Adding Badges and Banners to Your Blog

Badge by Jeremy at Retro-Zombie

     The 2012 A to Z Challenge is off to an exciting start.  We are hovering around the 500 count right now and growing steadily.  I encourage each of you to continue promoting the Challenge on your blogs and in comments.  Let's aim for 1000 sign ups before the end of February.  We'll give some reasons why you might want more sign-ups in future posts.

       Alana Garrigues from Writercize did a nice job promoting the Challenge this past week. Check this out:

http://technorati.com/blogging/article/benefits-of-blogging-challenges/    

Please show Alana your appreciation by stopping by her blog to say hello and thank you.   We'll probably hear more from Alana on this site in the weeks to come.  

       Have you seen the A to Z Twitter newspaper that Damyanti has been managing for the Challenge?  It's in the sidebar to your right if you want to click on it and see the full thing.  Damyanti has been doing an outstanding job keeping the Twitter buzz going with tweets and the newspaper.   If you're on Twitter be sure to follow the Challenge at @AprilA2Z.   The hashtag is #atozchallenge.  Since I'm not on Twitter yet I don't know exactly what this means, but those who are should know what I am talking about.  Keep the Twitter buzz coming.  Damyanti will be here on the A to Z Blog in an upcoming segment to talk more about this Twitter topic.  

        Jeremy from Retro-Zombie will be also providing you with some helpful information in an upcoming post.  In case you don't know him yet, Jeremy is one of the A to Z co-hosts.  I encourage you to stop by his blog and say hello.  He is a very creative guy.  Jeremy is responsible for the animated badges and banners you can find here on the A to Z Blog page and have probably been seeing popping up on blogs everywhere.  Have you added one to your page yet?

         We've had a number of folks wondering how to add badges and banners to their sites.  Today I'm providing a brief how-to for those of you who have Blogger blogs:      

    How do I add a badge or banner to my own blog? (old Blogger format)   

 Here is how to put the badge or banner that includes code on your site if you are using the old Blogger .

1. Copy the code beneath whichever badge or banner you prefer. The badges and banners  appear on the A to Z Blog page. The code is in a small text box beneath the badges and banners.

2. Click "Design" at the top right hand corner and you should be taken to a page where page changes can be made.

3. You should see a sidebar with a little box that says "Add a Gadget" at the top. Click that link.

4. A pop-up box should appear. Scroll down to "HTML/ Java Script" and click the plus sign.

5. A configure box should appear. You can give a title. In this case something like "Blogging from A to Z Challenge" or "I'm Blogging from A to Z in April". Then in the content box you will paste the code that you have previously copied. Click save and that box should disappear.

6. to be safe also click "Save" on the top right of the Page Element page. Then click view blog and you will be taken to the blog page again where you should see the badge if you've done it right.

How do I add a badge or banner to my own blog?

These directions are for installing the “2012 Blogging from A to Z” badge or the other badges and banners that provide code on a Blogger-hosted blog, using the newest version of the editor.

1) Choose the badge or banner you wish to add.

2) Copy the code from the box under the badge.  Make sure you scroll through that whole window because there's more code than is displayed in that small box.

2) Click "design" at the top, right of your own blog.

3) Click "layout" from the menu down the left side of the page.

4) Click "add a gadget" in the place where you'd like the badge

5) Scroll down the list of available gadgets until you get to "html/javascript" "add 3rd party functionality or other code to your blog", then click the blue plus sign.

5) Paste the code you copied in step one into the big, blank box.

6) If you want to add a caption, put it in the strip where it says, "title".

7) Click "save."

8) Now view your blog to see if it worked!

         Remember that whenever you have questions, you can ask in the comment section or click on the FAQ tab above to see if the question has already been answered.  If there is no answer yet, ask!

          Hope you're having fun visiting your fellow A to Z-ers.  If you're not yet, I encourage you to drop by some of them between now and April.

          Don't forget the Video Contest.  You can read about it by clicking on the appropriate tab at the top of the page.  If you missed it earlier this week, I leave you with the most recent entry sent in by Kathleen at Living 2012:

Light My Fire: Reflections on the A to Z Challenge

Today we have the privilege of helping Jaime D. of Awakenings and Reflections celebrate her blog's 2^nd anniversary! She's guest posting to offer some motivations that will light the fire in YOU  to join us for the challenge!  Let's give her a warm, alphabet-fan welcome!

