Wow....this is a ton of stuff. I have bookmarked this.  I know that I need to step it up a bit.  Thanks.

Larry - I know it looks like a ton even though it's only 7-steps.  This should bring "any" member up to speed with all the other outside blogs that have been created here on AR. 

As always, a wealth of knowledge here.  Thank you.

Patricia Aulson....Portsmouth NH Real Estate

Brad - this is an excellent tutorial to help set up an outside blog. I appreciate the information.

I didn't know about the contributor feature - thanks for pointing it out Brad!

Easy to set up, now I need to work on building some google presence.  The analytics option tells me I have a long way to go...

I really thought I had seen this post before. I must be out of my mind. Nevertheless, it's good stuff. I've created a readership out of my clients and prospects!

Hi Brad

Thank you for the information it's very helpful.

Good luck and success

Lou Ludwig

Thanks Brad, lots of helpful advice for us novices. I'm still massaging my new blog and need lots of help.

I don't know what we would all do without you!     Thank you for this very clear "script".     Will follow it.   

Great information!  Easy to follow instructions.  Thanks!

Thanks! I need to use my outside blog more.  So I am going to go through these step soon and get it looking better.

I have set up my outside blog but have found that I now have two - I contacted AR and they said that I am only being charged for one.  I had given my AR blog the name of my website but changed my out side blog (the one I pay for to a different name)  Now I am confused - are they both outside blogs?  If so I don't want to pay for two

www.sjrealestateblog.com is my outside blog, but sjrealestateonline (my original AR blog name) still appears.

www.sjrealestateonline.com is my website

Any ideas?

Now you have it going on.  Beautifully written for the internet challenged.....like me.  Have a great day...

Thanks for all of the  info. I am looking forward to sprucing mine up!Dinah Lee

You are a treasure.  That's for sure.  Bless you.

Brad: I am gung ho re:  my OUTSIDE Blog...with only one prob, as you know, I can't get my new header uploaded. Any ideas?  THX

Brad, I appreciate the information. I am looking forward to beginning my NEW outside blog! :)

Brad, I did all the steps.

Question: I pointed a domain I owned to it.  AnnArborUndressed.com

But in the SERPS it comes up the AR string and I want it to show up as AnnArborUndressed.com

If I type it in it shows up, but when I find it on Google it is activerain.com/missycaulk

How do I do that?

Brad, I must be slow or something..I have been in my blog, trying to create a custom domain name..and can't seem to get it together :)

Sounds easy enough. I like the idea of separate outside blogs to target different niches.

Brad - This is great information!  I guess I need to take the outside blog step...  :)

I have a few questions on my outside blog.  The first one for now is how do I change/edit the existing outside blog.  The outside blog link on the left is no where to be seen!  thanks.

Thank you Brad.  I love the new widgets being added.  I have to go add a few more.  I also love that I can track my blog through google analytics.  Great job.  Thanks again.

Brad, I was under the misunderstanding that if you were active before 2/16 this option was supposed to have been at no cost. Maybe I am totally confused...

Brad,

I recently set up my outside blog, but these suggestions will help me go much further.  Thanks so much for your help!

When you say you can have unlimited outside blogs, do I understand it as 19.95 per outside blog? Just making sure before I proceed.

Hi Brad,  Adding my thanks to the long list.  Question/suggestion:  Is there a way to print the tutorial without printing all of the comments.  Seems like that would be a helpful feature.

Brad,

Thanks for the input on your blog. I am working on getting my website put together and this is all great stuff! Thanks again and have a blessed day!  - Mario

Very nice post Brad.  You've put a lot of effort into explaining what could be a confusing task.  ;)

Brad, Great post, great info, I will follow up on this and see what happens. Again Thanks.

Thanks for the help.  All of this one place is nice. 

My outside blog has never allowed me to customize it further than the header image. Not sure what's up with that, maybe it's just me.

Thanks so much, creating my outside blog was on my list of things to get done...this will be my roadmap!

Thanks for the tips. I guess I now know what I am doing this weekend.

