MAKE MONEY ONLINE POSTS: 09/09/15

الأربعاء، 9 سبتمبر 2015

‘George can do anything he wants’

BATMAN v Superman director Zack Snyder says Mad Max was the best film of the year — and George Miller can take his pick from the DC Universe.

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Caesars dispute to be heard in Chicago, federal judge rules

A legal battle between junior and senior creditors of the bankrupt division of Caesars Entertainment Corp. should be heard in Chicago rather than New York, a Manhattan federal judge ruled on Wednesday.

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Nevada to close Chinese-licensed tourism office in Beijing

The state of Nevada will close its Chinese-licensed tourism office in Beijing by the end of the year, but that doesn't mean the state is abandoning efforts to market to the one of the largest tourism markets in the world.

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Gilt Shows How Apps And Online Shopping Are Coming To Apple TV

Apple's betting that the future of TV is apps, and Gilt envisions consumers tossing aside the second screen to shop from their televisions.

Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

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Consumers Can’t Tell The Difference Between Sponsored Content And Editorial

In a new study, consumers identified native advertisements as articles a large percentage of the time.

Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

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Business Briefcase: Pen Argyl insurance agent named to national council

Palma joins Executive Council of New York Life Insurance Co. Pen Argyl resident Joseph A. Palma has been named a member of the 2015 Executive Council of New York Life Insurance Company. Members of the Executive Council are among the most successful of New York Life's elite sales force of 12,000 licensed agents. Palma has [...]

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Macy's closing up to 40 underperforming stores in 2016

Macy's plans to shut as many as 40 more stores in early 2016, picking up the pace of its closings.

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US will investigate airstrike that killed 11 police in Afghanistan

The U.S. military said it would launch an investigation into an airstrike last week that Afghan officials say killed 11 members of Afghanistan's elite counter-narcotics police force.

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Marketing Day: August’s Top 10 YouTube Video Ads, The Apple Event & Instagram’s 30-Second Video Ads

Here's our recap of what happened in online marketing today, as reported on Marketing Land and other places across the web.

Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

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Timelapse of MGM arena floor installation — VIDEO

The AEG-MGM arena construction is underway. Here's a behind-the-scenes look at the $375 million arena's floor pouring.

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Ore. judge faces review for refusing gay marriage ceremonies, Hitler picture

An Oregon judge who refused to perform same-sex marriages is facing multiple complaints in a state ethics investigation, including that he put up a picture of Adolf Hitler in the Salem courthouse, a state judicial commission said on Tuesday.

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Important Money Tips for Older Adults Going Back to College

Careful, or your finances will get an F.

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Drone enthusiasts warned of government over-regulation

Drone enthusiasts need to do a better job of explaining the benefits of unmanned aerial systems or local, state and federal government agencies will over-regulate them and unintentionally cripple a new technology the United States is already behind in.

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'Big Bang Theory' slot machines are no 'Bazinga!'

Where else would developers of a slot machine based on a television series centered around the escapades of a group of nerdy, science fiction-loving CalTech scientists unveil the game? At the Comic-Con International: San Diego, of course, which is often mentioned as a holy shrine by the central characters of CBS's "The Big Bang Theory."

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Everyone Loves Cashing Checks, But Do You Know How to Write One?

Here’s a Google search you never thought would be a hit: “how to write a check.”

Even stranger: Searches for that phrase peak right around now, in late August and early September… for reasons we’ll describe in just a minute.

So what’s the big deal with writing checks? Although this method of payment is old, it’s still pretty prevalent in a lot of homes.

But many people — especially the younger ones — aren’t used to writing checks, and don’t even know where to start when they’re faced with one for the first time.

The way we move money has changed, according to Daily Finance, and it’s changed very quickly.

Why Don’t We Use Checks Anymore?

Check payments dropped by more than 50% between 2000 and 2012, according to a study by the Federal Reserve, while electronic and card payments tripled in the same time period.

Checks have gone out of style for a few key reasons.

First, writer Paul Sisolak explains, they’re not the safest method of payment. Your checking account and routing number are displayed right there on the check, so you’ve got to trust whoever’s on the other side of the register or in the billing department.

Many retailers no longer accept checks at all, opting instead for credit and debit or even smartphone payment systems like Apple Pay.

There’s also the environmental factor. Sisolak notes the rise of “eChecking” or “green checking,” which encourages bank customers to save paper and money by doing less with paper, like receiving mailed statements or, you got it, writing checks. Why cut down a tree to write a check when you could zoom your payment through the wilds of the Internet?

The First Time Kids Learn How to Write Checks: College

As you consider the decline in check usage, think about when kids learn about writing checks.

They’re not standing at the counter in the bank or at the tax office, watching mom or dad write out a check. They’re not learning how to write pretend checks at school during middle-school personal finance lessons (if they even have these).

Instead, college is a time of financial awakening, which explains that peak in Google searches for “how to write a check” in the fall.

“Students living off-campus for the first time are likely facing the daunting task of writing their first check, for an electric bill, a cable payment, or, especially, for rent,” Christopher Ingraham explains in the Washington Post.

So, do you need to learn how to write a check? Head over to Daily Finance for a six-step guide. Sisolak won’t rake you over the coals.

It may seem silly to need instructions for handling checks, but it’s still a method of payment that many people use — maybe even you. There’s no harm in getting a little education to do it right.

Your Turn: Do you use checks to pay any of your bills? Or are you all about the electronic methods?

Lisa Rowan is a writer, editor and podcaster living in Baltimore. She loves her checkbook and even sends some of her bills through the mail.

The post Everyone Loves Cashing Checks, But Do You Know How to Write One? appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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Ride & Drive: 2015 Ford Fiesta ST

Without question, Ford has taken a leading role in the “hot hatch” segment that’s gaining in popularity as consumers are seeking out performance-oriented small cars that also meet a variety of driving needs.The Fiesta ST is absolutely phenomenal. Not only does it dominate the subcompact “hot hatch” segment when it comes to horsepower and torque, it’s loaded with premium amenities and safety features.It’s also an absolute [...]

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Need a job? Chipotle's hiring — everywhere

Chipotle wants to bring on 4,000 new employees in one day ... and that's today.

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MGM Resorts witness says Nevada Power is 'over-earning,' tone deaf to economy

A witness for MGM Resorts International is highly critical of Nevada Power Co. in testimony filed with the state Public Utilities Commission, saying that the gaming company intends to proceed with its application to leave the utility as a retail customer despite the potential of having to pay an "exit fee" of as much as $90 million.

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September 10 Webcast: Data-Driven ROI Reality and Avoiding the Creep Factor

Finding the right balance between personalization and privacy.

Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

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Content Blocking In iOS 9 Unlikely To Bring About Mobile “Admageddon”

There’s a great deal of hand-wringing over iOS 9 and the prospect of “content [ad] blocking” in mobile. Some ad-industry execs are concerned about a coming “Admageddon” of sorts while some optimistically believe that ad blocking technology will actually motive...

Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

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Fremont Street Experience executive leaving post

Fremont Street Experience Chairman, President and General Manager Jeff Victor will leave his post at the end of September.

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Considering Cloth Diapers to Save Money? Here’s Where to Find Them for Cheap

When you’ve got a newborn, you’re probably interested in two things: saving time and saving cash.

We can’t get you back those hours of sleep, but we can tell you how to save money on diapers by using cloth instead of disposables.

You can choose from a number of different kinds of cloth diapers, but we’re going to focus on two types of cloth diapers: pocket and prefold. If you’re interested in trying cloth diapering, here’s what you need to know about these two popular methods.

We’ll also let you know how to save money on cloth diapers.

Method 1: Pocket Diapers

I talked to Kate Fenner, whom you may remember as the coupon-savvy mom from This Mother Rarely Pays for Groceries. Here’s Her Couponing Strategy, about her cloth diapering process.

“I use what are called pocket diapers,” Fenner said. “They have velcro or snaps, and they’re just as easy to put on as a disposable diaper.”

A pocket diaper includes a colorful outer layer often made of leak-resistant polyester laminate or polyurethane laminate (often called “PUL”), as well as an inner pocket in which to place the absorbent diaper material. The pocket is covered with a layer of fabric designed to keep moisture off the baby’s skin.

Caring for soiled pocket diapers is easy, as Fenner explains. “It’s very straightforward. You make sure the diaper doesn’t have a lot of solid matter left on it, and it goes through the washing machine just like any other laundry. It doesn’t require any special detergent, you can just use whatever regular detergent you use on your clothes.”

Pocket diapers can also go in the dryer with your other clothes, making cleanup as easy as doing a load of laundry.

Where does the solid matter go, you might ask? When you change your baby, just wipe or rinse the solid waste into the toilet.

Some parents use a diaper sprayer to dislodge waste into the toilet. If there’s a lot of waste, you can dunk part of the diaper into the toilet to rinse it off. Then, put the diaper in a wet bag until you’re ready to do laundry.

“In the nursery, we have a big wet bag, and that’s where we throw the dirty diapers until we put them in the laundry,” Fenner explains. “For traveling or going out and about, we have a small wet bag that goes in our diaper bag. When we change her, we put the dirty diaper in there and just zip it up!”

How many diapers do you need? Fenner has about 30 pocket diapers for her daughter, which she says is average for one kid.

“They go through them a lot more quickly when they’re newborns, so you might need to do laundry a little more frequently.”

Method 2: Prefold Diapers

Prefold diapers are a little different from pocket diapers.

Instead of putting absorbent material into the pocket of a water-resistant diaper, with prefold diapers you fold a piece of absorbent material around your baby’s bottom, use pins or Snappis to keep it in place and then add a water-resistant diaper cover. (Some parents fold the material and place it inside the diaper cover before putting the diaper on their baby; do what works best for you!)

The Eco-Friendly Family has a great visual tutorial of different diaper folds, if you’d like to see prefold diapers in action.

My friend Kristina Darnell used prefold diapers on her two daughters, and took it a step further by renting the diapers from a service instead of purchasing her own.

“After weighing our options, we decided to use a service where we actually rented prefold diapers and covers, and all the laundering was done for us on a weekly basis,” she said.

The service sent her about 80 diapers per week, and all she had to do was fold them, use them and put them in a wet bag. “At the end of the week, you put all the dirty diapers in a big bag on your front porch, and the delivery truck picks it up and drops off a new bag with 80 fresh, clean diapers.”

Yes, that means that your baby is “sharing diapers” with every other family renting from the service. However, Darnell said that wasn’t an issue. “The company had thousands of diapers they laundered. You wouldn’t know if you had the same 80 diapers week to week, but they are washed at crazy high temperatures, so it doesn’t really matter.”

Using a diaper rental service also saved time. The Darnell family didn’t have to launder the diapers themselves, and didn’t even have to remove solid waste. Everything went into the bag and back to the service for cleaning.

How to Save Money With Cloth Diapers

Both Fenner and Darnell said cloth diapering can be less expensive than disposable diapering.

Pocket diapers run about $7 per diaper on Amazon, and prefold diapers cost about $2 per diaper and $5-10 per diaper cover, for a total of $7-12.

How does that compare to disposables? As Darnell explained: “A rough estimate of using disposable diapers through a subscription service like Amazon Mom would be about 16 cents per diaper, or $540.80 per year, before you factor in the added cost of wipes, increased garbage pick up costs, etc.”

That’s for nearly 3,400 diapers. Most kids are in diapers for at least two years, so your costs for diapers alone would be nearly $1,100.

To compare, here’s what Fenner said about the costs of cloth diapers: “We spent roughly $200 on our entire stash of cloth diapers, and they will for sure last us until our daughter is potty trained, and will possibly be able to be used for additional kids in the future.” You’ll also have to factor in the cost of wipes, laundry detergent, wet bags and — of course — your water bill.

But to really save, you’ll need to wash the diapers yourself. Renting diapers from a cleaning service comes with an extra cost. “Our first year cost about $1,118 for absolutely every aspect of diapering, including wipes,” Darnell told me. In her case, the time saved made this more than worth the price.

Here are a few more ways to save money on your cloth diapers:

It’s okay to buy used. Sites like Craigslist often have low-cost used diapers from parents who are happy to pass them along. Some parents choose to “strip” their used diapers before putting them on their babies, which essentially means giving used diapers a deep clean. Fluff Love University has some stripping tips to help you get started.

We’ve written before about people selling household goods in Facebook local groups, and that’s another great place to ask about used cloth diapers.

Look at sites like Alvababy that sell cloth diapers at discount prices.

Visit DiaperSwappers, an online forum where you can buy, sell and swap used cloth diapers.

If you have sewing skills, LittleHouseLiving has tips on how to buy worn-out cloth diapers and repair them — or make new ones from scratch.

There’s one more big savings that parents might not consider. Anecdotally, children in cloth diapers often potty train earlier than children in disposable diapers. This means saving money on six months to a year of not diapering, once the child is potty trained! (Or if you decide to try elimination communication, even longer.)

Once your children are all using the potty and are done with diapers, don’t forget to sell your cloth diapers to another parent for additional cash in the bank.

Your Turn: Have you tried cloth diapering? What was your experience like, and what money-saving tips do you have for other parents?

Disclosure: We have a serious Taco Bell addiction around here. The affiliate links in this post help us order off the dollar menu. Thanks for your support!

Nicole Dieker is a freelance writer focusing on personal finance and personal stories. Her work has appeared in The Billfold, The Toast, Yearbook Office, The Write Life and Boing Boing.

The post Considering Cloth Diapers to Save Money? Here’s Where to Find Them for Cheap appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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Haggen grocery chain files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

The Haggen grocery chain, which recently took over numerous Albertsons and Vons stores, said on Tuesday it has filed for bankruptcy, according to multiple reports.

