Archive - June, 2006

Blogtipping Eve

By on June 30, 2006 in Blogging with 1 Comment

Just a reminder that tomorrow is BlogTipping Day (the 1st of each month).

What’s BlogTipping? Quite simple, and everyone benefits. Here’s how:

  • Pick a blog,
  • Share three positives about the blog,
  • Offer one tip to improve the blog,
  • Tag it with Blogtipping,

Many reasons to dig this idea:

  1. As part of the audience, you share feedback with the author.
  2. As the author, you find out what your audience likes/would like.
  3. As fellow blogtippers, we can be introduced to different blogs.
  4. By looking at other blogs and blogtippings, we can learn from each other.
  5. It’s a great way to introduce your audience to other blogs.
  6. It’s a great way to introduce your site to other bloggers.

Hard to decide on just one blog? Do more than one.

Related:
- June 1st: BlogTipping
- May 1st: BlogTipping
- Get Free Blogtipping Icons (From Easton)

technorati tags: blogtipping 

Business Blog Toolbox: Talking

By on June 30, 2006 in Blogging, Conversations, Marketing, RSS Feeds with 0 Comments

Earlier, we covered the tools I recommend for listenting and reading other blogs. That’s the side of the conversation the companies I work with learn first – and sometimes, it’s the only side we work on.

If we get that part down, there’s a better chance for success on the other side of the conversation – publishing a blog.  Let’s look at the tools I recommend for the talking and writing side of business blogging:

  • A Timer: Once we’ve determined the frequency of posting that makes sense, we write out time guidelines.  This included post composition, spell-check, linking, tagging and pinging. Budgeting time is as important as budgeting finances. Without the guidelines and a timer to remind us when to stop, blogging can get addictive (ya think?)
  • Blogware: Typepad. It’s inexpensive, flexible, offers in-depth support and is implementing some great features (i.e., Category Clouds) and works with FeedBurner. With TypepadPro, Advanced Templates give a business tremendous flexibility in design.
  • Feed Publishing: FeedBurner. Is there a blogging tool that’s easier to use or more valuable? Publishing a feed is easy, branding your feed is a must, FeedFlare allows a company to have a call-to-action in the feed.
  • Tagging: KeoTag. You can copy and paste your tags right into your blog editor, HTML-free. Tagging is important for findability reasons. If you can be found, you can build relationships. If you can build relationships, you can build business.
  • Pinging: Pingoat. Ping once, save the bookmark, and it’s one click away from here on out.
  • Blog Posting Mantra: Maybe it’s not like the one I use, but have something as a guide.
technorati tags: KeoTag Pingoat

Business Blog Toolbox: Listening

By on June 30, 2006 in Blogging, Conversations, Cool Tools, Marketing, RSS Feeds with 3 Comments

Before a business starts publishing a blog, they should listen to the conversations and hone their blog-tracking muscles. Here are the tools I recommend for the listening role of business blogging.

Each of these tools is free if you use them, costly to your business if you don’t.

  1. Feed Aggregator: GreatNews – Why is a feed aggregator listed first? Because the first step a business should take when engaging in the conversation is the role of listening. Of all the choices of feed readers available, GreatNews has the best support, most features – and most importantly to business leaders, can be synced with Bloglines. Among the best features are the Label This, Email This and importing/exporting OPML files into Grazr.
  2. Blog Tracking: Technorati – Again, listening before talking in the conversations. Technorati’s multiple search functions (by word, by post, by blog, explore) make it easy to separate signal from noise. Watchlists make it easy to track what’s being said about you, your company, your clients, your industry. Most importantly, the searches can be tracked via feed into your GreatNews aggregator.
  3. Conversation Tracking: co.mments.com – One of two comment tracking tools I use, this one allows me to track a conversation whether I’m involved or not. By plugging the feed into my aggregator, I instantly know what’s being added by newcomers. (Note: GreatNews also has a Track Comments feature-but I haven’t used this yet. If you have, let us know how well it works.)

If you’re considering (or already) publishing a business blog, these tools are a must. By using them they will allow you to:

  • Find your audience
  • Listen to what’s being said
  • Separate Signal vs Noise
  • Engage in the conversation
  • Differentiate: your audience AND your blog

There are four tools I recommend for publishing a blog, and we’ll cover that later today.

technorati tags: co.mments

Re-thinking Purpose Driven Blogging

By on June 29, 2006 in Blogging with 4 Comments

Tim Draayer recently wrote a post that has me re-thinking my earlier Purpose Driven Blogging.

