from
https://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2020/42643/how-covid-19-is-impacting-social-media-ad-rates-and-engagement
Tuesday, March 31, 2020
How COVID-19 Is Impacting Social Media Ad Rates and Engagement
The COVID-19 pandemic has driven down social media advertising rates globally and has also led to a decline in engagement with campaigns, according to recent research from Social Bakers. Read the full article at MarketingProfs
from
https://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2020/42643/how-covid-19-is-impacting-social-media-ad-rates-and-engagement
from
https://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2020/42643/how-covid-19-is-impacting-social-media-ad-rates-and-engagement
Friday, March 27, 2020
What to Do if You’re Terrified About the Future [PODCAST]
This episode is going to be different.
No content tips or practical marketing advice. None of that.
In this episode of the “Break Through the Noise” podcast, I am talking about COVID-19 and what’s going on in the world. I want to talk to you from the heart about fear, crisis, and how to grow stronger in difficult times.
Where to Subscribe
How You Can Support the Podcast
Leave us a Review
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If you don’t know how, click here for detailed, step-by-step instructions that’ll show you how to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and iTunes.
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Tweet This Episode:
No content tips or advice in this 'Break Through the Noise' podcast episode. Jon discusses COVID-19 and what's going on in the world. He talks from the heart about fear, crisis, and how to grow stronger in difficult times.Click To TweetShare the Episode on Facebook:
The post What to Do if You’re Terrified About the Future [PODCAST] appeared first on Smart Blogger.
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https://smartblogger.com/podcast-what-to-do-if-youre-terrified-about-the-future/
Thursday, March 26, 2020
Working From Home? 14 Sanity-Saving Tools (+ 35 Pro Tips)
Working from home is the dream for many.
For others, having to work from home is a nightmare — a paradigm shift brought on by a career change, personal tragedy, or the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
But dream or nightmare, a full-time switch or a temporary one, work-from-home jobs present unique challenges.
And to help you face those challenges, we’re going to teach you what you need to know. No fluff, no filler — just the necessities.
Let’s dive in.
Note: There are quite a few referral links in this post, which means we’ll get a small commission if you use them to grab any of the tools or apps we discuss. However, there’s no extra cost to you. We appreciate your support.
5 Home Office Essentials (+ 4 to Consider)
There’s overlap between what you “need to do your job” in an office environment and what you need to do it remotely.
For example, you don’t need me to point out you need a chair. Or a Keurig, since you no longer swing by your favorite coffee shop on the way to work.
But there are items that matter more when you work from home, and they’re things that can make or break you as a remote worker.
Things like…
1. A Dedicated Workspace (Preferably One With a Door)
When you’re telecommuting for the first time, it’s tempting to pick up your laptop, plop down on the couch, and go about your workday.
But unless you’re living alone (and, honestly, even then), this is a mistake.
I should know — it’s precisely what I used to do. I was so happy to be working from home, I made our living room my home office.
“Why would I want to be hidden away on the other side of the house?” I asked my wife. “Being able to see you and the girls is one of the biggest perks of working from home.”
The problem?
It’s difficult to focus on work when you’re setting up shop in the same room your family members are using to dance to the “Frozen” soundtrack.
It’s a lesson I learned the hard way, but to achieve a healthy work-life balance, you have to separate your two worlds. And to do that, you have to be able to get away.
What Do We Recommend?
Pick a room with a door. A room you aren’t using for anything else is ideal, but commandeering a bedroom during the day will work too.
If a closed-off space for your home office isn’t an option, choose an area offering at least a modicum of privacy. This could be your dining room table, your kitchen counter, or the tiny nook under the stairs your kids haven’t yet discovered.
What’s the Cost?
Unless your significant other or roommate “makes you pay” in some way, claiming an area as your home office is free.
2. Headphones (Especially if There’s No Door)
If you used to work in a cubicle, or shared an office with a loud eater, you already know a good pair of headphones are worth their weight in gold.
Working remotely may mean you no longer have co-workers nearby to distract you, but it doesn’t mean you’re free from distractions.
A good headset will help keep outside noises at bay; plus, if you have a job where you’re on a lot of video conference calls, they’re a must-have item anyway.
What Do We Recommend?
Sony’s WH-1000XM3 ($278), the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 ($399), and Apple’s AirPods Pro ($249) are popular — but pricey — options, and they each have built-in microphones for making calls.
If you need something more budget-friendly, Anker’s Soundcore Life Q20 receives high marks from reviewers on Amazon. And, if needed, those old earbuds that came with your phone can work in a pinch.
What’s the Cost?
Anker’s Q20 costs $60. Those old earbuds are free (if you don’t count what you paid for the phone).
3. A Mac or Windows PC (But Not a Chromebook)
Most likely, you already have a laptop. Maybe you bought it yourself, or maybe it’s one issued to you by your employer.
But if you’re in the market for one, and you’re working remotely, take my advice:
Don’t buy a Chromebook (unless it’s your backup).
Three months before I started working at Smart Blogger, I bought a new laptop — a beautiful, shiny Google Pixelbook.
I loved it (and still do). But I wouldn’t have bought it had I known I was weeks away from a new career where I’d be working remotely.
Working from home meant using the Pixelbook for video conferencing, file sharing, and task management. For some apps and tools (Slack, Zoom), it was more than up for the challenge. For others (like GoToWebinar), it wasn’t.
Unless you have complete control over the tools your remote team members use to work together, having a Chromebook as your daily driver is a risk.
What Do We Recommend?
Stick with Windows or Mac for your primary work computer.
What’s the Cost?
The new Macbook Air and Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 both retail for $999. You can find Windows laptops from Dell, Lenovo, HP, and Acer for less (and more).
4. Strong Wi-Fi
When you work in a typical office, Internet connection is rarely a concern.
Small business or large, your employer has a plan that probably costs a small fortune. You go to work, do various online activities for 8 hours, and go home. Everything just works.
But when you work from home, you’re not using your employer’s wi-fi. You’re using yours.
Even if your employer reimburses you, it’s still your wi-fi service — and it probably doesn’t cost a small fortune. If you’re like most, you’re using the cheapest plan your ISP (Internet Service Provider) offers that lets you stream Hulu or Netflix without buffering.
That’s fine if you’re literally watching “Parks & Rec” for the seventh time. But when your job relies on you having fast and reliable Internet access, you may need more.
What Do We Recommend?
The speed and reliability of your wi-fi depends on a number of factors, but we’ll focus on three: your ISP plan, your modem, and your router.
Wi-Fi Plan:
Choose the best plan you can afford. If your employer reimburses you, get the highest plan they’ll allow. If all the plans suck, find a new ISP.
Modem:
If you rent your modem from your ISP, see if you’re eligible for an upgrade. Even better? Stop renting and buy a top-quality modem online (that’s what I did). You’ll get better performance, and you’ll save money in the long run.
Note: If you go this route, make sure you choose a modem that’s compatible with your ISP. Their website will be able to provide you a list.
Router:
To ensure your designated home office isn’t in a “dead zone,” a “mesh” wi-fi system can be a life saver. Personally, I opted for Google Nest WiFi in my home, but the Netgear Orbi is a solid option too. It gives you 4,500 square feet of coverage, and it received solid marks in Ry Crist’s CNET review.
