWhy Facebook ads have huge potential for food bloggersThe difference between boosting posts and runninganadvertisementHow Facebook retargeting works and who should be using itHow you can use Facebook retargeting to make money even whenyoudon’t have a product to sellWhat a sales funnel is in laymen’s termsHow to attract the right people as potential customersHis top 3 action items for getting started withFacebookmarketing Resources:IntentionalSpark.comIntentionalSpark.com/foodbloggerprofoodbloggerpro.com/45JimGaffigan -DisneyHowtoinstall a Facebook Pixel on your website041: Ninja Email Marketing for Bloggers with Barry Moore fromTheActive MarketerBuzzsumoIf you have any comments, questions, or suggestionsforinterviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com.Be sure to review usoniTunes!