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7 Questions Investors Should Ask About Stock Earnings Estimates

A missed estimate can be catastrophic to a company's stock price.

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First-time buyers to get £4,000 deposit boost

Tom Wilson

houses with for sale sign.jpg

First-time buyers may be able to get an extra £1,000 on top of the £3,000 Help to Buy Isa boost when it launches in December.

Newcastle Building Society is planning to allow savers to receive an extra £1,000 from its own Help to Buy product in addition to the government scheme.

First-time buyers to get £4,000 deposit boost

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First-time buyers may be able to get an extra £1,000 on top of the £3,000 Help to Buy Isa boost when it launches in December. Newcastle Building Society is planning to allow savers to receive an extra £1,000 from its own Help to Buy product in addition to the government scheme. The plans involve Newcastle Building Society's Big Home Saver Isa, which pays 2.02% AER, subject to the saver making a deposit each month. The extra £1,000 is paid when completing a mortgage with Newcastle Building Society. A Newcastle Building Society spokesperson told Moneywise: "We are supportive of the government's Help to Buy Isa and are currently looking to develop a suitable product. The Isa is consistent with our popular Big Home Saver product, which offers a cash bonus of up to £1,000, after successfully saving for and completing a mortgage with the Newcastle. "We are also looking to offer our CustomIsa facility that would enable customers to hold more than one Isa product and split their annual Isa allowance between different Newcastle Cash Isa products and still get tax-free benefits. This would enable customers to hold a Help To Buy Isa and a Big Home Saver Isa simultaneously." The Help to Buy Isa is due to launch on 1 December. Under the scheme, savers will receive up to £3,000 from the government, getting £1 for every £4 they save. Savers will get up to £300 when opening the account, and a monthly bonus of up to £50 (based on a £200 monthly saving). Newcastle Building Society currently offers first-time buyers a two-year tracker mortgage at 1.86% with a £290 valuation fee, a 25-month fixed rate at 1.94%, with a £1,590 valuation fee, or a 25-month fixed rate at 2.27% with a £290 valuation fee. All these loans will revert to a 5.99% standard variable rate after the initial period.

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7 Ways To Fail At Twitter

Looking to leverage Twitter for massive fail? Here are some tips to follow -- or to avoid, if you're seeking success!

Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

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Why You Should Never Walk Into a Job Interview Empty-Handed

How to create your own marketing toolkit to leave with employers.

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Disaggregation And The Rise In Collaborative Marketing

A disaggregated marketing strategy can help you target different types of groups, potentially increasing sales. But columnist Andy Lombard believes that in order to fully take advantage of it, we need new collaborative technologies.

Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.

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101 Easy Ways to Get Tons of Free Stuff, From Food to Movies to Travel

My wife and I love to travel, so of the many free things I’ve received this year, money and hotel rooms are my favorites. But it’s also been fun to get free movies, gift cards, oranges, books, classes and all the rest.

And if you like free things as much as I do, you’ll love the following list. I’ll even show you three ways to get those free hotel rooms, and five ways to get free money.

Of course, “free” is one of the most abused concepts of modern times. “Buy one, get one free” just means 50% off, and not even that much when stores jack up the prices. And “free samples” aren’t exactly free if you have to pay separate shipping and handling for each of them.

None of those fake “freebies” are on this list. I exclude offers that require you to pay for shipping or anything else. But you will have to give some information to get many of these freebies, so you might want to have an extra email address set up so you don’t clog your regular inbox.

Are you ready to get a bunch of free stuff? Let’s get started with…

Free Hotel Rooms

Hotel stays are one of the more valuable items on the list, and you can get them as a signup bonus with the following credit cards (I have all of these ones).

1. Get the Marriott Rewards Credit Card

Get a free night at a Marriott (category 1 to 4 — which includes a dozen hotel chains) as soon as you’re approved. That’s right: There’s no spending requirement. I used my free night two weeks after getting my card.

Then, if you put $1,000 on the card within three months, you’ll get 50,000 points, which are worth up to six more free nights. I did that too, buying only things I would have bought anyhow. Cancel your card within a year to avoid the annual fee.

2. Sign Up for Wyndham Rewards

Get approved for this credit card to get 15,000 points in your Wyndham Rewards account right away, with no spending requirement. That’s enough for a free night at many Wyndham properties, which include Ramada Inn, Days Inn and Super 8 hotels.

Choose the no-fee card — the other one gives you more points, but has an annual fee.

3. Get the Hyatt Card

Put $1,000 on the card within three months to get two free nights at category 1 to 4 hotels). Cancel within a year to avoid the annual fee.

Free Money

Money is one of the best things to get for free, right? I’ll be raking in close to $2,000 this year from these sources.

4. Take Advantage of Credit Card Bonuses

Last year I made over $1,000 from credit card signup bonuses and cash back awards. I’ve already topped that this year.

5. Earn Bank Account Bonuses

I made $175 this year for opening a savings account (I closed it after the minimum six-month requirement), and $125 last year for a new checking account.

6. Claim Lost Money

I previously reported on how to find and claim lost money, and I helped my mother recover a forgotten insurance refund worth almost $1,000.

7. Maximize Your 401(k)

A third of employees don’t contribute the full amount their employer will match, reports MarketWatch. That’s crazy!

Even knowing I was leaving a job, I put $475 into a new 401(k) to get $475 in matching contributions from my employer. After quitting, I withdrew $950, paid the 10% penalty, and I still made money!

8. Join a Class-Action Lawsuit

You might already qualify and not know it. Keep an eye on our monthly posts to see whether you’re eligible for free cash and vouchers.

Free Food

My wife and I can make a meal of free in-store samples. Sure, we sometimes buy things as a result, if the price is right.

But if your goal is just to enjoy a few free snacks, you can do that. Or, to avoid the temptation to buy, get your samples online. Here are some of your options.

9. Head to Whole Foods Market

Find your closest store and determine which days are sample days. We used to go on Saturdays and eat from a dozen different displays, but your store might offer samples on other days of the week.

10. Check Your Local Publix

This store puts out fewer items than Whole Foods, but in our experience, the samples are sometimes the size of a full meal! One location near us has a kitchen just for cooking samples, and they’re delicious.

11. Visit Trader Joe’s

You’ll always find a free sample of food and a drink (coffee, lemonade or another tasty treat). Occasionally, Joe’s has free wine-tasting events, with crackers to cleanse your palate between samples.

12. Review Products on PINCHme

If you’re willing to review the foods you try, sign up with PINCHme to receive free samples in the mail.

13. Head to Kroger

Get a free “Plus” card, and you can download a coupon good for a free product every Friday.

14. Eat Free Donuts on June 5

Check out this post on National Donut Day, when Krispy Kreme, Dunkin’ Donuts and other stores give away donuts.

