Samples
Sample articles that I have written can be found below:
Tips for Living in a Small Space
Smaller homes and apartments are cheaper to live in, not only the rent or mortgage payments, but everything is affected by the size. You`ll be heating and lighting less space, so energy bills will be lower and there is less space to collect things, so you won`t be as tempted to buy. Despite what most people think, small living spaces don`t have to be cramped and uncomfortable. Here are a few tips to help make that tiny house a great place to live.
Keep It Simple
Cramming tons of furniture into a small area is only going to make it feel more claustrophobic. By limiting the amount of furniture you have in a space, the room will feel far more spacious. This can mean getting rid of your coffee table or opting for a smaller computer desk. Just don`t crowd yourself and make sure there is ample room to walk between all furniture.
Use the Right Colors
Light, airy colors will open a space up, particularly if a home has very few windows. But light doesn`t mean boring, try painting three walls in one tone and the fourth another shade of the same color to liven things up.
Color doesn`t just apply to walls, if the floors are very dark, consider either replacing them with something lighter or put down area rugs in beige, light blue or even light grey to brighten the room.
Textiles Matter
The texture of the textiles in a room makes a big difference in whether it feels too small or not. Light cotton curtains will make a space feel larger while heavy draperies tend to drag down a room. The same goes for upholstery, tablecloths and other textiles in the home. The lighter they are, both in color and texture, the less confined the room will feel.
Maximize Storage
One of the biggest complaints people have about small homes is the lack of storage space. This can be dealt with by ensuring everything has a dual purpose. Use a trunk for a coffee table and store extra blankets inside it, use shallow boxes under the bed or find beds with built in drawers, and use closet extenders to make sure you are using every inch of space. If you collect decorative tins, store things like pasta or napkins in them . . . don`t let anything serve just one purpose in your home!
Go Up
Since floor space is limited, you need to start thinking vertically. Opt for a tall bookcase instead of a squat, wider one. Look for entertainment centers that stack things on top of each other rather than put them side by side and buy a computer desk that is narrow, but has shelves above it. Also, don`t be shy about hanging your own shelves on the walls to add more space for storage. Kitchen utensils can be hung on wall hooks rather than stuffed into already full drawers and pots and pans can hang from a rack on the ceiling to save space.
Living in a small space doesn`t have to be uncomfortable or difficult. It really forces you to live simpler and it`s far more efficient. You`ll spend less time cleaning and more time doing what you want to do . . . all while enjoying lower energy bills.
5 Tips to Boost Blog Traffic
Blogs are the latest and greatest way to market your business, but without traffic, even a truly great blog is useless. How can you turn your lonely little blog into a giant with tons of blog traffic? There are hundreds of techniques, but some are far more effective than others and well worth focusing on.
1. Write quality keyword optimized posts. Unfortunately, many business blogs focus solely on the SEO factor and forget that real people are going to be reading the blog. You may get a boost in blog traffic, but the truth is that human interest is just as important. Getting other blogs to link to your quality posts is an excellent way to boost traffic. Think of it as word of mouth marketing, but it`s only going to happen if people like what you`re talking about.
2. Be friendly. This involves several things, including replying to comments that your readers make. People like to feel important, so letting them know that they are interesting enough to respond to is a great way to keep them coming back. Get out and comment on other people`s blogs, too, they`ll happily check out your site.
3. Share the traffic. Blog traffic is often increased by getting other sites to link to you, which will also boost your importance in the search engines. So, how do you get people to start linking back to you in their blog posts? By linking to them first. Many business blogs do a weekly link post where they link out to interesting and useful posts on other blogs, which usually catch the original writer`s attention and they will check out your work.
4. Stay on the marketing. There`s no better way to let your blog die than to leave off the marketing. Getting blog traffic is something that needs constant work. With that in mind, keep up a steady stream of marketing, rather than bursts of it and you`ll see far better results. Using social networks such as StumbleUpon and Digg can be particularly beneficial.
5. Hold a contest. You`d be amazed at how viral a contest can get when the prize is really worth something. Send out a press release, notify contest blogs and ask your readers to spread the word. It`s important to give enough time for the buzz to build up, but not so long that people get bored waiting for the contest results. This can have a huge impact on blog traffic.
While there are plenty of other useful methods of increasing blog traffic, these five techniques are usually very effective. When used together, they can be a powerful method of bringing in visitors and all are free, making them very easy to implement.