Whether you are just starting a blog or have been running one for a while, you are important to online business. Specifically WAHM businesses need your assistance. Most mummy businesses are run on, as my dad says “The smell of an oily rag”. There is little, if any, room for a marketing budget. There is, however, almost always an item or two that can be given to you to use as a prize for a competition to help promote the business.
So bloggers and businesses can help each other. In fact I think we have a great synergistic relationship.
Businesses can provide bloggers with:
A featured post that you didn’t write yourself
A guest post on a related topic to your blog
Products to give away
Money through banner ads
All these things can help to both fund your blog and create interest for your readership.
Blogs provide businesses with:
Third party recommendations – your readership trust you. As a business we know that word of mouth sells better than any other marketing tactic you can name. If you honestly like a product and recommend it you will help drive sales.
Links – Links are vital for a webpage to rank well in search. Using my website as a case study for illustration; let’s suppose I want to rank on page 1 of Google for the key-phrase “cupcake stand”.
Now for Google to believe that this cupcake page is in fact about cupcake stands, they look for links that have text in them that substantiates this. There is nothing better than a link that says.. “you can buy this fabulous cupcake stand from Cupcake City. AND the words “cupcake stand” links to the page that is about the cupcake stand.
This type of link is gold, so if you find yourself working with a business make sure to ask them what the anchor text should say and refrain from the old “click here” link. It also helps if the link is in the standard “link” blue that we are all used to and if it is in a slightly larger font size.
I really encourage you to be open to working with more businesses. Be brave! If there is a business on facebook you’ve used or noticed then approach them. Let them know you’re a blogger and you’d like to.. run an article on them / do a product spotlight featuring an item / have a giveaway… whatever suites you.
It will help if you have a media kit that tells the business a bit about you and your websites statistics, but don’t be put off if you’re just new. It might mean that you really can only ask $5 to run a feature article instead of $25. It’s a start and your price can always go up as your readership does.
Glenys Power is a wife, mother to two small boys and the proprietor of the online cupcake supply store, Cupcake City. Cupcake City can supply you with lovely cupcake decorations, wrappers and more. She has also been helping other businesses with their search engine optimization for the last 2 years. If you would like any information on either Cupcake City or help with your own SEO, please contact her at admin@cupcakecity.com.au
Multi Golden Guitar winner Sara StorerTODAY I’m handing the blog over to multi Golden Guitar winner and mum Sara Storer. The aim is simply to show mums out there that, no matter what cards you’re dealt in life, we all share similar experiences. Even celebrity mums.
This down-to-earth country music star, who’s renown for her unique Aussie sound, is mum to little Harry and has her second bub due at the end of the month. Her latest single, Children of the Gurindji with Kevin Carmody, will speak to many mums this Mother’s Day. You can see the video clip at the end of this post. Some of you will already be familiar with Tears, a song which touched so many with its direct message about domestic violence towards children.
Kellie O’Brien: You’re one of country music’s newest mums. How did mums like Beccy Cole, Kasey Chambers and Gina Jeffries support you on your new path?
Sara Storer: The girls were a big help and a wonderful support during my first pregnancy and after Harry was born. I was on the road touring with the Songbirds… Beccy & Gina. Being mums they had heaps of advice especially about my future concerns of being a mum on the road with a baby. The girls also took it in turns of babysitting Harry whilst I was on stage or having a number of wonderful tips for those moments of chaos just before I was to go on! They (Bec, Gina & Kasey) were very inspirational and encouraged the idea that I can be a mum and a singer at the same time.
KO: What is the story behind naming your son Harry? Is this a nod to the retired buffalo shooter who inspired your first song, Buffalo Bill?
SS: It was just a nice coincidence that we named our boy Harry. Not directly linked to Harry the Buffalo shooter who inspired my first song but the love of the name and the lovely song it sings when I say…’ Harry O’Hare get out of the fridge!’
KO: You took time off from your music career to play mum to Harry? How important was that time for you?
SS: Well initially it was extremely important to bond with our baby and take some time to rest and recover from the big day! It definitely has been a challenge between balancing motherhood and career. Motherhood has been and still is the most wonderful thing I’ve experienced but I still love performing and being Sara Storer the artist and all that that brings.
