My Blogging Gear Breakdown

April 12, 2018 By Lauren Leave a Comment

This is a look at my current blogging gear setup in 2017.

I have a few things that I might add soon, but I am really happy with the current setup.

And it all started with just a cheap laptop, and over the last 9 years I have honed in on some favorite tools to help me speed up the process.

But if we are being honest, you don’t need ANY of this stuff to be successful as a blogger, but it can help you step up your game a bit and enjoy the work a bit more.

Check out the video below for all the details, or just keep scrolling to see everything I have in my office setup.

A look at each item:

Shure SM7B

The SM7B dynamic microphone has a smooth, flat, wide-range frequency response in all professional audio applications. The best mic I have ever owned by far.

Rode PSA1 Swivel Boom Arm

Keep the mic at a comfortable level for speaking or singing while leaving hands free! Pricey for a boom arm, but considerably better than my old one (down below).

Echo Dot

A hands-free, voice-controlled device that uses Alexa to play music, control smart home devices, provide information, read the news, set alarms, and more. Not a necessity by any means, but I love it.

Focusrite Scarlet Solo

I recommend this as they no longer make Tascam US100 which essentially is how I get my mic audio into the mac mini.

Apple Mac Mini

Great machine and plenty powerful for all the apps that I use on a daily basis.

Western Digital External Hard Drive

This is my external HD that I use. It gets the job done.

Halter Dual Monitor Stand

I LOVE having 2 monitors. And this is what makes it all possible while allowing me the flexibility to move them around.

Logitech c920 Webcam

Pretty much the best webcam out there. Highly recommended.

Pyle PMKSH01 Boom Microphone Stand

My old boom arm that now holds the webcam listed above. Not bad at all for the price.

Mic Thread Adapter to Camera Mount

Studs needed for mounting cameras, recorders and other accessories onto microphone stands.

Status Audio HD2 Headphones

My favorite pair of headphones. Truly great sound and a joy to listen to.

KRK Rokit 5 Powered Studio Monitors

Leftover from my music studio, these bad boys sound awesome.

GoPro Hero 4

I don’t use this much, but it is an incredibly versatile and useful camera.

Speaker Wall Mounts

Used to get the speakers up on the wall and off my desk.

Autonomous Sit-Stand Desk

I love standing at work now. And I love this desk. It is awesome.

Cable Management System

These things helped eliminate all the cable mess under the desk.

Gunnar Computer Glasses

Specially designed lenses featuring proprietary tints and coatings that block high-energy blue light, UV and glare.

Topo Ergodriven Standing Mat

If you stand at your desk, you NEED a good mat. This is the best one I have found so far. You’ll sit less and stand comfortably because it inspires active and varied stances!

Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard

An oldie, but my favorite keyboard that I have ever used.

Razer DeathAdder

Great high-DPI mouse for very precise movements.

Crank Sit-Stand Desk

My old desk that is about to be sold on Craigslist, it is really nice, I just got tired of the crank to raise/lower it.

Herman Miller Aeron

Stupid expensive, but a great chair. Definitely buy used if you can. I think I got mine for 70% off the retail price on Craigslist.

My Leather Bag

All-purpose lightweight soft vintage leather briefcase that has everything I need in a work bag.

Fisher Space Pen

Writes at any angle, even in Zero Gravity. 😉

Canon T3i DSLR Camera

My old DSLR that has been good to me. Ready to upgrade this year, but the T3i has been a great camera.

What about you?

What blogging gear do you have that you love? Let me know below –

Will you get sued if you use Google images for your blog posts?

July 7, 2016 By Bob Lotich Leave a Comment

Will you get sued if you use Google images for your blog posts?

It is quite possible, friend.

Do yourself a favor and do NOT use images from Google for your blog posts. I see way too many bloggers doing this and while you may get away with it for a while, it will most likely catch up to you in the future.

The issue is that Google images (even when using the filters) contain copyrighted photos and using them will get you in trouble.

Case in point: A few months ago, I got a letter from the wonderful legal team at Getty images requiring me to pay $750 for an image I had used without a license on an old blog post of mine that no one even read.

Purchasing Legal Rights

For the past five years or so, I’ve been good about only using images that were Creative Commons-licensed or that I had purchased the rights to use. So I was a bit confused as to how this happened. After pulling up the offending blog post, I realized that the image referred to was actually part of a screenshot I took from Turbotax on a review post.

So, technically, Turbotax did (I assume) have the legal right to use the image, and I took a screenshot of the Turbotax site. Also, the total size of the screenshot was about 200px by 200px, which put the actual image size the Getty lawyers were concerned about to probably 25px by 25px.

So after seeing all this, I hoped they would have some leniency given the circumstances, and they did. I called the number on the threatening letter, and the person I talked to said he’d let it slide if I removed the image from my site.

I learned some big lessons here, but the biggest was that these guys are using bots to scour the Web looking for unlicensed images.

Since that’s the case, no one and no website, no matter how old or unpopular, is safe.

I thought they only accidentally stumble on a popular post and say, “Hey, I think that’s my image he’s using,” but instead, they have the tools to scour every nook and cranny of the Internet looking for violators.

So consider yourself warned!

Instead Use:

How to get a tax ID or EIN for free

July 7, 2016 By Bob Lotich 2 Comments

How to get a tax ID or EIN for free

As you get going in your blogging endeavors, you’ll probably want to get an EIN (Employer Identification Number). Even for bloggers who aren’t making much money, it still might be good just so you don’t have to use your Social Security Number every time you sign up with an ad network.