I just set my new outside blog up but I am having a lot of trouble with the outside blog.  It keeps freezing and not letting me scroll down on the page.  Also, how long does it take for my content to switch over to the new outside blog and would this be something that will automatically happen or do I need to manually do it?

Brad; Look simple.. will see if even I canfigure this out.... Also.. What Michael Said.....

I'm trying to figure out the best domain name as well.. Hmmmmm

Brad, my outside blog is complete. I appreciate your help and getting my blog up and running.  Not sure about the listing router..got to check this out.

Brad, do you have the ability to add in custom widgets or links?  For example, I have custom buttons for "search for homes" "hickory nc real estate," etc.  Would I be able to add those on an outside blog?  thanks.

Brad - I think I've done this already but now I have to go back and check it. Bob S. helped me through this the first time but I'm sure I can tweak it some more. Thanks Dude!

BTW nice shot of you and Jeff T. on Flickr .....lol

Bridget - both are fine.  Your website is still your website and your Outside Blog is fine.  www.sjrealestateblog.com is your AR Outside Blog and www.sjrealestateonline.com is still your website which has nothing to do with AR.  You can confirm this by clicking on the "Domain" link in the toolbar of your outside Blog.  You are only paying for 1 outside blog currently. 

If I didn't know better, I'd say you're just trying to get some additional link love here!!  lol~ 

Let me know if you need any help, don't be confused, I got ya covered!  :-)

I think I'm halfway through these steps.  Thanks for the post Brad.  I definitely need to make time to finish mine up so I can maximize it's effect.

Thanks for sharing this great information...I need to get busy with this.

Brad: I need to learn more and explore your STEP #7 for my Outside blog.   Hmmmm, something to think about and talk about.

Brad, great tutorial with a lot of good information. I'm sure I'll be referring to it in the next few days when I sign up for my outside blog. I also want to take a minute to thank you for helping my son (Johnathan) this morning with his account dilemma. It was very nice of you and I just wanted you to know that I really appreciate it.

I need to sit down and tweak on that thing for a while...  So much to do...

Thank you Brad for the step by step. I've been wanting to upgrade my blog and need to take the time to do it.  Thanks again.

Thanks for the information! And it's ~$20 a month per outside blog?

WOW Brad, I guess I need to get my arms around this better. A few months ago, I was invited to have a free outside blog ( top 500). I recall having an outside blog but I think this is different.  I was away most of that time and wondered what that was. Is this the outside blog  you are referring to? I have never see this before. I wonder if that offer still holds, :-)?

I'm so confused!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  But I did bookmark this.  I just signed up for Market Leader and this is my next step.

I've done most of this, but my biggest problem is that I'm still not getting the tags from the Active Rain channels I put in my posts.  Can you tell me what I'm doing wrong?  Thanks,

Kat - your header looks fine now.

Missy - not sure if it takes Google awhile to do that or if you have to set something up.  Can you ask Jorgen or Bob?  They rock that stuff.

Konnie - call me in the morning and I'll walk you through it, or just follow "Step 3" very carefully.  Here to help if you need me.

John - niches are a great reason to have multiple outside Blogs.  You can have unlimited right here on AR. 

Joan - yours is located on your "My Home" page and the link is just below ActiveRain and Localism on the left sidebar.  Here's the link I pulled right from your page. http://nhbuyerrep.activerain.com/ Now we just need to get you a domain name and dress up a couple things and you're good to go.

Michael - your Rainmaker membership was grandfathered.  The Outside blogs are seperate and not included in that.  I also left you a VM.

Joe - YES.  That is per outside blog.  Remember if you have multiple contributors, those fees can also be split amongst authors.  fyi...

Bill - great idea, I will create a .pdf file you can download and print minus all the comments.  I'll add it in the next comment.  :-)

Bill - here is a .pdf file I created for you and others to print if you need.  There are no comments attached to this powerpoint pdf.

How To Setup and Maximize Your ActiveRain Outside Blogs

Great Idea, thanks again for thinking of it!!  :-)

great post, thanks for the info.