What’s the Cost?
Wi-Fi plans vary.
Modems will cost anywhere from $50 to several hundred dollars. Mesh wi-fi systems come in all shapes and sizes, but the two we discussed — Netgear Orbi and Google Nest WiFi — cost $196 and $239, respectively.
5. A Second Monitor
If you’re used to having a dual-monitor setup at work, switching to a single monitor is one of the hardest adjustments when you’re working from home.
Now, if working remotely is your new normal, you may decide to buy a monitor (or two) for your home office. But in the meantime, there’s a chance you already have a second screen at your disposal:
Your iPad.
If you have a Mac using macOS Catalina, you can use “Sidecar” to turn your iPad into a second display. And if you have a Windows PC (or an older Mac), you can use the Duet Display app.
What Do We Recommend?
Working at home doesn’t mean having to live without dual monitors. If you know you’ll be working from home permanently, find a new monitor on Amazon that fits your budget. Or, if you already own an iPad, double its usefulness by turning it into a second display.
What’s the Cost?
Cheap monitors start around $100.
Sidecar is included if you’re using a compatible Mac. The Duet Display app costs $9.99.
An iPad, if you already own it, is free. Otherwise, new iPads start around $279.
Home Office Gear: 4 More to Consider
The previous five items were pretty universal. If you’re working from home, there’s an excellent chance they were relevant to you and your situation.
These next four are a bit more niche, so we’ll run through them quickly:
6. A Standing Desk
In an office environment, there are meetings to walk to, TPS reports to shred, and water coolers to gossip around.
You don’t have those when you’re working from home, which is why many remote employees find themselves sitting for too many hours during the day.
It’s little wonder then why, when providing their expert tips (see below) for this post, two different members of the Smart Blogger team recommended standing desks to our readers.
And a third, yours truly, used a standing desk to write the words you’re reading right now:
Standing desks aren’t for everyone. But, they might be for you. You can learn more about them and their history in this write-up from Art of Manliness.
7. Ergonomic Keyboard
8. Ergonomic (Vertical) Mouse
9. Blue-Light Blocking Glasses
Many remote workers find themselves spending more time — not less — in front of their computers.
Meetings are now virtual…
You’re no longer in a coworking space where you’re snagged by colleagues for “two-second” conversations when you’re on your way to the bathroom…
As a result, a majority of your workday, if not all of it, is now spent staring at your computer screen, typing away on your keyboard, and mousing away with your mouse.
The result?
Strained eyes and sore wrists.
Until I started working from home, I never experienced these ailments. But thankfully, after doing some research, I was able to find tools to help me combat them.
Switching to the Logitech MX Vertical Wireless Mouse solved my wrist pain. Blue Light Blocking Glasses from Swanwick helped my eye strain.
And if I decide to try an ergonomic keyword, Julia McCoy of Content Hacker has great things to say about the Kinesis Freestyle2.
If you find yourself struggling, give these a look.
5 Apps & Software for Working Remotely
There are lots of apps out there for remote workers. That’s why most “how to work from home” guides inundate you with dozens and dozens of tools that all sound the same and, more or less, do the same things.
It can be overwhelming. And confusing.
So, let’s keep things simple…
The apps and software you need to work from home can be grouped into just five categories. We’ll start with the one you’re probably most familiar with:
1. Video Chat Software
Next to eliminating their daily commute, the thing most people enjoy about remote jobs is “no more meetings.”
Yeah, about that.
While physically sitting next to co-workers might be a thing of the past when you’re remote working, video conferencing is common for many work-at-home jobs.
Plus, let’s face it:
You need social interaction when you’re working from home. You need face-to-face time. Otherwise, eventually, you’ll go stir-crazy.
The video chat app you use — Zoom, Microsoft’s Skype for Business, Google Hangouts — will be decided by your employer or project manager.
Knowing how to use your particular video calls app can save your sanity (and save you from possible embarrassment), so here are tutorials for each:
What Do We Recommend?
We primarily use Zoom for video calls at Smart Blogger. You don’t have to create an account or download any software to use it, which makes it very user friendly. If you have sway over the video chat software your team uses, Zoom is a good choice.
What’s the Cost?
A personal Zoom account is free, and you can host a meeting with up to 100 participants for up to 40 minutes. If you need more, their paid plans start at $14.99 a month.
2. File Sharing Software
Sharing files with colleagues used to be easy. Just save everything to your company’s LAN (local area network) and, boom, you’re done.
But unless your employer has a VPN server, sharing files while you’re working from home is a bit trickier.
Thankfully, we all have access to cloud storage services like Google Drive, Dropbox, and OneDrive. A full-featured collaboration tool like Confluence from Atlassian can work, too, by letting you attach files to pages.
Just like with video chat software, the file sharing app your team uses will be decided by your employer. Here are guides to help you learn the ins and outs of each:
What Do We Recommend?
We use Google Drive at Smart Blogger. It works on Windows, Mac, and ChromeOS (plus Android and iOS). And, if you use Gmail, you’re likely already familiar with it.
Just make sure you understand how permissions work in Google Drive before sharing folders with your colleagues.
What’s the Cost?
A free Google Drive account comes with your Gmail address, and with it you get you 15 GB of cloud storage. But for sharing files as a virtual team, you should look into one of Google’s paid options. You can get a G Suite Business account for $12 per user each month, and it comes with unlimited Google Drive storage.
3. Task & Project Management Software
You may already be familiar with Kanban boards, integrated master schedules, and the like. Your team may already be using them.
But now that you’re working remotely, you’ll likely be leaning on them more and more.
Project management apps like Asana, monday.com, and Trello help virtual teams stay on track. And even if your team isn’t, there’s no reason you can’t use them to manage your own tasks.
What Do We Recommend?
Start Blogger uses Asana to manage our projects. However, several team members, including yours truly, also use Trello to track individual tasks.
What’s the Cost?
Both Asana and Trello offer free plans, which work great if your team is small (or if you’re using them alone). If you have a larger team, or you need more features:
- Asana Premium is $10.99 per user (per month)
- Trello Business is $9.99 per user (per month)
- monday.com’s plans start at $39 per month (for 5 users)
4. Chat App for Team Interaction
You might be on opposite sides of your city, state, or country (or even the world), but your virtual team still needs to shoot the breeze and interact with each other.
(And no, emailing the entire office isn’t an option. Don’t be that person.)
Chat apps like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google Hangouts Chat let you and your colleagues build comradery and stay engaged even though you’re miles apart.
In the remote worker’s toolkit, they’re a must-have tool. If you’ve never used them before, here are guides to help you get started:
- Top 5 tips for getting started in Slack
- Microsoft Teams video training
- Get started with Hangouts Chat
What Do We Recommend?
Slack is the tool we use to interact with each other at Smart Blogger, and it’s difficult to imagine working from home without it.
What’s the Cost?
You can get a lot of mileage out of the free version of Slack. If you need to upgrade, paid plans start at $6.67 (and that’s for your entire team).
Microsoft Teams is included in Office 365. The Business Essentials plan is $5 per user each month, while the Business Premium plan is $12.50.
