Creatorpreneurs Academy: Quick SEO Fixes

Hey Creatorpreneur! What are you doing to optimize your website for the search engines? (If you answered, “Nothing” or “Not much”, you might be killing your business).

Who doesn’t want to be on the first page of a search on Google?

In today’s Creatorpreneur Academy lesson, Marc and I are going to show you how easy it is to rank a little higher on Google.

Don’t Let Your a Lack of SEO Knowledge Kill Your Business!

There are certain things with SEO that will NEVER change.

First, make sure you have these 3 things on every page of your site:

• Make sure your page title accurately reflects the page it’s on.

• Make sure you use ALT tags on ALL of your images (and don’t repeat the same alt-tag, use synonyms).

• Make sure the page is USER-friendly (too many ads or ‘pop up’ opt-in forms? Fix these. Your visitors will love you and so will Google).

There are four other things you can do pretty easily:

Make sure your site is mobile-friendly.

… to check, hop over to this page: https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly

Google will let you know instantly if your page is mobile-friendly or not. AND, if not… it’ll give you help and suggestions on how to fix it all.

We’ve all thought about the changes we need to make as more people go mobile. Even if you’ve made the change to a mobile-friendly website, there are additional adjustments that you simply must do.

There’s no way I’m sticking around a slow, difficult-to-use website, especially when I’m on the go with cell phone in hand

…frankly, I don’t know anyone else who would waste their time.

Your page needs to load quickly. MOST of your webpage is most likely text. It’s your images that may be slowing down your page. Image sizing is easy to fix.

If you’re using WordPress, search for an “Image Optimization” plugin. The plugin will do all of the hard work on the back end for you.

Next, Become Familiar with “Voice Search”

Speaking of mobile, time to start focusing on making your site ‘voice search friendly” This can be done by thinking about how someone will ask a question on their mobile device.

I’m betting it’ll be more conversational, which means people will be asking the Who, What, Where, Why, and How questions. Plan your search keywords carefully using these.

For example, instead of using the keywords “flower shop”, try “Where is the nearest flower shop”

Be creative. In your text, you can say something like: “If you’re looking for the nearest Flower Shop, you’ve come to the right place”

… Or, “If you’re looking to create the best graphics for your website, You’ve found it”. 😀

Social Media is very important!

Think about how important it is to have access to your customers’ wishes and needs in real time.

Have you ever had a customer who emails and says “I asked you for help over an hour ago! Why haven’t you responded?”

Upon first thought, I think this person needs a little patience. However, as soon as I reflect on my own expectations, I’m in total agreement. I don’t like to wait for help either, especially when I’m in the middle of a project. That’s where social media comes in. Your visitors and/or customers are accustomed to getting information whenever they need it.

By connecting with social media, you and your business can get real-time feedback (as well as easily provide it), which ultimately allows you to constantly modify your SEO methods as you go along. How about taking some time to beef up your social media accounts today?

Then, make sure you’re telling your visitors EVERYwhere how to reach you on Social Media.

When the Google robots come around to your page to index it, they’ll look upon this practice favorably. It’s a win-win for you and your customer.

Content is ALWAYS Important in SEO

Yes, content is still of incredible importance. Yes, keeping up with meaningful content is tough.

And YES, you can do it!

We’ve all heard that Google is focusing more and more on content and trying desperately to avoid keyword spamming. Now, Google is striving for content to be relevant and directly related to a few important keywords rather than many.

So, it’s time to get your relevant content out there. Send out some fresh content through Facebook and Twitter.

Don’t have a lot of time for creating new content?

I get it.

… and that’s exactly why Marc and I Created The Graphics Creator. You can create INSTANT content in just a minute or two.

See the blog graphic at the top of this page? It was created in under 2 minutes. It’s my new content and I created it easily.

And you can too.

Grab The Graphics Creator and create a massive ton of beautiful visual content that your visitors (and Google… and Facebook!) will love.

Hope you enjoyed this. Tell me what you liked in the comments below! 😀

Happy Creating!

Create all kinds of content for social media AND your SEO efforts with The Graphics Creator… Daily!

Features of The Graphics Creator

If you’re a frequent user of The Logo Creator / Creator7 software, you’ll see that the Online Web Graphics Creator is just as easy to use, but with more incredible capabilities!

Here are some of the awesome new features you’ll find in The Web Graphics Creator.

