Eat Blog Talk | Megan Porta

Timothy Ferriss packs value in his book The 4-Hour Work Week. Megan talks through her favorite 7 lessons gleaned from this classic business book that can help you to achieve greater success in your business: - Work less, earn more! - It's not about the money. It's about fulfilled desires. - Stop being a slave to email. - Try going on a low-information diet. - Outsourcing is life-changing. - Focus on the 20%. - You fill the amount of time designated for any given task.

Challenges are such a great way to build connection and trust with your audience. Denise tells us why and also how to do this. - Consider running a short, free challenge to start. - This is a great way to give your audience a built-in community. - One to two weeks is a good challenge length. - Test different topics with different times of the year to see what works best with your people. - Keep it simple and don’t focus too much on the numbers. - This is a great way to establish yourself as an expert and build trust with your audience.

Your email list needs your attention! There is so much value in nurturing your email subscribers and Matt Molen tells us both WHY and HOW to do it. - Your email list is an insurance policy against algorithm changes. - A thriving email list gives you a valuable way to engage with readers and also build your brand. - Matt talks through the EASY process of creating a quick start guide so you can deliver value to your readers TODAY.-Having a thriving email list gives you a valuable way to engage with readers and also build your brand. - Deliver value to your people by offering an opt-in they actually want. Quick start guides are a great way to do this. - Matt talks through the EASY process of creating a quick start guide so you can get started with this today. - You do not want to ignore this part of your business!

Micro-influencer programs provide a great way for bloggers to network and also to nurture their businesses. Alexis Watts from SideChef talks about why this is something that should be on your radar as a food blogger. -Micro-influencer programs allow us to lean on others’ partnerships, resources and knowledge. -This is also a great way to network with like-minded entrepreneurs. -These programs can help bloggers grow more quickly, find partnerships and have access to educational resources. Tune in to hear all the information Alexis has to offer!

Food photography is an ART! There are many ways to hone your skills in order to tell a more complete story about the food you're capturing. Jena talks us through a few GREAT tips and tricks: - Consider photographing a few weddings! This will immediately make you a better photographer and business owner. - Practice practice practice (then practice some more)! - Surround yourself with people who can teach you and encourage you. Networking is such a huge part of the equation. - Jena also gives advice for monetizing food photography!

Tasty style videos (aka "hands in pans" style) are still important for your food blogging business! Join us in this episode to get the HOWs and WHYs. - Tips about how to start making Tasty style videos. - How to monetize. - Be entertaining in order to stand out! - Use the "see and smell" concept to make your videos more appealing.

There are many business books available that contain a ton of helpful information and insights. There is no reason not to dig into a few new books that will help you grow your business. Here is a small sampling of our favorites: - Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller - Launch by Jeff Walker - The 4 Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss - The 12 Week Year by Brian P. Moran - Atomic Habits by James Clear - The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron We have 40 total recommendations for you so listen in!

Making our blogs, social channels and videos more accessible is a hot topic and for good reason. Join us inside the episode to hear a user experience design expert talk about how to make your content more accessible. - Bethany talks about the background of web accessibility and why it is important and relevant. - Add alt text to all blog images. - Jump to recipe buttons are a must! - Videos should be captioned. - Consider adding alt text to photos on social media, as well. There’s so much more information waiting for you in the episode!

Having a sustainable blog and business is so important right now! Laurie from Cook It Media joins us in the episode to help us figure out ways to stay relevant and sustainable. - Laurie defines what is required to be a successful blogger now and what the future holds. - Strategy is so important and understanding your brand story is crucial. - How influencers can better understand and grow their target audience. - Advice for influencers on how to build a solid content strategy.

If you have ever considered creating an ebook, this episode is a must-listen! Kelly's story with creating successful ebooks as a way to create a lucrative passive income stream is inspiring. Her goal: work less and make more $. - Do not wait until you are an expert. Get started NOW! - Find a topic by asking your audience what they want. Kelly has a specific strategy for this part of the process! - Kelly provides all the details, from pricing to length to marketing tactics and more!