Google Hangouts Chat comes with a G Suite Business account. The Basic plan costs $6 per user each month.
5. Time Management App (to Help You Keep it All Straight)
Yeah, this one is a bit of a cheat.
You don’t have to be working from hope to benefit from a good time management tool.
But, trust me, when you’re working remotely, having one is vital.
Remote work can be deceptive. You think you’ll have all this extra time now that you’re no longer having to commute, do your hair, put on pants, what have you. Then five o’clock rolls around, and you’re suddenly wondering why you didn’t get more accomplished.
Try as you might, maintaining a healthy work-life balance is going to be tricky when you work at home. Laundry, personal errands, and playing with the kids will creep into your workday.
For increased productivity, and to keep all the balls you’re juggling from falling, an app like Todoist or Things can work wonders for your various to-do lists.
What Do We Recommend?
I’ve used Todoist for years. It’s easy to use, it’s packed with features, and it’s available on every major platform and device.
What’s the Cost?
The free version of Todoist gives you 80 projects and up to 5 people per project. If you need more, their paid plans start at only $3 per user each month.
If you don’t like the idea of recurring fees, and you’re an Apple user, give Things a look. The app has a one-time $9.99 fee for iPhone/Apple Watch, a one-time $19.99 fee for iPad, and a one-time $49.99 fee for Mac.
How to Work From Home: 35 Tips for Remote Workers (From Pros Who Do It Everyday)
Now for the fun part.
I reached out to some of my colleagues at Smart Blogger and asked them for their best “work from home” tips.
Here’s what they had to say:
1. If you’re single, having a pet really helps with feeling isolated
At Smart Blogger, nearly everyone has a dog or cat to keep them company throughout the day. We also bond over stories about our pets.
2. Schedule time to hang out with friends
Whether it’s a phone call or getting together for happy hour, I always try to have at least two or three “connection points” scheduled each week. For me, it’s usually other entrepreneurs, because I feel like they are the only people who “get” me, but the point is to be a bit more proactive with your social life. There’s a lot less serendipitous hanging out when you’re working from home.
3. Get an air purifier
I recently added an air purifier to my office, and I was shocked at how much it helped with my allergies and even the overall smell of the house.
— Jon Morrow
Founder & CEO
WFH Experience: 15 Years
4. Set clear boundaries on your time, tasks, and calls
This is one of the first and fuzziest challenges for most people. When you’re working, you’re working, not doing household chores or cooking. Strive to start and end your day at the same times, with a little flex because you can. Tell family and friends you’ll get back to them after work.
5. Shut off audio notifications on everything — phone, social media and email
Put your phone in sleep mode. Use the controls built in to your devices to silence them during your work hours so you’re not distracted. This will also help train those insistent family members and friends who “only need two mintues” that turns into 20 to leave a message. Be prepared for complaints.
6. Set ‘focus time’ when you shut off every form of online communication to work
I coined the term “go dark” at Smart Blogger so I could have several uninterrupted hours to work. I closed out of all programs and set a smiling dark moon face for my “status” in Slack. Works like gangbusters.
7. Use a focus music app with the Pomodoro technique
I use a Focus@Will, a personalized focus music app, but there are many others. My “Pomodoro” sweet spot is 50 minutes, so I set the app with my choice of music for 50 minutes with my coffee and water on my desk and everything else shut off. I’ve trained myself that when the music is on all I can do is work. It’s actually quite enjoyable to have that deep focus time. With breaks of 15-20 minutes between sessions, I can do three or four highly productive sessions in a row.
8. Don’t try to squeeze in household tasks
Other than unavoidable visits from the pest control guy and delivery or repair folks, forget multi-tasking. The distraction from a household task as mundane as laundry will kill your concentration.
9. Get, or create, a standing desk
My first standing desk was stacked cardboard boxes and a hunk of wood. It will save your back, legs and other parts. I upgraded to a height adjustable desk. Don’t neglect ergonomics for even a short period.
10. Don’t eat at your desk
Build in those short breaks from the beginning and eat outside when you can.
11. Wear blue light blocking glasses
This recent upgrade has saved my eyes from feeling fried at the end of the day. Use monitor apps like f.lux that adjust the color balance of your monitor throughout the day.
— Marsha Stopa
Senior Instructor
WFH Experience: 15 Years
12. Start the day with three important goals
It’s a commonly given piece of advice but it works for me. I write (or type) three work goals under the heading “What would make today awesome?” (I write down some personal goals too.) Not only does it focus you during the day but it also helps you recognize a good day. Sometimes I’ll feel like I didn’t have a great day, but then see that I got my three things done and realize it was better than I thought. And that’s a good feeling to end on.
13. Link healthy habits to fixed points in your day
I wanted to hydrate better and found it fairly easy to start the day with a large glass of water. That became an automatic habit within a week or so. However, I found it harder to keep drinking water later in the day. Now I attach it to other “cues” during the day. For instance, I have another glass of water just before walking my dog Cooper in the afternoon.
14. Extend productive working sessions a little past the point of comfort
If you’ve been “in the zone” on a challenging task but feel yourself flagging, push yourself to do another 10 minutes. I find this gives me an extra boost of motivation/energy and I’m probably still more productive in the tail end of focus time than I would be starting from scratch later.
15. Get a standing desk. And a standing mat. (But sit sometimes too)
Standing desks are great but they’re tough on your feet and knees if you don’t have a proper mat to stand on. Also, standing all day is arguably not much better than sitting all day, so vary things a little. I try to do at least a couple of short sessions sitting at my desk on my laptop. Ergonomically it’s not great, but I don’t do it for hours on end and it breaks up the standing.
16. Vary your equipment
My first career was as a software developer and wrote so much code that I gave myself carpal tunnel syndrome before that was even really a thing. At one point I even had a special foot pedal that worked as a shift key to relieve the strain on my pinky finger! I’m not a coder any more but still suffer from time to time and not just from typing — sometimes end the day with a bad case of “trackpad hand” from too many hours using too limited a range of movement. So sometimes I’ll switch to a regular mouse for a couple of days to change the gestures just a little.
17. Get a gaming monitor (but not for gaming)
After years of using a regular 16:9 monitor I recently upgraded to an “ultrawide” 21:9. Being able to have two or even three full page apps open side-by-side has made a noticeable difference to my productivity.
— Glen Long
Chief Operating Officer
WFH Experience: 10 Years
18. Learn to recognize when your most productive time is
I work best first thing in the morning and then late at night. During the day there are enough distractions for me to easily lose focus, so unless there’s an urgent problem to solve, I give myself space to do other things mid day.
Experiment with times during the day to see when you feel more productive and energized to do your work. It may surprise you.
Discovering that you are unproductive during certain hours also allows you to give yourself a break at those times, instead of stressing out about “not getting enough done”.
Bonus: If you work with international clients, you may find that your “odd” hours might fit nicely with their “on” hours for communication and appointments. 🙂
— Tim Gary
Tech Wizard
WFH Experience: 15 Years
19. Stretch and move around
Sitting or even standing in roughly the same place for several hours a day is not something your body will be thanking you for. Sitting for long periods is rough on your back and your behind, while standing is tough on your legs. Take breaks to stretch and move around. Getting your muscles and joints moving in a variety of ways can help prevent repetitive motion injuries like carpal tunnel.