15. Eat Free Ice Cream

Ben and Jerry’s Free Cone Day is once each spring. Check that page every winter for the date, since it changes every year.

16. Go to Firehouse Subs on Your Birthday

Show your ID in a Firehouse Subs restaurant on your birthday to get a free sub, and sign up for their newsletter to get freebies and offers year-round.

17. Order Free Salt

Get a free sample of rosemary, lemon, and garlic salt from Gourmet Salt Blends.

18. Join Taco John’s Email List

19. Go Foraging

We collect oranges and blueberries on public land. FallingFruit.org can help you locate opportunities for foraging near you.

Free Health Care

I got free aspirin as part of a drug trial I was paid for last year, but opportunities to be a human guinea pig come and go. Here are some more reliable ways to get free health care and medications.

20. Go to Free Dental Clinics

I once got a free cleaning and X-rays at a dental assistant school. Use the ADA search tool to find nearby dental assisting, hygiene and lab technology programs, and call to see if they offer free services.

21. Visit TalkAboutRx.org

This list of Prescription Assistance Programs (PAPs) will help you get free (or deeply discounted) drugs. Your income can usually be up to 200% of poverty level, so a qualifying family of four can make up to $48,500.

22. Head to Sam’s Club

If you have a “Sam’s Plus” membership, some drug prescriptions are free.

23. Check My Free Product Samples

Offers include everything from pain relievers to vitamins.

24. Look Into Preventative Care

Under the health care law most insurance plans must provide a variety of free preventative care services, as explained on HealthCare.gov.

Free TV

We save more than $1,000 per year by going without cable, and we no longer waste hours clicking through endless channels.

Instead, we’ve used these two alternatives to watch our favorite shows:

25. Get an Antenna

Free broadcast TV is still around, and now that channels are digital, the reception is better than ever.

So dig out that old antenna and cancel the cable. We get eight channels with our $10 antenna.

26. Watch Online

CBS, NBC and other networks offer full episodes of some programs online. In certain areas, you can even watch ABC shows live.

Free Workshops

Want to learn how to lay tile, make a birdhouse or use your iPhone for more than just texts and calls? Here are some of the places you can attend free workshops.

27. Home Depot

Workshop subjects vary, from installing a faucet to building a Pinterest-worthy display stand for your Halloween pumpkin. Workshops are usually on Saturdays, and some are even designed especially for kids.

28. Lowe’s

Kids can attend “Build and Grow” workshops, and they’ll get to take home not only their wooden creations but also a free apron, safety goggles and participation patch.

29. Michaels

Enjoy various free craft-making workshops, from cake decorating to jewelry making and more.

30. Apple

The retail stores host hour-long workshops on everything from creating slideshows with iPhoto to putting together spreadsheets.

Free Movies

Some movies are worth the cost of seeing them on the big screen, but freebies are good, too. Here are some of your options.

31. Sign Up With Redbox

32. Try Hulu

33. Register for Crackle

Watch free movies and TV shows, as well as original series, through your computer, Apple TV or gaming system. You’ll have to put up with commercials, but hey, it’s free!

34. Mystery Shop at Movie Theaters

As a movie mystery shopper, you’ll do better than free; you’ll get paid to attend movie premieres.

35. Watch Free Outdoor Movies

Cities around the country host free movies in parks and other spaces. Search online for “free movies” and the names of towns around you.

Free Credit Monitoring

Want to know your credit score and what you can do to improve it? Don’t pay for this info; you can easily get it for free.

36. Sign Up for Credit Karma

This service is free and useful. I’ve used it for years to track my score while I apply for various credit cards.

37. Use the Big Three to Track Your Credit Report

Experian, Equifax and TransUnion have to give you a copy of your credit report once annually. Hit up a different one every four months to keep up on any changes to your credit profile throughout the year.

Free Education

Among the free classes you can find online, some are the same college courses for which others pay thousands of dollars! You won’t get credit, but you will get educated.

38. Take College Courses Through Coursera

Choose from more than 1,000 courses from colleges around the world. Some give you the option of a “Verified Certificate” for $25 to $195, if you want something to show off, but if you just want to learn, you never have to pay a penny.

39. Sign Up for Open Yale Courses

Yes, it’s that Yale University. Instead of paying full tuition, take classes for free online. You won’t have a fancy degree when you’re done, but you also won’t have huge student loans.

40. Try UC BerkeleyX

These classes are free, but you can also pay for a verified certificate if you want a paper to prove your expertise.

41. Study With MIT OpenCourseWare

Learn how to build a Geiger counter to test radiation, design and prototype a new toy or negotiate like a rock star.

42. Attend Wikiversity

You’ll find free courses and educational materials for all ages and experience levels.

43. Try Khan Academy

I took a cool coding course here, and all of the site’s dozens of courses are entirely free.

Free Web Tools

I’ve used all of the following freebies for my websites. If you’re starting a blog, use these resources to get off the ground without spending much cash.

44. Get WordPress Themes

Create a free WordPress website or, if you already have a website, add a blog using these free themes.

45. Find Photos and Images

Flickr has millions of photos.

To find freebies for your website, search by keyword. Then, under “Attribution,” click “commercial use allowed” (you still have to attribute the photographer and Flickr as the source) or “no known copyright restrictions.”

Other great options include Unsplash, Pixabay or one of these other free photo sites.

46. Add Surveys and Forms

If you need just one contact form, get it free from Response-O-Matic. I used one of its free forms to survey my newsletter subscribers and design a successful book launch.

The only catch is that people will see an ad or two while they fill out the form.

47. Look for Clip Art

Try OpenClipArt.org for free clip art for your website.

Free Business Training and Advice

You can pay a fortune for business education and training. Or you can start for free or even get paid, using one of these resources.

48. Learn From the SBA Learning Center

The Small Business Administration has free online classes on everything from buying a business to accounting to how to get government contracts.

49. Check Out SCORE

This organization provides free mentoring and advice across the country. Mentors include retired executives and others who will help you in person (the best way to make contacts) or by email and phone.

50. Visit MasterClassManagement.com

Take online classes and get a “mini-MBA” business management certification at no cost.

51. Use Your Job as Business Training

What’s better than free? Getting paid to learn!

Some jobs can help prepare you to start your own business — if you pay attention. Here’s a more in-depth look at how to use your job as paid training.

Free Legal Advice

In a tough spot? Use one of these free resources.

Of course, if you have a detailed question or a more long-term need, you’ll likely have to find another option. Still, try these avenues first for a no-cost look at your situation.

52. Visit FreeAdvice

Ask a question and get answers from practicing attorneys. Like anything you find online, though, you may want to take this advice with a grain of salt and use it as a general guideline.

53. Find Pro Bono Attorneys

This U.S. Department of Justice website lists free legal service providers. Click through to your state to find one near you.

54. Take Advantage of Free Consultations

Many lawyers offer free initial consultations. Search online for “lawyer” + “free consultation” and the name of your city.

