About Sarah Peterson

http://unsettle.org

Posts by Sarah Peterson:

Writing

8 Old-School Blogging Tactics That No Longer Work

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8 Old-School Blogging Tactics That No Longer Work

You feel misguided.

When you started your blog, you thought you could just follow in the footsteps of your favorite blogger, right? Just publish great content and maybe spend some time on social media and you thought the readers would come.

But in reality, you find yourself grinding.

You stay up late after your 9-5 to write articles. You hustle for every single visitor. And you feel as if you’re spinning your wheels in a rut, not getting anywhere with your blog.

You wonder if it’s your writing. You wonder if it’s your topic. You wonder if maybe blogging just doesn’t work anymore.

But I have good news for you:

It’s not blogging that doesn’t work anymore. It’s these old-school blogging tactics that somehow still pop up online as effective methods of growing your blog.

Instead of throwing in the towel on blogging completely, throw in the towel on these outdated strategies and start upping your game (and your traffic) with what works today.
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WordPress

13 WordPress Plugins That’ll Save You a Ton of Time

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13 WordPress Plugins That’ll Save You a Ton of Time

Running a blog requires an insane amount of time.

In fact, there’s not enough time in your day to do everything (especially if you have a full-time job, too).

From learning new ways to get traffic and scheduling social media posts to building your email list and managing comments, you feel stretched to your limit.

And the more you learn and grow, the more you have to keep up with — it’s exhausting.

So what if I told you that you can add a squad of tools to your toolbox that will eliminate a ton of time spent on the more tedious aspects of blogging?

These 13 WordPress plugins are like having a full-time employee that shaves hours off of your blogging work week, so you can get back to doing the important things: writing and connecting with your audience.
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Money

16 Bloggers Who Make Enough Money to Travel the World in Style

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16 Bloggers Who Make Enough Money to Travel the World in Style

Hands up if you’ve ever seen headlines like these:

“Why I Quit My Job to Travel the World”

“Man Who Quit 9-to-5 Job Makes $1 Million While Traveling the World”

“3 Ways to Quit Your Job and Travel the World Without Going Broke”

My guess is that you have, because I see these headlines around everywhere. I’ve even written a few of them (hint: the last one).

And let me guess …

When you see a headline like that, you’re a bit skeptical. You check Google Analytics and with your meager traffic, you can’t imagine ever being able to quit your day job to go on an epic adventure, let alone make money while doing it.

But I have news for you.

It’s possible.

Not only that, but more bloggers than ever are doing it.

They’re doing it without having to pinch pennies, without having to stay in cheap, bed-bug-ridden hostels, and without going broke.

In this article, we’ll meet 16 bloggers who  are doing this exact thing. We’ll take a look at how their blogs make money, where they’re choosing to spend their time, and even the downsides of building a location-independent lifestyle.

Let’s jump in.
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Email

10 Creative Places for Opt-In Forms That’ll Supercharge Your Signups

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10 Creative Places for Opt-In Forms That’ll Supercharge Your Signups

Let me guess.

You signed up for Mailchimp, AWeber, or Constant Contact and created an opt-in form to snag yourself some new subscribers for your blog.

Maybe you even went the extra mile and created a juicy opt-in offer to tempt them to hand over their precious email addresses.

Then you posted it on your sidebar and in your footer, and maybe you were smart enough to throw up a feature box too.

And now you can’t figure out why the subscribers aren’t rolling in.

Every morning you anxiously check your email dashboard, hoping that today will be the day you finally see a ton of new signups.

But every morning is a letdown. Just one or two new subscribers (and let’s be honest — it’s just one if you don’t count your mom).

The truth is, these tactics used to work wonderfully — but they don’t any more.

Your readers have evolved, and your blog needs to adapt.

But how?
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SEO

How to Use Facebook Groups to Get More Traffic and Traction for Your Blog

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How to Use Facebook Groups to Get More Traffic and Traction for Your Blog

Frustrating, isn’t it?

When you publish another article you’re not sure anybody will read.

And you don’t know if it will attract traffic – or crickets.

Even if readers do show up, you don’t know if they’ll engage with the content or lurk in the shadows, staying silent.

Every new post is a toss-up – and it’s agony.

You know it shouldn’t be like this. It feels as if something’s missing.

And you’re right. You should listen to your gut. Something is missing on your blog.

It’s the magic cure to the frustration of never knowing whether your next post will even get noticed.

What is it?

Community.
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