20. Set boundaries with friends and family
Your work is important. Your time is important. It can be difficult for friends and family to understand that just because you work from home, doesn’t mean you aren’t working.
Make sure you set very clear boundaries with your friends and family about what your work hours are and whether or not you can be available to them during that time. You can set rules on what types of interactions are allowable during your working hours and what types of interactions must remain outside of your working hours.
This will help keep your working hours calmer, less chaotic, and more focused.
21. Have a separate space for work
Whether that means an actual home office, a section of your dining room or just a separate workspace on your computer, have a space for work that is separate from the rest of your life.
A separate space makes it easier for your brain to transition from working time, to non-working time. I use separate internet browsers for work and my personal hobbies. This way once my work day is done, I close everything that involves work — tabs, apps, etc. and if I use my computer after work all work stuff is safely tucked away out of sight.
22. Learn a bit about lighting
I’m not a photographer or videographer so lighting isn’t something I ever gave much thought to, but if you are going to have meetings with clients that may involve video it will be in your best interest to learn the very basics about lighting.
If you’re on a video meeting and there is more light behind you than in front of you, you’re going to show up on camera as quite a shadowy figure. Making sure your lit properly helps people see you better and makes the experience more comfortable for everyone involved.
Unless you’re going for a mysterious look…
— Jenn Arman
Business Operations Manager
WFH Experience: 10 Years
23. Create separate user profiles for your internet browser
If you use the same laptop/computer for both work and rummaging through the Internet on your offtime, you should create separate user profiles on your browser — especially if you, like me, tend to leave a lot of tabs open.
I have a separate profile for private use, for Smart Blogger tasks and for working on my own blog. When I need to start work, I open my Smarty Blogger browser, and it automatically opens the pages I need on a daily basis. Every other page that I frequently use, but don’t need all the time is bookmarked, so they’re only a click away.
24. Get out and catch some sun
When you work from home, you need to remind yourself to get out every now and again to catch some vitamin D. I had a period of a few months where I was spending all daylight hours inside, and frankly, it’s depressing. Take a break to go out for a short walk. It honestly helps keep you sane.
25. Have a routine, but be flexible
When you work from home, it can be harder to beat the procrastination monster. Having a steady routine can help you with this though.
Set a time at which you start each day. If you have a number of recurring tasks, tackle them in the same order. This will help prevent you from procrastinating on which task to start first.
On the other hand, while it’s good to have a routine, don’t forget that flexibility is one of the main perks of the job. You don’t have to be overly rigid. It’s okay to have a day where you start a little later, or you move one of your tasks to the end of the day, because you’re just not in the mood for it.
— Robert van Tongeren
Instructor
WFH Experience: 6 Years
26. Take mental breaks
Take a break every hour or so to disengage from your work and allow your brain to have a little playtime. Stick your earbuds in, go outside for 5-10 mins, breath, take in the surroundings and allow your mind to think of anything but your work tasks. Think of it as like taking a break between sets in a workout. I often find problems easier to solve, solutions will pop into my head after having a mental break.
27. Have a mobility/stretching routine
Sitting in the same position for hours can wreak havoc on your body, a good place to start is with a book called Deskbound: Standing up to a Sitting World by Kelly Starrett.
28. Level up your skills
Always look how you can improve and add more value for your clients. Ask yourself: How can I be better at my job, what skills do I need to learn or improve? How can I raise myself to a higher level?
29. Stay balanced
Have activities outside of work that you can constantly get better at and that are a natural expression of who you are. This helps keep you balanced. If I’m always working and serving others I end up feeling like a robot who has no time for myself.
— Curt Levey
Customer Support Specialist
WFH Experience: 4 Years
30. Communicate constantly to friends & family about your work schedule
Working remotely means that your schedule is often more flexible than your friends who work in an office — or are retired. I had to learn to set very clear boundaries: just because I’m at home in front of a computer, that doesn’t mean I can just pick up to go to a lunch date or attend a rehearsal at 2 in the afternoon.
Now that I’ve been working remotely for 10 years, most of my friends get it. But I still have to be clear about it from time to time, and especially when I’m visiting friends or family.
— Felicity Fields
Operations Manager
WFH Experience: 6 Years
31. Prioritize YOU time on your calendar
It’s so easy to let your calendar get jammed packed and even when you get up from your desk “at the end of the day”, it’s so easy to get sucked back into your workspace — because it’s just right there! So, in order to ensure that you leave time for yourself, to stretch, go for a walk, meditate or anything else that nurtures YOU, it’s critical to prioritize yourself by putting your self-care on your calendar before the calendar gets booked up.
32. Be sure to meal prep
Secondarily, because the above is true, and the community lunchroom isn’t a thing, it’s super easy to neglect eating healthy and it’s super simple to just ‘grab a bite’ which becomes anything handy, VS anything healthy. I mean the kitchen is just right there, right?! So making sure you meal-prep will enable you to ‘grab a bite’ in between all those meetings, but it will be a healthy bite, and your body and energy level will thank you. Besides, it’s easy to let the pounds creep up when you’re wearing yoga pants instead of ‘work clothes’ so it’s a nice way to treat yourself (and your waistline!) nicely. 🙂
— Patricia Sweeney
Marketing Wizard
WFH Experience: 14 Years
33. Enjoy the days you can work in pajamas, but don’t overuse them
Working in your pjs is one of the great perks of working from home, but it shouldn’t be your go to outfit. Put some time in your morning routine to get yourself prepared for “the office”. It will help you be more productive on your projects and improve your mood by setting the stage for a good day.
34. Make your home office somewhere you enjoy spending time
When you work in a standard office you’re often encouraged to personalize the space so you can feel comfortable. Do the same for your home office. Don’t let it get too cluttered. Make sure you have plenty of light. Splurge on a heater or ergonomic desk setup. Plants, diffusers, pictures, and music will keep you more energized in your workspace.
— Laurie Pillman
Executive Assistant to the CEO
WFH Experience: 5 Years
And here’s one from me:
35. Make sure you check in (and check out)
The thing I struggle with most as a remote worker is separating “work life” from “home life.” Even with a dedicated office space, it’s easy for my two worlds to blend.
What’s helped me is visualizing one of those old-school “time clocks” people used back in the day.
“Clock in” and it’s work time. I listen to Jon’s latest podcast episode, edit a draft from one of our writers, send an outreach email, etc.
“Clock out” and I focus on my personal life. I’ll look at my daughter’s homework, go over healthcare paperwork with my wife, do the dishes, etc.
Whichever world I’m in, I try to give it my complete and undivided attention.
— Kevin J. Duncan
Editor-in-Chief
WFH Experience: 1 Amazing Year
I Love Working From Home. How About You?
We’re the lucky ones, you know.
No long commute? Getting to set our own schedules? Working mere feet away from our loved ones? It’s a blessing, a gift from God.
Even though it’s easy to get lost in deadlines, drafts to edit, and emails to read, I pray I never forget how fortunate I am to be doing what I do.