Thank you for the information. I am going to have to print this out and take some serious time to get it right.

Thanks for once again providing invaluable information.   I've bookmarked this to absorb it at a slower pace. 

Interesting and informative as usual.   I haven't done outside blogs yet.  Not sure I will doesn't it cost?What is the guarantee...if any?

Portsmouth NH Real Estate

How do I link An Outside blog I already have set up with WordPress? Polkcoutywire.com

Dee Norris Brokers realty of CFI

Brad... thank you so much. I started my OB a long time ago, but never got it going. Wish I had this back then.  You are such a ray of sunshine on this channel ;)

Brad, thanks so much for this post!. I just have one dumb question. Right now I have a link on my website to my AR blog. Does this give me any Google juice?

Alright Brad, after reading several posts you've written about the outside blogs I finally signed up. I figured you were never going to stop posting about it until I signed up....now you can stop!! Ha ha

Your tutorials are very informative and I appreciate the help because when it comes to the bolts and wires I can handle it but the domains and URLs and FTPs and SEO I just don't get it.

I appreciate you sharing all this. I must say, I get so overwhelmed though with all of the blog sites, and maximizing the SEO of each of them. If I spend too much time on all that, I lose time picking up the phone and connecting with people. A lot of these blog upgrades I think are a bit much.

Sorry guys, been chasing comments today while they're getting the comment email notifications corrected. 

Apparently there are a few of us not getting emails when comments are made on Blog posts. 

Brad,

Now that it is all laid out there I guess I have to get cracking on this. Looks like this is the mother of all tutorials on Outside Blogs.

JL - columbiascrealesateblog.com looks fine.  You can customize your Blog more... add a sidebar image, include some widgets etc.  Just make sure you're logged in so you'll have those options.  Let me know if you need some help.

Christine and Jennifer - in most cases, your content is automatically pulled over to your outside Blog.  I just checked your outside blog and it didn't freeze, but I didn't see all your posts there.  You can either pull them over manually, or create a new one and have it pull them for you.  I can get your account credited if that's the case, just let me know.

Roland - hahaha!!  Coming up with a good domain name is the hardest part of the whole process, sorry, didn't mean to laugh.  :-)

Roger - you will be able to add those types of widgets shortly.  We just added a text widget that let's you do some image linking, but not like the HTML widget they're adding next.  It's coming. You could setup your listing router now to search for homes and drive traffic to your IDX site or your "search for homes" page until the new widget arrives. 

Bob - that is a crazy picture of me and Jeff Turner.  My flickr widget is like playing roulette!!  lol~

Brad,

I would like to see you expand on the issue of multiple Blogs. I now have multiple blogs and they are directed to different aspects of my market, but managing them is onorous.

Regardless of where blogs are hosted, the issue of multiple blogs is one that deserves some attention.

Christine - there's a lot of power and benefit in that there #7.  I think it's the wave of the future.  Just think about it....    :-)

Suesan - helping Jon was not a problem at all, happy to do it.  Thanks.

Linda - it's $19 for each additional as well.  If you have multiple authors and contributors, it can be even less if split evenly.

William - you'll find that link to your outside on your "My Home" page over on the left hand side.  Let me know if you need some help.

Gene - I wrote this post so you WOULDN'T be confused.  After you graduate from Market Leader, I'd be happy to help you set one of these up, just let me know when you're ready. 

Christine - When you create a new post, the categories on your sidebar are NOT coming from the tags or keywords, they come from the topics.  Be sure you put a check mark in the "Channels Area" and also be sure to add a "Topic" as those are what will show on your outside Blog.  Hope that helps.

Alice and Jim - I added a link to the bottom of this post so you could print out the instructions without all these comments.  It's a pdf file created from powerpoint.  You can also open it in a separate window if that makes it easier.

