Daneen Hill posted this in Reviews on June 18th, 2013 There comes a time with every job where you take a step back and ask yourself if you really want to be doing this ten years from now. When I look at my job as a content writer with BKA, a year and a half after starting it, I realize that this job makes me happy enough to keep doing it forever. I love my job for four main reasons, the working conditions, the flexibility, the creativity, and the title.
Working Conditions
I love the working conditions at BKA. This is probably because I have a lot of control over them and I am somewhat of a control freak. As long as I write a minimum number of articles and check my email a couple of times a day, then I am doing my job. I don’t have to deal with the same kinds of conditions that I did while working in retail/customer service jobs. This includes dress code, customer interactions, and a schedule set by someone else.
The fact that BKA does not have guidelines for dress and appearance has actually helped me potty train my son. I was trying to figure out how to change my bland and short hairstyle and my son suggested blue and spiky. So we made a deal that if he had no accidents for a week, I would dye
Continue reading The Four Excellent Reasons That I Love My Job
Matt Secrist posted this in News on June 18th, 2013 McDonald’s (Photo credit: Gerard Stolk (vers l’Été ))
What do you get when you combine burgers, stress balls, Capri Suns, starving children, balloon animals and a single functioning grill? If you guessed McDonalds during my party for my 8th birthday then you’d be correct. But you’d also be a little bit creepy because only two people know that: my mom, and the kid that my mom paid to come with me. At least she was only out $2.50 (although it would probably be worth $5.00 now with inflation which gives me some consolation…).
Let’s Get Real
Ok let’s get serious; if you added those things up you’d get the annual BKA BBQ! We officially kicked off the summer last Saturday with our very own BKA BBQ tradition and had a great turnout!
While we have a lot of writers that live all over the U.S., we actually have a large constituent of writers right here in Utah. The BBQ is just one way that we can get to know our local writers a little bit better (and hopefully we can involve our out of state writers too!). We were excited to see some familiar faces that have been with us for a while, as well as bunch of new ones!
What Went Down
The BBQ started off
Continue reading Bags, Bands, Balloons and BKA BBQs!
Matt Secrist posted this in Live Blogs on June 12th, 2013 When it comes to content strategy, you should make sure to DTDT (Define the Damn Thing). If you don’t know what it is, how can you execute it? Here are a few different definitions of “Content Strategy” to help keep things in context.
Content strategy plans for the creation, publication, and governance of useful, usable content – Kristina Halvorson (contentstrategy.com) Content strategists use words and data to create unambiguous content that supports meaningful, interactive experiences. – Rachel Lovinger Content strategy is to copy writing as information architecture is to design. – Rachel Lovinger
Overall, content should be seen as an experience, rather than an advertisement, or just a UX/IXD. Take into consideration that the term “content” refers to the ENTIRE experience, not just to the words on the page. A client will either choose to interact with the experience, or they’ll walk away from it.
What Do Content Strategists Actually Do?
Content Strategists are looking to do a number of things. Here are a few:
Writing – Writers create the basis of all other content (videos, photos), and should be recognized for their value. The writing is much more valuable than you think! Editorial Strategy – This is constantly evolving but is a key part in making sure content runs through the right channels before it is made public. Standards of Governance – These standards
Continue reading SMX Advanced Live Blog- You Know Good Content? Fuggedaboutit. Here’s What Really Counts.
Claudia Culmone posted this in Tips on June 10th, 2013 
When I discovered the magical world of books as a child, I knew that I wanted to be a writer when I grew up. After I graduated from college, my initial goal was to become a novelist but I felt that I needed to build some professional writing experience. With this in mind, I began working as a journalist and eventually took on other non-fiction projects while pursuing my goal of becoming an author. Working with both fiction and non-fiction writing has provided me with several valuable lessons that I feel every writer should learn.
1 – Let go of the emotions
We writers are often an emotional bunch. We tend to write our hearts out and then attach our emotions to that document. We feel that we have written a masterpiece—something that will impress and inspire others and our lives literally come crashing down when the editor’s pen touches it. Our indignation and frustration rages like an angry bull and we want to tear up that article or manuscript into a million pieces. We may even swear that we are never going to write anything ever again or that we simply can’t do it.
However, emotions can inhibit us from taking those edits in a constructive manner. One of the hardest lessons that a writer needs to learn is how to let go of those
Continue reading 3 Lessons Every Writer Should Learn
Drew Allen posted this in News on June 5th, 2013 
With Google’s release of Panda and Penguin, it has become unmistakably evident of what is at the core of every great SEO campaign: content. Not just any content, but high-quality, relevant content. With the recent Penguin 2.0 update, this point has just been driven home again. We’ve seen that Corporations and SEO agencies seem to be scrambling for answers on how to use content more effectively in light of the recent algorithm change, assuming that everything has changed on that front. The reality is that nothing has changed, at least not from our view. If anything, our core values and business model are finally getting the attention they deserve. Content Marketing (done right) has been something that we’ve preached from day 1!
Is Content Marketing the Next “Big Thing”?
Content marketing isn’t a new discovery by any means, in fact, it has been around for a long time! The rise in digital marketing via cell phones, tablets, social media, etc. means there’s enormous potential for your message to get in front of more people than ever before. Because of this, SEO content has created a lot of buzz. The only real “discovery” that people are making is that you can’t use cheap content on crappy sites to help you get link juice anymore. Those days are dead. Quality content that tells a story, educates a
Continue reading Content Marketing at a Glance
Kara McDowell posted this in Reviews on June 3rd, 2013 
I graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature. As I walked across the commencement stage on a sunny December morning, I was overwhelmed with the greatest feeling; it was a mixture of relief, accomplishment, and pride.
