February 3, 2009

10 Blogger Best Practices: Guides as You Extend Your Reach

published this at 8:54 am

How to blog series

Know Who You Are

All year long I’ve mulling on a thought I first considered when I was under 5 years old. I wrote about it on my first blog.

“Square peg in a round hole.” That’s what people used to call it.

Even as a kid I knew it was a silly waste of time to put a square peg in a round hole. That was just plain common sense To make the peg fit, it wouldn’t be a square peg anymore. It would hurt the peg, and the hole wouldn’t like it.

Whenever I try to make myself fit a situation, it’s like trying to teach a pig to sing — sounds awful and the pig gets mad. I turn into a louder, sort of a shiny green spandex facsimile of the real me. Is it a wonder then that people don’t respond well?

It’s really no surprise that trying to be something “other” doesn’t work with a blog either.

Relationships are a lot more fun with people who know themselves. Our blogs are reflections of how well we know who we are.

10 Blogger Best Practices

Here are 10 Blogger Best Practices for the social web. These 10 best practices guide me as I write and meet new people on the social business web. They help me stay focused on my quest and explain it when people ask. When I remember them, they serve me well. I hope they’ll serve you too.

  1. Know yourself. Know what you’re about and always walk, talk, and blog your own truth. You can’t write my blog post. I can’t write yours. More on that from this great speech about how Oprah found her voice.
  2. Find the people who explore thoughts the same way you do. They’re the ones who’ll enjoy what you write. Share what they say. Pass links to comments on Twitter. Use Advanced Twitter Search and monitter to find people talking about common questions and ideas. They’re the one’s who will constantly inspire you. We always think that people who think as we do are incredibly smart.
  3. Talk about what you blog in ways that show you value what you have to offer. Talk about what you want to share in ways that make people proud to pass them on. Don’t fear the blog link that points to a blog post a friend wrote. I know you’d never use a blog link to attract attention from away someone else to you.
  4. When you meet someone new, be interested in who they are and what they’re about. Ask questions. Learn details. Find out their passions. Ideas come from being curious about what people are doing and why. Meeting someone new can be as revealing and invigorating as a rare celebrity interview.
  5. Step away from the podium. Forget what you learned in school. Writing on the internet is about conversation and listening, not presentation. Write for an intelligent friend who just doesn’t know what you do. Leave lots of room for questions and thoughtful interpretation.
  6. Whatever you blog, bring your experience to it. Tell how you learned it, how you found it, how you felt before and after you knew it. Tell the story of the information from your point of view. People come for the you in the information — the information without the you is in other places.
  7. Leave room for visitors to add to the conversation. Be complete but not thorough. You can start a list and let the folks who come add to it. If you end with a question, consider the question carefully. Make it intriguing enough that you would want to stop to answer it.
  8. Open doors and showcase others whenever you can. Connect people to information, to other people, and to answers to their questions. Serve the people who love what you do. The best promotion for your blog is promotion other people. Talk about the the people who visit your blog.
  9. Always be happy to see people who say hello! Call them by name and let them know you see them. Let them feel that they can move around freely. Make sense?
  10. Be you. Information is everywhere. It’s the you inside the information and the you that responds that will bring people back.

I’m about how relationships, conversation, and how businesses and communities grow. I help people understand the culture and sensitivities of the written word in the fast-paced Internet world and show companies how to connect with people. I’m always going to write more about how to use the social media tools to forge relationships than I’ll ever write about the tools straight out.

Knowing that makes it easier to extend my network. I can do what I love in service to people who think what I do is pretty special.

What guides you?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

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Filed under Blog Basics, Community, Successful Blog | 35 Comments »


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35 Comments to “10 Blogger Best Practices: Guides as You Extend Your Reach”

  1. February 3rd, 2009 at 9:41 am
    Michelle said

    Thank you for this list Liz. I clicked through from twitter and your blog is great. Look forward to learning more from you as I work on my startup business and consider publishing my own (currently private) personal blog.

    Manifesto victory for you today. :-)

  2. February 3rd, 2009 at 9:49 am
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi Michelle,
    Thank you. It was a fun post to write, but it took some thinking and reviewing, … and maybe a few years of blogging to get it right. :)

  3. February 3rd, 2009 at 10:15 am
    DaveMurr said

    Thank you for putting this list together, this is incredibly helpful.

    Right now I consider myself in the middle of discovering my “voice” and “who I am”. This is incredibly exciting and frustrating at the same time. Because honestly, I don’t know exactly what I should be blogging about. For now I’m using my blog as a canvass and after a time I’ll probably step back and see what is working for me. This is the tipping point where I begin to doubt myself and ask “who am I really?” and “who am I really talking too?”

    I don’t have any answers but I do know that I trust my intuition to guide me – through everyday decisions and what I blog about.

    I’m confident in the fact that doing this will lead me on the right path.

  4. February 3rd, 2009 at 10:56 am
    CGabriel said

    Liz, this was the best piece I’ve read from you on here…and there’s been a lot.