Tim’s What is your Why? sent me to the questions I always ask business leaders before they blog:

  • What are three main goals for your business?
  • What are three business objectives for your blog?
  • <Here’s where I’ll enter the "Why" question>
  • Who is your audience? (Prospects, Current Clients, Colleagues, Internal)
  • Are you targeting a national or regional audience?
  • How do you want your audience to respond?
  • How much time are you willing to devote to the conversation?

In some respects, the second question is the "why" I guess. But as Tim says in his post, "Recognizing why you are working on that project and where the passion for it comes from can only re-invigorate your desire…"

The question I’ll be adding to this is "Why a Business Blog?" If the answer relates only to yourself and your business, I’m probably going to try talking you out of blogging.

Before you think that’s too noble, know that it will save you money, me time, and all three of us headaches (the third being your audience).

Tonight’s workshop will focus on these questions as we examine Purpose, Planning and Tracking Your Success at the Iowa Business Blog Workshop in Clive.

technorati tags: Blog Workshop

NEW: IowaBizEvents

By on June 28, 2006 in Blogging with 3 Comments

This week, I decided to launch a new site, www.IowaBizEvents.com. I worked on it a little bit yesterday afternoon:

  • Published a feed
  • Mapped the domain
  • Populated two initial posts

Then we went live, "live blogging" a fantastic presentation by Jeff Bradford in front of a Des Moines YPC group.  Today, we made a few more tweaks:

  • Added a Category Cloud (Typepad offers that right up front now?  Cool!)
  • Added a Typelist for area Business Calendars
  • Sent a few emails out to event planners

Total cost? $29. 
Total time to launch: a few hours.
Value of the Relationships? Priceless!

I already have Typepad Pro (normally $15 per month), so it’s part of the ConverStations umbrella of sites. I already have FeedBurner Total Stats (normally $5 per month), so it’s part of that umbrella.  The domain name was $9 at GoDaddy. $29 in a few hours. Sweet!

What’s that sound? I Hear a Train a comin’

technorati tags: IowaBizEvents YPC ROCG  

Best Question Today

By on June 28, 2006 in Blogging, Conversations with 4 Comments

From a reporter: Why should Iowa businesses consider Political Blogs important? Or MySpace blogs, or YouTube videos or Iowa Chicks Knitting?

They are a portion of your customers and prospects. They are using these tools as a platform for conversation and communication.

In an earlier comment, Tim Whelan provides an answer: "Why, because it is in this type of environment that you get to really see and isolate the customer needs and future trends."

What Makes a Blog Different: Who Cares?

By on June 26, 2006 in Blogging, Conversations with 3 Comments

Maybe your question to all this blogging stuff is: Who gives a hoot or nanny?

If you don’t give a hoot or nanny about building relationships or engaging in conversations – you probably shouldn’t have a business blog.

Fair warning: You’ll probably give business blogging a shot at some point. Either publishing a blog or tracking them. However, by then you may be playing catch up. You’ll end up focusing on the tactics without having a strategy.

Chris Brown of Marketing Resources and Results talks about Marketing Tactics versus Marketing Strategy. Apply the same to business blogs. Tactics without strategy often comes across as manipulation.

Building relationships and having engaging conversations with customers has long been a key to a successful business. Blogs are a platform for those conversations.

Aside: You may have thought I should have said "hootenanny" – but that’s closer to being a blog than you might think (definition)

Previously:
- What Makes a Blog Different: Intro
- What Makes a Blog Different: The Tools
- What Makes a Blog Different: The Talk

technorati tags:

What Makes a Blog Different? The Talk

By on June 26, 2006 in Blogging, Conversations with 2 Comments

Okay, so we’ve gotten past the tools question. What about the RBI…err…ROI of Blogging?

Jordan Behan at TellTenFriends Marketing shares this great find in Blogs Equal Traffic, Part Deux: "People are more interested in what I have to say than what my site is selling."  Amen!