That feeling lasted about 30 seconds.
I accepted my diploma, moved my graduation tassel to the left of my mortarboard, posed for the obligatory “parents flanking the graduate shot” and then was struck by a thought.
What now?
And just moments after that, a second thought came barreling toward me.
I should have majored in Education like everyone else.
That’s the thing about a major in English literature: everyone assumes you are going to become a teacher. That assumption is so prevalent and so powerful that it was almost enough to make me believe it myself. There were times I strongly considered an Education degree because it seemed to be the safer option, the only option. I persevered, however, and attempted to drown out the nagging voices that constantly asked “What are you going to do with an English degree?”
It’s a question I’ve received hundreds of times and yet I never perfected a response. The thing is, people only want to hear one of two answers: become a teacher or go to graduate school. Sometimes I would tell people what they wanted to hear. Usually
Continue reading Living My Dream as an SEO Writer
Jessica Maestas posted this in Tips on May 28th, 2013 
Making a living as a freelance article writer has been ideal in many ways. First, I get to work in an environment I love (my apartment); second, I have awesome coworkers (the cat); and third, I get paid to do something I was already doing anyway (write!). Landing freelance work was an ego-boost. I was thrilled to discover that not only could I do this work, but I could do it reasonably well.
At some point, reasonably well wasn’t good enough for me. Realizing that I could earn a significant portion of my income through writing made me want to do more. I wanted to get better at this writing thing and maybe you do, too. Here are some of the things I’ve done to make myself better and what I’ve learned along the way.
1. Be willing to take on a challenge
As an SEO writer, I will frequently compose content for products and services I’ve never heard of before. What do I know about credit card processing machines? Nothing! What do I know about commercial kitchens? Nothing! What do I know about the international standards of risk management assessment? Not a blessed thing! All these topics have been a challenge for me. They forced me to get out there and learn something new.
Regardless of what kind of writing you do, being
Continue reading 4 Tips To Become A Better Freelance Writer
Kate Kishel posted this in Reviews on May 20th, 2013 
I have been fortunate enough to write for BKA for 6 months now. I never noticed the full extent of how writing many, many articles about a myriad of topics could help me see the world in a different way until I had 30 minutes to kill downtown.
How it all started
By Kate Kishel
It all started with an exceptional parking space. As many downtown residents (current and former) know, an exceptional parking space can really be something special and must be taken by someone who knows how to parallel park. With time already in the meter, I walked across the street to the bookstore. While browsing books on Egyptian mythology, I met a character named Jeff.
As a chronic chatterbox, I quickly started gabbing with Jeff about mythology. The conversation turned to enlightenment as we moved to a new bookshelf that showcased books on self-improvement, yoga awareness, and meditation. I mentioned that SEO article writers write about almost all topics conceivable for work.
As an afterthought, I also added that it has changed how I view the world. When sitting in rush hour, I no longer only see a long, slow-moving line of cars in front of me on a giant slab of pavement. Instead, I see how much thought has gone into that highway and all of those cars. I know how
Continue reading Enlightenment Isn’t Only For Yogis
Melinda Rhodes posted this in Tips on May 13th, 2013 
I have been writing for BKA website content writing services for just over two years. During that time I have written more articles than I can remember; and naturally, I have experienced writer’s block a time or two. This was especially true during a few months back in 2011 when the queue was filled with countless articles on every type of energy efficient light bulb you could imagine: CFLs and LEDs and halogens . . . OH, MY! Somewhere in the middle of the 75 (No exaggeration—I counted!) articles I wrote on light bulbs I felt as if my own lumens were officially burnt out. Yet, I powered through, lit up the keys and turned out some more. There have been other times when I have battled writer’s block as well. Here is my recipe for overcoming that unpalatable beast!
Add A Dash Of Caffeine
Caffeine is scientifically proven to boost your brain’s intellectual activity when you become fatigued or bored. I’m not talking about pounding a 5-Hour Energy Drink every time you sit down to write articles; this much caffeine typically overstimulates the brain. You want to make sure your articles are still creative and contain concise information, not rambling, run-on sentences. My drink of choice to help me overcome writer’s block is a can of Pepsi. It contains 39 mg of caffeine, just enough to
Continue reading One Writer’s Recipe for Overcoming Writer’s Block
Shelley Sadler posted this in Reviews on May 7th, 2013 
I must begin with a conclusion. Working from home is probably the best professional decision this Mama has ever made! From the comfort (or mess; whichever way you look at it) of my living room, I have been working from home for three years, in two different professions. While I do get the occasional understanding from others, there is always the assumption that I should be the carpool mom, the babysitter for other working moms, or the woman in charge of the next neighborhood shindig because after all, I just stay at home.
This is true. I do just stay at home. But while I am there, I work. I wash and fold the laundry, I wash and put away the dishes, and I make breakfast, lunch, and dinner for three little men (and one big one). I am the dusting fairy, the toilet cleaning fairy, the missing-sock-finding fairy, and yes, I am even the tooth fairy. I clean up spilled milk and sometimes cry over it. I clean up after sick kids and sometimes cry over that too. I watch a good chick flick once in a while and definitely cry over those, but that’s only in my spare time. You know, like at midnight.
I drive my kids to school, to track practice, to Scouts, to basketball practice, to tee ball, and
Continue reading Moms Who Work from Home ROCK the World, the Cradle, and Pretty Much Everything Else
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