Patricia - they come with a lifetime warranty.  :-)))  You are under no obligation whatsoever.  Try it for 90-180 days and see if it works for you, if not, you can cancel it at anytime.  I guarantee your success if you can guarantee your content.  :-)

Dee - you currently cannot link your AR Blog to a Wordpress Blog or visa-versa.  Nor would I see a reason to unless you wanted one to replace the other.  Maybe I'm not clear on what you're trying to accomplish.  You can have as RSS feed on either Blog which promotes the other, or links, but that's the extent of it right now.  That may change in the future.

Michael - not sure about the google juice with your links,  but it sure can't hurt in driving traffic and visitors to your site.  I'm not the SEO expert, in fact I'm not sure if there is such a thing.  Many claim to be the SEO experts, but I've seen some folks fall pretty hard when following the bad advice of a so-called "expert".

Steve - that's exactly what I had in mind.  This will be my last post on outside blogs.....  until the next upgrade or enhancement! lol~  You help me with my bolts and wiring, and I'll help you with your Blog.  :-)

Team Carroll - nice thing about being on AR is that alot of that is already taken care of for you. Content is the key to much more than just SEO.  See Dustin Luthers most recent post on SEO.  Pretty good stuff if you ask me.

Esko - this is the mutha of all tutorials, at least those I've written.  lol~

Kathy - Great idea, maybe I'll write a post about that.  I'll call it "Multiple Blogs & Having A Life" or "Time Management & Having A Blog!" :-)

Hi Brad! Contributors, widgets and Google Analytics. These are more that I need to look into on my outside blog. Thanks!

Brad - Rock on !!!  A great 7 steps !  We have done all of them except add contributors which is a great idea !  We also need to go back and see if we can improve on any of the other steps.

I didnot check into the widget like that. thank you for the post. I will add a few now.

Noticed that a blog entry I wrote this morning isn't indexed by Google yet. Wondering if there is anything I can do to get it back to almost instant indexing...

Ben - Google works in mysterious ways and in their own time. You don't really think I have an answer for that one do you?  I noticed you still have your outside blog at eba.activerain.com.  I would suggest following the steps in this post to get your Blog setup more appropriately for when google does swing by for a glance at your blog.  1. Get or create a domain name or direct it to one.  2.  Setup the google search widget and the others ie: local posts, categories, analytics etc.  3.  Follow step #7.  4.  Keep writing great content.  5.  Be patient, google will get to your blog and posts in time, but their time, not ours.  :-)

Brad - This is information I ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY will NOT need (unless I win the Harriman's Outside Blog Contest) because this is bigger than both of us (well, ok, bigger than me) and I understand that you will be helping whoever wins the BLOG CONTEST that I do NOT want to win (well, I kinda do) to set up their outside blog so this is all EXTRANEOUS (unless I want to further my already seriously lengthy career) since who needs a BLOG to sell REAL ESTATE!? (pick me, pick me)

Sorry, lost my head for a minute...

SarahGray - you most certainly lost your head for a moment there...   lol~  Good luck in that contest!!  :-)

Brad, you make it look so simple.

Happy Easter.

Brad - I LOVE my outside blog - thanks for getting me off the fence and upgrading.  My outside blog gets higher ranking that the activerain posts - but why not have both get google juice.  I have been getting more leads from the posts that I do on short sales, HUD etc.  I am so glad I did it!!!  Plus I have been driving traffic to my outside blog & must put the Twitter widget.  Also getting more leads now that I do listing router - Yeah Activerain!!

Wow.  That's a ton to do.  My question is the free outside blog available?

Hi Brad: Thanks for the detailed instructions.  I will have to give it a look!

:)

Leolinda - it's easy once you know how.  Hope you had a great Easter.

Cathy - Thanks for sharing your comment, I am finding more and more members seeing the positive results of their outside Blogs just as you are.  Glad to hear it's starting to get you great results and I know it will continue to do so. 

Mike - not a ton, only 7 steps! lol~  The free outside Blogs are still there but are a bit limited.

Matt - let me know if you have any questions or need any help with it.

Hi I just set up a new blog, but it seems to be member only. I can only see my post when I log in. What happened to making you blog public?

