This post is part of a weekly series, Fetching Friday, featuring the resources mashup, #FBCLContest updates, and a funny tennis video on kikolani.com.
The Resources Mashup
Here are some of the best articles I have stumbled upon and retweeted on @kikolani this week.
Blogging / Writing
- 101 blogs that accept guest posts – extremely helpful guide with PR 2 – 8 blogs accepting posts.
- Common blog SEO mistakes – 10 problems with blogging SEO, and ways to fix them.
- Become the blogging expert in your own niche by running a blogging course – using the 31 Days to Building a Better Blog course by Darren Rowse.
- Smashing tricks to writing eye catching titles – great tips on using numbers, slang, adjectives, questions, and controversy.
- Tools to find out what other blogs are saying about you – why you should be monitoring for SEO, sentiment, and reciprocity (great since WordPress doesn’t always notify you in a timely manner).
Business / Career / Finance
- 5 search tools your business should be using – a few were new to me, and they are good ones too!
- 7 reasons NOT to do content marketing – no strategy, no consistency, and no advertising are just a few reasons.
- 33 common business blogging mistakes – and how to fix them.
- Pros and cons of outsourcing your social media marketing – I consider the cons more of considerations including ways to ease your worries.
- How to stalk your customers like a pro – great tools for ecommerce sites or anyone who sells anything online.
- Dear Facebook friends, you’re doing it wrong – great commentary on the use of personal profiles, fan pages, groups, and the new community pages.
- Facebook privacy: what you need to know – why privacy advocates are concerned, how information is shared without your permission, and what Facebook has to say about it.
- How to add comments to a Facebook fan page – including finding your fan page id number.
- What businesses need to know about community pages – what are they, how they compare to business pages, user-administrated vs. Facebook administrated and more info.
- Fun Facebook page valuation with Virtue – maybe not fully accurate, but a good way to compare your page with others in your niche or industry.
Humor / Infographics / Inspiration
- How the world spends its time online infographic – clean visualization of what everyone is doing.
- FAQ pages – best practices and examples – elements that make a successful FAQ page.
- Do’s and don’ts of social media for business – nice infographic with important tips.
- Ugly showcase of military, intelligence, and defense websites – someone needs to apply to help these sites, stat.
- 66 fresh examples of single page website designs – although they are not the best for SEO, they are great to look at and easier to create for the design talented developer.
Link Building
- Why guest blogging is useless for link building – PLEASE read the entire post before formulating your opinion on this great article!
- 8 characteristics of high quality links – good tips on what to look for when evaluating the quality of a link you are eyeing.
- Quality links defined by Google Webmaster Central – includes two strategies that you should definitely avoid.
- The myth of volume based link building – what to say when clients want quantity instead of quality.
- Whiteboard Friday: we bought links and it worked – how the supposedly evil practice of buying links can work for you with the results of 3 experiments.
Making Money Online / Online Marketing
- 10 big lies of multi-level marketing – interesting read about MLM.
- Sing yourself to wealth with the Billionaire song – a fun, creative way to visualize wealth.
- How to write a product review when you don’t own the product – great tips, although I think I handled it pretty well when I did a review of the Income Blogging Guide course.
- Ultimate guide to A/B testing – find out what converts the best on your website to make money online.
- Excellent banner ad examples – beautiful ads and placements to keep your design beautiful while earning income from your website.
Personal Development / Self Improvement
- How to live a scriptless life – while you’re not given the answer, you’re given the tools to find the answer.
- Overcoming chronic illness and stress – an insightful post on overcoming struggles, gratitude, mindfulness, and 20 ways to take care of yourself.
- Do you truly value your closest relationships? A good remember on what it takes to maintain an important, close friendship or relationship.
- Push yourself out of your comfort zone – ways to expand your comfort zone!
- 5 ways to assure success – if you have trouble reaching your goals, see if you have these 5 things to do it with.
- 4 steps to take before using a personal development program – late addition – including that you actually need to use it!
Photography / Digital Art
- 60 examples of beautiful night shots – absolutely crisp and gorgeous photos of city skylines and natural phenomenons.
- 30 incredible long exposure photos – simply amazing.
