Blogger's Most Useful Gadgets

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Blogger has steadily developed several featured gadgets, fun gadgets,  gadgets to increase page views  and gadgets that monetize your blog. Hundreds of gadgets are available merely by clicking on buttons from your blog's design page. Some are quite random and others downright impractical, but  I've found the following the most useful of all.



To access any of the gadgets, just go to your dashboard, click on design, then add a gadget. After you've added them, just drag and drop them where you'd like them to be. Remember to save the new changes when finished or they won't show up when you click on 'view blog'.



A few of these have appeared in a previous post called, Gadgets to Monetize Your Blog.



Get Answers

This is becoming a very popular gadget on blogs large and small. It not only encourages your visitors to hang around for a while (increasing your bounce rate) but it also persuades them to ask and answer questions of your other readers. This gadget allows your fans to browse questions, submit answers, and vote on answers they think are the best. Soon you could have a regular community on your blog! 

Recent Posts (advanced)

Use this to show your Blog's Recent Posts. You can opt to show, thumbnails, summaries and other information like date, number of comments etc. This gadget can be edited to suit your needs. If you’re stuck for space you can merely show clickable links to the names of your posts. Also show as many or as few posts as you like. In addition, you can choose to display your recent posts as a drop down menu if space is a problem. I have both of these on this blog. 

Share This

This makes it easy for your readers to share your posts to their favourite social networking sites. I recently found out that my ‘Share this’ icons don’t work. They can be pretty temperamental. However, this Blogger gadget keeps on doing the job. It may not be as attractive as the popular ones on bigger sites, but it gets the job done. It’s also very useful for new bloggers who’ve got limited html knowledge. Just click and add. I'm going to replace the ones I have now with this.

Popular Posts

I've just added this gadget to this blog. I've always wanted to have it, but it was only previously available through a complicated set of html editing. Now you can get it with one click from your Blogger gadgets' page. People like to be a part of a crowd, so if you have popular posts displayed on your page, readers want to see 'what all the fuss is about'. They usually click on it, making your popular posts stay popular. You can choose to display a thumbnail, summary, and other information about the popular posts, or opt for a simply link to the headlines. Make sure your popular posts are all fully monetized. Remember that your regular visitors have already read and commented on them so you don't have to worry about offending them with ads. 

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Amazon Payments

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Blogger has made it pretty easy for every blogger to become an Amazon affiliate. From your dashboard, just click on Monetize, Amazon Associates, copy the code onto your blog's template and away you go!



But this is the easy part. Most of my friends, and indeed Bloggers I visit regularly are now proudly advertising all sorts of Amazon products on their blogs. It's so easy, right? This means that Amazon has got millions of us advertising for them, free of charge. We pay nothing to join - and this is the way it should be. However, do we ever get paid? Ever?



I've got an immensely popular article (Top Pop Songs To Sing With Your Kids) which comes at the top of Google's searches in the UK. There are 23,900,000  results for this particular search, so you can see the relative popularity of this post. (This piece also comes up in the first page of searches on Yahoo, Bing and Ask).

Now, my Google Analytics tells me that half of the people who land on this page leave via the Amazon links with which I've monetized the article. You see, when I realised how popular this piece had become, I went back to it and embedded links (with my unique code) to the appropriate Amazon pages. I linked to each song on the list with the phrase, 'download this in MP3'. There is no ambiguity. Visitors are told that the link goes to a page from which the track(s) can be downloaded.



Reason tells me that if viewers are voluntarily leaving to go to the Amazon pages, they're doing so to buy copies of the song(s). This particular articular was posted in April. So far, there are no sales recorded in my Amazon reports. Go figure!



I've been thinking about removing Amazon ads from my blogs. Of course, I'll still be keeping an eye out for great book sales etc. My readers won't be very happy if I didn't. Besides, A Blogger's Books is known for finding fantastic deals where books, writings and jobs are concerned. What I'm saying is that Amazon ads take up quite a lot of space on my sites. I could be using this space for programmes that actually properly monetize my blog. I have one such programme in mind. I want to gauge what you all think about Amazon Associates while I make up my mind.

• Are you an Amazon Associate?