Adding the relevant subject, like “real estate” or “small business” will help you find an expert on your needs.

Free Books

You can go to your public library, of course, but you’ll find many more free books online.

55. Download Kindle Ebooks

Authors list thousands of books for free, whether permanently or for a limited time, so scroll through to find tons of great options.

Don’t have a Kindle reader? No problem. Download a free Kindle Reading app for your computer, tablet or phone.

56. Visit Freebooksy

This site helps you find Kindle, Nook, Apple and Kobo ebooks. You’ll see at least one free ebook each day, across genres from mystery to romance to children’s books.

57. Go to Project Gutenberg

You’ll find more than 49,000 free ebooks in a variety of formats, though they’re mostly classics and older books. You won’t find the latest releases here.

58. Download Free Audiobooks

Prefer to listen to your stories? Loyal Books has over 7,000 free, downloadable audiobooks.

Free Museums

My wife recently visited Washington, D.C. and was happy to discover that most museums there are free. Here are some other ways to get free admission to museums.

59. Use Your Bank of America Credit Card

Through the Museums on Us program, your credit card gets you free admission to more than 150 museums around the country on the first full weekend of each month.

60. Check freeMuseumday

This schedule tells you when you can visit museums for free in Boston, Chicago, L.A., New York City, Portland, San Francisco and Seattle.

61. Ask Google

You can find lists of free museums here and there. Check your local museums online and you may discover they have free admission on certain days.

Free Concerts

When I lived in Traverse City, Michigan, I went to free concerts at the National Cherry Festival. Similar community events often showcase free performances. Here are a couple more options.

62. Check I Love Free Concerts

This site lists upcoming free concerts in the New York City area.

63. Look for Summer or Holiday Concerts

Many communities and organizations offer free concert series during the summer or around other holidays. Google your city and “free concerts” to see what’s going on.

64. Work a Concert

Being an usher or ticket taker at a concert is another way to get in for free, or even make a little extra cash while enjoying the show.

Freebie Websites

A lot of freebie websites have more ads than free stuff, or they’re full of old information. Here are a few I’ve found to be useful and regularly updated.

65. Go to Freebies.About.com

This is a good resource for discovering the latest freebies.

66. Read MoneySavingMom

This team scours the Internet for free product samples and deals.

67. Visit Freebies.org

You may have to pick through the ads, but you’ll find some good freebies and coupons.

Free Stuff Nearby

You can find various items for free in your neighborhood.

68. Check Craigslist Freebies

In the “for sale” section, click “free” to see what nearby people are giving away. You can even make money selling craigslist freebies.

69. Head to Your Local Library

Besides books, libraries offer other freebies. My wife attended a free poetry workshop at our library, and we get movies and music there.

70. Go to Rummage Sales

Many people put out a selection of free items (we did at our recent sale). Go early for the best freebies.

71. Read the Local Classifieds

Some small newspapers have a “free” category in their classified sections. Check paper versions and online in case there are different ads.

72. Attend Spring Cleanups

When communities have cleanup events, people often discard valuable things. My brother got a perfectly functional bicycle from a neighbor’s pile, and a few good chairs from other houses. Wear sunglasses and a hat if you’re embarrassed by junk picking.

Other Freebies

Some of the following ideas don’t fit the categories above. Others are resources you can use to get a variety of free things.

73. Get Into National Parks for Free

Check the National Park Service’s site for free-admission dates (about six each year). Great Smoky Mountains National Park is always free.

74. Try Mystery Shopping

Kyle Taylor has done 5,000 mystery shopping gigs, receiving free meals, movies and beer, plus making $8 to $25 per assignment.

75. Celebrate Your Birthday

Check out this list of 100 restaurants and retailers that offer free stuff on your birthday.

76. Get Your Flat Tire Fixed

Discount Tire will repair your flat tire for free. I’ve done this, and they didn’t try to sell me anything (although they might if they can’t repair the tire).

77. Get Free Baby Stuff

Babies can be expensive, but you can get diapers, detergent, formula and other baby-related freebies.

78. Take Hypnosis Lessons

Learn to hypnotize people on HypnosisDownloads.com. They’ll try to sell you additional training, but you don’t have to give a credit card number for the free lessons.

79. Play Multi-Player Video Games

Enjoy these free games both online and offline.

80. Review Products on VocalPoint

Get free stuff, from wine to cat food, in exchange for sharing your thoughts.

81. Try Stuff From Walmart

Walmart offers free samples of various products, but they don’t last long. Check back regularly to see whether there’s anything new.

82. Visit a Furniture Bank

If you’re facing tough times, you might qualify for free furniture. Check this list to find a furniture bank near you.

83. Go Camping

Visit FreeCampgrounds.com to find free camping opportunities all over the country. We once spent a free week in our van at a campground overlooking a lake.

84. Print Free Graph Paper

Need graph paper for a school project? Instead of buying it, head to Print Free Graph Paper, choose the type and size, then just hit “print.”

85. Get Free Stuff From Amazon

From ebooks to TV shows to video editing, Amazon offers a bunch of freebies.

86. Pick Up Freebies for Your Dog

Get free medical care, grooming, food and even swim time in a pool for your dog.

87. Learn a Language

Learn a new language to impress your in-laws or prepare for an upcoming trip. Open Culture links to free online language lessons for 48 different languages. Ads for paid lessons are mixed in, so watch what you click.

Or, try one of these other resources for learning languages for free.

88. Polish Your Resume

Locate the Department of Labor’s Career One Stop center closest to you for help with resume preparation and other aspects of job hunting.

89. Make Your Own Passport Photos

Take digital photos of yourself and ePassportPhoto.com “will help you create passport photos that comply with the requirements of your home country.” Choose the best ones and print them out.

90. Do Your Taxes

The IRS lists organizations that help you prepare your tax return for free.

91. Fix Your Car

Pep Boys will test your battery, check your brakes and rotate your tires for free. Some services require a Pep Boys Reward membership, but that’s also free.

92. Sign Up for Magazines

Get free subscriptions to a variety of magazines at Valuemags.com (give them your email address) or All-FreeMagazines.com (complete a survey).

Here are a few other ways to read magazines for free.

93. Check Out Free Art Friday

Artists around the country put art in the street for anyone to take home for free. They post photos and locations on the Free Art Friday Facebook page.

94. Get Ordained

Become an ordained minister for free online at TheMonastery.org (which claims to have ordained everyone from Richard Branson to Joan Rivers). Depending on your state, you could use your new certification to officiate wedding ceremonies!

95. Download Posters

Decorate your bare walls with hundreds of posters from FreeVintagePosters.com.

96. Order Pens

Fill out a short form and Bradley Pens will send you a free pen of your choice.

97. Help Your Child Become a Toy Tester

Working as a toy tester means getting paid to play. What’s better than that?