- 45 awe inspring landmarks around the world – great photos of many worldwide wonders
- 40 superb Photoshop tutorials for attractive photo effects – find out how to turn normal photos into digital art.
- Photographing a ghost town – part 3 in a series – don’t miss the first two parts.
Search Engines / SEO / Analytics
- Beginners guide to SEO – a must read for those getting started in SEO by SEOMoz, just updated on 6/22.
- How to optimize videos for SEO – pretty detailed guide for YouTube and self-hosted videos, including how to get views and ratings.
- 4 search engines, ways to generate links – covers some interesting strategies for Ask, Bing, Yahoo, and Google.
- Adapting SEO for personalized search – a thorough post with a huge list of resources.
- The ultimate guide to meta descriptions – a two part series on what you need to know to get the best click through rates using your descriptions. Don’t miss part 2.
Social Media
- Social bookmarking for SEO – great guide to social bookmarking, including tips on the “social” aspect.
- How to compare your social media presence with competitors – case study comparing 3 blogs.
- How to use social media for lead generation – how to monitor, respond, link, and offline promote social media to make it work for your business.
- Getting massive traffic from StumbleUpon – a complete, thorough guide to getting the most of StumbleUpon.
- 3 ways infomercials can inspire your social media – yes, those late night things you watch.
Tech / Tools / Tips
- 195 social media measurement tools – huge list with a mix of free and paid tools to help you measure your social media enagement and results (plus another 101 social media tools if the first 195 doesn’t cover it).
- Secure yourself: backup solutions for designers and developers – great backup solutions comparison, including pricing.
- Top iPhone apps for website tracking and analytics – 5 apps that could come in quite handy for iPhone users.
- 14 free tools to reveal why visitors abandon your website – I don’t know how new or old this is, but the tools + information are a great resource.
- 10 Mac apps that should be on Windows – I concur!
- Twitter trifles: a follower conundrum – how to address a friendly non-follower.
- 3 new ways to use Twitter at live events – beyond just hashtags for promoting the event.
- Process for analyzing a Twitter account – 3 out of 4 free tools you can even use on other people’s accounts as well as your own.
- How to create screenshots of Twitter tweets without software – 4 quick methods using different websites.
- How to incorporate Twitter into your event – 6 tips covering the basics of getting some buzz before, during, and after an event.
- How to do #FollowFriday – late addition – great guide on effective recommendations vs. looking like spam.
WordPress
- Top 5 SEO plugins for WordPress – if you want to search optimize your blog, start with these!
- Backup before you upgrade to WordPress 3.0 – a practical guide and why you should do it!
- Thesis theme tutorial: customizing the author archive page – great tips + code.
- DIY WordPress: What you need to know about PHP if you don’t know anything about it yet – includes four functions you must know to manipulate your WordPress install.
- 8 exciting new WordPress 3.0 features – some good reasons to upgrade.
#FBCLContest Updates
As I mentioned a few Fetching Friday’s ago, there is a huge blogging contest going on at Famous Bloggers and ComLuv. Prizes are now up to over $3,500.
Your support means the world to me – my entry on how to use CommentLuv to promote your articles on networks such as Squidoo, HubPages, Bukisa, EzineArticles, and GoArticles (the article includes specific guides for each network) now has 91 comments and 79 tweets – and still needs more of both! So please show some love, even if it is just with a simple retweet.
RT @FamousBloggers Strengthen Your Article Marketing With CommentLuv Links http://bt.io/FVIs
More posts in the contest can be found on ComLuv blog and in this collection on Famous Bloggers. So please stop by and support your favorite articles and bloggers by stopping by, commenting, and retweeting. And be sure to get into the action yourself by submitting a quality blog post before the deadline on July 7th.
Funny Tennis
I’m sure most of you by now have heard of the epic Wimbledon match between John Isner and Nicholas Mahut that went for a little over 11 hours over the course of 3 days and ended in the fifth set with Isner winning 70 games to 68. It has officially broken 12 Guiness World Records.
For those of you who aren’t that into tennis, here is a fun clip of John Isner playing with John McEnroe against the the Bryan brothers in an exhibition tennis match. There are several funny moments, including the one of the brothers climbing on the other to poke at Isner’s 6’9″ stature. Enjoy!