My good fri-ent (friend first, client second), Tom Vander Well at QAQnA has shared findings of how prospects and clients are reading his blog, gleaning quality information from what Tom is saying, then making decisions to hire Tom’s company.

So, in alphabetical order – RBI (Relationships Built Intentionally) first, ROI (Return on Investment) second.

Back to the question: "What’s a blog going to do for my business that other marketing materials aren’t already doing?"  Simple: Engage your customers and colleagues in a real-time, relevant dialogue that builds long-lasting relationships.

Remember, sometimes the question isn’t always the question. Ann Handley of MarketingProfs brings this up in her comment, wondering if the question "…is really the subtext of fear: ‘What could I possibly have to say?’ "

Ann goes on to point out "…smart business owners/marketers understand is that blogs are not just vehicles to TALK…but also to listen."  Amen! (two Amens in one post – phew!)

See where we’re headed with this bloggin’ thing?  Engaging in a conversation, both roles.

People do business with people….with people they know, and people they like.  Building Relationships. Your other marketing materials cannot, will not and do not do that.

Yes, Virginia – there is an ROI of Blogging. But it comes after the RBI of Blogging.

What Makes a Blog Different? The Tools

By on June 26, 2006 in Blogging with 4 Comments

The static web sites we’re used to seeing are what I fondly refer to as (cob)web sites. Even the "dynamic" web sites that have some flash or moving parts
get boring (annoying?) after the first or second visit.

I won’t go so far as to say your home page no longer matters, but it may not
be as important as you think. Four challenges in relying solely on your (cob)web
site:

  1. How often you make changes depend on the cost involved. If you’re (cob)web
    development company charges you, or if you have access to make the change but
    aren’t confident in using the tools – changes are rare.
  2. Search engines index by pages, not by site.
  3. Your home page may have been written by a copywriter. If the copy wasn’t
    written by someone on your team, are the words and voice recognizable to your
    customer face-to-face? (I could hop on a rabbit trail here, but refrain)
  4. How findable and subscribe-able is your content?

Conveniently, here are the four main differences of a blog site and a web
site:

  1. Frequently updated content, using a tool as simple as
    sending an email
  2. Each new article (or post) appears on the main page, but also gets indexed
    in archived pages (a permalink) – individually and by date and/or category.
    You’re creating lots of pages with a blog.
  3. Your voice. Your audiences voice right back atcha! I
    believe it’s important to have comments – especially at the outset. Don’t even
    think about stifling the conversation at the outset.
  4. Content Feeds and Tags. These two are the additive to the gasoline that
    powers a blog site.
    1. Content Feeds – Part of the power of blogging is being able to get the content delivered in a feed aggregator. The reason I don’t  send email "blasts" is because I offer a feed. My reach (action taken by the audience) is between 50% – 70%, not that wonderfully celebrated 18% success rate (?) that email newsletters receive. All permission based.
    2. Tags – Go to Technorati and do a Blog Finder search on one of your keywords. Do you show up? If you’re not blogging, you don’t. If you are blogging and don’t, find the fix ASAP. Who’s more findable? You or your competiton?

You company’s web site is your online brochure. It’s what your prospects and
clients see first because it’s on your business card, brochures and other
marketing material. That’s fine. However, offline – do you expect your brochure to close the sale or build the relationship all by itself?  Thought not.

But what about your online message? Who wrote it? You or a copywriter that you hired? Your voice
or the copywriter? Shouldn’t you be engaged in a conversation with your prospects and customers?

We’ve covered the differences of blog sites and (cob)web sites as a tool – but frankly, the real power behind blogging isn’t the tool or even the findability benefits. It’s the conversation. We’ll get to that shortly

What Makes a Blog Different? Intro

By on June 26, 2006 in Blogging with 7 Comments

Sometimes, the question isn’t always the question?

What makes a blog different than a web site?  Depending on your perspective and reason for asking, there could be different ways to answer this question.

  1. What’s the difference between a blog and a web site?
  2. What’s a blog going to do for my business that other marketing materials aren’t already doing?
  3. Why should I give hoot or nanny?

When I first started focusing on "blog coaching," I’d answer like it was No. 1. I’ve found that – while it’s a good answer – most businesses are more interested in Nos. 2 and 3.

We’ll talk about these in separate posts today, but as we do, what other questions are behind "What Makes a Blog Different?"

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