98. Go for a Haircut

Enter Great Clips’ Free Haircuts for a Year Contest or, if you’re a veteran, show up at a Great Clips location on Veteran’s Day for the Thank a Veteran event.

99. Order Cat Food

Cat food companies regularly offer free samples online. I recently got a sample from Friskies.

100. Travel

Volunteering is one of the surest ways to travel for free, and joining the Peace Corps will also net you an $8,000 stipend and future job opportunities.

Drink Wine and Beer

When I finish this post, my wife and I are going out for free wine and beer samples. Total Wine and More hosts these events every week, and they even offer free classes.

Your Turn: Did we miss one of your favorite freebies? Share it in the comments!

Disclosure: We have a serious Taco Bell addiction around here. The affiliate links in this post help us order off the dollar menu. Thanks for your support!

Steve Gillman, author of “101 Weird Ways to Make Money” and creator of EveryWayToMakeMoney.com, has been a repo-man, walking stick carver, search engine evaluator, house flipper, tram driver, process server, mock juror, and roulette croupier, but of more than 100 ways he has made money, writing is his favorite (so far).

The post 101 Easy Ways to Get Tons of Free Stuff, From Food to Movies to Travel appeared first on The Penny Hoarder.

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What’s in Your SEO Arsenal? 6 Skills All SEOs Need to Have

toolbox

There’s no university degree for SEO.

Yet, you’re expected to know a lot about many different things. This is why it’s so tough to define what a great SEO is.

In most professional situations, knowing SEO alone is no longer enough. You also need to have your fair share of marketing, business, and PR skills.

While some of these skills are luxuries, I’ve identified six things that all good SEOs need to possess.

Great ones will possess all of them and more. SEO is an interesting field because it can use skills from all sorts of other fields.

So, if you’re passionate about something that doesn’t seem immediately relevant to SEO (discussed in this article), don’t just throw it away. You never know when it will come in handy.

1. Great SEOs know how to get consistent results

As an SEO you know you can’t guarantee that a specific keyword will rank #1—certainly not 100% of the time.

For some reason, statements like that have led people to think that SEO is blind luck.

This line of thinking is completely false.

Yes, there is some variance in SEO. Some content will rank better than expected. Some will rank worse.

But in the long run, the SEOs who know what they’re doing will always succeed when it comes to the only thing that matters—targeted search engine traffic.

Put an experienced SEO up against a total beginner, and I can predict with great certainty which one will have more organic search traffic in six months.

Quality SEOs don’t rely on luck.

How SEOs get consistent results

When SEOs begin working on a site, whether it’s their own or client’s, they don’t just randomly build links to it or target the first keyword they think of.

Instead, they use their own proven system.

A system is composed of processes for doing different tasks. The more defined they are, the more consistent the results are.

SEOs need to have proven systems for all aspects of SEO. That’s the only way to ensure that all important factors are considered and that the best SEO strategy is chosen for a particular site.

In addition, systems are even more important for freelance SEOs. If you have a defined strategy, it’s much easier to explain to a client what you plan to do.

You can create processes for many things, but let’s go over the essential ones for most SEO.

Key process #1: Onboarding a client

No two clients are exactly the same, but you should have a defined overall process for starting your work with a new client.

If you’re working on your own site, pretend that you are your own client.

The main thing you need to do here is find a way to set client expectations.

Studies have shown that people are terrible at predicting their own success. We habitually overestimate our own assets and abilities.

Your first job is to educate your client and tell them what to expect from your work.

If they understand that it could take months to start seeing results, they won’t get frustrated and take it out on you when the leads don’t start pouring in right away.

You also need to let the client know your general strategy and work process.

Too many SEOs ignore customer service altogether and only communicate with their clients once every month or two.

Depending on the client, this can be terrible. They just paid you a decent sum of money, and they want to know what it’s going to produce. So, tell them.

After the first few conversations, you want your client to feel confident that you will do the work you promised and keep them apprised of the results at certain time periods.

If you are your own client, the same applies to you. Make your initial predictions, and then cut them in half to keep them realistic. This will help you avoid disappointment and frustration in the future.

Additionally, just because you are working on your own site doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t have a defined SEO work plan. You need one to keep yourself accountable and make sure that every part of SEO is covered.

Key process #2: Asset evaluation

The first thing you should do with any new site is to evaluate what you’re dealing with.

In most cases, you should compile a complete report of all the site’s content, backlinks, search traffic, and rankings before you begin your work.

This is important for two reasons:

It makes comparisons easy - Everyone has unreliable memories. You won’t want to claim that your work doubled your client’s traffic only to hear them say, “I don’t think so. It was always that good.”
It will help form your strategy - You should design an SEO strategy for each individual site. Depending on the existing assets, you may have the option of using different techniques in your strategy.

You might choose to complete your asset evaluation process before fully onboarding a client. That way you could show them some of your research and give them some idea of why you’re planning to do certain things.

Key process #3: Keyword research and evaluation

While keywords may be dying a slow death, they’re still useful and relevant.

There are tons of different ways to conduct keyword research. It’s important that you break down your processes as much as possible.

Pretend that you will one day have to hand off this task to a junior intern or some other inexperienced hire. Make it as simple as possible so that you get consistent results.

A very basic keyword research process might look like this:

1. Extract keywords from competitors:

Make a list of 10 top competitors
Put each domain into Google’s Keyword Planner
Download and compile all results into a spreadsheet

2. Get keyword suggestions from tools:

Generate a list of 10 high volume (>2,000 searches per month) searches from the Keyword Planner
Enter these keywords into (insert tool here) (e.g., Term Explorer)
Download and record results

3. Check keyword competition:

Compile all keywords at this stage
Filter out any with fewer than 50 monthly searches
Run keywords through (insert competition analyzer here)
Remove high competition keywords
Manually check remaining keywords and evaluate competition

That’s just a very basic hypothetical example, but it gives you an idea of what these processes should look like. Essentially, they’re detailed checklists with instructions.

Key process #4: Link building tactics

You will need processes for all the main areas of SEO.

This includes on-page SEO, technical SEO, and off-page SEO (link building).

One of the easiest ways to evaluate SEO’s experience is to ask them how many tactics they have tested.

Not all SEO tactics are created equal. Some are better than others.

Some improve rankings more than others, and some apply to more industries than others.

However, no SEO tactic is perfect.

Many beginner SEOs will find one SEO tactic that works for their own site in a particular niche and immediately think that they are an expert in SEO.

However, not all tactics work in all industries. In addition, as tactics become more popular, they lose effectiveness. Infographics as a link building technique is about half as effective as it used to be a few years ago.

Think of tactics as tools.

A master carpenter doesn’t use the blueprints for a chair to build a table. He has a variety of blueprints for different situations.

A great SEO is always testing different SEO tactics to find out which ones are effective and when to use them for best results (niche and situation).

Key process #5: Reporting procedures

A final process that all SEOs should create, in one form or another, is a process for reporting results. Again, this is still important even if you’re working on your own site.