Want to be featured in Fetching Friday posts?
Looking for some link love? Articles featured in the resources come primarily from people I interact with in the comments, and on the social networks. So comment away (DoFollow, CommentLuv, and KeywordLuv enabled), and join me on the networks below, and if your article/photo/video catches my eye, it may appear in following Fetching Friday posts.
The Fetching Friday archives – tons of useful resources on blogging, social networking, and more
About Kristi Hines
Kikolani covers blog marketing and blogging tips for personal, professional, and business bloggers to succeed in search and social media marketing. Kristi Hines is a 
Hey Kristi,
Nice Roundup. I really like the “10 common blog seo mistakes” Post.
Btw. There is one broken link “compare your social media presence with competitors ”
Thanks for sharing the links.
Dev @ Make Money Blogging recently posted How To Determine If Your Chosen Blogging Niche Is Right For You
Thanks for the heads up… just fixed it. Left out the http for some reason. That’s what I get for late night blogging I guess.
Another great list of awesome resources Kristi, and this time it is “slightly” bigger than the previous week
Thanks for the mention and while I’m at it, I encourage everyone to check out the contest that’s going on at FamousBloggers and ComLuv.
BTW, the post you wrote about Article Marketing is a killer.
DiTesco recently posted How Much Does Google AdSense Pay You?
Just a pinch larger, yes.
And thanks… that article took some time with the additional supplement guides. I think it’s a good strategy for article marketing though.
I agree that it’s an awesome list, and thank you for putting the common blog SEO mistakes one up there!
And I agree that your Article Marketing post was killer.
Tia@Blogging Guide recently posted Avoid The 10 Surprisingly Common Blog SEO Mistakes
Kristi, thanks for compiling these articles. Just saw that my blog was mentioned in one of places to guest blog. A great compilation of guest blogs.
Also, thanks for the link love and best of luck for contest. I hope that we both win
Gautam Hans @ Blog Godown recently posted How to build trust in your Blog?
Yes, it’s a good place to go for anyone looking for more opportunities on any size site. And good luck to you! I think there are going to be lots of prizes, so there is a good chance of that happening!
Good morning people
I wake up early to approve some expected comment on my blog, I have no idea why all comments are waiting for approval!!
I found the post about “Why guest blogging is useless for link building” very useful, I had to reject a lot of posts recently from those marketer who just to promote their businesses, I even wrote a post about this because I feel I had enough! I will publish it soon!
Hesham recently posted Don’t Be ‘That Guy’ when Commenting
Is something odd happening in your comments too? I noticed a few oddities in mine as far as things that were approved automatically that shouldn’t have been and things that weren’t approved but should have been, and one that I know I saw but seemed to have disappeared. Something odd going on in the comment moderation system.
Interesting this comment oddity. Have any of you guys updated to WP 3.0? Just wanted to know because I am still in a lot of doubts. Sorry for being off topic here, just curious
I feel another comment conspiracy theory arising. lol
Retweeted, good luck!
Dennis Edell @ Direct Sales Marketing recently posted Blog Network Almost Ready to Rise – Multiple Posts Coming Here.
No conspiracy, just a glitch somewhere out there. It’s not Akismet, because it’s between the moderation and approved comments. For example, I know I read a particular comment, and then I went to a different post, came back, and the comment (or at least that part of the comment) was gone. I read through all the comments looking for it, and it just wasn’t there. It was strange.
Perhaps it’s a WordPress 3.0 issue? I still haven’t upgraded from 2.92 and I had no comment problems today on any of my blogs.
John Soares recently posted 4 Reasons Why You Should Write the Sales Page First
I haven’t upgraded either. But all of the sudden, with no changes to my site, everything’s been running much faster too, so I can’t really complain about a few weird comment issues.
Thanks for your sharing Kristi! I always get a lot of great resources from your Fetching Friday Resources Mashup. I love to read the 10 Common Blog SEO Mistakes. I really learnt a lot from that.
Kok Siong @ Blogging Guide recently posted 4 Advantages of SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
You’re welcome. Yeah, that post was not just your usual “here they are” but also some applicable advice to fix them to, which is what made it gold!