  • We’ve added the entire archive of Google fonts! Over 800 ROYALTY FREE fonts to use in your designs!
  • We’ve added thousands of searchable stock photos & images! FREE! We’ve implemented the power of PEXELS.com – They’ve offered their entire library of images to Laughingbird Software! These graphics are 100% royalty free and are listed under the “Creative Commons “0” label. Meaning, you can use them for anything you wish, including any project or commercial needs.
  • Text & image manipulation is even easier than before! Just grab and drag the handles on any text or image. You can even skew and slant… in any direction!
  • A full library of motion video to add to your designs! Just grab the handles…
  • Export your designs as full video or as Animated Gifs! Just grab the handles…

Full List of Features in the Web Graphics Creator editor:

  • Color Picker- Let’s you choose & match any color in your design with a click
  • Pre-designed template sizes for social media, blog and eCover graphics
  • Custom canvas formatting
  • Drag & drop design
  • Easy “handles” let you drag your text/images to re-size, rotate, skew and italicize
  • Save custom templates
  • Save your designs in custom folders
  • Upload your own images & graphics
  • Export designs with a transparent background
  • Export designs as Animated Gifs
  • Custom text outlines
  • Custom text & object shadows
  • Custom text & canvas color
  • Image flipping
  • Opacity tool
  • Duplication of text & images (easily match font, color and size)
  • Bring images/text to the front
  • Send images/text to the back
  • Import a Video
  • “Save As” let’s you set up your own categories and save your images permanently.
  • Download images in multiple formats
  • Select from hundreds of graphic elements
  • Undo and Redo
  • Unlimited access to video tutorials, and our all-inclusive in-house support
  • More new features coming soon!

What you can Create:

  • eBook cover images
  • Blog headers
  • Social media headers, covers & post graphics
  • Video headers
  • Advertisements
  • Web headers and banners
  • Mockups
  • Business cards
  • Custom signatures
  • Website graphics
  • Presentation graphics
  • Logos
  • Video Thumbnails
  • Icons
  • T-shirt designs
  • Use your imagination!
  • Blog headers
  • Social media headers, covers & post graphics
  • Video headers
  • Advertisements
  • Web headers and banners
  • Mockups
  • Business cards
  • Custom signatures
  • Website graphics
  • Presentation graphics
  • Logos
  • Video Thumbnails
  • Icons
  • T-shirt designs
  • Use your imagination!

Cutting and Cropping images with The Logo Creator

Today’s “Tutorial Tuesday” will show you a really cool “cropping” trick you can use to manipulate images in The Creator graphic design software.

Did you know The Logo Creator can cut and resize images (all without using Photoshop!) Watch this quick technique and see how easy cutting out part of an image is:

Make sure to watch the video FULL SCREEN and in HD for the full awesome power of YouTube:

Make a lower third without Photoshop

Hey Creatorpreneurs!

The Logo Creator graphic design software can do so much more than just logo design … and this tutorial is going to show you a really cool trick. Did you know it can make “lower third” graphics?

A ‘lower third’ graphic is simply text that is usually accompanied by a complimentary background graphic and is positioned on the lower third of the viewable area.

You can use it for your YouTube videos or use them as Watermarks. Watch over my shoulder as I show you how easy it is to create YouTube overlay images too!

Watch the video above to get the whole scoop on making your own lower third graphics

Create your own lower thirds with The YouTube Channel Graphics Creator

https://www.laughingbirdsoftware.com/downloads/youtube-channel-art-templates/

How To Build Social Media Love

Tips for Social Media Love: If You’re Curating, Add Something

We’ve all fallen victim to the whole posting, reposting, and retweeting curated content thing. It’s awesome to curate content! But there are ways to do it and ways not to.

When you do post something you find, show your reasons for posting it or your feelings about it by commenting yourself. When you add yourself and your opinions in, you really are adding value. That’s a social media love builder

Tips for Social Media Love: Easy On the Ads

We all use our networks to distribute promotions, coupons, and that kind of thing. But social media is called that for a reason. If you’re using it just to push your product, that’s not so social, and it can actually be pretty annoying for others.

Just time it and space it out so that seeing a deal or coupon from your small business is a welcome event for followers. This way you build customer loyalty instead of turning customers sour.

Tips for Social Media Love: Share Your Own Stuff

When you’re taking the time to blog for your small business or otherwise creating content, definitely share it on your networks. You took the time to create it, so show your followers what you’re about. You also continue to situate yourself as an expert in your field when you post useful content that you made. Experts get lots of social media love!

Tips for Social Media Love: Shout Out

You wouldn’t like it if you made a friendly comment to someone on the street or in a business and they just blew you off, right? And once might be a mistake, but if they never reply, that’s irritating! The same is true for the world of social media.

