Tumblr is one the hottest blogging platforms out there right now because of it’s ease of use and customizability. Kitchen Monki White Label for Recipe Publishers takes your Tumblr blog to the next level with the ability to create a food community fully equipped with user tools that will bring your readers coming back for second helpings. Watch your pageviews go up and your user engagement skyrocket. Check out how easy it is to get started below:

For more information and to start building you own Tumblr food community, visit www.kitchenmonki.com/publisher.

Upgrade your recipe content, create a real food community, and get paid with Kitchen Monki. For more info, go to
www.kitchenmonki.com/publisher.

For more information and to start building your own food community, go to www.kitchenmonki.com/publisher.

Not seeing the numbers you want to see with your blog? No one reading your food blog, despite you sharing links to it all the time on major social networks? There are many things to worry about when food blogging, and some of them many bloggers don’t even consider, let alone the major problems like finding a readership. These are eight common mistakes bloggers make and how to make you avoid them successfully.

1. Not doing SEO properly
Glanced at a few articles about SEO and now using keywords to optimize your blog? While stuffing some keywords here and there might seem enough, most bloggers have to realize that SEO also works with video, images, and links.

Here is one big tip: optimizing photos, such as naming the photo with keywords and then uploading it to your blog (this is especially helpful with WordPress blogs). Before saying you know everything about SEO, take a crash course and jot down some notes or reminders, as we can all forget some steps to optimizing.

2. Font, layout, and design
Yes, even font and layout can turn-off a reader from looking through your blog. Default themes, themes that are “too crowded,” and even poor font choices can all lead to poor numbers. Invest in a good design, a font that can be easily read, and a layout that is easy to use by all sorts of Internet users. Serious blogging takes a little bit of sacrifice, whether it is monetary or time (or both).

3. Incentivize readers to stay with it
Have you ever seen a blog that said subscribe for the latest updates, features, and news for that blog? While that be enough for some, most people need more than that to subscribe nowadays. Food bloggers can give away freebies in the form of an e-book for recipes, or even a physical book. Give readers a real reason to subscribe.

4. Not utilizing jumps or breaks
One thing that can get bothersome on the main page of a blog is showing full-posts, which can get a bit confusing when scrolling down a page. A food blogger must be able to tease with bite-sized pieces of content.

5. No automatic sharing options
Automatic sharing, like those little buttons you see at the top or bottom of articles that allow you to tweet, Like, or post about the article you just read have become a staple for most bloggers. Even a food blogger must offer automatic sharing for readers, so don’t skimp out!

6. Pop-up ads, intrusive marketing
What’s more annoying than being totally drawn into an article, being right in the middle of the juicy bit, and then a pop-up advertisement blacks out the screen and makes you lose your spot? It’s annoying to everyone, including your readers. Just don’t do it.

7. Focusing on yourself, not the readers
While everyone has their own intentions as to why they are blogging, all bloggers must make sure they are catering to mostly their readership–at least 98% of the time. It is good to have some self-focus, but, they are the reason you are seeing positive results from your blog, so why not see things through their eyes too?

8. Owning an actual domain name
Hobby blogging can get by on domains such as “thisismyblog.blogger.com” or other variants, but professional blogging should have all the works: a nice design, a memorable logo, and an independent domain name. People are going to remember “thisismyblog.com” more than the alternative.

What do you think? Do you have any tips to pass along to others? We’d love to hear your comments!

If you are a mom who is looking to add back a little sizzle to your life, we have a great partner for you. MaVaVoom is a Kitchen Monki parter offering much more than recipes. The provides “fun and sassy advice, guides and tips for women! MaVaVoom focuses on health, relationships, fashion, decor, easy recipes, fun mom ideas, and new baby info.” Check it out, and keep in mind that its recipe section is powered by Kitchen Monki!

For more information on the White Label, visit www.kitchenmonki.com/publisher.

Have you ever wondered who your readers or members really are? Today on a blog or news site, they so often come over as a set of statistics: pageviews, unique browser sessions, etc.

The same goes for selling a cookbook (so 1990s). You receive some numbers from your publisher on how many were sold. Do you know anything about who those folks are, what your readers are about?

Our embedded Kitchen Monki White Label for bloggers, content sites, and online cookbook/subscription publishers can really change the game. You know all of your members based on their online information. The vast majority of your new members will join your food community via their Facebook login, so you know all the information about them from their own Facebook pages. Think what you can learn about your reader base, how much more you can tailor your content towards keeping them interested.

