by Tim @ Gambole | Jun 22, 2020
More and more people are starting to work remotely. Traditionally, these would mostly be freelance creatives such as graphic designers, videographers, writers and so on.
This trend is on a massive increase (not just because of the recent global events). Working from home is in most cases a win-win situation.
Better for the employer and better for the employee.
Companies save money on the office rent and other costs associated with running an office.
Employees on the other hand, tend to be happier and more productive when working from home.
They also don’t have to waste time and money on the daily commute. There are ways to make your daily commute more productive, but it’s still a lot of time wasted.
But let’s get to the point, without further ado. In today’s post we have for you 5 tips to make your working from home, more productive and enjoyable.
1. Create a Dedicated Work Area
It is paramount that you have a physical separation between your work and home life.
This could be a spare room/home office if you have enough space. If you’re short of space, this could simply be a desk. This way, it will be easier for you to switch to and from work mode.
Check out my earlier post for more on this: How to Design a Kick Ass Home Office
2. Don’t spend all day in you PJs
That’s right. We’re not joking. Just as with the pervious point about having a separate space.
This will help you distinguish between chill and work mode.
3. Limit notifications
Notifications are very destructive to your productivity. You can forget about deep work and focus when every 5 minutes you stop concentrating to answer a Snapchat notification or an email.
Turn off all non-essential notification when you’re in a work mode. Checking notifications in real time is an awfully bad habit and it will have a detrimental effect on your productivity.
The same goes for email, do not check email in real time. Instead, have a dedicated time for checking and replying to your emails.
4. Use the right tools
We’re spoiled for choice when it comes to tools and apps for time management, productivity, and remote working.
However, sometimes it can feel like it’s too much. Spend a lot of time testing and select the apps which work for you. Less is often more.
Below are some we highly recommend:
Project Management – trello.com
Our favourite outlining app – dynalist.io
Notes – notable.app
Summary:
And there you have it. Our Working from Home Guide 101.
We hope you have enjoyed this one and if you have found it useful please share this post with your friends and on social media.
And while you’re here, do check our new free eBook below.
by Tim @ Gambole | Apr 6, 2020
TikTok is great for marketing
And …in case you haven’t heard of it, is a social video sharing platform – and it’s huge.
So huge, in fact, that independent content creators dwarf the big brands in terms of influence and followers. Take Loren, for instance, who now has over 40 million followers on TikTok.
By comparison, MTV UK has just 332,000 followers.
Does this suggest that the newest social upstart isn’t much of a player when it comes to marketing? Surely, if it rivalled YouTube or Instagram, brands like MTV would be working far harder to raise their follower count, no?
Before we get started, you’ll benefit from a relatively good understanding of what TikTok is, if you’re not already aware. Check out this guide for the lowdown.
Want to Grab TikTok Yourself?
You can download here.
TikTok is a young social media platform; it has a long way to go in terms of maturing as a marketing channel. As such, the businesses and brands who have found success on TikTok are either taking a punt or understand that it’s ideal for their audience.
When assessing whether or not TikTok is a viable marketing channel for your business, it really does depend on who you are and what you do.
For instance, ‘cool’ industries such as fashion and music are perfectly suited to the platform. It excels at short, music-themed clips that draw in a young audience – perfect for those kind of markets.
But what if you offer business analyst services to corporate clients? Well, TikTok probably isn’t going to cut it in that instance. Whether or not it will in the future remains to be seen, but the TikTok audience would have to change considerably if so.
Examples of Brands Smashing TikTok
Let’s look at two brands which are making brilliant use of TikTok.
Clothing and fashion brand ASOS currently has just under 100,000 followers on TikTok, and uses it to promote both its products and influencers. They do so by picking current hits as the soundtracks for their posts and featuring models wearing clothes or trying out the products they sell.
It’s simple marketing, a bit rough and ready but absolutely key to the TikTok experience, and each post garners thousand (sometimes, tens of thousands) of views.
