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15 of the Most Influential Bloggers and What You Can Learn From Them

May 30, 2024May 30, 2024 by Adam Oakley

Work until you will no longer have to introduce yourself! This is arguably one of the best pieces of advice that you will ever receive while working hard to grow your business. Next thought: could a blog simplify your efforts and support your boldest ambitions? The success stories of today’s best-loved influencers in the content industry show that a blog is an invaluable asset that can bring you money and fame in the long run. Let’s look at how they did just that! 15 Bloggers Who Prove That Content Success Is Just Around the Corner Some of the most influential bloggers of the moment demonstrate that inspiring strings of words can consolidate businesses, change mindsets and turn losses into profits. Here are 15 prominent, brilliant people who master the art of business blogging. 1. Noah Kagan. Noah Kagan of okdork.com is the founder of two multi-million businesses, successful blogger and Tacodeli lover. His blog is an excellent source of inspiration for those who are looking forward to revamping their content strategy and putting their talent and excellent writing skills to good use to supplement their income. Posts like What I’ve Learned about Email Marketing after Losing $135,000 a Day are educational, information-rich and tailored to the needs of readers who wish to reduce their losses and boost their productivity in the content industry. Whether you want to learn how to grow your email list or improve your writing, Kagan’s expert advice will guide you in the right direction. 2. Darren Rowse. As a former minister with a plethora of interests, including food, reading, movies, wine and photography, Darren Rowse has what it takes to fit the profile of a successful blogger. Rowse is the founder of multiple blog networks and blogs, including ProBlogger.net and b5media. 3. Pat Flynn. Pat Flynn from www.smartpassiveincome.com can teach you everything you need to know about foolproof ways of making passive income. If you also want to hear the ka-ching sound effect while resting on your couch with your laptop on your lap, follow Flynn and find out how he managed to make 3 million dollars over the course of six years by creating websites that target different niches. An interview published by Forbes reveals some of his well-kept secrets: he surprises his audience with well-written informative materials that answer their daily questions. By providing digital books and other freebies, Flynn keeps his readers coming back for more time after time. 4. Neil Patel. Neil Patel is a Seattle-based angel investor, entrepreneur and analytics specialist. As the founder of Crazy Egg and KISSmetrics, Patel gives SEO/blogging tips meant to help small business owners succeed where others have failed. Patel takes his relationship with his readers/potential clients to a whole new level by introducing a new option: Reserve Neil Online. At a touch of a button, you can schedule a confidential discussion with Neil Patel and discover the secrets of the entrepreneur who has turned multiple blogs into a successful online business. 5. Seth Godin. Godin is an overall genius: author, entrepreneur, marketer, and public speaker.The sky is the limit when it comes to inventorying the number of things that you could learn from this extraordinary multitasker. Land on his website, check out his blog, fall in love with his newest bestseller entitled What to Do When It’s Your Turn, and don’t forget to take a glance at the section entitled “Free Stuff.” In this corner, you’ll be able to download and analyze manifestos, PDFs and ebooks for free. For instance, The Bootstrapper’s Bible is available for free for a limited period of time and teaches you for to start a business when you have no money in your pockets. Download, read and apply. 6. Matt Marshall. Matt Marshall is the Founder and CEO of VentureBeat. For almost a decade now, VentureBeat has made a name for itself as a leading source of information delivering fresh news that can help tech enthusiasts, entrepreneurs and executives make smarter decisions. Basically, this premium resource that attracts around 7.5 million unique visitors each month gives you the chance to discover and understand all the novelty factors associated with various technology trends, ranging from games and health tech to mobile and social media. Marshall signs a series of interesting must-read articles that will automatically catch your eye, especially if you’re interested in the tech innovation and entrepreneurial field. 7. Rand Fishkin. Fishkin is the Founder of Moz and Co-Founder of Inbound.org. His blog gets thousands of views and shares, besides all the traction his amazing company Moz has had. He’s also a celebrated speaker at events like PubCon, and a well-read author. His Whiteboard Fridays are some of the best visually done weekly vlog-casts on the web. 8. Matt Cutts. Everybody knows Cutts as the voice of Google. He isn’t the most awesome blogger (sporadic posts, all over the board on topics) but he is definitely highly followed and read. Maybe because he works at Google—just a guess. 9. Gina Trapani. Gina Marie Trapani is the CEO and Founder of Lifehacker. She is also a reputable web developer, writer and tech blogger and the author of several bestselling books that deserve a spot on your nightstand, including Lifehacker: 88 Tech Tricks to Turbocharge Your Day and Upgrade Your Life. She is constantly active on social media platforms and spends most of her day podcasting and coding. Trapani is also the proud co-founder of ThinkUp, a brilliant app allowing you to picture your online self by offering you daily insights that you wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else. In case you’re interested, note that this handy tool comes with a 14-day free trial. 10. Pauline Cabrera. Pauline Cabrera is the founder of www.twelveskip.com, a popular blog on all things Internet Marketing. TwelveSkip is a top-rated resource whose purpose is to address the problems and concerns experienced by small business owners striving to boost their online visibility. Delivering a mix of quality information on content marketing, blogging, affiliate marketing and visual marketing, this blog also provides countless practical tips, educational … Read more