The first thing that a report does is it sums up your work in a concise, easy-to-understand format.

If you’re working for a client, it’s important for them to know that they can expect a report every so often (usually once or twice a month).

Don’t change the format and layout often. You want them to know what to expect in your report.

That’s the main reason for creating a report, but it has a useful secondary function.

By its nature, a report will require you to quantify your results:

what work was done
how many links were obtained
how much search traffic grew
user metrics
and so on…

Although you shouldn’t be testing tactics for the first time when working on a client’s site, that doesn’t mean you can’t refine your techniques.

Results are your opportunity to determine your return on investment (ROI) and to look for ways to improve the effectiveness of your techniques.

2. At the top level, tools matter

Most SEOs approach tools all wrong.

Most beginner SEOs look for tools that will do all the work for them. (Hint: that’s never going to happen.)

Tools can make your life easier, but their effectiveness depends on who’s using them.

And as a beginner, you don’t know enough for tools to be useful.

However, as you get more experienced, you will recognize situations where tools can save you time and money. And the better you get, the more your time is worth, and the more important tools become.

Eventually, you may build your own custom tools because none of the public tools are quite good enough.

But let’s slow down for a second. You don’t need to be an expert for tools to be useful as long as you have some experience with SEO and you have a strategy. Then, you can find tools that can help you accomplish that strategy.

Since SEOs need to do many different things, you will eventually compile an arsenal of different tools.

It will likely include tools for:

comprehensive keyword research and competition analysis
influencer outreach
social media
sales (possibly)
reporting to client
email marketing

Typically, modern SEOs do more than just straight SEO. Most SEO firms have rebranded themselves as marketing firms with an emphasis on SEO.

In this section, I’ll go over a few tools in each area that are good for beginner to intermediate SEOs.

Keyword research and competition analysis tools

These tools will help you automate finding keywords and evaluating their competition.

I’ve already mentioned Term Explorer, but there are many other great options such as SEMrush and Moz’s keyword difficulty tool.

Outreach tools

Modern SEO involves a lot of relationship building. Reaching out to site owners and contributors is a necessary part of building relationships and eventually getting links.

Outreach tools such as BuzzStream will help you find email contacts more efficiently, saving you several hours per month.

In addition, you can use free Gmail plugins, such as Streak and ProsperWorks, built specifically for outreach.

Social media marketing tools

Most marketing plans (which SEOs may be involved in) now include social media marketing.

There are many social media marketing tools that will shave hours off your work per week.

Tools such as Buffer and Edgar can let you schedule posts in advance and in bulk as well as provide analytics.

SEO reporting tools

I’ve already mentioned the importance of having a process for reporting SEO results.

The good news is that you can generate SEO reports, or parts of them, using SEO reporting tools such as Raven Tools and Moz Analytics.

Email marketing tools

Another area of marketing that has crept into the SEO domain is email marketing.

It is by far the best way to convert your search traffic into eventual customers. You will need some sort of basic tool such as Aweber, MailChimp, or Infusionsoft.

3. Sandboxes are where magic begins

Architects that design giant skyscrapers don’t begin with skyscrapers.

They practice their craft on smaller, simpler buildings first.

And way before that, they build castles in sandboxes as children.

As an SEO, you don’t just start working on a site that gets hundreds of thousands of visitors per month right away. You start with smaller sites and work your way up.

In most cases, these are your own sites—your own “sandboxes” to play in.

Since we lack modeling software that architects have, the only way to see what does and doesn’t work in SEO is to test.

All good SEOs routinely test what is and isn’t working, or they have someone that does it for them (an individual or a private community).

Once you get a good grip on basic SEO (i.e., which factors really matter), you can start testing individual techniques.

And when you find techniques that work, you can keep tweaking and testing them to make them even better. Then, you’ll have something to use that no one else does.

If you’re brand new to testing, here’s a basic overview of what you need to do…

Step #1 – Pick a factor to test: All tests begin with a hypothesis. You should be able to say:

I think, if I do X, it will result in Y.

For example, you may want to determine if Google+ shares have an effect on rankings for new sites.

Your hypothesis is:

I think more Google+ shares will increase my site’s rankings.

Step #2 – Determine a significant sample size: In a controlled test, like split-testing an offer to visitors, you can easily calculate what sample size you will need (how many visitors will need to visit each version).

If your sample isn’t big enough, from a statistical standpoint, you can’t be confident that the conclusions you are drawing are correct.

However, search engine results operate in a very different environment.

In theory, if more shares improve rankings, it should work every single time. There might be some variance in how fast Google picks them up, but for the most part, rankings should increase.

So, while you definitely need a sample size of more than one page or one site, and more is better, most of the time you only need two to four sites to get a reasonable result.

The more important the factor is, the bigger the sample size should be.

Step #3 – Break your sample size into a control group and a test group: The difficult aspect to account for in your testing is the fact that there are many different ranking factors.

You could test a factor on two different sites and get totally different results because the sites have different SEO metrics.

The more sites you add to your test, the less likely this will matter.

That being said, try to run the test on sites that are as similar as possible (same domain authorities, same internal links to test page, etc.).

You’ll need to have a control group (no Google+ shares) and a test group (with Google+ shares).

In this case, you’ll create a new page targeting a keyword (lower competition will make the results clearer later on) on all sites in the experiment.

In phase 1, you’ll just have to wait. See where the rankings initially pop up and settle after a few weeks.

Once they have, you’d get your Google+ shares to your test group pages (however you planned to do that).

Step #4 – Analyze the results and draw conclusions: After giving the test enough time to run, which can be anywhere from a few weeks to several months, depending on what you’re testing, you can look at the results.

If you see that results in both groups slowly crept up a bit or stayed the same, you can conclude that the shares had no significant effect on the rankings.

However, if you see that most of your test pages increased their rankings much more than those in the control group, you could conclude that the shares you got did in fact improve the rankings.

As you start testing, you’ll understand why my example was a bit simplistic. But once you get the basics, you can learn how to set up better tests.

4. Learn, or get left behind

If you weren’t around in the field of SEO 10 years ago, you missed out on some things.

Those were the times when keyword stuffing, along with basic blog comment links and forum links, could make sites rank for competitive terms.

If you used any of those tactics now, you’d be penalized in a heartbeat.

Like most fields, SEO is always evolving.

Which means that SEOs should also always be improving their knowledge and skillset.

But they don’t always. You occasionally come across an SEO who is still talking about Page Rank and building forum links as if it’s some kind of a secret.

SEO is a fast moving industry, and you can easily fall behind if you’re not careful.

Testing, like I outlined above, will go a long way to keep you ahead of the curve. In addition, you can learn about how the field is advancing through other sources.

I’ll outline the main areas that you should stay updated on.

Area #1 – SEO news

SEO changes in a few different ways. One of the driving forces of the SEO evolution is search engines. As they get better at providing results to searchers, it gets more difficult to manipulate those results.