According to the IRS website:

“This EIN is your permanent number and can be used immediately for most of your business needs, including opening a bank account, applying for business licenses, and filing a tax return by mail.”

Get an EIN for free!

What I’m finding is that many people don’t know you can get an EIN for free. Actually, I didn’t know that either when I got mine; I think I paid $45 to some company to get it. And just today, I was talking to someone who was going to pay $80 to get one.

The good news for us all is that you can just go to the IRS website and use its online application and within about five minutes, you’ll have a PDF approval letter showing your newly created EIN for your business – without spending a dime.

Get your EIN now

Want to get one now? You won’t believe how easy it is. Just follow these simple steps when applying for an EIN number:

Go to the IRS EIN page
(http://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Small-Businesses-&-Self-Employed/Apply-for-an-Employer-Identification-Number-(EIN)-Online) and scroll down to the bottom and click the link that says “APPLY ONLINE NOW.”
You will find the EIN number application.
Click the “Begin Application” button to apply for EIN number
Answer about 10 to 15 quick questions

That’s it. You just got a free EIN number.

Note: Be warned that if you leave your computer for 15 minutes during the application process, the EIN website will kick you out, and you have to start over.

After you submit your application, you get a PDF document with your EIN. I suggest saving that somewhere safe, just so you don’t forget it.

It isn’t very easy to look up your EIN number once you forget it (most websites out there want to charge you to do an EIN lookup), so save yourself the hassle and don’t forget it.

Apply for an EIN over the phone

If you have trouble with the online EIN application process or just feel more comfortable on the phone, you can call the IRS and apply for an EIN over the phone at (800) 829-4933 from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. (Eastern time).

The cheapest way to get an LLC

July 7, 2016 By Bob Lotich Leave a Comment

The cheapest way to get an LLC

I knew a lawyer who helped me through the process, but if you aren’t so lucky and don’t have a $1,000 ready to spend on lawyer fees, you can use an online legal service like RocketLawyer.com.

There are many sites like it, but this site helps you to form an LLC at a much lower price than with a lawyer face to face.

As you can see in the following image the total cost (for my state) comes out to $433.95, but if we take a closer look, you will see that you can get it quite a bit cheaper by not using some of the optional services.

The registered agent

All corporations and LLCs must have a registered agent, a person or business able to receive documents during normal business hours at a legal physical location within the business’ state. Since I’m at my business location during regular business hours, I chose to be my own registered agent and saved the fee. Some people may need this, but, surely, some will not.

The tax ID (or EIN)

This one is a joke. You can apply for an EIN online for free. (See the next chapter.) It literally is a five-minute process, and then you have your Tax ID. No one needs to pay $40 for this.

The corporate kit

This is just a bunch of junk (in my opinion) to get you to spend more. Some people may want it, but you can find and purchase it all separately.

According to the website, “The corporate kit memorializes your new business. It has all the essential tools to get your company started: embossed binder, stock certificates, sample bylaws, business forms, and more.

Final thoughts

If you can do without those things and happen to live in Missouri like me (each state’s filing fee is different), you can get it all done for $225 at RocketLawyer.com.

How to formalize your blog as a business

July 7, 2016 By Bob Lotich Leave a Comment

How to formalize your blog as a business

I get asked this question all the time, and while I’m not the most qualified to answer (talk with an accountant or a lawyer for the expert answer), I will share my experience in hopes it may help.

I started my first blog as a hobby in 2007, and I only made about $100 total with it the first six months, so a sole proprietorship was the perfect business entity.

By the way, if you do nothing, you’re automatically a sole proprietor. I didn’t realize this when I started, but if you just start a business and don’t form an LLC, S-corp, etc., then by default the IRS considers you a sole proprietor.

Running the business as a sole proprietor is the cheapest and simplest because you don’t have to do anything different. You just mark your business earnings on your tax return along with your income from your day job, etc.

Single-Member LLC

I ran my business as a sole proprietor for about a year and a half until I formed a single-member LLC. Some local companies use feather flags to get customers from street traffic. There are a few different options when choosing your business entity, but I chose the LLC for a couple of reasons.

It was simple to run.

As a single-member LLC, I didn’t need to divide the percentage of ownership. Really, not much changed from running the sole proprietorship as far as what I needed to do to maintain it. I still get to use a single tax form, instead of one for the business and one for personal.

An LLC offers legal protection.

After doing a bit of research, it became pretty clear that an LLC is safer than a sole proprietorship. From what I understand, the biggest downside of being a sole proprietor is that you don’t have much legal protection. So if your business gets sued, the plaintiff (the person suing you) can take your house. That’s no fun.

It proves to the IRS that you mean business.

Apparently, there are a lot of people who create home-based “businesses” just so they can write off expenses like a computer, desk, etc. The IRS is good at what it does (i.e. spotting illegitimate businesses), and I remember reading an article that claimed the likelihood of an audit decreases by 90 percent for LLCs rather than sole proprietors.

So again, I recommend chatting with an accountant and a lawyer to find out what would be best for your situation both from a tax benefit standpoint as well as from a legal protection.

A look at each item:

What about you?

Will you get sued if you use Google images for your blog posts?

Purchasing Legal Rights

Instead Use:

How to get a tax ID or EIN for free

Get an EIN for free!

Get your EIN now

Apply for an EIN over the phone

The cheapest way to get an LLC

The registered agent

The tax ID (or EIN)

The corporate kit

Final thoughts

How to formalize your blog as a business

Single-Member LLC

It was simple to run.

An LLC offers legal protection.

It proves to the IRS that you mean business.