Al - you'll need to login to AR before commenting.  If you do, I'll have a link to your profile and I can check it out for you. With just putting "Al" as your comment signature, it makes it difficult for me to figure out who you are so I can help.  Hope you check back for replies here and can get me your information.  Thanks.  :-)

soory about that, I am logged in now. here is the account: http://activerain.com/blogs/chilltop

for some reason you my blog is not public, you can only see the post when you are logged in. There is no option to make PUBLIC. Thanks for your help.

Hi Al - sorry for the delay responding, I was out of town.  You'll need to go to your "My Home" link and click on the "Rainmaker Upgrade" link if you want your posts to be public.  There's a red link on the left sidebar of your "My Home" page.  Make sure you are logged in before you attempt the upgrade. :-)

There is so much information  here that is great knowledge. I am book marking this entry for reference. Thanks for the great advice.

Lisa Collymore(highstylebydesign)

Brad,

Between your clear instructions and the great Webinar, I'm fairly content with my new Outside Blog.

I don't like that there is no delineation between posts, however. I'd like more of a break, line, something between the number of comments and the title of the next post. Otherwise it is a "wall of words."

My biggest concern is that I don't have an Outside Blog icon under my name. Now, if there is a 50% discount for it not appearing....

Irene - thanks for your comment, we always love to hear the thoughts and ideas from our members. We are creating a way to have a link to your Outside Blog from your AR profile or AR Blog.  If you look at my sidebar, you'll see a link to my outside Blog.  Feel free to use or add this to yours as well.  If you need help, just let me know.  Thanks.

Nah, Brad, I just meant the little button under my photo, like Larry the 1st commenter has. Right next to my coveted gold star.  I'm not requesting any enhancements - don't know how to use the basics yet!

But I appreciate your response and willingness to jump through hoops for us.

Irene - you should have a button appearing under your photo for your outside blog, I'll look into it and get this corrected.  Thanks.

Brad - Thanks for this post. I am still trying to get the hang of ActiveRain, but this was very helpful. It's nice to know that we can make so many changes and personalizations to our blogs.

Setting up my outside blog is going pretty smoothly except for one thing. I selected a sidebar image I want to change. Howyou do this? I don't see an option to delete what I have. When I tried to overwrite it with something else, I keep getting a 500 Internal server error. What is causing that?

Also, can you size these images or do they have to be sized before placement?

Is there a way to put in multiple sidebar images?

Thanks, Brad!

Rachel - Your sidebar image can be replaced using the Customize link at the top of the page.  There is no delete for the image, just select another image and it will be replaced.  Your image should be no wider than 189 wide or you may get the 500 error.  The images need to be sized before placement.  Many use picnik.com to resize and customize their images.  You can use multiple images and sidebar tools by using the widgets option located on your outside blog toolbar.

 I love my outside blog.  It is a great tool.

Will explore this feature - thanks for the info

Thanks for directing me to picnik... how great is that???  I'm assuming that anything I set up right now can be changed, as far as sidebar, themes etc.?  Also, any suggestions on how I can insert my logo as well as a photo of me in the sidebar?  Can I set up two sidebars?

Thanks!

Christine - bannerfans.com is another great site to create headers and banner images.  Anyting you setup can be changed at any time and at your leisure.  You can use the customize link to add sidebar and header or graphic images depending on the theme you select.  They are all different and offer various features. 

We don't have a theme with 2 sidebars just yet, but I'm sure it's being considered as an additional theme type.  You can also use the text widget to create some custom sidebar stuff, and the html widget is coming soon according to what I've been told. 

We'll just keep enhancing and improving these outside blogs until there will be nothing left to desire, then we'll take them to the next level with something no one ever expected or could imagine. 

That's the AR way!  :-))

Brad my banner shows up on the AR blog but not my outside blog.  Since I am with none of the companies that are listed I had to use  a generic theme.  How do I get my , customized banner onto the outside blog  Thanks

Hi Brad, I just signed on as an Active Rainmaker this evening.

