Blogs: August 2007 Archives

Let’s face it, everyone has to start somewhere. You’ve done your homework, created your blog, wrote posts, spread the word, maybe even had a few positive comments but alas, now all you hear are crickets.

The truth is, even the most experienced and successful bloggers have been there. All I can say is the experience of not being “read” brings about a lot of deep introspection. If anything, this is a good time to hone your writing skills and feel less inhibited in your views. No one said that blogging would be easy, and this time is certainly a test of your “sticktoitivity”. If you truly believe in what you bring to your blog audience, this isn’t the time to give up.

Darren Rowse’ post “What to do when it feels like no one is reading your blog” tackles this conundrum and gives you his thoughts based on his time at the pulpit.

Seth Godin’s If no one reads your post does it exist? gives a more holistic view on this.

The act of writing a blog changes people, especially business people. The first thing it does is change posture. Once you realize that no HAS to read your blog, that you can't MAKE them read your blog, you approach writing with humility and view readers with gratitude. The second thing it does is force you to be clear. If you write something that's confusing or in shorthand, you fail.

Finally, I suggest you gather inspiration from those that have “made” it , you might be surprised at how entertaining they are as well…

According to Technorati the most linked to Blog is engadget, and next in line is Boing Boing

Sara Ost’s healthbolt was ranked number one by MedGadget and under the “you have too much time to kill category” you can always read more tips on blogging with 113 blogging tips

I found this story of Stephan Spencer’s (CNET’s resident blogger) daughter quite interesting. Her successful launch (albeit humble in relation to some major blogs/websites) of her Neopet site could definitely be a benchmark for how a small business should go about planning their site/blog. Here is a bit on how she got started:

In early 2006, when Chloe was 15, she decided to devote a blog to Neopets, a virtual pets site popular with kids the world over. After performing some keyword research through WordTracker and Google Suggest for her blog's title and section headings, she discovered that "neopets cheats" was a hugely popular search term to target for her blog. So she settled on the name: the "Ultimate Neopets Cheats Site." She then used the free WordPress.com service to start the blog. Chloe's site was able to ride on the coattails of WordPress.com's trust and authority in the eyes of Google, thus sidestepping the "Google Sandbox" and jumping to page 1 in Google for the term "neopet cheats" within two weeks of launch.

Pretty good for a 15 year old! Here are a couple of key learnings—

- Define your niche, market, and “product” well
- Do start off by checking out tools such as Wordtracker or Google Suggest and see which keywords are being used the most as it relates to your business/industry. Pick one that you find works best for you and integrate (if possible) into your url or blog name
- Create a site that answers the needs of your market – strong content and navigation being at the top of the list.
- As your visibility grows so should your site. Be flexible with changes that you may need to implement in order to continue being relevant to your market.

Finally, it may be good to tell yourself – “If a 15 year old can do it, so can I.”

More tips that may get you started on the right foot--

Successful Blog Tips
21 Tips

Not everyone has the time to write thought provoking posts every day, especially if you’re running a business. Yet blogging has become mainstream and is still worth the time and effort, especially for a small-medium business trying to be heard above all the Internet “noise". Here are four tips for new business bloggers.

- In the main, keep your business blog focused on business. It's more professional, and most likely your customers don’t really want to know what your dog had for lunch the other day (unless your business is selling dog food).

- Write posts that are pertinent to your industry/niche and feel free to react on current trends or issues – your views will reflect on how your company operates or is managed.

- Publish lists of your favorite industry Web sites or references. People are always interested in adding to their own list – keeping it updated will also give people reason to come back for more.

- Take a step back and look at your topics- Do they position you as an expert? Are the topics relevant and interesting to your market? Your blog will only be as successful as it is useful.

For further details on starting your business blog--

Blogging Baby Steps

Blog Review Checklist

WorkZ New Blog Checklist

What if you really want a company blog, but fear your customer base isn't reading blogs? One thing I wouldn't do is give up on the idea, because even if today's customers aren't following blogs, tomorrow's customers will be. Here are some ways you can draw your customers into conversations on your blog.

1. Become a blog evangelist. Whenever you have an opportunity, talk to your customers about why you have a blog and how it can help them.

2. Display your blog URL off-line everywhere--business cards, letterhead, proposals, invoices, newsletters, e-mail signatures, storefront windows, etc. Repetition makes the message stick.

3. Develop a tag line for your blog that describes its value to your customer. Make the tag line part of your off-line messaging as well as the URL.

4. Send customers e-mails with links to specific blog posts they may be interested in, and invite them to comment.

5. Write a post on a specific product or service issue, soliciting customer input. E-mail a link to the post to your customers and let them know you really want and need their help.

6. Interview a client or profile their company. Besides being flattering, this will arouse interest within the client's company (thus attracting other readers) and give them material for their own marketing and public relations.

7. Offer e-mail subscriptions. Not everybody understands RSS feed aggregators. Again, invite customers to subscribe via e-mail in an e-mail and/or a postcard mailing.

8. Publish content that is informative, relevant, and begs for conversation. In the end, solid content is the only way to inspire readers to come back.

9. Be persistent. Don't get discouraged if your blog is not an overnight success. Few marketing programs are. It may take many repetitions before your blog message takes hold--but eventually, it will.

(This post is part of ProBlogger's 31 Days to Building a Better Blog project.)