Workout gear store Gymshark is really flexing its muscles on TikTok with 1.7 million followers eagerly anticipating every post.
As you’d expect, most of their content features people wearing Gymshark clothing while working out, but there’s always a challenge thrown in for good measure and plenty of references to any current economic or sociological situations. You may even spot the occasional star from sport in there, too.
When Will TikTok Be a Viable Marketing Channel for Everyone?
It may not. TikTok is likely a marketing channel that will remain specific for a very tightly defined audience.
This is fine. In fact, it’s rather refreshing. If we look at the top TikTok accounts, we can see they’re dominated by real people, rather than big brands.
Wait… is this the future of marketing? Is TikTok actually signalling a sea change in the way audiences are defined and the method by which content is delivered? Let’s keep a close eye on this marketing channel, shall we?
If you would like to run your own low-cost start up home business that makes money quickly:
▸Watch This 7-minute Video
by Tim @ Gambole | Mar 5, 2020
5 Tips for Freelancers Working from Home
If you’ve ever worked in an open plan office, you’ll know how unproductive it can be, thanks to the continual interruptions and noise levels.
Thankfully, you’re probably reading this because you’re in the fortunate position of being able to work from home. And that means you can create the perfect space for you, no one else.
Here are 5 brilliant tips for creating the best possible home office if you’re a freelancer working from home.
1. Create Separation
The feng shui of your home office is something worth considering. One of the best ways you can give yourself the chance of nailing that element is to create separation.
By this, we mean separation between your working and home life.
One of the biggest dangers of working from home is how your personal life can be dominated by work. It’s super easy to get distracted and start procrastinating. As humans we’re creatures of habits and it is vital to have a productive and consistent morning routine to stay on top of projects when working from home.
Therefore, try and create a space that is entirely separate from the rooms in which you chill out and enjoy time with the family (even if that means erecting a curtain!).
2. Think Carefully About Desk Position
If possible, it’s best to avoid having your desk face a wall or window. This can result in an oppressive working environment which isn’t great for creativity or productivity. In big offices, managers may ask people to sit facing walls simply so they can see their screen.
But you’re not in that position, thankfully.
Instead, set your desk in a ‘command position’, which is central to the room with plenty of space surrounding it.
3. Think Like an Interior Designer
You might need some help here when trying to design a kick ass home office. Thankfully there’s lots of apps out there for that, but the more you think like an interior designer while designing your home office, the more likely it is to be a pleasurable space in which to work.
Think about wall art, plants and the other small but vital touches that will make you want to enter that room each day. They’ll all make a huge difference to your productivity and happiness.
4. Think About a Standing Desk
Depending on the type of work you perform; you may be sat at the same desk for long periods of the day.
To ensure you don’t create problems with your posture and general health, a standing desk can be a brilliant investment.
It won’t magically transform anything, but a standing desk will give you more options while working on complex projects.
5. Get Rid of Those Wires
In order to design a kick ass anything – you must look sleek and clean!
Wire management goes a long way and will have a significant impact on your ability to get stuff done.
Messy wires are not only a trip hazard – they’re also a distraction.
So, try and invest in plenty of cable management for your home office and tuck away those unwanted USB cables, power leads and chargers. You’ll feel far better for it.
Wrapping Up:
Hopefully we’ve inspired you to build the perfect home office. And, as you’ll have noted, you really don’t have to spend a huge amount or be an ingenious interior designer – it’s all about creating a room for you.
by Tim @ Gambole | Jan 23, 2020
Are New Year’s Resolutions Worth It ?
Well, it depends…
If you keep them vague then definitely not, if you can make your New Year Resolutions actionable and measurable goals – then yes, definitely yes.
So it’s January and you’re still thinking or perhaps already decided on your New Year’s resolutions.
New Year’s resolutions seem like a good idea but when you look closer, people hardly ever stick with these.