Savor these moments. Wrap your arms around them. Because it doesn’t matter if you’re a freelancer getting paid to write, an independent contractor, a data entry specialist, or a part-time customer service representative for a call center, working from home is a special experience. You’re getting to do what many people dream about doing.
Let me know if this guide was helpful by leaving a comment below. And, if there’s a tool or tip we missed, please don’t hesitate to share it.
Stay safe out there, folks.
About the Author: When he’s not busy telling waitresses, baristas, and anyone else who crosses his path that Jon Morrow once said he was in the top 1% of bloggers, Kevin J. Duncan is Smart Blogger’s Editor in Chief.
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Friday, March 20, 2020
5 Strange Opportunities for Creatives During the Quarantine [PODCAST]
Now is a scary time.
But, in every difficult situation, there are hidden possibilities. In the midst of all the chaos, creatives have unique opportunities.
In this special episode of the “Break Through the Noise” podcast, we’re going to look at those opportunities.
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Thursday, March 19, 2020
Why You’ll Never Reach Your Writing Goals in 2020 (Unless…)
Another week passes with no progress on your writing goals.
No first draft, no blog post, no portfolio piece.
Zilch. Nada.
Nauseating guilt washes over you. At the beginning of the new year you were so hopeful, even making a New Year’s resolution to write more in 2020.
But you never seem to get around to it, at least not as much as you should.
Feeling too tired, distracted, or overwhelmed to get into the flow, you procrastinate and prioritize everything but writing.
Fed up with this situation, you decide to set the best damn goals the world has ever seen.
Unfortunately, even if you’re setting writing goals that would make Tony Robbins jealous, there’s still a good chance you will fail.
Unless…
You turn one of your assumptions about writing on its head.
Goal Setting Wisdom: Vapid or Valuable?
You’ve heard it all before.
Maxims to:
- Get inspired
- Keep a positive mindset
- Visualize your outcomes
- Repeat positive affirmations
- Connect with your “why”
- Set goals (more on this below)
None of this is bad advice. In fact, these are all useful practices. But are they enough?
No.
And there’s the problem. You’re told that if you follow the conventional wisdom, set clear goals, and keep your chin up, success will be yours.
Even with all these strategies, victory is not guaranteed.
Why?
Because there is something inside you, in all of us, that will undermine your best intentions.
But, before we stroll down that dark road, let’s review the basics of goal setting. It’s a necessary first step for achieving your dreams this year.
Simple Step-by-Step S.M.A.R.T. Goal Setting
Want your goals to stand a fighting chance?
Then follow the S.M.A.R.T. formula: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound.
Let’s quickly break down each part:
Specific: Start at the Finish Line
Great goals are specific about what you’re going to achieve and when it will happen.
Ask:
“How will I know objectively that I accomplished this goal?”
Measurable: Amount of Time vs Word Count Goals
You need measurable goals that are easy to track. Examples include the amount of time spent writing (“30 minutes daily before breakfast”) and word count (“300 words daily before breakfast”).
A simple spreadsheet works well for this:
Tracking enables you to adjust your efforts and expectations based on objective data.
Another method I enjoy using is a simple Kanban style board with the easy to use (and free) writing project management tool, Trello.
Attainable: Smaller Goals vs Larger Goals
Daring to dream big is noble, but some writers are overwhelmed by bigger goals.
Balance big, inspiring (and scary) goals with smaller goals that feel attainable in the short term. These smaller, attainable goals will lead to “quick wins”, which will give you confidence to tackle the larger goals.
Relevant: Sensible in the Big Picture
You want to be an author, blogger, and start a freelance writing side hustle, but only have so much energy and attention to go around.
Choose your goals wisely. Perhaps you can publish your book in two years and start that side hustle now. Focus, Daniel-san!
Time-Bound: Know Your Goal’s Time Frame
“I’m going to write a book someday!”
Cool, good for you. Someday is a convenient synonym for never. We use it to weasel out of doing the hard work now.
Set hard deadlines to avoid this common trap.
Examples of Effective Writing Goals (S.M.A.R.T. Formula in Action)
That’s a lot of info, so let’s pull it all together. Here are a few good example writing goals:
- Blogger: Publish two posts of 2,000+ words every month on my blog in 2020.
- Freelance Writer: Apply to 5 writing gigs every week from January through June of this year.
- Aspiring Author: Complete my rough draft by December of 2020 by writing every evening at 9 pm for 30 minutes non-stop (no editing!).
See how each goal is specific, measurable, easily attainable, very relevant to the goal setter, and has a clear deadline? That’s what you’re looking for.
If you need more help, read this Hubspot article on the do’s and don’ts of S.M.A.R.T. goals.
Okay, so what if you already have killer goals, a sparkling attitude, make generous offerings to the writing gods under a full moon, and still struggle to write consistently?
You’re not alone…
One Thing You Must Rise Above
How often do you feel like writing?
Let me guess, your list of requirements to write includes:
- Feeling inspired, motivated, focused, clear, happy, and confident
- Having extra time, enough energy, peace and quiet, and no distractions
You may be asking then, “How can I set my life up so that I feel like writing more often?”
It’s not a bad question. Energy and time management practices to improve performance and mood are useful. But, this question makes an assumption, missing a deeper truth:
Who says you need to feel a certain way to write?
Other worthwhile and fulfilling achievements aren’t easy. Why should writing be any different?
Look, it’s not just you.
Somewhere along the way we all started giving “how we feel” more weight than it deserves. Sure, let your feelings ride shotgun, but don’t hand them the wheel.
Letting how you feel govern your choices places you at the mercy of what Stephen Pressfield, author of The War of Art, calls “resistance.”
Resistance is an insidious beast with many faces, and must be tamed if you’re ever going to succeed.
It’s the voice that says, “You worked hard today, go ahead and take the evening off.”
It fools you into thinking that mundane tasks are urgent, taking precedence over writing. “Afterall,” it assures you, “writing can wait until tomorrow.”
This whole mess generates a vicious cycle.
You blow off writing. Then you feel guilt, self-loathing, frustration, and sadness. This build-up of bad feelings makes you even less inclined to write — and this pattern becomes a habit.
This destructive cycle devours your dreams, one excruciating day at a time.
We must then question our habit of letting today’s feelings determine the fate of tomorrow’s outcomes.
Not to worry, grasshopper. There’s a better way.
Better Writers Know this Uncomfortable Truth
Not to be dismissive of the very real challenges in your life…
But these demands aren’t going away anytime soon, and you still want to write that book or launch that blog.
Don’t you?
If you don’t learn how to decouple your actions from how you feel, your goals will pay dearly.
The result:
- No book
- No blog
- Zero followers
- No side income
- No legacy
Because, let’s be real, these are the stakes.
What if, like Ryan Holiday suggests in The Obstacle is the Way, you take a different approach? Not only accepting difficulties as a given, but actually being grateful for them.
What I’m proposing here is to go beyond simply accepting the idea that you will have to write even when you don’t feel like it.
No. Take it further.
Seek Out Discomfort
Savor it like Hannibal Lecter enjoying chianti with his fava beans.
Because here is the secret, my friend.