• Have you ever been paid?


• Do you think you may have unrecorded clicks/purchases on your Amazon reports?

Please leave your answers below. Thank you. I will update this post in the near future and tell you about another programme which may be worth your while. 

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Barnes and Noble Halloween Book Sale!

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Barnes and Noble have always been one of the best places to shop when it comes to getting great deals on books.  They're  running a splendid 50% Halloween discount off kids costumes and books at the moment. If Halloween is a holiday you celebrate, this is a deal you won't be able to miss. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. This 50% discount doesn't end at just books. Browse a fantastic array of scary movies and games for the eerie season. Then look up the following:

• Halloween favourite books for adults and teens.


• DVDs and music for kids


• Halloween crafts for the family


• Horror DVDs and scary movies galore!


• Video games


• Featured paranormal and fantasy books, games, DVDs and CDs 

Make this a Barnes and Noble sale you grab with both hands because who knows when we'll see one like it again.  Click here for more details.

My Follow Friday - Success Demands Action

A Blogger's Books runs a very popular Follow Friday - blog style. Generally, writing and publishing blogs are featured in this section because this is - after all - a writing and books blog. Now and then, however, Follow Fridays picks out blogs from other genres that stand out from the crowd.



Success Demands Action - Your Self Improvement Blog is one such site. In their own words they're a 'Self Improvement blog, [supplying] unique tools, informative articles, inspirational quotes, [and] motivational videos. [They also store a wealth of insight] from some of the greatest motivators of all time!'

My initial attraction to this site was quite casual. I also run a self-improvement blog and I suppose, inevitably, our paths were meant to cross at some point. I quickly became engrossed with the material and fantastic advice offered on the blog. Posts are well-written and original. Tips and advice are all given with authority and a generous measure of professionalism.





I was very impressed by the number of articles on the site. Many blogs in this niche are very limited in the quantity (and quality) of posts they produce. This one is lacking in neither. I recommend a visit to Success Demands Action. I'm sure you too will find something to suit your needs!

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Writing Opportunities - Update

Don't forget that A Blogger's Books brings you a comprehensive page of writing opportunities advertised in most English speaking countries. I've just updated the page so get your writing submissions socks on.



I've found, among other things, a very impressive poetry site that pays $10.00 per line for your poetry. In the mix, I've also included a magazine which pays £200.00 for your photo submissions, not a bad job if you can get it!  Fancy writing verses for greeting cards? There's a site for you too.



Click on the writing submissions link and choose which one you'll write for today. Don't forget, if you find this writing opportunities update useful, I'd appreciate it if you submit this current page to any of the social networking sites below or to one of your favourite ones.



Good luck with your submissions!

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Blogger's Got New Features!

If you're a Blogger user you'll be pleased to know they're steadily improving the service to make it easy and quicker to use.

There are already several free gadgets on offer. I've personally hand-picked the top gadgets,  fun gadgets  and free gadgets to increase page views  in these articles.



Now Blogger has added stats, and an interesting Twitter feature. Firstly, lets deal with the stats.  Formally Blogger users were worse off than Wordpress bloggers when it came to statistics. Many of us made use of the magnificent service Alexa or Google Analytics provide. At last we can access very detailed blog statistics straight from our Blogger dashboard.

• Click on 'dashboard.


• Under each of your blogs' names you'll see: New Post, – Edit Posts – Comments – Settings – Design – Monetize – Stats


• Click on Stats and be amazed.

Your stats are grouped into three main headings; Overview, Posts, Traffic Source, Audience.

Post

Clicking on Post gives you a listing of all your popular posts from the most to the least viewed. You can choose to group these by day, week, month, or all-time by clicking on the boxes at the top of the page. Knowing what posts are popular helps you to plan future articles based around the same topic. This will help your blog to climb higher in Google searches because it will count heavily for one (or two) related subjects, which give potential visitors a more comprehensive answer to their search queries.

Traffic source

Clicking on Traffic source will show you three different lists. The first one tells you which urls brings the most traffic to your site (for the day, month, week or all-time). 

The second shows you which sites refer most traffic to your blog (again, you can choose whether you want to see it by day, week, month or all-time).

