1/30/2014

How To Organically Increase Your Facebook Reach

Organically Increase Facebook Reach

Most Facebook fan page owners and admins have noticed a dramatic decrease in how many people are seeing their content over the past few months due to the algorithm by which the site decides to deliver status updates. I know I saw about a 90% drop off on the CUDigitals and DigiScrapAddicts fan pages all of a sudden even though I had not changed anything about how and what I was posting. Where I was getting post reach in the 18-20% range, it dropped to 1% or LESS!! Has this happened to you? If not, be glad – but be aware that it might soon. If it has, I recently learned about a super easy way to get your organic (unpaid) reach back to where it was before the drop. I have tested this on all my fan pages and have measureable success. And it’s INCREDIBLY easy.

Here’s the idea: when posting your updates, always include multiple pictures. For digital designers, this is natural since a ton of what you share is visual content. So instead of posting a huge visual ad with your kit and coordinates or kit and CT pages all in one .jpg, start posting them as individual graphics to increase your reach pretty much immediately.

Here’s how to include more than one image. Write your post, with the applicable link to your store or sale, etc and before you hit the “post” button, click on photo/video

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Then choose upload photos/video
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You will get a pop-up where you can navigate to the folder on your computer with the images you will be posting. To select multiple images, hold down the CTRL button on your keyboard and CLICK with your mouse on the ones you want to include and hit “open” I have been able to post up to 6 images this way. (Less on some FB groups)
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BONUS HINT: Once you have clicked the open button, and the thumbnails show below your text, you can drag the graphics to the left or right to rearrange the order in which they show on the post! Then click the “post” button for a post with multiple photos and MUCH more reach. I have seen my post reach increase 5 to 10 times what it was by doing this!

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1/24/2014

TIP: Professional Emails



 As a digital scrapbook designer, you will find many occasions on which you have e-mail contact with your customers, store owner(s) and other digital designers. I have rounded up a few helpful resources for you to learn how to use email in a professional way. It’s vitally important to leave a good impression on customers and site owners so that they will want to continue to do business with you. Word of mouth advertising is important and negative communications can have long-reaching effects so review these articles and give your emails a tune up!
As a side note, I witnessed a bit of an email train wreck this week with a large digital scrapbooking store that was using Mailman, a mailing list manager. Somehow, the list got set up so that people who were subscribed to the list were able to reply to the store news and have ALL other recipients of the list get that message. It started with a simple “unsubscribe” me request which snowballed into at least 10 more messages saying the same thing…and going out to the other subscribers. It is never a good idea to have a list set up in this way because you just don’t know what people are going to say and it can make your other subscribers really mad! CUDigitals uses and recommends Mailchimp for a flexible, powerful, mobile-friendly subscription email program.
RELATED: Need help managing e-mails that require a response or additional action? Check out THIS POST for some options and THIS ONE for a follow-up.

Did you find this useful? Subscribe to the CUDigitals weekly newsletter and never miss another tip! And be sure to follow us on Facebook for daily links to helpful articles for your digital scrapbook design business.

image credit: freedigitalphotos.nethttp://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/beautiful-woman-with-tablet-computer-photo-p219084

1/17/2014

$10 Giveaway and More

Last week, we started our feature on new CUDigitals designer Christine Schultz of One of a Kind Design Studio. If you missed her interview, go here to learn a little bit about Christine. Just a reminder, she has a HUGE sale and some fabulous freebies!
OKDS_600_Banner_2014-SALE
OneofaKindDS_Floral-Overlays_Freebie OneofaKindDS_Watercolor-Overlay_Freebie_Preview
Her products have been well received by our wonderful customers! Check out her best-sellers:
Lovely Layered OverlaysRoses Layered OverlaysFloral Overlays - Set One
Damask Overlays - Set OneWatercolor OverlaysDamask Brushes
This week, we are doing a giveaway for a $10 shopping code for One of Kind Design Studio! Enter below for your chance to win! There are multiple ways to enter and If you choose the blog comment option, please tell us your favorite product from Christine’s store.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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1/10/2014