KO: How has that period inspired you musically?
SS: Motherhood is so much more than I expected. It’s huge and has and will inspire many songs about my family. I have been introduced to so many new emotions and every day brings something new. I hate it if I miss anything and would prefer to see it all for myself… that’s why balancing motherhood and career is such a challenge.
KO: Your singles Tears and now Children of the Gurindji (with Kev Carmody) are very much centred on our Australian children; the latter from your experiences as a teacher in the Northern Territory. Has having Harry made you look at life – and children – differently?
SS: I guess having Harry has reinforced my beliefs and values about the upbringing of our children. We can change a child’s personality by exposing them to things that should never be seen, heard or felt. It’s up to us to protect them from abuse of any sort, so let us start in our own backyard… our neighbours and our students and our families and give a child a fair start.
KO: What one moment shared with Harry stands out most for you?
SS: One true special moment would be watching my fiancé become a big softy. When Harry and I have been on the road for weeks and we come home to Darwin and Dave meets us at the airport, it’s very special. The relationship between a father and son is such a lovely thing to watch at any age. And I see a big toughie reduced to a big softy in seconds!
KO: What do you love best about being a mum?
SS: I love not missing anything. I love the fact that my job allows me to take Harry on the road with me. I love that I haven’t missed funny things he has said and his first steps and triumphs. Of all the advice I’ve been given the one that I take seriously is that it all goes so quick and before you know it they have grown up. So I try to slow down and never wish to rush the day away. (Even though there have been days that I could definitely put into fast forward… and nights!)
KO: What’s in store for Mother’s Day?
SS: I have just turned around and asked the two males on the couch ‘what is installed for Mothers Day?” and the reply was…”When is Mothers Day?”I will be working on that one! Look, I don’t get too precious about those days… as in I don’t turn into a psycho and demand presents, but I do appreciate mums and what’s involved in the day and life for a mum. For example, today I have done 18 phone interviews as well as squeeze in four loads of washing, a quick whip around, this questionnaire and the days not finished yet! I think I will demand some chocolates!!
What aspects of Sara’s life can you relate to?
This post is joining in with FlogYoBlog Friday over at Where’s My Glow?
A rare photograph of little Levi during the first six weeks of his lifeTHE Sleep Challenge post for this month is being handed over to my dear friend and mummy blogger Toni. Toni is a SIDS mum and has so graciously agreed to tell the story of her little boy, Levi, to help other mums. Please grab your tissues, hold your babies tight and, if you wish to leave a comment at the end, remember this is an extremely personal story and please be respectful.
Afterwards, visit her wonderful blog Chick Chat where she blogs about being a mum, books and anything else she might tell you over coffee. To read more about Levi, visit Angel Scraps, a blog dedicated to inspiring others to scrapbook after losing a loved one.
Now here’s Toni’s story:
What do you do when you see a stall selling Red Nose Day products? I used to be one of ‘those’ parents who would turn away. I just didn’t want to know about it (you’d be surprised how many people hurry by, looking the other way)
Back in 1996, I knew nothing about SIDS. I thought it was the same thing as suffocation and I didn’t personally know anyone who’d lost a child to SIDS. But on July 22nd, my son Levi and I became statistics. He was one of 23 babies to die of SIDS in WA that year. One of 212 in Australia. One of 26 in July, 1996.
It happened like this…
I put him to bed as usual, but very warmly dressed. It was a cold day and the house was draughty, so I had him in my bed, on his tummy, on a sheepskin and with a doona tucked over him. Far too warm, far too covered… but I didn’t know that.
He `slept’ for much longer than usual and, eventually, I went in to pick him up. I really needed to go into town with my friend and get milk and bread. It was school holidays and the bigger kids were eating me out of house and home. Just a normal day.
Until I opened my door and saw he was way down, completely under the covers. I felt my scalp start to prickle and I threw the doona back. I could see right away that he wasn’t right. He was very pale and looked like a little wax doll.