Kristi, I really appreciate your section on personal development blogs. In particular, I think it’s wonderful that you have mentioned an article on Overcoming Chronic Illness and Stress, which is relevant to about half the population of America (maybe more?), but is not often highlighted in the realm of “how to be happy.”
Sandra Lee recently posted Irresistable benefits of meditation
Nice rundown once again. I cant believe there are 195+ social media measurement tools already.
Kristin,
Thanks for including my post on how to do #FF effectively. I appreciate it!
Eugene recently posted This Is How You Should Do Follow Friday (#FF)
Another great lists kristin,
Am going through the 33-common-business-blog-mistakes and 101-blogs-that-accept-guest-posts, to see what i can learn from it. I must tell you that your blog has so many good tips to help someone achieve his dream. I must be coming back to check on you.
God bless.
Valentine Belonwu recently posted Small Steps can make a Big Impact
Kristi,
I am always amazed when I come across a mashup article like this one where you have included so many useful links. Plus those links are all recent ones. I think I probably spend as much time online in one week as you do. Yet, I can’t see how you can come up with that many superior sources of information.
It is time I cleaned out my Favorites folder and started upgrading my list of them.
Kathy recently posted Shameless Self Promotion
Hey Kristi, yet another great load of resources, was looking at these night shots, makes me want to cry – I have been living off phone cameras for the last 3 years, and they are not that great at night!
Another stellar list, Kristi. Thanks – lots here worth checking out.
Deb Ng recently posted Should You Monetize Your Blog A Few Things to Think About
Thanks for including my Search Engine Watch post about Facebook Privacy.
Wow, this list is so awesome, as are all your other Fetching Friday posts. Kudos to you, I have no idea how you find the time but you always have the best posts, provide the best information, and even respond to a ton of comments. Wowsers!
Kaila | Vertical Measures recently posted Examining Site Search Results in Google Analytics
Another collection of awesomeness to absorb. Fetching Friday is becoming a feature of my week
lovin your work here, Kristi, and your blog in general
As always , great round up and I have a lot of reading to catch up on as I have not been online for a couple days (power outage). I did read your contest post though, very well done!
Dan Keller recently posted Top 10 Tips – How to find a Job on Linkedin
I found the business blogging mistakes article of particular interest to me as I noted some others did. Of course, this entire resource mash-up has a lot for everybody whatever your particular area of interest.
Ilyse Klavir recently posted Far From Bankrupt on Ideas- Artist Community in Lancaster- California Wins 2010 AIA-HUD Secretary’s Award
The tennis video was funny. I perused the link list an visited the long exposure photo blog article. Pretty amazing pics there, eh!
Colleen@Kennewick Real Estate recently posted Hue Estates Kennewick Homes For Sale
Hope you had a great vacation!
Another great list once again. Thanks for the link
I enjoyed the video as well as perusing over all these useful, informative and helpful links.
Andrew @ Blogging Guide recently posted Blogging Guide- More FeedBack On Our Free Guide
Hi,
I will be checking out some of the posts about blogging and would be retweeting and stumbling the article you mentioned.
best of luck
irtiza104 recently posted How to Help the Affected Wildlife of Gulf Coast
A few good articles in the roundup. Best one is the SEO mistakes. SEO is king!
Anthony recently posted What A Camp Fire Can Teach An Entrepreneur
Okay your list is intimidating. I adore it to the fullest and I was inspired to start a mashup type post of my own. Yet I don’t think it could come close to the freshness of what you do. I mean I would want different links because you’re awesome mashup already exists – I would cover a few different topics as well but my goodness!
I’m about to go look over the link building links, self development, photography and the business/career/finance set!
Keep doing what you do! Love it
Scott Webb@Small Ideas Develop into Big Things recently posted Online Business Secrets from Entrepreneurs for Entrepreneurs
I say a post should be at least 500 words and ideally not more than 1,000 as people tend to switch off. If a post gets to long, it’s better to chop up and do installments instead!
My mom had told me about the tennis match, I am glad you posted it I forget to check it out. It was really funny I will have to go back and watch it!