Resources

27 July

91+ Outrageously Helpful Blog Posts That Will Make You A Better Blogger + Biz Owner

Erika Madden   |   Blogging Tips, Business Tips, Resources   |   39 Comments

91+ of the best blog posts out there to help you launch your online brand, blog successfully, market yourself on social media, deal with clients + customers, and more!

If you have Too Many Open Browser Tabs Syndrome you're not going to like me for this post (as a fellow sufferer I know the struggle is real, so I hope you can forgive me) -- but I promise, there is so much insane usefulness here if you want to:

  • start blogging (for hobby or biz)
  • improve the blog/website you already have
  • start or grow your email list
  • use social media like a #boss
  • become the overall smartest online business owner, entrepreneur, solopreneur, infopreneur, etc.


So, despite the fact you're going to have 91+ tabs open to check out all the stellarness (just made that word up, thanks), what I'm saying is this: you're going to be grateful you did, my good friend.
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19 June

The Epic 21 Day Brand Impressions Detox for Digital Business Owners

Erika Madden   |   Blogging Tips, Business Tips, Reputation, Resources   |   53 Comments

Making an A+ first impression online is so important as a small business owner, freelancer, or entrepreneur! This free email course is out of this world helpful in improving your website + social media accounts so that you look credible + professional to potential clients and customers.

Hello again, friends. :) Since absence makes the heart grow fonder, I just know that right about now you consider me your greatest online love.

This month marks the Olyvia.co 1 year birthday -- wild, right?! -- and to celebrate with you I wanted to create something cool + helpful you could use to refresh your blog + social media accounts + brand reputation (and look 10x more pro online).

So, for the last 2.5 weeks I've been buried in InDesign + Illustrator + Mailchimp working (fun, but I missed you!) -- and what I came up with is this:

A 21 day free detox for your brand's online spaces.

(Henceforth known as "The 21 Day Brand Impressions Detox" -- because I like to make things sound all official like that.)

It's for new and intermediate level bloggers, freelancers, creative business owners, coaches & consultants, solopreneurs, and anyone with a personal brand online who wants to:

1. Make certain that their online presence screams "modern" and "professional" -- not "dated" or "amateur"

2. Do a serious, effective cleaning of their digital spaces so things look bright + clean, not dull or junky

3. Get a (virtual) kick in the derrière to take their brand up a notch, and have some laughs along the way (totally at my expense, I assure you)

Here's how to get started:
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09 April

9+ Smart Facebook Groups For Women Entrepreneurs, Freelancers, + Bloggers

Erika Madden   |   Business Tips, Resources, Social Media Marketing   |   110 Comments

9 of the BEST Facebook Groups for Women Bloggers, Freelancers, + Entrepreneurs

Have you ever joined a Facebook group thinking that it looked pretty darn cool, only to get in there and find an endless stream of promos + sunset pictures with sappy quote overlays?

Yeahhhh. Me too.

For the last 4-6 months I've been on a relentless search for "quality" Facebook groups to help me learn more + grow my brand. All I've (ever so humbly) asked for is a place that has:

1. No icky spam

2. Useful, correct advice

3. Helpful, engaged people



Am I being difficult here? No! And yet, for every great community I've stumbled into, I've stumbled into 3 more that give me that "ewwww, I just stepped into a late night infomercial while I was trying to find the Game Of Thrones marathon" sensation.

I don't like feeling so undignified + swindled (can you tell I take my Facebook forays seriously? :) ), hence the creation of this brief guide to help you avoid a similarly dreadful pick-your-own-adventure scenario.

(Ahem. You did read those books when you were a kid, right?)

So in no particular order and without further chitty chat, here are 9 of my favorite Facebook groups for women entrepreneurs, freelancers, and business-minded bloggers!
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14 August

50+ Of The Best, Most Beautiful Websites For Free Stock Photos (Because Risking Your Biz For A Free Photo Is Silly!)

Erika Madden   |   Business Tips, Resources, Website Design   |   104 Comments

30+ of the best free stock photo websites for your blog and business. (Regularly updated!) Nothing but gorgeous stock photos!

I'm a hopeless sucker for pretty photos. Especially of chic office spaces with colorful, curvy chairs, elegant white desks, and gleaming Macs.

Every time I spot them on Pinterest, I think about how ridiculously perfect they would be for my next blog post.

But, alas, you won't see them here.

Why? Because those photos -- which seem so casually and easily available -- actually aren't free to use. At all.

They belong to somebody, somewhere, and that person or company has legal rights to the exclusive use of that photo. It makes no difference whether they were taken by Penny Q. Smith for her obscure personal blog about thumbtack art or were published on KateSpade.com. If I used them, I'd be breaking the law.

(And could easily be served a crippling $8,000 in copyright infringement fines.)

My business does well, but I don't have large sums of money laying around to throw at random things like, oh, stiff copyright penalties. Do you?
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