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Is a Blog Right For Your Business?
Lemmings are cute, but dumb. If you tell them to jump off a cliff, they will. Just like the people who start blogs because everyone is doing it. Guess what happens after a little while? The blogs die. In managing a list of many Web sites, most of which are blogs, I deleted countless sites from the list because the sites and blogs no longer existed. The people ran out of steam or had no reason to start them in the first place. How do you know when a blog is right for your business? Learn why people start blogs, how they find their niche and how blogging tools can be used for more than blogs. Some people like to read blogs, others like to read newsletters, still others like to rely on feeds and some read a few or all of them. No matter the method the information is distributed, each medium has one thing in common: content. Having a blog connects your newsletter and your business with all of these readers and delivers important content in a particular style. I've been blogging since June 2000. If you review my early blog entries in meryl's notes, you'll notice they're more personal. When blogs first hit the scene in the late '90s, they were personal diaries and journals. Like the blog business, my blog has transformed from personal to business speak, although I still add personal notes here and there. A few bloggers tend to talk about their work, their products and their little world. That might work for celebrities where fans want to know everything about them, but it doesn't work for the average business person. Other business people want information on how to succeed and when a blog spends time hawking products offering information of no value, few people will return. The people whose products sell well are the ones who provide valuable information. Readers already know what kind of information they're getting, so they trust that when they buy something, it will be of the same or better quality. This value must be reflected in their blog. It's much like people who only sign up for a newsletter after first seeing an example. No one wants to be a lemming (I would hope). How do you decide whether or not to set up a blog? The answer isn't black or white (what did you expect?). Ask these questions:
The big decider is whether or not you can write in the blog almost daily. The people behind the high traffic blogs post multiple times a day. Though resourceful, merely linking to other sites doesn't give visitors much reason to make the effort to come to yours. Reading other blogs or feeds is a great way to learn how to carry a discussion. Find other blogs covering topics similar to yours and check them out. Disagree with their opinions? Write about it and explain your reasons. Cross-blog discussions are common, and that's where trackback comes in handy. Trackback is a blog feature. If you decide to comment on another blog posting in your blog instead of in that blog's comments page, then you link to the conversation through the trackback link. Trackback is similar to the permalink, the permanent URL for the blog entry, but it has a different URL for copying and pasting in your blog's trackback box. Aside from the technical aspects of operating a blog on a daily basis, subscriber list size and Web site traffic are good indicators of what kind of reaction you'll get when opening a blog. Starting from scratch with little traffic means you have a long road ahead and lots of work to do. There is no magic formula anyone can sell you for $97 to make your blog an overnight success. But with some perseverance and ingenuity, your blog can engage many prospects and clients. Considering there are numerous blogs out there, pick a niche topic when starting a blog for a better shot at attracting and keeping an audience. meryl's notes focuses on three areas: webby, geeky and wordy. In reality, this is too much. What I need to do for my readers is create three separate blog entry points, so those interested in writing, newsletters and Internet marketing get nothing but the wordy entries. Those interested in Web design get the webby stuff and the technophiles receive the geeky content. I also manage a personal blog separate from meryl's notes. It's about cochlear implants and deafness. This could fall under the geeky category, but it's a personal blog and doesn't belong in meryl's notes. This blog is written for a different audience. The blogging tools for both of my blogs come with syndication capabilities so those using feed readers or aggregators can read the content through the software. When sending a new issue of a newsletter, comment on it or link to it in the blog, that way the blog and feed readers will get the goods, so all three bases are covered. Blogging tools aren't just for, well, blogging. Such tools are an excellent way to help you update your Web site more often than you otherwise would. I use it to manage the list of tableless Web sites. Using blogging tools is much easier than the way I managed it before, updating the HTML files by hand. Though using a blog tool, it isn't a blog. In this case, the blog tool has become a content management system (CMS). Small business owners don't have a need for the fancy and pricey CMSes out there. They find it easier to use blogging software to manage their sites or hire someone to adapt the tool for their site. Blogs have found a place in businesses and people are finding creative ways to use them. Some companies have a blog on the intranet for communicating project status, jeopardies and metrics. They're used for knowledge management. With information pouring in, blog tools provide a way to share, organize and process the information. Being a follower can be good or bad. No one wants to walk off a cliff with the lemmings, but everyone wants to succeed. Best practices won't help, since the decision to blog is based on the organization's mission, needs and goals along with its target market's desires and needs. A blog about lemmings? There is one, sort of. Or maybe you'd like to start your own and talk about dumb business moves. Meryl K. Evans is the Content Maven behind meryl.net who increases conversion rates by writing and editing content so organization can focus on their core business. She is the editor-in-chief of the eNewsletter Journal and Shavlik's The Remediator Security Digest. Visit her Web site at http://www.meryl.net/blog/.