I'm trying to set up my outside blog, and I can't get the theme to work correctly. Unless I use the Weichert theme, the graphic appears at the top of the screen and my content is way down on the next screen. Where can I get stock banners and sidebars that are correctly sized (for the technically frustrated)?

I'm not understanding the Widgets feature. It's only allowing me to delete what automatically appears on the screen -- it's not giving me the option of adding anything new. And finally, can I size the font of the title of my outside blog or put a line break in the title? Right now, only my last name appears on the second line.

Thanks Brad!

Welcome Lynn - I would love to walk you through setting this up, can you call me tomorrow (Tuesday) so we can get you all dialed in?  My number is on my profile page, call me anytime.  If I don't hear from you, I'll call you.  :-))

Hi June - the banner has to be 960W by 134H, any other size won't work.  Just click on the customize link, and select browse to add the image from your computer once it's sized correctly.  This also depends on the theme you select, some of the themes do not have a banner or header option.  You can use picnik.com and bannerfans.com to resize pretty much any image.  Let me know if you need more help. :-) 

BTW - The casting crew from HGTV and House Hunters is looking for folks in your area for their show, check out my latest post...if you haven't seen it already, you'd be great!!  :-)

Thanks for your great assistance.  However, I would like to know if there is a way to import my current blog into my new AR outside blog?  I have a lot of content that I would like to keep but I can't seem to find away to 'move it over', so to speak.

Thanks in advance!

Thanks for the great info. Being new to blogging I will take all of the pointers I can get,

Thanks again!

Travis - you can add your AR blog posts to your outside blog by editing the post and then check the box that says outside blog.  You can do this for each post you want to appear on your outside blog. 

Jeff - Being new to Blogging is where we ALL started, if I can assist you in any way, don't hesitate to call on me, that's just one reason I'm here.  :-)

Thanks Brad, great job in explaining the in's and out's.  Learn something new everyday.  Will review each section and put things to work that we are not using.

Brad,

OB set up and running, complete with Google analytics. Resulting stats puzzling - and I'm not alone. Stymied on Google Mountain - Is my Outside Blog Lost?  

Just sent feedback requesting a Webinar on interpreting the stats - don't know who gets those feedbacks...

Hi Irene - your feedback requests and responses come to me.  I'll take a look at the post you mention, but I can tell you from many members experiences here that the Outside Blogs are NOT LOST.   There are many other posts that claim the exact opposite.  Your google analytics can be tracked at the google analytics site, but how you drive traffic and promote ANY blog is the key to its and your success.  :-)

Brad,

Thanks for the information.  As you seem to know a lot about it, I wondered if you might be able to help with something.  I have set up 3 different profiles for 3 distinct cities(AR told me this was just fine as long as the post were not duplicated) and I'm wondering if I can set each profile to send my posts to this outside blog? 

I have not been able to get Active Rain to respond to my emails.  I can't log in - the new log in page is in conflict with my computer.  Help!

Fred - they may have taken the day off since it's the weekend, let me do some research and see if I can figure out why you can't login.  I'll be right back.  :-)

Fred - I just reset your password and sent you an email with the login info.  Let me know if you are still having any difficulties. Thanks.

Keith - your outside blogs are attached to your individual profiles, I don't know of anyway to create a crossover and post from one profile to other profile(s) outside blogs.  I'm also not sure how you will make out trying to manage 3 profiles on AR as many of us have difficulty just managing one.  If you have any questions, feel free to contact me directly and we'll do some brainstorming to see what we can come up with to help you acheive your goals. Thanks. :-)

Brad,

I paid my money and my credit card was charged but I did not get an email and now when I click on outside blog it gives me the ad to sign up..It only worked for one day and Iset up my domain then it stopped and I could not deal with it so I assumed that I was not being charged on my card and dropped it.

Now I see that my card is being charged for the last 3 months and all I get on my end is the outside blog ad when I click on my outside blog..Please advise?