Let’s have a look at the most popular New Year’s resolutions in UK in 2019.
At first look, these all look great:
I mean eating healthy, saving more money or losing excess weight all seem like a good ideas right? Sure, in principle all of these seem like a good idea.
However, all these popular resolutions share a common problem which is also why most people pledging to these will fail miserably.
So What’s Wrong?
For a successful goal (which is basically, what a resolution is), it needs to be actionable and measurable.
Things like “save more money”, “stop procrastinating” or “eat healthy” are too vague.
Here are Some Tips How to Change these into More Specific, Actionable and Measurable Goals
I will open a savings account by the 1st of Feb 2020 and set a standing order for £50 going out from my current a count on the 1st day of each month.
One does not simply stop procrastinating, it’s not that simple. Instead your goal could be to read, Eat that frog by Brian Tracy.
Start using the pomodoro technique when working on your side hustle.
It is one of the perennial top ten New Year’s resolutions, yet studies predict that in 2020, one in 3 adults in UK will be obese.
Now, a better resolution would be to sign up for gym by the 15th of Feb 2020, make time on Monday and Thursday morning and go to gym every week on these days.
Then track progress in your diary and tweak accordingly.
All of the above are actionable and measurable types of goals rather than vague, wishful thinking types of resolutions which each year end up on the top ten list of ‘Guaranteed to Fail Resolutions’.
We hope this post was useful and that it will help you stick to your New Year’s resolutions and become better at setting and achieving your goals.
Good luck with your 2020 resolutions.
If you’re looking for a way to earn an extra income within the next 30 days get in touch with gambole here.
by Tim @ Gambole | Nov 24, 2019
SEO Tips: #1
OK, so you’ve just started a blog. Perhaps to share a hobby you’re passionate about. Or maybe a small side business you’re working from home, in your spare time.
We’ll keep it very short and simple.
Your new blog or website can’t do much without traffic. And the best source of traffic is organic traffic. That’s the traffic coming from all the people typing in various search terms (which we call keywords).
Now, as the times move on, we may see more people using voice search rather than typing in keywords, but that’s a more advanced subject. One we may cover in the future.
SEO Tips for Newbie Bloggers
Meta Titles
Meta titles are the key element of on-page optimisation. It’s one of the ranking factors which haven’t changed much (if at all) over the years. Meta title or title tag is an HTML element which specifies the title of a web page. You can read more on it here.
Usually, your meta title will be same or very similar to your post title.
There are 3 main considerations when choosing a meta title:
- it should grab reader’s attention and make people click on your post, when they see it on Google’s results page.
- make sure to include your main keyword and secondary keyword in your title.(more on keywords later)
- keep an eye on the title length
Google will typically display the first 50–60 characters of your title. If it’s any longer, it will be truncated.
Keyword Research
Before you write your post, spend some time on keyword research.
Now, you may have no time to become an SEO expert. You may also have no access to expensive keyword research tools. But do not worry, we’ve got you covered. This is a newbie guide.
So, if you’re completely clueless as to what keywords and keyword research is, best start here.
To get going you’ll need 2 things.
– understand that your content needs keywords
– use basic, free tools
The first and the most simple tool is Google Suggest.
Simply start typing your keyword in Google and see what happens.
There you go, here are your keyword suggestions.You can now use these within your post.
Another simple, free tool you can use is keywordtool.io Give it a go, it’s pretty self-explanatory.
Content Length
There is no such thing as optimal content length. It varies from niche to niche, and it is not impossible, even for a very short posts to rank well. However, having said that, when it comes to web pages ranking on the first page of Google, these tend to be long. In fact, very long.
According to massive study by Backlinko the average first page result (on Google) contains 1,890 words.
So there you have it. Our 3 very basic SEO tips to get you started.
If you want to learn more about SEO there is a lot of awesome free resources available. Why not starting with this free course from Udemy.