Light My Fire: Reflections on the A to Z Challenge

       I have been blogging for two years and really enjoy it. There are so many interesting people in the world and blogging connects us on multiple levels. As much as I love blogging, I just don’t feel like I have fully embraced it. I am intentional about creating my posts and I truly appreciate all of the amazing writers and photographers who share their work. I’ve been feeling stuck, though. I have felt like I need to move forward and I didn’t know how to. That is until I came across an A to Z Blogging Challenge badge at Teresa's blog, Journaling Woman.

     After reading about the Challenge, I feel motivated to join. More importantly, I feel motivated to write. Since this will be my first time, I’ve been reviewing the great tips and resources out there. It seems like most people are faced with the ultimate question: to write posts ahead or not? I have decided to choose my words prior to April. They will be words that mean something to me so that when I write I am being authentic. I have created a table with the different posting days in April and am jotting down one or two words (post themes) when they pop into my head. But who am I kidding? I am a procrastinator and I work best under pressure. I’ve always been like this and it is too late in life to pretend that I’m not. I’ll probably end up with a combination of pre-written and in-the-moment posts.

       I’m sure that this challenge holds different meanings for everyone involved and that bloggers are motivated to join for an array of unique reasons. For me, the A to Z Blogging Challenge is the spark that has been missing in my blog world. I already feel a rush of adrenaline from the anticipation, an increased sense of community and the energized feeling I get when I know I am about to embark on an adventure. My creative fire has been lit and I am thankful for the spark provided by the A to Z Challenge.

Wishing that everyone finds their spark,

Jaime, of Awakenings and Reflections

   

How to save a post for a later date and time

I remember how tickled I was when I found out how to save a post for a later date and time.

This is how it’s done, using the “old” Blogger interface. 

Write a post.

Decide on the date and time of posting.

Click on Post Option.

Select the Schedule at option.

Then go ahead and set the date and time.

Click on picture to enlarge.

When you are finished setting the date and time you MUST press the PUBLISH POST button to save it as “Scheduled” to your post listings.

If you go back and edit this post, you MUST press the PUBLISH POST otherwise it will be saved as a draft.

Click on picture to enlarge.

Finally, this is how it will look in your Posting List. Note the difference! 

Click on picture to enlarge.

I hope you find this helpful - if you need further assistance you can visit me HERE and leave me a note; you can also leave your questions here in the comment section...either way, I’ll be happy to help you out!

Cheers, Jenny @ Pearson Report

A to Z Video Challenge: Some Ideas from Nicole

         Now that you're signed up for April you've got 2 months to get ready for it.  This is a great time to make a video to enter into the A to Z Video Promo Contest.  Make a short video about the A to Z April Challenge and submit it to us.   Check the above tabs for more details.  And to provide some helpful tips on video ideas we have Nicole from The Madlab Post with us.

Easy Production Ideas for A to Z Video Challenge Entries – Part 1

Nicole from The Madlab Post

Contrary to what some bloggers who are Blogging from A to Z in April may believe, making a video for the A to Z Promo Contest that is open now, is pretty easy. It’s 2012! Meaning, you don’t need rolls of 8mm film and conversion equipment to submit something to the A to Z Video Challenge. All you need is a video recording device. Don’t have a camcorder? That’s ok too.

In this day and age, you probably own at least one gadget that has the capabilities to give you a two minute long video recording, such as an iPhone, iPod, Digital Camera (you know, the ones you use to take digital photos of your vacation or kid’s birthday party with? If you have a newer model, as in the last 5 years or so, it should have a video recording feature), Flipcam, Android phone with video capability, DSLR with video capability or a webcam…yes, I said a webcam, but before you either get your undies in a bunch or start losing them to get ready for your closeup because you’re such an exhibitionist, read on as I unpack a box of the simplest ways for Bloggers participating in the A to Z challenge to make a video promo for this event….webcam not included!

It’s all in the Live Shots

Make a video that features everything you want all in one shot, or rather, one recording. You just press the record button, record all you need to get in the video…in 2 minutes or less, of course, and be done with it. It does not matter what you choose to be the subject of your live shot nor does it matter what you record, so long as everything is included to convey the message that you want to get across to viewers.

You can record yourself talking to the camera, similar to the style in which one would record a live video podcast or TV contest entry. For those of you who are camera shy, like me, you also have the option to let the world or your surroundings speak for you. Record your pets or an area of beautiful scenery in your town and then signage to convey the message of your video. Want music? Play a song on your radio in the background while recording the video. Don’t have a radio? Fine. Put a CD into your DVD player and turn on the TV to let the sound play through the speakers in the background. Problem solved!

Have kids? Great! Let them be the star of the live shot and instruct them to talk about the A to Z challenge or the alphabet in general. You can also use props to spice up your live shot so that it doesn’t look like a talking head from the local news broadcast, boring viewers to death. That is of course, unless you want to have a talking head video as your live shot. There are ways to make this work without being boring.