Mary - I will take a look and see what's going on with your outside Blog.  Please feel free to call me or I will call you so we can get this resolved for you. I'm heading over to your Blog now...   :-)

Hi Mary - I'm back. Your outside Blog looks fine http://palosverdesrealtor4god.activerain.com/  we need to figure out how you are trying to access it.  I went to your Blog, logged in as you, clicked on the outside Blog and everything worked perfectly.  Call me if you have any questions or need any assistance with it ok? The direct link to your outside blog and domain is http://realestate4thelsoul.com.

Brad,

This is just what I need - - very helpful, as was Aaron at AR.

Thanks, Steve...............

Hey Brad,

Great post and I learned alot today.

Keep up the good work.

I emailed you separately, Brad, so ignore that, because I see the answer above, I think.

I already invested blood, sweat, tears, and way too much money, setting up my own WordPress blog, which I think is quite spiffy.  Would love not to discard it and also would love not to have to spend any more money on another blog (outside blog) if possible.

Any suggestions on how to make the most of the ActiveRain connection with my own blog and vice versa?

Thanks for all your help.

Hi Jane - I did get your email.  I have a few suggestions but need to know a bit more about your intentions, goals, and business plan.  I'd love to explore and discuss this with you.  Give me a ring when it's convenient, and we can review the best possible options for you.  I will be available next week after the 25th.  If you want to setup a time that works, just shoot me another email, give me a call, or just leave me another comment.  Looking forward to hearing from you.  Don't get rid of your Wordpress Blog or make any major changes till we get the chance to talk.  Thanks.

Thanks for getting back.  I will give you a call next week as I will probablhy ramble here.

Appreciate your help.

Thanks for getting back.  I will give you a call next week as I will probablhy ramble here.

Appreciate your help. 

Hi Brad,

I am considering the Outside Blog upgrade for $20/mo, but have a couple questions.  First, is the customizing of the paid outside blog the same process as customizing the free blog?  I find it hard get the graphics to fit, add text, etc.  2)  Can we have multiple pages on our paid blog?  I would like to have buttons on my main page that refer readers to my blogs on Real Estate Stats, Home Tours, my town, sports, etc. 

How can I better find these answers, phone, email, etc.

Thanks for you help and great site.

Joe Burns

Hi Joe - There is a differenece between the two, I'll have one of our staff contact you to explain some details and also answer any additional questions that you may have. It will most likely be Doug Ching.

Hi, a couple of questions.  I recently upgraded my account to one I have to pay for, and thus get an outside blog.  A week or so ago I posted my first posts to the outside blog.  Now I have a few questions.  First, on my AR home page at the bottom it says something like review pending outside blog posts - what does this mean and why does it say pending which makes me thing they are not properly posted but are still 'pending' - am I missing something?  Second, how long does it typically take for posts to show up on search engines?  When I search for the content of my post or the new URL name of my outside blog nothing comes up.  I just want to be sure my blog is properly created and visible to the outside world.

Paul - the pending request link only applies to those contributors you've invited to post on your outside blog. If you invite another member to post to your OB as a contributor, you will find their posts in the "Pending" folder for your approval or decline.

The search engines will find your Blog and posts but there is no way to tell what the time frame will be. The key to being indexed and found is to just keep writing and adding value added content to your outside blog. The search engines and consumers will find them as they get indexed by ALL the search engines.

FYI... I have seen some posts show up in a matter of hours, and in some cases, only minutes.

thanks for the answer and info, appreciate it!

Paul

Paul - anytime.  :-)  It Looks like this post is getting downloaded from Box.net more than I thought:

Brad-- First, THANK YOU! for all the info you give us!

I have a question-- I set up my outside blog but my older posts did not transfer, just the last few.  I was under the impression they would all automatically transfer.  Is there something I need to do to add them?

Also-- I keep emailing AR to get back on the daily email list and not getting anywhere.  Who do I need to talk to?

Thanks again!! 

