You can then create a cusom menu on your main blog and add the newsletter blog URL into the menu as an item by creating a custom link to it.

You can set up newsletter email subscriptions by using this guide > http://en.support.wordpress.com/widgets/follow-blog-widget/

For a follow button to appear on the bottom right hand corner of your site for those who do not have WordPress.com accounts see here > http://en.blog.wordpress.com/2011/09/21/more-traffic-for-your-blog-with-the-follow-button/

Custom menu http://en.support.wordpress.com/menus/
add cusom link http://en.support.wordpress.com/menus/#adding-custom-links

Here’s a link to a custom menu walk-through > http://onecoolsitebloggingtips.com/2011/08/11/wordpress-com-custom-menu-walk-through/

There are many common errors, misunderstanding and misconceptions when creating custom menus and you can read about them here > http://wpbtips.wordpress.com/2011/12/19/custom-menus/

https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/newsletter/

Just let me know if you need further help.

Do I insert this code into a text widget? How do I use it to make my social media buttons looks the same as they do now except that the image changes on hover?

How do I find the "title" attribute value?

How is page load time affected by uploading images to my media library versus Photobucket?

Thanks again.

First, upload the images to use for the mouseovers into your media library and copy the image links.

For each one, find the "title" attribute value and create a block of CSS like this:

a[title="Flickr"] img {
	display: none;
}
a[title="Flickr"] {
	display: block;
	background: url(http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t434/frommartawithlove/BFlickr.png);
	width: 210px;
	height: 46px;
}
a[title="Flickr"]:hover {
	display: block;
	background: url(http://s.wordpress.org/about/images/logos/wordpress-logo-32-blue.png);
	width: 210px;
	height: 46px;
}

I used a WordPress logo as an example above, so you'll want to replace the value of the 2nd url() function with the Flickr image you uploaded to your media library.

Is there a way to change an image on mouseover in a text widget? I'd like to do this for my social media icons but search results have all been leading me to javascript and plugins (which I can't access because I'm using free WordPress).

Thanks very much for your help.

This will produce a questionmark when you hover over the text, and the definition in a small popup. Perhaps you should also differentiate the styling of the text somehow, to show it's not just plain text; if you'd like something like that, let me know.

This support forum is not provided for blog promotion purposes. It's for resolving specific issues that you need help with that pertain to use of the software, features and functions,etc.

On the bottom of your Admin page you will find a link to the Learn WordPress.com blogging Tutorial prepared by Staff. http://learn.wordpress.com/ The support documentation is all found at the Support link http://en.support.wordpress.com which is also on the bottom of your Admin page.
http://en.support.wordpress.com/introduction/
http://en.support.wordpress.com/getting-more-views-and-traffic/

I'm a blogging tips blogger but there's no way that I will do blog evaluations free of charge. Here's a 12 step do it yourself blog evaluation. What follows is "on-the-house" too. :)

Here are 25 basic steps to take to increase traffic to your blog:
1. Structure a reader and search engine blog;
2. In blogging content is king create unique, high quality content so publish fresh content frequently;
3. Learn basic SEO so you can use keywords effectively and apply basic SEO to your headlines, blog and posts;
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the visibility of a website or a web page in search engines via the “natural” or un-paid (“organic” or “algorithmic”) search results.
4. Make your blog posts look professional;
5. Create at least 4-6 pillar posts and continue to create pillar posts;
Pillar posts are also referred to as flagship content. Pillar posts are comprehensive posts that offer great value to readers as the contents are timeless in nature. They define you as having authority in the niche you blog in.
6. Select and link to appropriate anchor text;
7. Leave meaningful comments on related blogs and encourage comments on your own blog;
8. Develop relationships with other bloggers so you can build a blog readers’ community around your own blog;
9. Support the blog centered communities on related blogs by commenting on them and promoting posts from them;
10. Link to authoritative sources in your posts;
11. Deep link to your earlier related posts in your new posts;
12. Assign appropriate categories and tag your posts with care;
13. Link to related authoritative blogs in your blogroll;
14. Provide RSS feeds for subscribers;
RSS (Rich Site Summary or really simple syndication) is a format for delivering regularly changing web content. Many news-related sites, weblogs and other online publishers syndicate their content as an RSS Feed to whoever wants it.
15. Having a well designed theme is important, evaluate your theme for effectiveness, and if required, create a new header, make improvements or replace your theme and reduce page loading time;
16. Avoid cluttering your blog with widgets that lack reader value and slow page loading time;
17. Buy your own domain and domain mapping;
18. Verify your blog with the three big search engines.
19. Get organized, use an online to do list by developing a blogging workflow;
20. Join social networks and social media sites like Facebook and use Twitter, Friendfeed and other Free RSS directories to promote your blog posts;
21. Promote your blog through social networks, online groups, and selected directories;
22. Develop a social media time management strategy and stick to it;
23. Submit your latest pillar article to a blog carnival;
24. Become a guest blogger on sites with higher page rank than your own site.
25. Create newsletters and/or ebooks for your subscribers.

I'm new to wordpress, I've started posting daily since last week and I am willing to carry this on as I enjoy what I am writing about. It would be great to hear other peoples opinions, please have a look and say what you think!

Thanks, Fenya.

These 5 videos introduce how Google discovers, crawls, indexes your site’s pages, and how Google displays them in search results. 5 Google Webmasters Video Tutorials

The process of applying Search Engine Optimization (SEO) practices to your site relies on understanding both sides of the system so you know how search engines work, how to use them effectively, and what your target audience searches for. You will find that and my notes in these videos Two SEO Videos for Bloggers

It takes time for your content to be indexed by search engines and when that happens is strictly between you and the search engines. http://en.support.wordpress.com/search-engines/

The most important thing you can do to gain search engines attention is to publish original content posts frequently and here are the 10 factors that tend to expedite indexing of content by search engines.

Apologies if this is a trite question many people have asked before. I have googled this question, but got many conflicting answers, so thought I'd pose it to actual WordPress users.

I've tagged all of my posts with 'the full musician' (the name of my blog) and put them under a category called 'the full musician' as well. However, when I type in the name of my blog into google, nothing comes up. If I put it in quotation marks ('the full musician'), I get only one post show up.

Is this something that will increase if your blog gains popularity? Or am I doing something wrong in the labelling? Are there any special 'tricks' or ways to get your blog to have more visibility?

Thanks for your time! I'm a new user so excuse me if I'm asking annoying things.