You can either record a simple video testimonial, talking about your previous experience with the A to Z challenge, why you plan to blog from A to Z in April or what your exact blogging strategy is to complete the challenge and come out on the other side in one piece…OR…you can find one of those silly Bobble head toys (they make a lot of them for NFL players) and record the bobble head while you act as the voice in the background. The live shot approach works well for those using digital cameras or video camcorders that can be easily connected to a computer for sending to a hard drive and/or then uploading to YouTube or other online video website of your choosing.

Stay tuned for more ideas for the folks among you who want to take it a step further and get all fancy with recorded footage! In the meantime, if you need inspiration or need to see examples of how simple yet powerful one shot or live shot video recordings can be, just check out some of the “My Secrets” uploads on YouTube. This one made by Kaline Bran almost moved me to tears.


Visit Nicole at
The Madlab Post

video link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENZIaXjVAc4


Here's a quick sample that Nicole put together for this post that will further illustrate what she's talking about above:




And here is our latest entry sent in from Kathleen at Living 2012:



See--isn't that fun?

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Here's What Nancy Knows....

Today’s guest post comes from Nancy, who blogs as dogear6 at Living The Seasons.  Nancy also has another blog at A Daily Life, that serves as a resource for writers, diarists, and bloggers. 

Some Notes From Nancy:

I'm looking forward to trying this year's A to Z Challenge and I'd like to share with everyone why this excites me

Because I can do it.

That's right, because I can do it.  And so can you.

Last year, I coordinated and participated in a daily random word challenge.  Each day, myself and other participants wrote a post, using a word that had been randomly selected by the computer. 

My first posts were mostly a definition of the word and a picture, with maybe a paragraph as to why I picked that picture.  Slowly I began writing better content to where the posts meant something to me and were something I wanted to share to encourage others, amuse them, or point out beauty. 

I got really discouraged in early July because I had so much I wanted to share but the random words restricted my choices so badly.  I realized that I had to be more creative in using the words while posting the topics I wanted. 

By the end of 2011, my posts had quality and quantity.  There were very few topics left in my journal jar as I'd managed in someway to get them all out. 

Having finished (survived) a daily challenge, I highly recommend it.  It's a great way to get consistency, get into the habit of writing, and train the muse to show up when needed.  At the end of it, you have a body of work. 

Here were some of my tricks when I got stuck:

·        Look up the meaning of the word in Wiktionary.

·        Use Wikipedia to get some background information.

·        Look up quotes that use the word.  I might use the quote in my story, sometimes it was just a tool to get my ideas flowing.  My favorite quote place is Brainy Quote, but you can find all kinds of quotes by using Google.

·        Look up the word with Google and just see what happens.

·        Look through my journals for something I may have written with a theme similar to the word (i.e., in my backspace posting, I looked for things I’d expressed regrets about).

·        Brainstorm with my husband.  He has a good sense of humor and is usually up to making suggestions.  I may not like his ideas, but he’s a good resource to get my brain unstuck.

·        And sometimes I just sat at the table and looked out the window to see if the backyard had answers for me :)

Once I got my ideas flowing, I developed them into a story with a beginning and end, as well as an explanation of why it was important to me and what I’d like for my family and friends to remember.  I used the writer’s favorite five W’s – who, what, when, where, and why.  They’re a reliable tool and give good structure to any story.

I hung in there every day, even when I didn’t feel like doing the word of the day, even when I didn’t know HOW I was going to use the word of the day, even when I didn’t want to spend more time at the computer after being at work all day.  It was worth it to share my thoughts, get the feedback, hear from my friends (old and new), and bring joy to those around me.

Each time I thought of skipping a day, I’d think a) the other participants will be posting and I have to keep up; b) my Mom will miss it; c) my girlfriend’s daughter will be looking for more dog pictures; d) it greatly amuses everyone to see how I use today’s word and e) if I want to write, I need to write.  And so I wrote.

It’s hard to pick several favorite posts from 2011.  I did a lot of good work in the challenge.  Several particularly noteworthy posts include Culture Norms Are A Pile of Moose Muffins (about my cousin who had Down’s syndrome), Phase of the Summer (about fleeting days), and Moo Cards Explain Me (who I am, using the word of the day “moo”). 

So do the A to Z Challenge! Some days will be easy, others will not.  You’ll have good posts and mediocre ones.  That’s okay – the game is to show up each day and do it.  With practice, you’ll get better and so will your creativity. 

Please note that my materials are copyright by a Creative Commons Attribution license.  For more information, visit or contact me at www.livingtheseasons.com.