How to Make Blog + Social Media Scheduling Easy: CoSchedule Blogging Tool Review

Finding time to blog is tough, but finding time to blog and post social media for that blog can be even tougher. That’s why I first tried CoSchedule a few months ago, and honestly, I’m in love with it. Here’s a quick video overview of what CoSchedule can do:

I started using CoSchedule a few months ago for Adult Ballerina Project and I also used it as part of my job, too.

What is CoSchedule?

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It is a drag-and-drop editorial calendar for WordPress that puts your blog posts and social media messages on the same schedule. It beats out the normal calendar provided in WordPress (and other calendar plugins) with the social media add-in. I love that CoSchedule has a “drag and drop” option so that if you want to quickly move a post from one day to another, you don’t have to log in to WordPress and change the scheduled date/time. You can also move a scheduled post to drafts and a draft to the calendar.

Key Features:

Here’s a list of other key features CoSchedule lists as including:

  • Drag-And-Drop Editorial Calendar
  • Schedule Social Media While You Blog
  • Save Time, Grow Traffic
  • Easily Re-Schedule Old Blog Content
  • Lightweight WordPress Plugin
  • Automated Social Publishing
  • Simple Team Communication
  • All-In-One Publishing Solution
  • No More WordPress Hacking

What platforms work with CoSchedule?

CoSchedule works with WordPress, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Buffer, and even Google+ Pages (using a to Buffer). One of my favorite was to use CoSchedule is to push posts to Buffer, so that I can re-arrange them using Buffer’s built-in scheduling system (pre-set times set by you). It makes it super easy to rearrange the order of your posts and even remove things last-minute if you need to — like if you discovered an error in a post and don’t want to share it again, but you’re on the go and only have your phone.)

While CoSchedule has no mobile app at the moment (a downside) — if you push to Buffer, you can have access via their mobile app to edit and change things on the go!

Multiple Blogs and Users

I love that you can have multiple blogs (great if you run many of them) and multiple users. While I don’t currently take advantage of these, I’m looking forward to using the multiple users functionality when my interns start. You can even set tasks for users (or yourself, for that matter — I often set tasks for myself so I remember certain things I want to include in social media posts in the future!)

See your top posts

I love that CoSchedule will tell you how often and on what platforms your posts get shared on. I also love that you can see what your top posts are, either over a specific time period or all time. Here’s ABP’s top posts of all time by social sharing:

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Other Integrations

I love that you can connect Bit.ly, Google Analytics, and Google calendar to CoSchedule, too! It makes it super easy to help track of how posts and social media is doing.

Test it Out!

If you want to test to see if you’ll love CoSchedule as much as I do for all your blogging needs, CoSchedule offers a free trial.  You can also extend your trial for every social media account you link up to CoSchedule (which I did when testing it out!

 

Hello Blogathon Day 1!

Given that I currently have a decent amount of free time on my hands, I’ve decided to participate in Freelance Success/WordCount Blogathon. As part of the blogathon, I’ll be posting every day in the month of June. I plan on keeping up with my normal blog activities (profiles, videos, how-tos, reviews) as well as some more blog-style posts.

I hope it’ll be a jump start to get me back into blogging. I hope that some of my fellow dance bloggers join me (you can sign up here!)

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Image via Flickr User Joyce Bettencourt

Summer Internship Program with ABP

internshipprogramABP is looking to offer a 10-week internship program (although possibly running longer for interested candidates) for two to three writers. I’m looking for people who have some experience with dance (but all levels are welcome) and are interested in blogging and journalistic writing (no experience necessary!).

Responsibilities include:

  • Pitching, researching and writing at least one article a week (how-tos, interviews, roundups).
  • Taking photos for articles or finding photos via Creative Commons or other stock services.
  • Creating social content for a variety of platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram) for your own posts.
  • Reaching out to professionals, instructors and adult ballerinas for interviews.

Possible additional tasks (if interested):

  • Participating (and/or helping to host) 1-2 Twitter chats over the summer if interested in gaining social media experience.
  • Helping manage additional social media for Adult Ballerina Project.
  • Writing one or more “blog” style posts a month detailing personal dance experience.

