Why I Blog

One of the bloggers I follow, Blonde Ambition, decided to have little link up as to Why I blog.

I guess I do it for a variety of reasons. With my family and friends being spread all over the county, and in a second county, it is a way for them to get a little glimpse into our lives. Sometimes during those phone conversations you forget to share the small details of daily life, on my blog you get to see and hear about those events. Even our grandparents get on our blog to read about what we have been up to!

It's funny when you run into people and they ask you about something going on in your life, and you say to yourself, "I didn't think I had told them about that, oh right they probably read it on the blog."

The Boy and I on our way to have supper at his mom and dad's house. I brought Raspberry Yogurt Cake and will have the recipe posted soon!

I also blog because not everyone gets to live on a farm and be involved in raising their own food. I hope you enjoy the pictures of the baby calves, the corn and our daily life on a farm. And I hope you feel comfortable if you have a question about your food or farming that you'll ask.

Wearing my hot pink J.Crew shirt to do a little farm work. 

As proven by pictures like these J.Crew and farming can mix. And just because I love the farm and our cattle doesn't mean that I can't have a love for MAC make-up, heels and fashion.

p.s. this was last summer, and that corn is in some serious need of moisture. I also can't believe how  much longer my hair is right now!

How about you, why do you blog? Or maybe why do you love reading blogs (feel free to share some of your favorite ones with me. I love finding new ones). If you decided to share why you blog today be sure to link up with Blonde Ambition. Thanks for reading and have a great Friday! 

Top Crystal Cattle Posts of the Year

Last week I shared what states were reading the Crystal Cattle Blog the most. Today these were the Top 5 posts read in 2012.

5. My farmer friends are sexy and they know it
I love that blogging introduced me to the Peterson Brothers this year. There is almost 20 million views between the two videos. Very proud of the attention these boys drew to agriculture this year.

4. Wedding: We got hitched
Yes, the Boy and I got married this year. Here is the quick recap of our wedding day.

3. Turquoise Thursday: J.Crew imitation necklace
The bubble necklace was definitely the in necklace this year! I love my own J.Crew turquoise, however I was thankful when I found a cheaper option. Did you buy a bubble necklace this year?

2. Cheese is a Vegetable 
So this post was actually wrote at the end of 2011, but it was the second most read post in 2012 so I thought I would throw it in. The Boy still believes cheese is a vegetable, and from all the comments it looks like a lot of other people do too!

1. Chipotle your Grammy commercial still doesn't change my mind 
This was not only the top post of 2012, but is the all time top on the Crystal Cattle blog. The support was outstanding. There was also some people that didn't agree with me either. I guess that is the great thing about America is that we all get to have opinions. The important part is that you respect mine, and I'll respect yours. p.s. I still don't eat at Chipotle.

What was your favorite post, and what do you want to read in 2013?

How to write an #agblog - agriculture blog Part 2

Telling our story

In the past 60 days numerous other agriculture blogs have popped up, which is great for two reasons. 1. Farmers and rancher are becoming better advocates, and I think are realizing that it is important to tell our agriculture story. 2. For consumers you are going to get a better look at where you food comes from, and the people raising it without even leaving your kitchen table.

Last time I had a few tips on starting an #agblog (really these tips can be applied to any blog) and now I am excited about another resource you can use to help you get that blog off the ground. The National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) Young Producer Council (YPC) have put together a series of social media guide including a "How to Guide for Beef Bloggers." I was fortuante enough to be able to work on this project lead by Cari Rinicker, with contributions also made by Chelsea Good, Sharon Briener and Erica Beck.

A subject that I touched on is a questions I get quite often - are people really reading my blog? There are a couple things to remember.

1. First off I think it is best when you are blogging for yourself. You will get much enjoyment out of your blog if you aren't writing for the comments.

2. However, it is nice to get a little encouragement once in awhile. Be sure to add Google Analytics to your blog. Only about one percent of blogger comment. Adding Google Analytics will allow you to know how many people are reading your blog and where the are finding (from link on your facebook page, twitter, a chat board etc.)

3. Make it easy to comment. About six months ago I allowed anonymous comments to be posted to my blog. Some people are going to want to interact with you, but not create an account to comment. Ninety percent of my anonymous commenters have left their name anyways. Also, I have removed the security word that you have to type in after leaving a comment. The security word is to protect against spam, however I have only had one spam comment and I was able to delete it easily. You want your readers to be able to comment as quickly and easily as possible.

4. Interact with your readers. Make sure you respond to their comments and say thank-you. Blogging is about a community, interacting and networking with others.

These are just a couple tips. I you have other tips or questions I would love to hear them! And for more advice visit the How to Blog Tab at the top of my Blog.

How to start your #agblog - agricultural blog

It's easier than you think

Lately, I have had lots of people ask me about my blog and how they can start one of their own. TrioAngus are some good friends of mine is Australia that just got their #agblog started.

Blogs are a great way to communicate about the importance of agriculture, and allow people to gain insight into the lives of farmers and ranchers like the Life on a Kansas Cattle Ranch blog by Debbie Lyons. Or they can be an extremely inexpensive way to market your livestock like my parents are doing with the High Country Cattle blog, and the Boy has his JJB Cattle Co. blog.

1. Choose whether you will use Blogger or Wordpress
As you start to look through other #agblogs you'll notice that these are the two most popular formats. I personally prefer Blogger blogs. I find the format extremely simple to use, and it is easy for my readers to comment. Also, Blogger is owned by Google, so it ties in nicely with YouTube, Gmail and Google Analytics.

2. Start writing 
If you are going to start a blog, you need to make a commitment to write or post. When I have free time I will write a group of posts and then schedule them to be strung out during my busy time. This way my readers will have fresh content to look at.

3. Share content
If you can't think of anything to say, post a picture or video. You might even want to link to other #agblogs of interest. Social media is about community and sharing.

4. Tell people about it 
Start spreading the message. Send out an email blast to friends, family and customers letting them know about your new blog, and to bookmark your site. Also, twitter and facebook are a great way to let people know you are posting. Also, be sure that your blog is included in blog rolls like Michele Payn-Knoper's Agrifood Resources. She lists tons of Farm and Ranch Blogs and Agvocate Blogs. Cattle.com is also a good resource for cattle blogs.

5. Find out if people are reading
I believe that if you decide to start to blog you need to do because you love sharing your message. However, knowing someone out there is reading can help you stay on track. One of the biggest things I hear from other blog friends is that they think no one is readings, because of the lack of comments they are receiving. Trust me people are reading, although I find though the agriculture community doesn't post a huge volume of comments. My solution is to add Google Analytics to your blog. This will help you track how many people are coming to your blog, what they are reading and where they are coming from. This is a nice tutorial to help you install Google Analytics.

I would love to hear some your advice as well. And if you have any questions please ask away. I am sure someone is wondering the exact same thing too! And don't forget to read Part 2 of this post here and check out the How to Blog Tab at the top of my blog for blogging tutorials.