Featured Designer Grand Opening and MORE

OKDS_600_Banner_2014-SALE
CUDigitals is pleased to announce the addition of One of a Kind Design Studio to our design team. She has a grand opening sale and is our featured designer! Let’s get to know a little about our newest designer:
What is your real name if different than your design name?  Christine Schultz (Soon to be Christine Beers!)
Tell us a little bit about yourself and your family. I'm a 47 year old mom of a sweet, smart, and artistic daughter Danielle, who is 22 and out on her own and doing great! I am so proud of her. I am engaged to a wonderful man, Darryl, who is a semi-retired professional photographer and former yoga teacher (that's how we met). We live together in NE Wisconsin in a cozy little apartment and plan on getting married in a year or so. We have two cats, Sam (a black and white lazy fella) and Sofie (an energetic tabby girl who keeps Sam on his toes!).
How long have you been designing CU products and how did you get started? After my daughter enrolled in kindergarten, I enrolled in college as a returning adult to study graphic design. After graduation I got a job at our city's local newspaper. I loved it and was there for almost 5 years when I became very ill and was diagnosed with a rare neurological condition called Chiari Malformation. I've had to have three surgeries so far that have only made my symptoms worse. As a result, I'm no longer able to work and now use the limited time I'm able to spend on my computer to design digital art and scrapbook kits. I feel blessed that I am able to do this because it helps distract me from my pain and other symptoms. Some days I think it's what helps me keep my sanity!  :) 
Here are some of my favorite products that Christine has made.
Paper FlowersFeathered FlowersFancy Red & Purple Flowers
Fancy Blue FlowersEssentials Black & White Paper PackButterflies - Set Three
Butterflies - Set TwoDamask BrushesKeys Brushes
Do you design PU products as well? I love to design both, but am unable to keep up with both of them at this time. Hopefully in the future I will be feeling well enough to do so again.
What programs do you use to design your products? Photoshop CS6 and Illustrator
What is your favorite time of the day to design? Whenever I am feeling up for it! Often right after breakfast and lately it's been in the middle of the night when I'm unable to sleep.
Can you give us a great tip for using one of your products to create digital scrapbooking kits? Yes! Try using my new watercolor overlays with two papers from your own stash. Use one of your papers as a background, and use the watercolor overlay as a mask with your second piece of paper. You will end up with a unique and beautiful new piece of paper. You can find more detailed, illustrated instructions HERE on my blog!
What are a few of your favorite products that you’ve made? I LOVE overlays and am always excited to find ways to reuse them with different colors, textures or styles. Sometimes I leave layers out or try inverting or reversing them. 
Watercolor OverlaysFloral Overlays - Set OneLovely Layered OverlaysRoses Layered OverlaysDamask Overlays - Set OneVintage Layered Overlays
Do you have plans for your next set of CU products? I'm thinking of doing some word art. I just purchased an enormous collection of CU fonts and cannot wait to put them to good use! 
What do you love to do when you are not working? Besides digi-scrapping, I love to create designs for t-shirts and other products to help raise awareness and funds for a local animal rescue in my city called Green Bay Animal Rescue. I have a real soft-spot for cats and dogs especially!
What is your favorite beverage? Diet Pepsi - although I've been trying to avoid it and stick to water because it's supposed to be better for you. (Blah!)
If you could learn anything what would it be? To sing and dance! I just don't have it in my DNA and it looks like so much fun! In my next life maybe. :)
Christine has generously provided our customers 2 freebie overlays – be sure to try them out to sample how fantastic her work is and then shop the rest of her store for fantastic designs at a huge discount!
Watercolor Overlay FREEBIEFloral Overlay - FREEBIE
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1/03/2014

Free E-books, New Releases and Sales

Designer Tip: Free E-Books
Looking for some inspirational reading that will help you business on a creative level? Here are some that I came across recently.
How to Be Creative
HowToBeCreative
Hugh MacLeod is a celebrated blogger, an advertising executive, and an all-around successful person. He owes much of his success to his creativity, creativity that, as he states in his lovely manifesto, we are all born with. So how do you go about actually being creative? The answer to that lies in his 26 tried-and-true tips for expressing the artist you got locked away deep inside you.
Time Management for Creative People
Must Read Free eBooks for Graphic Designers 10 Design Resources: Must Read Free eBooks for Graphic Designers
  • Finding the method in your creative madness
  • Identifying and prioritising your most important work
  • Getting in the right state of mind for focused work
  • How to minimise interruptions and distractions
  • Managing e-mail effectively
  • How to remember — and fulfil — all your important commitments
designer sales
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nbk-goodbye Kopie