5 Things I Learned about Bloggers from WordCamp Dallas

March 31, 2008 by Liz

Investment and Return

Being a part of WordCamp Dallas was something I especially looked forward to — it’s always fun to be part of a conference where folks are deeply committed, even more to be part of one right before I’ve got one of my own about to launch in a few weeks. It’s an opportunity to learn, to connect, and to improve.

Still any trip is an investment. It means preparation. It means time doing something I don’t usually do — and the “usually dos” still need doing. So I make sure that go to find the value. Since I work on the people side, connecting businesses to clients and customers. For me, the value was getting to know more about how bloggers and learners and the way they respond to learning things new. At WordCamp Dallas, that wasn’t hard to see examples everywhere. Here are just three of the things that I learned about bloggers at WordCamp Dallas.

Bloggers work hard and rise to the call. Matt Mullenweg began the event with his “State of WordPress” conversation and the announcement of the relsease of WordPress 2.5. The fact that he was recently parted from four wisdom teeth didn’t stop his investment or what he offered to the group all weekend. A strong product stands on the shoulders of a strong man. Do check out the features of 2.5. They’re a reflection of the man who spoke about them.
Bloggers value great content. From John Pozadzides presentation — 45 ways to power up your blog — to Jonathan Bailey’s explanation of how to handle content theft folks were engaged and paying attention. They were there to get the quality content. Alex Frison said so.
Bloggers are smart people with forward-thinking views. Conversations between sessions with folks, such as Mark Hopkins, Aaron Brazell, and Mark Ghosh, gave me new things to think about. That’s a value you can’t find just anywhere.
Bloggers participate. Charles Stricklin had this idea for WordCamp Dallas. He got the ball rolling. Participation made it happen so well. John P. pulled together an entire team to make it operational. Lorelle put herself into helping find great speakers with the best content. She interviewed, asked questions, presented, and talked to every person there. Charles’s live podcast on Sunday was all about participation. He kept the program rolling from the microphone.
Bloggers support each other. While I was gone some great bloggers at home helped me keep SOBCon08 and this rolling forward. They include: Jesse Petersen, Mother Earth, Terry Starbucker, Easton Ellsworth, JC Hutchins, Lorelle VanFossen, and Rick Cockrum

Whether I’m presenting or participating as an attendee, I always have to measure what I’m investing before I go to a conference or a seminar. Any such trip means doing something more and keeping what I do going at the same time. So I want to make sure that the investment will have a return.

None of these WordCamp learnings are new things. Yet the people, the thoughts, and the interactions were underscored each value in a new way. Every connection was worth every minute I invested to get and be there. It’s a worthwhile investment when folks bring us back to remembering what’s important about gathering together.

People like to do business with other people, not companies. We learn from each other because of the reasons the bloggers at WordCamp brought to the event.

Thank you WordCamp Dallas for reminding me of what I already knew.

What do you want to remember not to forget?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

SOBCon08 is May 2,3,4 in Chicago. Register now!

Do You Have a Blog Content Strategy?

March 7, 2008 by Liz

Michael Martine offered to help me out while I was in Austin. He actually sent more than one idea for a high-value guest post. This one on content strategy appeals to the editor in me and also to the business strategist.

Do You Have a Blog Content Strategy?

by Michael Martine

A content strategy is a plan for how you will create content for your blog. Having a content strategy and following it will accelerate your blog’s growth. In this article, I’m going to explain how to develop and use a blog content strategy so you can get the best results. This is something that I have done with demonstrable success, so you can, too.

Over the past few years, as blogs have become more popular, a few best practices have evolved, and we see them repeated endlessly in all the metablogs out there: be passionate, create compelling content, and know your audience. But somewhere between reading that, nodding our heads sagely, and hitting publish, we lost our way.

Now, I can’t help you with passion. Either you have it or you don’t, and if you don’t, you are simply doing the wrong thing. Seriously, do yourself and everyone a favor and just quit blogging. But as far as the other two go, well, that’s where a blog content strategy comes in. A blog content strategy helps you channel your passion so that you get the results you want without first burning up all the fuel in your fire. Following a blog content strategy helps you accomplish what other bloggers have trouble with, like coming up with topics to blog about, and getting more traffic, comments, and subscribers.

A blog content strategy is not complicated. It only has two parts:

Knowing the purpose of the blog, and making sure everything about the blog fulfills that purpose

Knowing the needs of your audience, and creating content that meets those needs while fulfilling the blog’s purpose

Know the purpose of your blog

If I asked you right now point blank: what is the purpose of your blog, could you answer me right away? Most can’t. Your blog needs to have a purpose. It needs to have “true north” on its compass. The purpose of your blog is what you want to accomplish with it from the perspective of meeting your needs. I can use my own blog as an example: the purpose of Remarkablogger is to acquire new clients for my blog consulting and coaching business. Now, if you’re thinking that sounds a little selfish, hold on, because we haven’t discussed the second part of a blog content strategy, yet. One way to get to the purpose of your blog if you’re not sure is to ask yourself why you started the blog in the first place.