Criteria to apply:

  • Dance experience (preferably ballet) of any level, from absolute beginner to experienced.
  • Experience with WordPress and Google Docs is a plus, but not necessary.
  • Open to undergraduate students, graduate students or recent college grads ages 18-26. All majors are welcome. (Those who are looking to contribute but are out of this age range should check out our contributors’ page — we’re actively looking for people who are interested in all of the above!)

What’s in it for you:

  • writing, interviewing and social media experience
  • flexible, remote internship (perfect for combining with another job/internship)
  • possible college credit (depending on your college’s requirements)

Please note this is an unpaid internship, and you should expect it to not fill up more than 4-5 hours a week. Currently, I expect to make posts due on a weekly basis by Fridays at 5 p.m. eastern time, although changes can be made depending on your schedule.

If interested, please email your resume, a writing sample, and a brief email explaining why you are interested in an internship (no cover letters please!) with ABP to aballerinaproject@gmail.com. Interns will be accepted on a rolling basis.

Six Weeks and Counting: Injury Update and 2014 Goals

It’s been about six weeks since I went and I had an MRI done on my legs and discovered that in fact, had stress fractures. It really sucked, but it was nice to finally have an explanation for the pain I had experienced. For the next two weeks I plan on gradually adding back some of my PT exercises before attempting to gradually get back into the swing of things.

Even though it’s been relatively tough to not be at ballet or running, the holidays have certainly helped a bunch and I’ve kept busy with crocheting, coding, etc. I’m also working on yet another new website design using TwentyFourteen which is pretty cool (and more news-site, less blog which is a look I want to go for).

Rather than set resolutions (because everyone eventually just forgets those in a few weeks anyway), I’ve decided to set a few 2014 goals:

  • Read more often, borrow from our local library more. I don’t read often enough and it’s something I really miss. Any and all book suggestions welcome!
  • Learn more coding. The more and more I learn more coding, the more I think it’s something I’m potentially interested in going back to school for. Hoping to successfully complete Harvard’s Introduction to Computer Programming class this year with HQ. I’ll probably make the two of us blog about it.
  • Grow out my bangs. Seems kind of silly, but I always end up getting fed up with them and cutting them again. I’d like to be able to put my hair up into a bun without having to use a billion clips and bobby pins.
  • Get back into ballet. Fairly straight forward, but it’s going to take some work for me to not just jump back into it and instead start off with one class a week before moving to 2-3 classes a week. Baby steps.
  • Complete Couch25K Properly. Last time I skipped some levels and jumped around, so my aim this time is to actually follow all the steps to gradually get into running. Someone yell at me if I fail at this or jump too fast into ballet, too.
  • Blog and write more often. I’m hoping to write and blog more often, as well as read more blogs and get more involved in the blogging universe. I recently became a Girls Gone Sporty Ambassador, so I’m hoping that will help push me in the right direction, too.

What are your 2014 goals? What books should I add to my reading list? What are your favorite blogs right now?

Blogtember: The Ways Blogging and Social Media Changed Me

Welcome to the first of my Blogtember link-up posts! There’s a lot more of them to come, too!

Social media has always been a big part of my life. I was one of the first people I knew to get Facebook as well as one of the first people of my friends on Twitter (although, I never had a Myspace). I started blogging my freshman year of college and loved it, especially when I connected to people who had the same quirky TV tastes I did.

I don’t think I’ve mentioned this before, but this blog was started as part of a class called “The Entrepreneurial Journalist” by the same professor who was the reason I started my old TV blog. While before the class I was running a personal blog that did feature a lot of ballet, it wasn’t the primary sole purpose. I needed a solidified topic for this class for an online magazine or blog, and I chose ballet cause it seemed like a semi-good idea, even though my professor wasn’t sure. But I’m glad I chose it, and I’m glad I’m still doing it, and I can’t wait to do more with it.

When it comes down to it, social media and blogging have changed me because they’ve connected me to people who are interested in the same things I am. I’ve found so many people who do ballet as adults and your support has been amazing. I don’t think I would’ve kept doing ballet if it wasn’t for the wonderful community. In addition, the running community has been amazing as well, and is extremely supportive. Social media and blogging keep me going with running and ballet, which are now an integral part of my life. I don’t think they’d be that way if it wasn’t for an awesome online community.

How has blogging/social media changed you?