How you feel will always be inconsistent, but you must become consistent in your actions regardless of how you feel.
This is the key that opens a door to the magical realm of growth and achievement.
Jon Morrow breaks this down nicely in this episode of his podcast Break Through the Noise:
“A lot of times, what success usually means is… actually putting yourself into a state of boredom, into a state of unhappiness, in order to create long term results… It’s short term pain for long term gain.”
And before you get the wrong idea…
This doesn’t have to be an exercise in masochism.
Instead, think of your competing desires like an adult with a child.
The whining child is bored and just wants to play. The loving adult speaks patiently, acknowledging that, “Yes, I know this is hard. I can see you don’t feel like it. Let’s just sit down and write for a moment. You’ll see. It will be fine.”
And you know what?
Every time you choose to act greater than your fear, laziness, and resistance, you build the habit of doing just that. Proving that you are greater than what you feel.
Okay, so how can we do that?
Your Writing Habit: Virtuous Friend or Vicious Foe?
Habits are powerful.
Deeply etched upon your nervous system, they compel you to act without conscious will.
The bad news?
You already have a writing habit — a bad habit.
Remember the vicious cycle mentioned earlier? Cycles are repetitive, and repetition builds habits.
Not to worry!
Now you’ll learn how to create a new cycle — a virtuous cycle that doesn’t rely on you being in the mood to write.
Hack Your Writing Process
How you feel is often at odds with your goals.
Fortunately, there are elements in your daily life that can reliably trigger your drive to write.
There’s a scientific approach to this.
In his book Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything, BJ Fogg provides his A, B, C framework for building what he calls “tiny habits”:
- Anchor: Something happens that reminds us to do the thing
- Behavior: Immediately do the thing
- Celebration: Immediately reward yourself for succeeding
Fogg recommends you start small.
You’re more likely to repeat the process when it’s easy and rewarding. As the behavior gels into habit you can easily scale up, leading to big changes over time.
Here’s how it looks in real life:
Goal: Write 300 words for my short stories every evening this year.
- Anchor: Kiss the kids goodnight (a consistent event that triggers your writing routine)
- Behavior: Consider lying on the couch and watching The Bachelorette. No, stay strong! Instead, sit at the kitchen table and write at least one sentence.
- Celebration: Reward yourself by punching the air and shouting, “I am a winner!” or tweet self-congratulatory messages: #goals #bestwriting
Goal: Complete my rough draft this year by writing for 30 minutes every morning.
- Anchor: Make your morning cuppa’ Joe (this will never not happen)
- Behavior: Look longingly at your phone, imagining what you’re missing on Insta. Stop! Shuffle over to your desk, sit down, and write for 5 minutes (to start) before breakfast.
- Celebration: Eat chocolate cake for breakfast. Or, you know, just have a small piece of that fancy dark chocolate you love.
Simple, right?
Notice how you’re not trying to achieve maximum output. At least, not yet. As these routines become habit, your word count and writing times will naturally increase.
Do you see the difference between the old “feelings first” approach and this new model?
Fogg’s method does generate good feelings in the final celebratory phase of his process. There’s nothing wrong with that. But, these feelings only help reinforce what you’re already committed to doing.
The only time you need to make any decisions about whether you’re going to write is when you initially set your goals.
From then on, regardless of how you feel, just write when the anchor event happens. No deciding. No rationalizing your way out of it.
Your Shockingly Good Year
Not writing feels terrible. It eats away at your soul, undermining your self-worth.
Remember, setting goals is necessary for achieving something great this year, but it’s not enough.
You must stay vigilant, keeping watch for the antics of that wiley trickster inside you. It will say anything to keep you from writing. Because while you’re goofing off, it feasts on your dreams.
Instead, you must cultivate a writing habit — stop relying on fickle feelings to drive your progress.
And when you reach the end of the year?
Imagine how amazing it’s going to feel not only hitting, but surpassing your goals.
When you finally:
- Grow your blog
- Break into a new niche
- Multiply your income
No more sadness and frustration. No more guilt, shame, or self-doubt. And no more wondering whether you have what it takes!
You will be in control, with the power, confidence, and freedom to shape your destiny. Not only as a writer, but in all areas of your life.
If you haven’t set S.M.A.R.T. goals, do that right away. Don’t wait!
Then think about a simple routine you can start tomorrow. What trigger will remind you it’s time to write regardless of how you feel?
Remember, if it feels uncomfortable, hard, or scary then you’re on the right track.
You, the courageous writer who dines on discomfort and relishes resistance, are unstoppable.
Good luck! You got this!
About the Author: James Everett Youngblood is the owner of ProductiveMen.com. He’s a Smart Blogger Certified Content Marketing Writer specializing in search-optimized longform content, and he can help your blog capture more search traffic and better reader engagement. Click here to learn more about him (and hire him).
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Wednesday, March 18, 2020
B2B Senior Marketer Survey: The Most Effective Approaches for 2020 [Infographic]
Senior marketers at B2B companies identify the best channel for producing and nurturing leads, the top content type for moving prospects through the funnel, and the most effective social network for their brand. Read the full article at MarketingProfs
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Friday, March 13, 2020
Nick Nanton – How to be a World-Class Storyteller [PODCAST]
In today’s world, we’re inundated with a million stories each and every day. As a result, telling your story, and making it stand out, can feel like a daunting task.
In this episode of the “Break Through the Noise” podcast, Nick Nanton, winner of 15 Emmy awards and filmmaker behind 70+ documentaries, talks to me about what makes a good story and how to know when you need help telling yours.
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Thursday, March 12, 2020
Write Headlines That Convert: 10 “Number Psychology” Tips!
Want to know how to write a headline that’ll convert like gangbusters?
Need a headline game-changer that captivates readers?
Your marketing buddies leverage some surefire number psychology and pricing tactics to attract their targeted consumers.
Why can’t you do the same?
Let’s shamelessly borrow a page or two from their playbook to ramp up the magnetism of your own headlines!
We’ll start with the obvious question…
Why Do Numbers Make Delicious Marketing Candy?
Chances are, you’ve fallen victim to psychological pricing tactics.
“Charm pricing” uses number psychology to influence our brains to perceive that $19.99 is considerably less than $20.00. It’s so simple, it shouldn’t work. But it does.
Marketers use psychological pricing tactics like these because they know numbers are powerful communication tools. Smart copywriters, bloggers, and SEO experts know this too — which is why they use tactics drawn from number psychology studies to influence headline click-through rates.
But why are numbers so powerful?
Psychology and marketing researcher Nick Kolenda says that when we see a number, our brain triggers the foundation of sensory elements that we used to learn numbers.
Curiously, this foundation often distorts our perception of numbers:
In content marketing, it makes sense to understand why readers are so attracted to numbers and what specific numbers draw greater attention.
In 5 Reasons Why Using Numbers In Your Headlines Work, Mike Hamers explains that numbers are our “Brain Candy”:
“Our brains are attracted to numbers because they automatically organize information into a logical order… like candy for your organizational mind.”
Further, the science of targeted number selection can have an impact on your headlines’ conversion rates.