When folks take the time to shout out to you, respond. It’s polite, and it also shows your attention to detail and service. This is also the only way you can make social media an effective customer feedback tool.

Tips for Social Media Love: Your Mom Was Right—Be Yourself

Turns out Mom knows best! Being yourself even when you’re a business is a must in social media circles. It’s a fine line. I’ve posted before about how you don’t want to go too far in the other direction, and that’s true. You shouldn’t be Tweeting a zillion photos of your cat using your small business account. (And, let’s face it, you probably shouldn’t be doing that at all.)

But sure, let your customers know you have weekend plans or that something really funny happened to you at Walgreen’s. All of the sudden, you’re the woman who paints on the weekend or the guy who got coffee dumped on him at Starbuck’s—twice! It makes you human, and people remember that stuff. Of all of the tips for social media love, this one is my favorite.

So there you have it. The best tips for social media love. After all, why waste your time driving people nuts? It won’t help you or your business. Instead, be a careful social media marketer and feel the love.

The Creatorpreneurs Newsletter Issue #5: AppSumo

Hello Creatorpreneur Family!

Welcome to another super informative edition of The Creatorpreneurs Newsletter! (If you’ve missed any back issues – Check them out here.

Today my friendly neighborhood entrepreneurs, I’d like to talk about a website called “AppSumo.com“.

AppSumo was created by well-known entrepreneur Noah Kagan in 2010. The platform has expanded since then and today is well recognized in the marketplace as the “#1 software deal site for entrepreneurs”.

If you’re like Lisa and I … automating busywork, social media management, SEO craziness, video creation… etc. AppSumo helps us quickly discover really cool products that help grow our business and save us time.

Hop over to AppSumo and check them out.

(if you click my affiliate link, we’ll both get $10 for your first new tool!):

http://fbuy.me/v/laughingbirdpromotions_3

Let me know what you get?

Among the different types of tools available on Appsumo you’ll find:

  • marketing automation — email automation tools.
  • customer relationship managers (CRMs)
  • courses.
  • SEO tools.
  • video-making, graphic design tools.
  • copywriting tools.
  • …and hundreds more!

You will DEFINITELY get a good deal on the apps you purchase!


CREATORPRENEUR SITE OF THE WEEK

AppSumo

It’s the best (the only?) collection of software products for Entrepreneurs!

PRODUCT OF THE WEEK

The Graphics Creator Online – Lifetime Price

Yes! We’re there too! Now’s your chance to grab The Graphics Creator at a SUPER discount – and for one “Lifetime” price. ????

https://appsumo.com/products/marketplace-the-graphics-creator-online/

CREATORPRENEUR TIP OF THE WEEK

AppSumo is addictive. If you’re a shiny object person like me (“oooh! that looks awesome!” *Click*. *Buy* )
be careful on the site… but it really is like being a kid in a candy store.

Looking forward to hearing what you think!

See you next week!

— Marc and Lisa

The Creatorpreneurs Newsletter Issue #4: Customer Engagement

Marc, our 3 kids, and I just spent a week in hot, humid Florida visiting family (for the first time in 2 years!). Naturally, we thought we’d get some work done while we were there. But, not surprisingly, we didn’t accomplish as much of our to-do list as we planned.

It’s hard to get a lot done when you’re “on vacation”.

The truth is that some businesses find that sales slow down as summer heats up. That’s how it is for us… especially as late July and August hit. Businesses need a way to keep moving forward.

So, as we head into higher temperatures and distractions that keep us away from actual work, here are some ways to keep your customers engaged:


CREATORPRENEUR TOOL OF THE WEEK!

Zapier | The easiest way to automate your work Zapier | The easiest way to automate your workzapier.com

Stick with the tools that work for you. Zapier connects more web apps than anyone, and we add new options every week.

Our tool of the week helps us automate tasks while we’re away (or anytime really). It’s an online tool called Zapier… rhymes with ‘happier’. There’s a free and a paid option.

Zapier connects the many tools we use in our business quickly and easily. For example, when we published this newsletter, Zapier also automatically published this newsletter to our Facebook page and blog page. Plus, it sent out a tweet letting our Twitter followers know this newsletter is available. Saved us a TON of time.

With Zapier, you can create push notifications for activities like new support tickets, new calendar events, new YouTube videos you may be following, and lots more.

Further, Zapier alerts us on our iPhones to new support tickets that need to be answered!

Automation is a powerful (and much needed) function of an online business… especially when you’re away.

IDEA OF THE WEEK

It’s also a good idea to promote your business while you’re away.