    Allow me a thought…though brevity has never been my strong-stuit:

    I have known who I am – my voice – for many years. I’m a husband, a father, I’m on radio, I’m a freelance writer, a playwright and I teach young theatre students at an acting conservatory in Minneapolis. When I write, all of me goes into a blog. However…

    I didn’t start blogging until 14 months ago. The reason? I didn’t think anyone would have the slightest bit of interest in what I had to say.

    You see, I’m not offering the kind of great advice and guidance that you do on a regular basis. I’m not a Chris Brogan or Amber Naslund, folks that people can turn to in a heartbeat and grasp something helpful for their business…

    I’m simply someone who writes what moves me. If it’s on my mind, if it makes me laugh, if it makes me cry, if it makes me think or if it angers me, it leaps off the keyboard.

    But then I discovered something, and it’s something you articulated so beautifully here: By not writing, I *wasn’t* listening to my voice.

    As an artist on stage or on radio, teaching a class, being a co-pilot to my wife and, most importantly, being a daddy to my little girls, life is about the shared journey. And it’s a journey of discovery.

    And in writing, especially with a blog, I finally came back to the very simple premise: To do it – to have it – and to engage people with it…you have to write it. And you have to write what’s in your heart, not worrying about validation.

    As an actor or broadcaster, the second you’re “lying,” an audience knows it. As a writer – as a blogger – the same honesty, passion from tapping into your voice is what will forever serve you.

    Thank you, Liz. Your voice is one that’s both firm and comforting at the same time. And your post should be mandatory reading for all bloggers.

    Christopher

  5. February 3rd, 2009 at 11:13 am
    Dick Richards said

    Amazing and wonderful on first glance Liz. I’ll be spending more time with this post, I am sure.

  6. February 3rd, 2009 at 1:51 pm
    Ambal Balakrishnan said

    Hi Liz! I am planning on starting to write a blog and was looking for articles on blogging best practices. I found your list timely and very helpful for me.
    Moreover, lot of the other blogging best practices articles that I read in the last week have been about tools and getting traffic etc. Your list is about relationship-building with blogging…it is awesome.
    Thanx!

  7. February 3rd, 2009 at 3:29 pm
    Joanna Young said

    Hello Liz, this is wonderful advice for bloggers old and new.

    I love know yourself at the beginning. (of course this is useful to remember in many situations!) It’s tricky sometimes to hold onto this when you’re aware of people reading, and lots of interesting and constructive conversations on the back of what you publish… but if you lose sight of what and who you are you’ll not be able to stick with it.

    It’s an odd conundrum. You’re writing to connect – to listen, to learn, to build those relationships – but at the end of the day your blog is still and always needs to be about you.

    I think. That’s what I’m trying to work out in my own head anyway.

    Joanna

  8. February 3rd, 2009 at 3:40 pm
    Tom Volkar / Delightful Work said

    “Be you. The world has a you-sized place where you belong.”

    Your number 10 was more than worth the visit. Not only do each of us belong but others stand ready to support us from our place of authentic expression. Thanks Liz

  9. February 3rd, 2009 at 3:59 pm
    David Atkinson said

    Thanks Liz for reminding me to be the real me.

    Great post.

    David Atkinson

  10. February 3rd, 2009 at 4:21 pm
    Travis Campbell said

    Excellent list Liz. I can’t agree more, getting honest with yourself is important, PRIOR to blogging. Since I started creating more conversation oriented posts, it has created much more activity on the blog.

    Some of us are fumbling around with social media. Fortunately, there are great examples such as yourself, thanks!

  11. February 3rd, 2009 at 5:06 pm
    Karen Putz said

    I haven’t been here in ages, thanks to being buried by the new job. It feels like coming right back home, reading your words.

  12. February 3rd, 2009 at 7:13 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Dave,
    It’s always good to look for your voice in what you talk about to your friends. What problems do they come to you to solve? What’s the pattern in their requests?

    Finding your voice is challenge and quest. I agree, though, it’s thrilling to do it.

  13. February 3rd, 2009 at 7:20 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Christopher!
    Beautifully said. Writers write every day, because they simply cannot NOT write. Singers sing because they simply cannot NOT sing.

    Someone asked me last night when I knew I was a writer. I said “when feedback became other folks’ opinions not approval.”

    Validation isn’t it, you’re so right about that. :)

    Thank you for all you said.

  14. February 4th, 2009 at 12:53 am
    Vernon said

    The best blogging advice I have read!

    Nice to see someone who focuses on the relationships and not on all the normal blogging ‘how to’ that you see all over the web. No wonder your blog is so popular!

  15. February 4th, 2009 at 4:37 am
    bizsugar.com said

    10 Blogger Best Practices: What Guides You as You Extend Your Reach?…

    Here are 10 Blogger Best Practices for the social web. These 10 best practices guide me as I write and meet new people on the social web. They help me stay focused on my quest and explain it when people ask. When I remember them, they serve me well. I …

  16. February 6th, 2009 at 4:52 pm
    All Things Metal Clay » Blog Archive » More Help for New Bloggers said

    [...] 10 Blogger Best Practices: What Guides You as You Extend Your Reach? [...]