The image is simply a screen shot of 2 key features in Kitchen Monki White Label associated with a dynamic member base our embedded software can enable:

1. Who has joined recently. Of course you can see all of your members via the administrator tools.
2. The ability for you to select and highlight “featured members” to build community

Think about all you can do with Kitchen Monki White Label to create your own food community and engage your members.

You can get started today with Kitchen Monki for Publishers today via our online signup for either a paid or ad-supported version. If your webmaster is handy, you can have our embedded suite live on your site in under and hour. Now that is an engaged community!

We love seeing all the specialty makers of spices, sauces, and foods out there. Kitchen Monki White Label partner La Place Hot Sauce from Fort Walton Beach, Florida fits right into the groove as “Little Spicy Taste of Florida”. They make some of the most interesting hot sauces around. And check out the recipe ideas they have with those sauces. Wow!

According to La Place, their first hot sauce was the mango Habanero. Every one that tried it just loves it and keeps asking for more. Then they ventured on to the plain habanero hot and medium followed by the papaya and the raspberry. You won’t find those combinations of spice, heat and flavor just anywhere!

As we have continued to gain momentum with our Kitchen Monki White Label offering, we have made it even easier to sign up. In January, we launched a self-signup process online for bloggers and publishers.

Our white label environment enables a fully engaged and dynamic food community to be embedded right in your website in minutes. Simply go through the 3-step signup process, select the monthly subscription or ad-supported model, and receive a single line of code that you or your webmaster can embed in your site to enable the environment.

If you are looking for a more engaged user base viewing, using, and submitting recipes, ultimately producing more readers and pageviews in your food section, give Kitchen Monki White Label a try today. It won’t take long!

Contrary to popular belief, food blogging is serious business–and that’s why food bloggers need to make sure that they explore all social media options to increase their viewership and fan base.

While some of the usual go-to tools will always work, there are also some lesser known methods to either rocket your food blog to popularity or keep up the high numbers.

Take note, food blogger! Here are seven ways you can boost your readership.

1. Facebook
This is a pretty obvious one, but, a lot of bloggers seem to neglect the importance of Facebook. Creating a Facebook Page for your blog can open up a whole new base of readers and bring in lots of click-throughs. It is also a great base to hold contests, do little “quips” instead of full-on blog posts all the time, and other great alternatives to stay active.

2. Twitter
This is a staple in social media nowadays, so why even pretend to think it’s dumb or a waste of time? Much like Facebook, Twitter can increase views and people can find posts from your blog easier through hashtags. Twitter can also be a base of operations for contests, giveaways, and “teaser” content if Facebook isn’t working out.

3. Google+
Though still relatively new, Google+ can do things Twitter and Facebook can’t do that a food blogger can use to generate more views. With Google+, a blogger of any kind can use the Hangout feature, which famous bloggers and media types have already done so (even President Obama has conducted a Google+ Hangout). Google+ also has a straight link to Google search now, which can be quite beneficial.

4. Niche websites
Being a part of a niche community means sticking together and helping one another. Social media via niche websites can mean tapping into a readership that is already looking at food blogs and know what they want, on top of interacting with fellow food bloggers. Websites like the Food Blog Alliance can help with that.

5. Foodspotting
The app Foodspotting is a food blogger’s dream, since it is an entire network of “good food and where to find it,” as Foodspotting’s website puts it. Upload pictures of food, where to find it, and make sure to drop some hints to your own food blog or incorporate Foodspotting into your blog posts.

6. Pinterest
The current social media darling for most, Pinterest is becoming a giant network for bloggers and viewers both. Creating boards, repinning, and liking content can lead to collaborations, guest blogging spots, and a larger viewership.

7. Guest writing/blogging
Even in the food blogger community a guest blog spot is appreciated. Actively looking for a guest blogging spot can expose your blog and your expertise on good food to a new set of readers and now you have established a relationship with that fellow blogger, who is more likely to share your content (and hopefully vice versa).

Combining your efforts through Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, and other sites will always create lots of links and more views. Though it might be too overwhelming to share on every single social network, picking a few of the popular ones will work just as well. For bloggers, the best would probably be Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest currently.

Food blogging, like most blogging, works by connecting with others and having sharable content. Remember first to make your content like-worthy and share-worthy, then worry about putting your content out there in the social media circuit. Good luck!