One problem with strategies and plans is that people keep them only in their heads. You think you understand it and know it, but it’s probably all foggy and vague. That’s why when asked point blank, you stammer. The solution is to write it down. The act of writing forces us to be clear in our own thinking because we have to make it clear for others. This is invaluable. Write it down and keep rewriting it until it’s clear.

Make sure the blog fulfills its purpose

This is part design strategy as well as content strategy (nothing is ever in its own little box in blogging!). Just like when you wrote papers in school and your professor said that everything in the paper should support the thesis statement, otherwise get rid of it, so it is with your blog. Whatever doesn’t serve the purpose goes buh-bye. Again, using my own blog as an example, I clearly and unmistakably display that I offer services and am for hire. My content is often about the work I do for clients that has brought them success.

Know the needs of your audience

The biggest mistake you’re probably making is that you think your audience is like you. If you are running a hobby blog or an internet marketing blog, they may be. But if you are running a business, they are not. This creates a huge blind spot for us. Here’s the secret: you define your audience by the content you create. This means you will get exactly the people you want. If you’re running a business (freelancing or small company or whatever) then you want qualified potential customers and existing customers reading your blog. By writing material that only appeals to that group and no other, you are guaranteed to get them. It may take a while, but eventually it will happen (especially through search).

Put yourself in the mind of a person who is looking for you, but doesn’t know it, yet. 😉 What is your dream? What is your biggest fear? What words are you going to type into that little box on Google? Write posts that create beautiful visions of those dreams. Write posts that speak to their fears, and that present you as the solution. Stuff that you like or that you find interesting, your audience may not identify with at all. If this means you have to change what you’re blogging about, and you’re afraid you’re going to lose part of your audience, well, you’re right. You will. But they were the wrong audience anyway, so it is no loss. They will be replaced by more qualified people.

Just as you wrote down the purpose of your blog, write down the hopes, fears, and needs of the audience you want to have. Refer to this list when writing posts (especially if you feel blocked: just pick something and start freewriting).

Meet audience needs while fulfilling your blog’s purpose

By meeting the real needs of your audience with your blog’s purpose in mind, you will fulfill your blog’s purpose. So, even though it seemed selfish earlier when I said to determine purpose from your perspective, you now can see how it works out in the end. By meshing your audience’s needs with your purpose, you have a blog that can grow and, if you’re in business, help you make more money, too. Speaking for myself, ever since I started pursuing this content strategy, I have had non-stop freelance blog consulting work. Having a content strategy and following it is a win-win situation for both the blogger and the audience. It needs to be for any real success to happen.

Review

Successful and outstanding blogs need a content strategy that consists of two parts: knowing your purpose and knowing your audience. Make sure everything on your blog fulfills the purpose. Put yourself in the place of your audience and write content that meets their needs while helping you fulfill the purpose of the blog.

About the author:
Michael Martine is an official SOB and has been blogging since the year 2000. He is a blog consultant and coach. He blogs at Remarkablogger and Gateway Blogging.

Thanks, Michael!
–ME “Liz” Strauss

5 Simple Rules for Getting Great Guest Posts for Your Blog

February 21, 2008 by Liz

An Email

A call came. Actually it was an email, it asked whether I might have time to help a blogger who needed a guest post on his blog. The request was honest and cordial.

I got that email. I had time, and I agreed.

I’m always intrigued by the opportunity to write for a new audience about new ideas. Mashing my ideas with a new venue is fun. It brings back the risk and the thrill of blogging. Guest posting always seems to inspire a blog post I wish I wrote for here — which is a good thing. Please check out the blog post I wrote.

Rational Networking, More Mind, Less Time, More Connections.

Are you wondering why I wrote that post for him and not for you?

5 Simple Rules for Getting Great Guest Posts for Your Blog

So you might be wondering would the same technique work for you? Well, it might. If you want increase your chances of getting me or another blogger to guest post on your blog, follow these simple rules.

Ask with a smile. It’s an honor to be asked. It’s not nice to be ordered. Give a blogger a chance to be generous. People like to be generous.
Be yourself. Don’t pretend. Make the request in your own voice as you might invite someone to an event you’re planning. If you’re asking a blogger who doesn’t know you, explain why you’re asking. A honest statement of your thoughts is impressive. Don’t sell the idea or exaggerate your esteem. Bloggers can tell if you actually read their blog or just say you do.
Offer some ideas. You know your audience better than anyone who is guesting ever will. You know the best place where your guest might make the best contribution.
Allow time. Bloggers are busy people. If you offer enough to time do a good job, any blogger is more likely to say “yes,” to you offer.

Be gracious. If for some reason, the blogger can’t say “yes,” be pleased that he or she took the time to consider your request seriously. Your response to a “no,” could the first step in a great relationship. It lets the blogger know that you can see things from his or her point view.

As I write this, I’m about to ask a select group if they will consider a guest post on my blog in the near future. You can bet that those are exactly the things I’m going to do.