Here are 16 surefire ways to use graphics to promote your business… stand out and get more engagement!

LAUGHINGBIRD PRODUCT OF THE WEEK:

So, now that it’s summer, you just might need to take an extra step to get attention to your biz.

This is a great time to create special offers or discounts. Not only will you remind customers that you’re still around, but you can also motivate them to take a closer look at that special offer!

Use The Graphics Creator’s pre-designed Certificates and Coupons Templates to quickly design a captivating offer (right before you leave for vacation!).

Check them out!

CREATORPRENEUR TIP OF THE WEEK

Always use a call-to-action (CTA) in every piece of content you put out there. From social media to advertisements… in a lead magnet, or on your landing pages… tell visitors what to do next!

If you’re having a sale, tell them what coupon code to use and tell them how or where to use it. For example, “Enter the coupon code in your shopping cart”, or “Get your 25% discount by clicking here”.

And, guess what? You can use your CTA on a coupon design!

That’s a lot to take in for this week!

Let us know what you think of these newsletters ????

See you next week!

— Lisa & Marc

The Creatorpreneurs Newsletter Issue #3: Photopea & Photoshop

Hi there !

Welcome to issue #3 of the Creatorpreneurs Newsletter. (if you’ve missed past issues, take a look at them here).

Every week, Lisa and I will show you some awesome tools that’ll make your online life easier and show you some unique ways to grow your business… with graphics!

This week, I was asked by one of our awesome Laughingbird Creatorpreneurs if The Graphics Creator could ever import Photoshop files. (alas, as of now… no. But it’s not impossible one day ????).

Which brings me to our Tool Of The Week:


____________ * * * ____________

CREATORPRENEUR TOOL OF THE WEEK!

I needed a “Photoshop like” tool and found a really excellent solution: PHOTOPEA

Photopea is a FREE image editor that works similar to Photoshop and runs completely on your device, (just like Sketch or Photoshop does). It doesn’t upload any of your files to the internet. You can load Photopea.com, disconnect from the internet and keep using it completely offline. None of your files ever leaves your computer.

And! it opens Photoshop files

Photopea: advanced photo editor Photopea: advanced photo editorwww.photopea.com Photopea Online Photo Editor lets you edit photos, apply effects, filters, add text, crop or resize pictures. Do Online Photo Editing in your browser for free!

____________ * * * ____________

GRAPHICS CREATOR VIDEO OF THE WEEK

Here’s a quick video I created showing how to use Photopea WITH The Graphics Creator to create some really nice images! ????

____________ * * * ____________

PRODUCT OF THE WEEK.

The Greatest Show Template & Elements Set The Greatest Show Template & Elements Setwww.laughingbirdsoftware.com Ever feel like the spotlight is on you… and the pressure is so great for you to perform that you just stand there in shock? Well, with The Greatest Show templates, there’s no need for you to perform. These designs will help you stand out in the crowd with confidence!

____________ * * * ____________

CREATORPRENEUR TIP OF THE WEEK

This week’s Creatorpreneur tip of the week sort of comes from Nike, just do it. ????

And I don’t just mean “just start it”. I mean stop overthinking, stop questioning whether you’re making the right call, and just do it.

New entrepreneurs can sometimes be well on their way with their business or their creations, only to have their thoughts literally get in the way.

But that only delays your success. Will you make mistakes? You bet. Will there be challenges? Sure! and you’ll need to jump high to get over them. But isn’t this what you signed up for?

Entrepreneurship is about going all in. It’s about taking big risks so you can live the life you want. The goal isn’t to win the award of perfection. The goal is to build a business that helps people solve a problem. And the sooner you can do that, the sooner you can make people’s lives better. That’s the impact your business can have on someone’s life. So the sooner you finish your project, the more people you can help.

See you next week!

-Marc & Lisa

The Creatorpreneurs Newsletter Issue #2: Keyword Content

Hey Creatorpreneurs!

I’ve been writing for a new niche blog that I’m really excited about. I can’t wait to share it with you (I’ll give you the details soon)!

Now that I’m more focused than ever on writing, I’m digging deep into the world of blogging and learning a ton during my journey. Along with visual content, keyworded content is also essential to blogging!

That’s why this newsletter offers up a free tool that’ll help you make more of an impact with your writing, whether it’s for blogging, creating ads, or website copywriting. And, be sure to watch Marc’s video to find out how to create and use visual content on social media!