Latest News:Site: Yahoo! News Search Results for news Myanmar's Suu Kyi to get family letters, news mags (Reuters via Yahoo! News) Detained Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has managed to wring small concessions from the ruling generals in the form of letters from her family and some international news magazines, her lawyer said on Friday. JCDecaux in talks for News Outdoor Group in Russia (AP via Yahoo! News) French outdoor advertising firm JCDecaux SA said Thursday it is negotiating to buy Russian rival News Outdoor Group from global media company News Corp. News Corp tightens grip on Premiere with new CEO (Reuters via Yahoo! News) Rupert Murdoch tightened his grip on German pay-TV broadcaster Premiere by appointing News Corp executive Mark Williams as CEO in a move to get the company back on track. SEC Looks Into UAL Stock Scare; Implications For Online News? (CBS News) A ton of digits have been devoted to this in other spots but the SEC's decision to investigate takes it to another level. The backstory: a six-year-old news story about UAL declaring bankruptcy made it into the Tribune-owned Sun-Sentinel 's current news flow, was picked up by a Google (NSDQ: GOOG) News bot and, via a reporter for a newsletter, made it onto Bloomberg News. After a lot of buck ... JCDecaux and News Corp. in talks to combine outdoor ad groups (International Herald Tribune) The News Corp. chief executive, Rupert Murdoch, has recently expressed nervousness about investments in Russia, where News Outdoor generated the bulk of its revenue last year. SEC Looks Into UAL Stock Scare; Implications For Online News? (paidContent.org via Yahoo! Finance) A ton of digits have been devoted to this in other spots but the SEC's decision to investigate takes it to another level. The backstory: a six-year-old news story about UAL declaring bankruptcy made it into the Tribune-owned Sun-Sentinel's current news flow, was picked up by a Google News bot and, via a reporter for a newsletter, made it onto Bloomberg News. JCDecaux in talks to buy News Corp. billboard unit (AP via Yahoo! Finance) In a deal that would create the world's largest outdoor advertising company, French conglomerate JCDecaux SA said Thursday that it is in talks to buy Russian rival News Outdoor Group from global media company News Corp. Phila. mayor to announce grim budget news (The Philadelphia Inquirer) The Nutter administration is expected to announce grim budget news today, which is all but certain to lead to significant spending cuts - perhaps as high as 10 percent - in some city departments, according to three sources familiar with the budget. News Corp says Mark Williams interim Premiere CEO (Reuters via Yahoo! News) News Corp. executive Mark Williams has taken over as chief executive of German pay-TV broadcaster Premiere in an interim capacity, News Corp. said after the move led to renewed takeover speculation. DIVA TALK: Chatting with In the Heights ' Mandy Gonzalez Plus News of Fraser, Testa and Bundy (Playbill) News, views and reviews about the multi-talented women of the musical theatre and the concert/cabaret stage. Site: news - Google News CNET News Daily Podcast: Facebook, Google open competing services - CNET News
MORE RESOURCES: Site: Yahoo! News Search Results for blogging rss BlogWorld & New Media Expo Assembles Superstar Line-up of More Than 150 Speakers (wallstreet:online AG) BlogWorld & New Media Expo, the first and only conference dedicated to blogging and new media, is BlogWorld & New Media Expo Assembles Superstar Line-up of More Than 150 Speakers (Centre Daily Times) BlogWorld & New Media Expo, the first and only conference dedicated to blogging and new media, is bringing an all-star roster of speakers to Las Vegas - with more than 150 thought leaders across every major industry. The Conference and Expo will be held Sept. 20-21 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Registration is open at www.blogworldexpo.com. BlogWorld & New Media Expo Assembles Superstar Line-Up Of More Than 150 Speakers (PRWeb via Yahoo! News) Largest blogging conference in the world brings together new media mavericks and experts to inform, share experiences and inspire BlogWorld & New Media Expo Assembles Superstar Line-up of More Than 150 Speakers (Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance) LAS VEGAS----BlogWorld & New Media Expo, the first and only conference dedicated to blogging and new media, is bringing an all-star roster of speakers to Las Vegas - with more than 150 thought leaders across every major industry. Blogging with the Devils: First look: Nevada-Las Vegas (East Valley Tribune) The first three seasons of Mike Sanford?s coaching tenure at Nevada-Las Vegas have produced two wins each, extending the Rebels? streak of years without a winning record to seven. We Know It's Hard (Phillyist) We know it's hard, keeping up with all the political corruption our city has to offer. Toss in worrying about the presidential election, and it's no wonder few of us have the energy to keep abreast of local scandals. Never fear! In the case of Papa Vince, City Paper has you covered. Tom Namako is blogging and twittering the Fumo Trial over at Fumogation . With cross-linking galore, you'll ... Blogging on the QT (O'Reilly Media) To me, though this is one of the journalistic quandaries of the twenty-first century. Where is the dividing line between news and opinion, between the article and the blog, because objective reporting and subjective editorializing? Is one better than the other? Is one more ethical than the other? WATT's FeedIndustryNetwork.com Focuses on Latest Feed Industry News, Feed Safety and More through Global Online Portal (PRWeb via Yahoo! News) FeedIndustryNetwork.com acts as a go-to resource for feed industry professionals, focusing on global issues such as feed safety, feed processing, feed quality assurance and much more. South Africa: Don't Be Digitally Dozy - Guy Berger (AllAfrica.com) As the rise of digital revolution reaches a tipping point, breaking up existing business models (information gathering, editing, packaging, dissemination and loyal audience) and reshaping journalism, traditional media organisations must start a quest for new business models suitable to the new business environment, Prof Guy Berger, head of Rhodes University's School of Journalism, told delegates ... Social Media and Privacy: Where Are We Two Years After Facebook News Feed? (Mashable) It?s really only been two years. How quickly the digital world changes. A few weeks ago, I was interviewed by the New York Times for a piece written by Clive Thompson, ? Brave New World of Digital Intimacy: I?m So Totally, Digitally Close to You .? I talked with Clive about my experience with social media, my revolt against News Feed, my blogging, and my embrace of Twitter and FriendFeed. ... Site: blogging rss - Google News WordPress Newsfeed Plugin Brings Quality Newswire Content into ... - Publishers Newswire
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