Our Editor Went to the Digital Summit Detroit 2019 Conference: Top 3 Insights

December 31, 2020October 22, 2019 by Jillian

This is a guest blog from our staff editor, Jillian. Ah, marketing conferences! If you’re anything like me—you cherish these days away from the office to soak up as much knowledge as possible (while also frantically writing notes and wishing the speaker stayed on the slide for one second longer). It’s an adrenaline rush like no other. Why are marketing conferences so great? It’s the one time where hundreds of professionals line up to collaborate, share insights, and seek advice from each other to help grow and push the limits of what more can be done to improve digital strategy. The Digital Summit in Detroit, MI was a fantastic event that hosted marketers across Michigan and surrounding states. It offered a conglomeration of thought-leadership and application-based seminars on various topics like content marketing, UX + design, social media, mobile strategy, and more. Alongside working as a part-time staff editor at Express Writers, my day job is in the B2B finance industry, so I loved the fact that I could choose bits and pieces of different marketing strategy sessions to take back with me as I returned to work. With Digital Summit conferences launching across the country, here’s a breakdown of my favorite insights and moments from the week to help breakdown what I learned. Rand Fishkin, Seth Godin, and Dennis Rodman: Main Takeaways I Couldn’t Escape [bctt tweet=”Our staff editor, Jillian, went to Digital Summit in Detroit this year. Learn her top three insights while at the event Plus, catch highlights from speakers like @randfish, @ThisIsSethsBlog, @dennisrodman and more!” username=”ExpWriters”] The summit had an eclectic mix of digital marketers known throughout the industry and local Michigan-based pioneers. I enjoyed this combination because not only do I want to learn from top trailblazers that have a larger scope on where trends are moving, but I also want to hear from those who are invested in my city. The keynote speakers, Rand Fishkin and Seth Godin, were exceptional and delivered insights that were both action-packed and focused on the future. Seth Godin called his keynote a ‘multi-part rant’ and it was refreshing. Dennis Rodman… was Dennis Rodman. However, I thought his perspective of building your personal brand to be your most authentic self was on-theme with the rest of the conference. His advice to the crowd: “I don’t need to like you to win. Hate me or love me as long as I’m doing my job that’s the most important thing.” Dennis Rodman, Keynote Speaker Unquestionably, my favorite speaker was Rand Fishkin. His seminar and keynote ‘The Four Horsemen of the Web Marketing Apocalypse’ was incredibly forward-thinking by looking at how social media and search engines are interfering with web traffic and what marketers can do to combat it. Every speaker’s session seemed to be speaking towards the same common theme to create an experience that I could piece together and build a strategy on. A few top trends include: Working with digital platforms that kill organic reach Creating empathy and authenticity in a digital landscape Developing employees who are brand advocates Brian Fanzo, Fyre Festival: 10 Marketing Lessons Your Business Can Leverage Let’s dive into these top themes a little more. [bctt tweet=”Our editor, Jillian, went to Digital Summit Detroit 2019 and watched the top keynote speakers in the industry from @randfish, @ThisIsSethsBlog, to… @dennisrodman?! Know the three best insights from the conference. ✨” username=”ExpWriters”] Top 3 Memorable Insights from Digital Summit Detroit 2019 1. Working with Digital Platforms That Kill Organic Reach Have you noticed your recent social posts are underperforming? What about overall less organic traffic to your website? According to speakers, this is an epidemic many marketers are now facing. On social media powerhouses Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube, they want users to stay on the platform and strongly frown upon outlinking. For example, the only location users can even add an URL on Instagram is in the bio. Social platforms reward profiles who have high engagement streaks. Consider using a formula to earn brand exposure and new followers: Engaging non-promotional post Engaging non-promotional post Promotion post with a link Engaging non-promotional post and so on In terms of pesky organic website traffic, we have Google to blame for that. Google provides a searcher quick snippets of information so a website is no longer needed (think Google Maps, Google My Business profile, etc.) In fact, 48.96% of all searches on Google never result in a click. Yikes! To get ahead of Google and rank, the speakers suggested going after long-tail keywords and focusing on click volume rather than search volume. Let competitors pay the high ad price without benefiting from any ROI. 2. Creating Empathy and Authenticity in a Digital Landscape Things move fast in the digital landscape and we have about 8 seconds to capture our consumer’s attention before we get scrolled or swiped on. The presenters were focused on helping attendees not only create content that’s authentic but also build a credible brand DNA that consumers remember. Carlos Gil, What Marketers Can Learn About Social Media From DJ Khaled and Drake Here are a few memorable points: The conversation is more important than the like. Build relationships and create a community that is relatable because earning fans is far more important than customers. Invest in brand awareness at the top of the funnel and focus on organic traffic before paid advertising. It’s important to be liked and trusted first. Double down on a video and audio marketing strategy. Consider different formats like live videos, voice search, and podcasts. 3. Developing Employees Who Are Brand Advocates I thought this topic was interesting and paralleled with the ‘influencers who don’t influence’ phrase that I repeatedly heard throughout the conference. While I don’t think influencer marketing is going away anytime soon (it’s predicted to become a $6.5 billion industry), the average consumer is smart and tired of seeing ‘celebrities’ rep products to fake accounts. Kellee Montgomery, The Power of Employees: Your Secret Weapon to Amplify Brand Messaging What’s … Read more