In Psychology: How to Effectively Use Numbers in Your Marketing, the Wix Team states:
“Like colors, numbers have their own psychology surrounding them. …knowing the meaning behind numbers can allow you to effectively apply them…”
So, that’s why numbers are so effective…
Now let’s go over how you can use them to supercharge your own headlines.
Numbers: Power Words for the Nonconscious Brain
Want a proven blueprint for crafting compelling headlines?
Start by using a headline formula or template built around the keyword you’re targeting. Then, artfully select and arrange persuasive power words to promote your article’s message while catering to the demands of search engines and your readers.
In short, click-worthy headlines:
- include the primary keyword, and
- demonstrate a benefit to the reader
Primary keywords are pretty straightforward to work into your headlines, but it’s trickier to satisfy our readers’ WIIFM (what’s in it for me) mindset. Which is a shame, because being able to express your content’s benefit to the reader is what turns good headlines into great headlines.
Breaking them down, benefits can be expressed in headlines either explicitly or implicitly:
- Explicit benefit headlines lay it all out for you. These are obvious: “How to Eat a Paleo Breakfast”.
- Implicit or implied benefit headlines take some nonconscious noodling to interpret. “Breakfast Blunders Paleo Newbies Get Wrong” hints that we’ll benefit by avoiding bad choices.
So, where does number psychology come into this headline writing gameplan?
Let’s take a look at how we can add numbers to our best headlines to amplify our readers’ perception of benefits.
1. Big or Small: Pick a Number That’s Just Right for the Job
You can write compelling headlines that strengthen the appeal of a benefit by implying additional benefits through the use of numbers. Example:
Today’s Healthy Breakfast: 4 Ingredient Zucchini Fritters
The explicit benefit expressed here is a new healthy breakfast recipe.
But wait, there’s more! Did you notice the hidden bonus benefit that’s implied?
That small number of ingredients impacts your impression of the benefit. Instantly, you anticipate a new, healthy, and easy breakfast recipe. [CLICK!]
Why does this work?
Numbers are adjectives. But instead of the actual value they represent, we tend to interpret numbers in headlines to suggest the relative nature or size of the noun it describes.
Huh? Is this a grammar lesson?
I’ll explain…
This headline’s implied benefit doesn’t change much if the number of ingredients changes to either 3 or 5. The relatively low value emphasizes that the recipe is easy. But, raise the number to 7 and the implied simplicity of the recipe slips away.
We are especially likely to over-infer quantity when asked to make a difficult, concurrent, or snap judgment, like when we’re scanning different headlines.
Take a look at Neil Patel’s catchy headline:
Neil emphasizes the implied “wearing t-shirts prevents you from making money” with a sizeable dollar amount, further enticing readers who want to avoid losing sh*t-tons of money!
Numbers in Headlines Tip #1:
Use extremely small or large numbers as exaggerators.
Small numbers can suggest relative simplicity or insignificance. Conversely, large numbers can suggest complexity or substantiality.
Limit the number of steps in “How to” headlines to 9 or fewer to emphasize simplicity.
2. Warning: Watch How You Say it With Numbers
Proceed with caution, though.
Readers’ perception of implied benefits hinges on the correct use of specific time units or the order in which benefits are presented in headlines.
Not All Time is Created Equal
When expressing a concept that’s based in the future, pay attention to how units of time will be perceived.
Small units of time (4 weeks) are perceived as shorter, even when compared to equivalent larger units of time (1 month).
For example, headlines of habit-breaking content should express timelines in days, which is more palatable than the equivalent number of weeks.
Which timeline is more appealing? Compare:
- 21 Days to a Flatter Stomach
- 3 Weeks to a Flatter Stomach
Is “This” Better Than “That”?
Relative value is perceived higher when a larger numerical benefit is presented before a less appealing benefit. We “anchor” our perceptions when the larger benefit is presented first.
Consider this powerful headline on Smart Blogger:
This click-worthy headline is more appealing because the larger traffic-increasing benefit appears before the relatively short time investment.
Numbers in Headlines Tip #2:
When using numbers in headlines to express benefits with time elements or “trade this for that” notions, consider number comparison psychology concepts to assure the reader perceives a positive benefit.
3. No Time Like the Present: Current Year Implications
The current year in headlines implies the bonus benefit of up-to-date information.
Consider the covert power of this little number! It instantly tells the searcher the headline promises timely information inside.
However, if timeliness isn’t relevant, don’t falsely revolutionize your content with a current year headline. Example:
“How to Change a Diaper in 2020”
Unless you’re unveiling something particularly innovative, don’t use the year in the headline.
These headlines reveal we’ll find up-to-date piece of content on Smart Blogger:
- 31 Ways to Find (& Land) Freelance Writing Jobs in 2020
- Affiliate Marketing in 2020: FREE Guide for Beginners
- How to Start a Blog in 2020 (+Resources on EVERYTHING!)
Numbers in Headlines Tip #3:
When timeliness is relevant, include the current year in number form in headlines to reinforce the timeliness of the information within.
Numbers in Headlines: Vanity Brain Candy
Readers are clearly attracted to headlines that demonstrate a benefit to them, but there are other incentives at play.
In addition to demonstrating benefits, we use tactics such as personality, surprise, emotion, or curiosity in our headlines to entice our target audience and appeal to their vanity.
Let’s take a look at how to include numbers in headlines that’ll engage readers’ curiosity and emotions.
4. Popular Numbers Get the Vanity Vote
Quick, what’s your favorite number?
Number psychology tells us that there are common number preferences and number connotations based on gender, group, or cultures. We can leverage these findings by engaging the curiosities and emotions of our targeted readers.
No big surprise, but lucky number 7 is the most popular number used to increase click-through rates in consumer-targeted headlines. Other common favorites are odd single-digit numbers.
Buzzsumo reports that the number 5 draws a higher social media engagement rate in B2B headlines:
Examples:
- The 5 Best Free Blogging Platforms in 2020 (100% Unbiased)
- How to Make Money Writing: 5 Ways to Get Paid to Write in 2020
Numbers in Headlines Tip #4:
Use common “favorite” numbers in headlines to attract the curiosity of readers in your targeted audience.
5. Odd or Even Pheromones? Numbers to Influences the Sexes
Gender helps us with our perception of the world, so it’s possible the parity of a number (whether even or odd) may influence how our target audience interprets the gender of other parts of a headline.
Studies have shown single-digit odd numbers are perceived by people as masculine, and single-digit even numbers are perceived as feminine.
Men tend to rate double-odd numbers (like 57) and double-even numbers (like 28) as overly masculine, and generally rate most two-digit numbers as masculine as well. Only women consistently rate two-digit even numbers as feminine.
So, how can you apply this information when writing headlines?
Emphasize femininity with even (or double-even) numbers and masculinity with overly masculine double-digit odd (or even) numbers.
Examples:
Numbers in Headlines Tip #5:
Add single-digit odd numbers in headlines to appeal to men and single-digit even numbers to appeal to women. Double-digit even numbers appeal to both sexes, but double-digit odd numbers have greater appeal to men.
6. Why You Shouldn’t Fear Unlucky 13
Triskaidekaphobia is the fear of the number 13, and it’s more common than you’d think.