My heart stopped. I scooped him up and he just flopped in my hands. For the tiniest of seconds I thought to myself “No! He’s just playing a trick on me!” but, of course, he wasn’t. I ran out of the house screaming, jumped into my friend’s car and we drove away with me frantically trying to resuscitate him. Although, in my heart of hearts, I knew it was already too late.
I remember briefly thinking, “Oh my GOD, I just left all the kids alone in the house!” but then I dropped that thought; there was only room in my head for what was happening with my 48 day old baby.
We got to the closest medical help, a doctors’ surgery, and I burst in yelling “Someone get me some help! NOW!”. Four doctors who were having their lunch, poor things, came running over and took him from me. They whisked him away and I followed them. I had to see what was happening. A nurse tried to have me come away, but I promised her I wouldn’t get in the way, and she let me stay.
I watched as those four doctors tried frantically to revive him, until at last one of them came over to tell me there was nothing they could do. I knew anyway. He was gone when I picked him up.
We were taken into another room to wait for the police to arrive. They were two young officers, who’d never had to deal with anything like this before and you could tell they were really shaken by what had happened. As for me, I felt like I’d fallen into some horrible B-grade movie. Things were dream-like and surreal and at the same time so very, very real and immediate. I didn’t know what to do.
I was being asked all kinds of questions that I couldn’t answer and there were no proper thoughts in my head, only this great loud bell, clanging “MY BABY IS DEAD! MY BABY IS ACTUALLY DEAD!”
After what felt like years, we were told we could go to the hospital with him (to the morgue, though no one actually said that word out loud.) So my friend drove us and I held Levi on my lap. We joked about what would happen if a policeman pulled us over for not having the baby in a carseat. Funny how your sense of humour kicks in at the worst of times. There were people everywhere, walking about in town, enjoying the afternoon sunshine and we were driving past them, with a dead baby in the car. Weirdest experience of my life.
When we got to hospital, we were met by my midwife. She was completely devastated, but so professional. She organised to take photos of Levi, which I didn’t want to do (not because I didn’t want photos, but because I didn’t have the mental energy to think about it) so she took charge and did them herself. Thank God she did, because not ONE of the photos I had taken of him in the past six weeks turned out, thanks to a faulty camera. So those are almost the only photos I have of him. Ironic, much?
We were able to sit with him until I was ready to leave. It was dark when I finally started to think I should really get home to the other kids (a friend had gone to the house to sit with them). So, after a lot of crying, kissing and cuddling, I handed my baby back to my midwife and left the hospital, with empty arms.
***
About a year later, I contacted SIDS and Kids in WA and met, for the first time, a bunch of other parents and the most wonderful team of `counsellors’ who gave me the ray of hope I’d been looking for. I’m absolutely certain they were the biggest help in healing my heart – just being able to share with a bunch of people who knew exactly what I was going through and feeling ‘normal’ for the first time.
Through them, I started doing phone support, attending meetings, workshops, and even speaking to emergency responders, midwives and parent groups. I loved doing the volunteer work and only gave it up when I fell pregnant in 2001. I felt it was just too hard for grieving parents to be faced with a pregnant woman.
***
SIDS and Kids has been running the Safe Sleeping Campaign since 1991. In that time, the incidence of SIDS in Australia has dropped by almost 90%. The recommendations they make have been backed by many years and untold millions of dollars in research by experts all over the world.
This is what they say:
How to Sleep your Baby Safely:
1. Sleep baby on the back from birth, not on the tummy or side
2. Sleep baby with face uncovered (no doonas, pillows, lambs wool, bumpers or soft toys)
3. Avoid exposing babies to tobacco smoke before birth and after
4. Provide a safe sleeping environment (safe cot, safe mattress, safe bedding)
5. Sleep baby in their own safe sleeping environment next to the parent’s bed for the first six to 12 months of life.
If you have any questions or concerns about any of these five practices, phone your local SIDS office on 1300 308 307. They’ll be only too happy to talk to you.
Please – don’t end up as another statistic.
This post is part of FlogYoBlog Friday. Please visit Where’s My Glow? for more inspiring stories.