The last list tells you which key words brought most search engine traffic. These are all incredibly useful to a regular blogger. If you know which social networking sites send the most traffic to your blog, you'll be able to make an informed decision when determining how much time you spend where, and what to focus on.

Audience

This is self explanatory. Your audience (pageviews by countries) is listed here.

Twitter Feature

Do you often get a bit frustrated by having too many characters when trying to share on Twitter? Not many people know how to use the Twitter url shortener. Sharing from Blogger has always been a bit annoying because apart from the url, almost nothing else could fit in the new-update boxes. 

Well, not anymore! To make use of this new Blogger url shortener when sharing your new posts on twitter, here is what you do.

• Click on the name of the individual post you want to share. This is important. If you're on your blog's home page this is the url which will be captured and not the new post's.


• On the very top of your page is your Blogger nav bar. On the left you should see this:

                                    Follow, Share, Report Abuse, Next Blog

Click on Share and choose Twitter from the tool box which appears. Blogger shortens your url automatically and there's even space left to write a short message too! 

Here's some more about your Blogger navbar and information about what else it does.

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Top Selling Amazon Books You Must Read This Autumn

The autumn brings with it cold, dark evenings; perfect for snuggling up in bed (or on the couch) with a good book. Many people read books in the summer holidays, but I find reading a bit of a drag when the sun is up and I frankly, have much better things to do. I keep most of my reading time for the colder months, and they're now approaching fast.  Here is a short list of books you can get stuck into, whether you prefer hard copy or the kindle (or iPod) download variety. These all have splendid reviews on Amazon from satisfied readers. Have a look and see which one best suits your mood. I've included part of Amazon's review for each. Click on the links if you need more information.





Hide In Plain Sight







Andrea Hampton is used to the safety and security of her big city job. However, nothing will keep her from running back to her sister's side after Rachel is involved in a horrific accident. But helping Rachel and her grandmother open up a bed and breakfast? Ridiculous...and yet that is the position she finds herself in. Carpenter Cal Burke seems willing to help. Just what is going on with this rash of accidents plaguing the inn and its owners?



110 reviews 

31 gave it a 5-stars rating

Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games)











Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she’s made it out of the bloody arena alive, she’s still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what’s worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss’s family, not her friends, not the people of District 12.

493 customer reviews

218 gave it a 5-stars rating













Somewhere To Belong (Daughters of Amana, Book 1)











Johanna Ilg has lived her entire life in Main Amana, one of the seven villages inhabited by devout Christians who believe in cooperative living, a simple lifestyle, and faithful service to God. Although she's always longed to see the outside world, Johanna believes her future is rooted in the community. But when she learns a troubling secret, the world she thought she knew is shattered and she is forced to make difficult choices about a new life and the man she left behind.

57 customer reviews

22 gave it a 5-stars rating









Beneath the Clouds and Coconut Leaves







Extremism, now more widely termed, terrorism, is on the lips of every human being and on the front pages of the world s newspapers every day. But we still long for love and love still thrives. This poetic novel by Moncy Pothen plunges us directly into the forests and paddy fields of Kerala, India from the 1960s to the 1980s, describes the delicate and heartfelt awakening of love in two lives, and has roots in ancient Indian tradition. Can you forgive a terrorist, if he has participated in the murder of your own father? Like the heroine, Ahalya, we live in complicated times, where black and white give way to shades of gray, and in Beneath the Clouds and Coconut Leaves, we hold our breath to witness which will win the battle, love or hate?



5 customer reviews

5 gave it a 5-stars rating





The Shopkeeper











In 1879, Steve Dancy sells his New York shop and ventures west to explore and write a journal about his adventures. Though he's not looking for trouble, Dancy's infatuation with another man's wife soon embroils him in a deadly feud with Sean Washburn, a Nevada silver baron.

Infuriated by the outrages of two hired thugs, the shopkeeper kills both men in an impulsive street fight. Dancy believes this barbarian act has closed the episode. He is wrong. He has interfered with Washburn's ambitions, and this is something the mining tycoon will not allow.

39 customer reviews

27 gave it a 5 star rating





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