  17. February 6th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
    More Help for New Bloggers | Metal Clay Jewelry said

    [...] 10 Blogger Best Practices: What Guides You as You Extend Your Reach? [...]

  18. February 7th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
    More Help for New Bloggers said

    [...] 10 Blogger Best Practices: What Guides You as You Extend Your Reach? [...]

  19. February 8th, 2009 at 10:44 pm
    Kim DeYoung said

    Hi Liz,
    I’m so glad to come across your blog. It’s true that the universe shows what we’re ready to see. Just this morning, I awoke knowing that I want to utilize my blog in a more personal manner – to share some truths about my life with the hope that I can support others with how I’m dealing with some of my own challenges.
    Your suggestions are very helpful.
    Take care,
    Kim

  20. February 9th, 2009 at 10:05 pm
    Geetali said

    Hey, Liz! Thanks for a wonderful post. Stumbled upon it through another wonderful blog: Dick Richards’ ”Riding On Dragons.
    http://www.ridingondragons.com/

    I’m sure I’ll be coming back to read this post over & over again. Learnt a lot from it.

  21. February 10th, 2009 at 4:01 am
    Sulaiman Alhasawi said

    Inspiring article. Thanks

  22. February 10th, 2009 at 6:22 am
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi Vernon!
    It’s nice to know that you’re out there. The reason those “how to” blogs are everywhere is because that’s what folks seem to focus in on most. Thank you for valuing the people who read your blog as much as the words you write. :)

  23. February 10th, 2009 at 6:26 am
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Kim,
    I’m delighted that I had something here that you could find. Hope continues to serve you into the future.

    You’re not a stranger anymore. :)

  24. February 10th, 2009 at 6:31 am
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Geetali!
    I’m always honored to be in a group that includeds Dick Richard’s in any way. Thank you for stopping here to see what’s going on. I’m glad to hear you’ll be coming back. :)

  25. February 10th, 2009 at 6:32 am
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Sulaiman!
    Thank you for listening. You’re the reason that I write.

  26. February 10th, 2009 at 5:10 pm
    News Update - Best of the Day : The Strategy Web said

    [...] oder Reichweiteninstrument? Ein (weiterer) Leitfaden mit 10 Blogger Best Practise Tips von Liz Strauss. Share and Enjoy: Diese Icons verlinken auf Bookmark Dienste bei denen Nutzer neue Inhalte finden [...]

  27. February 11th, 2009 at 9:04 am
    Lea said

    I stumbled upon your blog thru another post. YOu have some very good truths in your current post that are helpful to anyone reading them. I must say thought that I was a bit dismayed because some of the sentences are not complete. I may be old school, but I when a word is omitted it makes it difficult to read, and thus more difficult to accept. The lead in sentence in number 3 does not make sense. After 5 readings, I can grasp the intent, but having to do this tarnishes your credibility as a writer. Am I missing something?

  28. February 12th, 2009 at 2:52 pm
    Martin Meyer-Gossner said

    Great stuff, Liz. Have integrated this in my daily news update for our European web business experts…

  29. February 12th, 2009 at 4:29 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi Lea!
    Thank you for your help with this. I’ll go read again. :)

  30. February 12th, 2009 at 4:30 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Thank you, Martin,
    One thing I miss from my publishing career is my European friends and my business there. :)

  31. February 13th, 2009 at 2:16 am
    Do You Ever Feel Like a Stranger on Your Own Blog? | Confident Writing said

    [...] Strauss had this as a number 1 of 10 blogger best practices to guide you as you extend your reach: Know yourself. Know what you’re about and always walk, talk, and blog your own [...]

  32. August 25th, 2009 at 10:50 pm
    25 Lessons You Can Learn From Liz Strauss - Blogging Tips From Jade Craven said

    [...] expanded on this in 10 Blogger Best Practices: What Guides You as You Extend Your Reach? When you meet someone new, be interested in who they are and what they’re about. Ask questions. [...]

  33. December 8th, 2010 at 1:44 am
    Ali Davies said

    Liz, I loved these points. I have been blogging for almost a year and it has been a fun learning curve. My biggest challenge has been throwing off my corporate voice to let my own shine through. So your points are very supportive for stepping up my game in my own voice.

    I am finding the more I shake off that old corporate voice and let the real Ali show up the better response I get.

    Will keep your points in mind as I step in to 2011 to take my blogging to another level.

  34. December 9th, 2010 at 7:45 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi Alli!
    It’s fabulous to watch you come into your own voice. What people come to your blog for is YOU! Let them hear what you’ve got to say!

  35. July 31st, 2012 at 8:41 am
    What to Find Out Before You Start a Business Blog - 25+ Web Resources | Liz Strauss at Successful Blog said

    [...] 10 Blogger Best Practices: Guides as You Extend Your Reach [...]

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