Any major search engine change is reported on the main SEO news sites.

If you’re not up to date, you might get caught off guard by something like the mobile-friendly update.

If your client calls you panicking about something, you need to know why it happened and how to fix it beforehand.

Even if your current clients aren’t affected, a change to the search engine results could impact future clients.

The main sites that you should follow (at least one or two of them) are:

Area #2 – SEO tactics

Link building has undergone one of the biggest transformations in SEO. Instead of using automated tools to create thousands of low-quality backlinks for you, you have to earn your backlinks these days.

That being said, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of ways to earn links. Here is a list of just some of them.

As I mentioned before, new tactics are always the most effective. As more and more people start using them, they become less effective.

For example, when infographics were new, everyone was blown away by them (“They’re so pretty!”). But now, everyone who owns a site receives several infographics with requests for links every week. The novelty has worn off.

New tactics, or improvements to old ones, are typically created in private. Then, they make their way through forums and blogs.

So, while you should keep testing things on your own, your time and resources are limited. That’s why you should follow blogs that focus on SEO tactics. Here are a few to get started:

Quick Sprout (duh!)
Backlinko
Rand Fishkin’s blog
Copyblogger (some SEO content)
Authority Hacker
Matthew Barby

Area #3 – Marketing education

I told you earlier that most SEO agencies have turned towards digital marketing, which is actually a pretty exciting change in my opinion.

Instead of just working off-site, modern SEOs get to be involved with marketing strategies and other parts of the business.

Digital marketing is a big topic, which can be split into two main types of marketing:

Inbound marketing - You create content that will attract links and visitors.
Outbound marketing - You use advertising to get people to your site.

And within those two types of marketing, there are many other types of marketing.

There are too many good marketing blogs for me to list here. But here are a few from different areas to get you started:

Content marketing – Content Marketing Institute
Inbound marketing – HubSpot blog
Social media marketing – Social Media Examiner
Conversion rate optimization – Crazy Egg blog, ConversionXL
Paid advertising – PPC Hero

5. Don’t ignore the human element of SEO

Depending on how old you are, you might already know the importance of networking.

This is most evident in colleges and universities.

Some students don’t get high grades but still end up with great jobs when they graduate because they know the right people, and those people like them.

Alternatively, some students ace every course but have terrible people skills and end up with mediocre jobs upon graduation.

Having all the SEO knowledge and knowing SEO tactics isn’t enough. You also need to have a minimum degree of “people skills.”

It comes up all the time in SEO:

when you’re asking influencers and site owners for links
when you’re interacting with your readers
when you’re training interns, freelancers, or support staff on what you need done

I’m not saying that you need to be extremely outgoing and likeable to be a successful SEO, but you can’t be completely unlikeable either.

If speaking isn’t your strong suit, that’s not a problem. Most SEO work is done online, in text.

For example, if you’re training someone to write guest posts for you or a client, you need to be able to communicate your ideas clearly in a guide.

A great example of that is Boost Blog Traffic’s guest posting guidelines:

They spell out what they’re looking for, and they tell you how you can make it work for both you and them.

There are a variety of ways to learn communication and social skills, but here are three books that are must reads for people in just about any field.

How to Win Friends and Influence People. This book, written by Dale Carnegie, should be mandatory reading in all schools. He breaks down how to connect with people and often does it in the context of sales, which is particularly useful in many aspects of SEO.
Influence – the Psychology of Persuasion. This legendary book is all about persuasion. It addresses the question: how do you get people to do what you want them to do? There are obvious implications for SEO. When you’re asking for a link, guest posting opportunity, or any other favor, you want to be as persuasive as possible. In addition, if you’re helping with sales, knowing how to influence buyers is necessary. While there are some quick “hacks” in the book, it’s not really about tricking people. It’s about framing your request in such a way that it would make sense for someone to want to help you.
The Charisma Myth: How Anyone Can Master the Art and Science of Personal Magnetism: Almost all leaders are charismatic. While most think that charisma is something people are born with, this book proves that it is a learned trait.

Being charismatic will help you acquire clients and will help you feel more comfortable in a variety of social settings.

Finally, in case you’re not a fan of reading books, here’s a great post by Ramit Sethi on how to make small talk and advanced social skills. He breaks down a video interview to show you how you can learn to be more skilled in social situations.

6. Code isn’t just for nerds

This last skill—coding—is arguably the most intimidating.

SEOs aren’t web developers, nor do they need to be. However, I strongly believe that all SEOs should learn basic HTML, CSS, PHP, and Javascript.

HTML and CSS: By far the simplest place to start, if you haven’t already, is HTML and CSS.

HTML contains all the structure of every web page, while CSS applies styling (formatting) to the page to make it look nice.

As a modern SEO, you will inevitably need to edit webpages on a regular basis, and HTML and CSS is how you do that.

You could, of course, hire someone to do it for you, but you’ll waste a ton of time waiting around for them to do it if it’s something very simple that you could do yourself.

Start learning HTML and CSS with these resources:

Javascript: Web pages often have scripts. Scripts allow you to build in special functions and activate background code.

Javascript is the most common front-end (meaning website visitors could see it) language used for programming scripts.

You likely won’t have to use it often, but being able to recognize its basic syntax and functions is useful. Here are two resources that will cover just about everything you need to know about Javascript as an SEO:

PHP: The final piece of the puzzle is PHP. This is a back-end programming language widely used on the web, even if it might not be the best language.

In particular, you might recognize PHP because it forms the back-end of WordPress. It’s the language used to automatically add new posts to your blog pages, for example.

When you’re looking to modify a theme or fix an issue with a plugin, knowing some PHP will come in handy. Instead of waiting around for a developer, you can make the necessary simple fixes.

Here are two good resources for learning PHP:

Keep in mind that you don’t need to be an expert with these four types of code—I’m not.

What is important is that you understand where and how each of them is used on a basic level. It only takes a few days (or a few weeks/month if you do it only in your spare time) to get to this level.

Here is one more resource that has tutorials on all four of these: HTML.net.

Conclusion

Being an SEO doesn’t just mean knowing that backlinks are important.

As you can see, a good SEO needs to know all sorts of things, including technical SEO, marketing, and coding.

Determine how good of an SEO you want to be, and then work to build the skills to match.

If you want to be a great SEO, a highly-paid one and in high demand, you need to be more knowledgeable and up-to-date than almost all other SEOs.

It’s not easy, but it’s possible if you’re passionate enough.

I’ve included a lot of beginner resources in this article, but don’t stop there. Keep stretching yourself to expand your skillset.

Finally, don’t try to learn everything at once. Work on your skills one at a time so you can see your progress and stay motivated.

I’m really curious to see which skills most SEOs need to work on the most. Please, leave me a comment below, and let me know which part of your SEO arsenal you will be working on first.

Source Quick Sprout http://ift.tt/1g9wDam