Data is our world! As content creators we need to protect our data by storing and backing it up efficiently and regularly. Here are a few pointers from the episode, but be sure to listen for more! - Get AppleCare+ or other warranty for every laptop you purchase. - Business insurance policies can save you if equipment is lost, damaged or stolen. - Utilize the cloud as much as possible. - Use a combination of external hard drives and cloud backup services for properly backing up your data.

Food science and holistic nutrition are important pieces of our businesses as food bloggers, with all of the food we make, eat and write about. Giuliana has a passion for food and her perspective is inspiring! - Mind, body and soul should all be involved when we consider what foods we eat and share. - Everything that involves preparing and consuming food is a science! - Consider experimenting with ingredients and taking your audience with you on your journey. - See your kitchen as a science lab! Join us in the episode to hear how the recent quarantine turned up something GOOD and inspiring for Giuliana!

Jason takes us for a deep dive into creating free or paid courses that support our food blogging content. - The first step is figuring out what your audience wants and needs from you (this part is KEY!). - You have options about how you convey your knowledge. Free or paid video courses, in-person courses, articles or email series. - Put thought into your launches. Offer tiny bites of your course to pull your audience in. So much more inside the episode, including pricing and discounts!

Deborah shares her insights about how to manage anxiety, particularly during times that are extra stressful. This episode is a must-listen for food bloggers. - The magic "trinity" must work together for each of us to relieve anxiety: sleep, diet and exercise. - Morning routines and routines in general can open up mental space so you can manage other areas of your life better. - Remember that comparison robs joy. - Consider taking social media breaks to help eliminate anxiety.

Creating an effective editorial calendar is a VITAL part of your blogging business. Here are some reasons WHY: - Easy communication between team members. - It ensures you are delivering quality, relevant content to your audience. - It will open up time and mental space for other projects. - Eliminate stress that comes with last-minute scrambling to get content created and posted. - Organization increases productivity hugely! Grab your FREE guide over at eatblogtalk.com/editorialcalendar!

Create a culinary masterpiece using Anecia's 4-step process to go BEYOND the basics in your kitchen, using the ingredients you have on hand! Answer the following questions: - What's for dinner? - How am I going to cook it? - How will I season it? - Where in the world do I want to be (think: different worldly flavors)? Anecia has so many delicious, fun, inventive and clever tips for stretching your flavors and teaching your audience to do the same. Join us inside for all the scoop!

Welcome to the 100th episode of Eat Blog Talk where we take a deep dive into Christy Denney's (from The Girl Who Ate Everything) blogging journey. She has persevered through all of the ups and downs involved in the blogging game and she has come out on the other side with delicious, quality content and tons of raving fans. Meet us inside the episode to hear her secrets! Here are a few tiny nuggets to get your interest piqued: - Success is abundant! - Persistence and resilience are key. See you inside!

Many lessons have emerged from Caren's 12-year journey in food blogging. Learn important insights from someone who learned the important stuff the hard (and long) way: - FIND YOUR NICHE. - Work on the technical parts of the job. - Rich content is key. - Don't discount your old content. - Be authentic and sincere in everything you produce. - Caren gives GREAT advice for managing the ups and downs that come with the food blogging territory.

Join us in this episode to learn how Yumna organically grew her Instagram account massively and organically: - Consider hiring someone to manage sponsored work. - Only work with brands you truly love and care about. - There is a 4-step approach to dealing with the IG algorithm: quality content, time on content, consistency and community. - Consume and create for success! - IG stories secrets are tucked inside the episode, too! You do NOT want to miss this one!

Managing stress and staying productive is important any time, but especially during uncertain and challenging times. Suzy gives us her best advice on this topic: - Routines will likely change and we have to be ok with this. Have grace with yourself! - Be flexible and don't borrow someone else's path. - When frazzled, always go back to your niche to refocus. - Pivot and figure out how to do business differently. - Be strategic and create for the future when things will be better.