– Lisa


CREATORPRENEUR TOOL OF THE WEEK

The tool for this week is so simple to use and totally free! It’s an absolute must for writers, bloggers, and copywriters… IF you want to get found on the search engines!

Google Trends
https://trends.google.com/trends

If you’re working hard researching the best keywords for your article or website, then you absolutely must spend a little extra time making sure those keywords are actually being searched for on Google.

Instead of assuming that readers are looking for the 10 “best business tools”, throw that keyword phrase in Google Trends and put in an alternative as well.

As you can see below, you’re better off writing an article about the 10 “best business apps” (in red), as there are actually more people searching for this keyword than “best business tools”. Who would’ve guessed?!

That’s my point… don’t guess!


GRAPHICS CREATOR VIDEO OF THE WEEK

Despite the thumbnail on this video (created with The Graphics Creator of course ???? ), it’s first and foremost about creating perfectly branded graphics for your biz. Marc shows you how to easily create a “batch” of social media graphics… then he’ll tell you how to get help sharing it all!


PRODUCT OF THE WEEK

This is one of my favorite image sets because it’s perfect for getting noticed on social media! You can even use them as backgrounds in the examples Marc showed in the video above.

Cinemagraphs are a perfect blend between a still photograph and a video. They’re kind of like the moving portraits in Harry Potter, only they’re stunning images instead.

Each Cinemagraph loops endlessly, so you’re more likely to get seen! Just drag them onto The Graphics Creator canvas and add text or other graphics to make it yours!


CREATORPRENEUR TIP OF THE WEEK

You don’t have to constantly invent great content. Get creative and use what you have! Just change up your article or blog content to provide a fresh perspective using these ideas:

  • Turn your video into a blog article (or your blog article into a video)
  • Take an idea or two from old content and build on it to create more detailed content about that topic
  • Change your title and intro to catch the eye of a new group of people
  • Turn an article into a simple “list post”(just number important points and leave out any “fluff”)

Keep reading for more great content ideas!

See you next week!

The Creatorpreneurs Newsletter Issue #1: Revue Newsletter Creator

 

Hi there Creatorpreneurs!

Welcome to issue #1 of The Creatorpreneurs Newsletter!

We’re excited to have you join us on this journey as we explore the world of creating content, being an entrepreneur… and learning how to market ourselves a little better. ????

Along with videos showing you a few tips and tricks in using The Graphics Creator, Lisa and I will be showing you some new tools we find around the interwebs that will help make things easier on us all to market ourselves.

In our first edition, let’s talk about the tool we’re using for this very newsletter! We tried creating the newsletter on our own (pasting different areas of content from our site and around the web) into our eMail campaigns, but found it super time consuming and not really ‘pretty’.

That’s how we found Revue. It’s super easy to use (look! I can do it!) and it’ll give you a ton of ideas for creating newsletters for your own small business (or just for fun to family and friends!)

Hope you enjoy this format, and this first issue. If you have any comments or questions, leave a comment below!

– Marc & Lisa


CREATORPRENEUR TOOL OF THE WEEK!

 

REVUE – A newsletter tool for Creatorpreneurs
This is the software Lisa and I use to create our weekly newsletter. It’s easy, fast and … fun!
Transparency: It’s free up to a certain number of subscribers. The price goes up in increments of $5/month depending on how many people you’re sending to. Well worth it tho to have a powerful tool like this.

www.getrevue.co

 

 


GRAPHICS CREATOR VIDEO OF THE WEEK

As a Creatorpreneur, being creative is easy. But marketing yourself and your new creations is a little harder. Here’s a cool way to get your name if front of others… design your own tShirts! Wear them around or hand them out to your friends and family.

Watch this video to see how you can do this with The Graphics Creator

 


PRODUCT OF THE WEEK.

Every week, we’ll bring you a new set of graphics that you may not have seen.

This is a collection of 100 PNG images (with transparent backgrounds) featuring Tank the tortoise and Caesar the hare. They’re toon style characters good for all your memes, blog posts, tShirt designs, even ads!
Lance from SadDuck created these images.

https://www.laughingbirdsoftware.com/downloads/tortoise-the-hare-3d-character-elements/
 

CREATORPRENEUR TIP OF THE WEEK

86% of social marketers use Facebook ads, and the platform’s advertising revenue continues to grow. Meanwhile paid advertising options have come up on Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and elsewhere.

Social media platforms are tweaking their algorithms, making it clear to brands that paid promotion is a must if you want to get visibility. If you want your social strategy to maintain or gain momentum, then embracing paid social is a must.


Thanks for reading!


See you next week!

…Now go create!

— Marc and Lisa