Hi Michele - you can select the posts you want to appear on your OB by going into the edit mode of your post and putting a check in the box that says "My Outside Blog."  Remember that "members only" posts will not show up on the OB.  If you want to be on the newsletter email distribution list, you can enter your information HERE.  It will be on Bob's sidebar about half way down on the right side.

Hope this helps, let me know.  :-)

Thanks Brad!  I have successfully moved the blogs to the outside blog.

Now if only I can get onto that daily mailing list!  Something must be wrong-- I have entered my info at that link several times and I'm still not receiving the newsletter.  I have gone to the AR feedback to ask them to be fixed and at one time I did get a response that I was added to the mailing-- but still nothing.  How in the world do I start getting the newsletter again?

Hi Michele - Bob said he'd take care of this for us while I'm away to New York.  Let me know if you're still not geting the AR newsletter in the next couple days.  Make sure it's not going into your spam folder once it does start coming. Keep me posted. Thanks.  :-)

I am relatively new to Active Rain and I have to tell you that all the information you provide in your blogs is proving to be invaluable to a relative "newbe" like myself. I really appreciate all that you do for us Brad.

Thank you!

Thanks David - here and happy to help if you ever need.  :-)

Nice guide to help users creating a good and presentable blog. As not all people who start their blog are expert and they usually don't know how to go ahead with this so, this would certainly help such people.

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Brad - I love this post and think it's a must read for any new AR member. And - I'm entering it into the Scavenger Hunt! Wish me luck!

Thanks Christianne - good luck with the hunt, and thanks again for your sweet comment and gesture, now I really hope you win!! 

Hey wait a minute... what scavenger hunt??   :-O  lol~

Thanks Brad - always good to see how to maximize ActiveRain to achieve phenomenal results. As involved as your blog post is in walking you through setting up an outside blog, it's actually quite easy and simple to do.

Brad - I missed this when it was first posted but so happy I had to find it thanks to the Scavenger Hunt.  The only step it looks like I've missed doing is #7.  It's a great resource for newbies and some of us oldies too;)

Good info here. I really need to take this and run with it and make my blog stand out. Thanks.

Thanks for the tips and being on my scavenger hunt!

I have my outside AR blog and this information was VERY helpful to me - thanks!  This is also a great blog for the AR scavenger hunt.

Brad- chalk one up for the scavenger hunt, and gave me a chance to review your post on outside blogs.

Because you are on my list of authors for the scavenger hunt I read your post and really like the information, thank you. 

When I try to create a domain name for my outside blog, anything I enter is the red circle with a minus sign. Even when I type this: askdjfuoiweurofdvnjnv;a it still tells me it's taken. Why am I having this problem? Thanks!

Hi Jackie - I am off to take a look now and see what's happening. I'll get back to you as soon as I can figure out why it's not accepting your domain.  Make sure you're not adding "WWW" or the HTTP, and also be sure you're including .com.  IE: jackieconnelly.com that is all you need to enter into Box #1 before checking availability.  Also no dashes, no spaces or symbols.  That will also cause the "unavailable" return.  :-)

As Usual thanks for all the info. Your my scavenger hunt entry.

Brad,

I just upgraded my outside blog and added the Apture widget.  However, I'm getting this error from Apture when checking if the script is installed right:

"The Apture script tag appears before most of the content in the web page's HTML code. Please move it closer to the bottom of the web page."

Are you familiar with this...how do I use Apture?

Please help.

Thanks,

Chris

p.s. I love Fairfield.  I grew up in Walnut Creek and went to school at Sac State.

Hi Chris - I sent in a request to our tech support dept and they did respond with "We're aware of the issue and are tracking it." This usually means it's not a simple fix and it could take a while to get resolved.  I know they're doing their best to stay on top of this technical stuff and will get this corrected, just no ETA right now.  Thanks for pointing this out so we can fix it. 

ps. I use to work in Walnut Creek, I managed the First American office on Mt Diablo Blvd. for many years.  Small world eh?? :-)

Thanks Brad, I'm not too computer savvy, but I'm going to try to impliment your suggestions.

Hi Liz - and if you need any help at all, just let me know.  :-)