An estimated 10% of Americans share the fear of the number. Many hotels will actually skip the 13th floor and go right to 14 so they can appease superstitious guests.
The good news? By using the number 13, you can engage a sense of uneasiness or bad luck that’ll make your headline jump off the screen.
Check out these scary headlines:
- 13 Slimy Secrets Your Creepy Boyfriend Hides from You
- 13 Gruesome Horror Movies That’ll Invade Your Sweet Dreams
Numbers in Headlines Tip #6:
Use the number 13 in a headline to elicit a feeling of uneasiness or fear.
7. Why Multiples of 10 are Best for Besties
We are all grounded by the number 10. Our number system is based on tens, which make it easier for us to group things:
- 10 fingers and 10 toes
- 100 pennies makes a dollar
The number 10 symbolizes to us the completion of a cycle, and “10” signifies a perfect score.
Buzzsumo analyzed numbers used in list posts and reported on the popularity, based on the number of social media (Facebook) shares:
Perfect number 10 is the most engaging number to use with a list post, followed by the number 5 and 15. Our favorite number 7 rounds out the top four numbers used in engaging “listicle” headlines.
Top 10 post headlines like these (with bonus CTR boosters — more on those in a moment) draw us in with neatly compartmentalized topics:
- How to Write Faster: 10 Crafty Ways to Hit 1,000 Words Per Hour
- 10 Posts That’ll Instantly Put You in the Top 1% of Traffic Experts
- This is How 10 Bloggers in Different Niches Make $1 Million+ Per Year
What if you can’t come up with a multiple of 10? Go with an even half!
Check out the nice round numbers in these articles from Forbes:
- 5 B2B Tips and Strategies That You Need to Know in 2019
- 5 Roth IRA Rules You Must Know Before Opening An Account
- Top 5 Writing Tips For Entrepreneurs
Numbers in Headlines Tip #7:
For the most engaging list post headlines, group items in multiples of 10’s or 5’s.
Throw Out the Rule Book (But Play Fair)
The best headlines are works of art. And sometimes, to create art, you have to be a little unconventional.
Like so:
8. Ignore Grammar Rules (Use Digits Instead of Spelling It Out in Headlines)
Except for the rare occasion when spelling out a number is more appropriate, take advantage of the click-through-boosting effect of numbers.
Men’s Health wins brownie points for grammar with this headline, but they lose the brain candy game. How would you rewrite this to take advantage of number psychology?
Numbers in Headlines Tip #8
Use symbols like %, $, or digits instead of words to express percentages, dollars, or numbers in headlines.
9. Make a Big Number Sound Even Bigger
What if you want a headline number to sound R-E-A-L-L-Y big?
Readers use a larger amount of mental resources to process numbers with more syllables and falsely infer the magnitude of the number is larger.
A comma in a number changes how it’s pronounced. Compare:
- 1550 = “fifteen fifty” (4 syllables)
- 1,550 = “one thousand, five hundred fifty” (8 syllables)
Numbers in Headlines Tip #9:
Use numbers with more syllables or include comma separators in large headline numbers to increase their phonetic length.
Doing so will influence their perception of magnitude.
10. Promise and Deliver Customer Assurance
Numbers in your headlines can work against you if they’re not supported by your content. Promise “9 Tips for Happiness” and list 7 or 12 in your body copy, you’ll be hung out to dry.
Research for this article uncovered a list post promising, and providing, seven tips on writing headlines. But, the author’s fourth tip is simply a restatement of his first.
Ironically, his fifth tip is: “Trust me: people will check.”
Yup, we did. Busted!
Numbers in Headlines Tip #10:
Be on the up and up and make sure your headline numbers align with your content.
Bonus Tip: CTR Boosters are Conversion Seducers
We’ve seen that strategic number selection can make headlines more appealing to target audiences.
But what if you could boost headlines’ conversion rates even further by combining these number psychology tactics with some simple punctuation marks?
Let’s take a clue from some pros. Zip your eyes through the list of Smart Blogger’s most-popular posts:
Each catchy and effective headline includes at least one of the following:
- a punctuation mark, specifically a colon or parentheses
- a percentage symbol
- numbers, sometimes signifying the current year
Coincidence? Hardly.
CTR Boosters Turn Good Headlines into Great Headlines
Clearly, these posts are popular because their content is awesome. But, their symbol-and-number-riddled headlines are also helping to boost their popularity. They’re sporting that oh-so-charming brain candy that encourages open rates, reads, and social media shares.
You might know this brain candy as click-through rate boosters.
(These click-through rate boosters work great in tweets and email subject lines, too, by the way.)
But let’s back up for a moment. What is a headline click-through rate, and why does it matter?
The vital role our headlines play in attracting and engaging our readers was expressed by David Ogilvy, the “Father of Advertising”:
“On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.”
In the digital marketing world, click-through rates (CTRs) are used to measure the effectiveness of an advertisement. Simply, it’s that vital ratio of people who’ve clicked on an ad to the number of times the ad is shown.
Similarly, Google — in addition to other metrics like dwell time and bounce rate — uses headline conversion rates from search engine result pages (SERPs) to measure a post’s success in satisfying search intent.
Higher CTRs, which indicate the effectiveness of attracting and engaging targeted traffic, may raise a post’s relative SEO ranking.
In short: CTR boosters can help you get more clicks, which will compel Google to rank your content higher in search results.
Is This Jedi-Mind-Trickery Considered Cheating?
Worse yet, is it “clickbait” (like you might find on BuzzFeed or Upworthy)?
The Urban Dictionary sums up clickbait (negatively) as:
“a link which entices you to click on it. The “bait”… is usually intentionally misleading… Clicking will inevitably cause disappointment…”
But Copyblogger’s Stephanie Flaxman states:
“If your content delivers on your headline’s promise, it’s not clickbait. Period.”
The takeaway?
Crafting a compelling, click-worthy headline isn’t “clickbait” if your content delivers on the promise made in the headline. So, don’t be afraid to make your headlines enticing — that’s their job, after all.
Numbers in Headlines Bonus Tip:
Good headline CTR boosters are seemingly trivial numbers, symbols, or punctuation in headlines that grab the primal curiosity of potential readers and draw them in. Combine them with compelling number psychology tactics, and you’ll shine a spotlight on your headlines.
Use Numbers to Ramp Up Headline Conversion Rates
SEO-friendly, compelling headlines are tough to write, aren’t they?
Number psychology isn’t an exact science, and neither is great headline writing. But, strategically implementing what you’ve just learned will make your headlines more compelling. Decades of marketing data say so.
So…
Want to take your headline writing game to the next level? Want to write better headlines that grab the reader’s attention (and, by extension, the attention of search engines), stop them in their tracks, and compel them to click?
Then you need to shamelessly borrow moves from the number psychology playbook.
You got this!
About the author: Barbara Sturm is a recent graduate of the Smart Blogger Content Marketing Certification program and self-proclaimed nerd who’s fascinated with numbers and delights in factoring polynomials. She geeks out over researching a variety of topics then creatively enlightening others with her discoveries. For more of her work, hop over to her freelance writer profile on writer.me/barbara-sturm.
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