EXTRA, EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT IT! : All About Newsletters

In 2010 I am becoming more organized and have always wanted to try out a newsletter. Today, I did just that and I am excited to show you what I have found and created!

I first was inspired by TimothyAdamDesigns and his newsletter. He always has so many great tips and links. His e-mail I get is just text and links, so I wanted a little more color and pizzaz to mine since I am artsy and funky anyways.

I went to the Etsy forums and looked up a thread started by etsian, thecyclingartist, about newsletters and mailing lists. I hate using the word mailing list because it sounds like spam and ads. This is not want I want to see or read all the time if I am being picky about which newsletters I am signing up for.

In this thread, I founds two great sites to create a newsletter. Mad Mimi was the first mentioned. While it looks very cool and there were good reviews about it, I wanted something free to start off with to make sure I would stick with a newsletter and learn how to reach my audience. Their site starts off at $8 a month for the same amount of contacts I could have at Mail Chimp, which is the site I am using.

I have found Mail Chimp to be pretty easy to use once I poked around for an hour or two and sent myself a test newsletter. I am able to link my twitter and allow readers to share the newsletter via Facebook and other social networking sites! Now I am ready to send out my first newsletter, which will be bi-monthly and focus on featured artists, Etsy news, tips, and deals!

If you are choosing to create a newsletter or mailing list, there are a few rules and laws you must follow and can be found at the FTC site for the CanSpam Act Laws. Please take a look at these and make sure your newsletters follow the few, but simple laws.

I will be updating this post as I learn more about newsletters and read comments and suggestions from you!

Please take a moment to sign up for my bi-monthly newsletter. Check out my first issue and see what you think? Let me know if it is good, bad, or what could be improved. What do you want to see?? You can always opt out later. Sign up below or to the left side of my blog!

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Topic Talk #5: Pimp My Blog Continued....

DISCLAIMER: Ok, so before I share today's tips, I will first mention that in know way is "pimp" in my normal, everyday vocabulary. I am an elementary school teacher for heavens sake. I thought it would be a funny title (a play off of "Pimp My Ride" on MTV... if that show has even survived this long...). This comment referred back to one person who previously made a comment about how they will not use my advice since I put "Pimp" in the title.... come on... seriously?! :)

Alright, now back to those of us who would like helpful tips today :).


So, I must share with you some an awesome blogging site that allows you to have a fun background like you currently see on my blog as you are reading this. There are no sign-ups, no password, no catches.

I was in the Etsy Forums posting my blog links and updates when I clicked on the blog of Etsian poshpretties, (who by the way, has a really fun shop as well). As I was looking at their latest post, I noticed that they had such a nice background (and yet, was still using blogger/blogspot). I saw a small box in the upper, left hand corner, which led me to one of the best sites I have recently found for bloggers.

The Cutest Blog on the Block

Now just because the site has a cute name, do not think that it is automatically for females and those who like cutesy things. There are some great links, tips, and best of all, GREAT BACKGROUNDS! They even have banners that match your background!

For those 2-column bloggers, there are a TON of options. I started looking and trying them out, but then noticed.... OH NO! This does not fit the 3-column layout that I have secretly encoded into my HTML (which BTW, I know very little about HTML, which means YOU can do this too! CLICK HERE FOR THE 3-COLUMN LAYOUT). 

I then looked at the right hand side. At the very top, it had a button for 3-column layouts. We are now in business...

All you have to do is choose which one you want, copy/paste the HTML, then click "add a new gadget-HTML" on your blogger layout page. I assume this works for other blogs as well. In under 5 minutes, I was able to harmlessly try about 5 different backgrounds until I found one that fit in with my blog style and look. No mistakes, no accidentally deleting something important from your HTML code- ZIP problems.

So cool.... please try it yourself and see how easy it is!

For those of you just joining in on my blog, I have several blog links that are very useful to both new and experienced bloggers on the left-hand side of my blog. Also check out my previous "Topic Talks" here!

***Like what you see? Check out the new Blogger gadget, "Followers," which lets others become a follower of your blog and catch up on your latest postings. Become a follower of Art2theextreme on the left side of my blog!

Useful Links to Help Bloggers!

Welcome to those who have never been to my blog before! If you have, then welcome back. You might have noticed some changes to the blog today. I DO have a new format that I am working with and I am so excited to share some new sites with you!

Today I started a Blog Exchange in the Etsy Forums to network, link, and exchange!

Here are some things I learned while visiting other's blogs!

1. Thanks to TimelessPaperArts, I learned how to edit HTML to make a third column on my blog. I had seen blogs with this and was so jealous for the longest time. Here is the link they provided me with that gives step-by-step instructions!

Blogger Buster (widen your blog with extra columns)

2. There is this really neat gadget for your blog that can track where visitors live on a small map. I found this widget on the blog by etsian fede. 

I am never sure what gadgets to use on blogs because I hate having to get new passwords, usernames, junk mail, etc. BUT... the GOOD NEWS is that I just had to copy/past the HTML. No sign-up is necessary! You can even customize the colors you want it! Check it out below!

FEEDJIT

3. These are some of my new favorite blogs after adding them today! Check them out and give them a whirl!

fede-designs and textiles

Pitter Painter

Lani Blue

Ok... I think that is all I wanted to say for now! It is odd for me to post twice, but I have time to make up for and I wanted to share these links with you!

Please visit the Blog Exchange Thread if you would like to be apart of this!