Have I left some key points of this list? Feel free to add them.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

How To Win At Blogging and Keep It Real

February 13, 2008 by Guest Author

by Guest Writer Alex Shalman

I have been blogging actively since December 15th, 2006, and have gained a world of experience while doing so. If there was any technique or trick for increasing visitors, or comments, or captivating an audience, I have tried it.

Some people would say forget the tricks, and stick to content, after all, content is king. I’m not here to say whether or not content is the ONLY thing that matters, but I’m here to let you know how to take your content element to the next level.

Be the content. In the beginning of my blogging career, not everyone in my life was actively involved in what I was doing or knew about my blogging. The more I became a personal development blogger in my life, the more that reflected on the blog.

Personal development, meaning constant and never ending growth, is part of who I am in every facet of my life. People close to me no longer think that this is a passing hobby, it’s more of an identity now.

Tell the people. If you don’t tell them, they won’t know. I took responsibility for people not knowing about my site, and actively began telling my friends about it. I would enroll them into all the possibilities of what the site is, and where it is going.

They became excited to be on that journey with me. My friends jokingly say, ‘Hey Alex Shalman, from www.AlexShalman.com.’ I think that’s hilarious! My girlfriend tells everyone she knows about the site, I think that’s precious.

Be your word. Not everyone took what I do seriously, not even after I told them. Two of those people were my parents. Over time, the more I became this personal development person, and the more this made our good relationship a great relationship, the more they believed in the validity of what I do.

The other day we had relatives staying with us, and I caught my parents telling them about the website. My dad even asked me about my Alexa traffic. Now that’s funny, and heartwarming.

From the heart. I remember Liz told me that when I write, I sometimes sound like I’m talking down from a podium. It wasn’t personal. I think this was partly due to me being an inexperienced writer and not having control of what my writing voice sounded like.

Now days I try to incorporate my life, and get as personal as I can, in order to give a part of myself to my readers. This is a much more engaging form of communication, because I’m talking to you, my friend, instead of a crowd of people I don’t know. I want to know you.

Remember to be proud of your work and tell people about it. Be the content, be your word, and blog from the heart.
___________
Alex writes about personal development at AlexShalman.com.

Thank you, Alex.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

7 Ways to a Remarkably Powerful, Personal Network of Bloggers

December 27, 2007 by Liz

How to Make Friends with a Blogger

Just this week someone was saying to me how surprised they were to find that bloggers are such helpful people. That got me thinking about how much all of you have been for me.

So much of what blogging has been for me is been the relationships that have started in comment box, A network of blogger friends is the hugest benefit of this hobby of communicating with everyone who stumbles upon our url. The folks we meet on our blogs are now the people with whom we’re doing business and sharing our goals.

People say that I’m a connector, here’s how those connections came about.

7 Ways to a Remarkably Powerful, Personal Network of Bloggers

If you want to meet and connect with bloggers, you have to go where bloggers hang out — blogs, blog meet ups, and social networking groups that are blogger haunts. When you get there, know a few things about what we bloggers have in common so that you’ll feel comfortable having something to talk about. Here are seven ways to connect with bloggers.

Use blogrolls. Bloggers are always clicking and connecting. We know the most efficient ways to get from place or person to another. Bloggers recognize like minds quickly and value the connections when we find one. Use the blogrolls on the blogs you read to find new blogs to widen your circle.

Promote bloggers who have great thoughts. The best form of connecting is to show folks what we value about them by sharing it publicly with our friends. We live on the web — a connected set of linked up urls. Link to bloggers who talk about what you’re interest in and you’ll find they’ll be interested in you. Don’t just concentrate on A-Listers. Great thinkers are writing on blogs that just started yesterday. You can help them get going.

Ask for help with a problem. Bloggers are flexible and agile. We’ve picked up the latest and adapt them to our needs — sometimes in ways that the developers hadn’t imagined. When you visit new blogs check the structure as well as the content, when you have a problem connect, connect, connect with bloggers. A blogger will know how to help. A simple question in a contact box with the words “Can you point me in the direction of the answer . . .” will often start a new relationship.

Do something to change the world. Bloggers love to make things better. One of the quickest ways to connect with bloggers is to design and announce a realistic, altruistic plan to improve or support a cause for someone else.

Avoid the wrong side of the links. Some bloggers aren’t the sort to connect up with. Keeping an eye on our zeal to connect is always a good idea. Spam and advertorial content is all some slimy bloggers ever offer. Those connections make a network weaker.

Value every second someone shares with you. Bloggers guard their time. We spend time writing great content, tweaking our blogs and talking to each other. Be authentic, be thoughtful, and be generous when you say hello that very first time. . . . and every time after.

Remember the people; forget the press. A blogger’s life changes quickly over time. In a few months, we can go from being a “newbie” to being someone folks want to know. The first notice by a big search engine, the first time we show up on a top ten list, the first page ranking at Google — these are our academy awards. When it happens to you, don’t let it change who you are. People don’t change their algorithms nearly as often as Google does.

So there they are 7 ways to connect with bloggers to form a remarkably powerful personal network. What they really say is Be real and be about the folks you want to connect with. Show up as who you are from the first moment and you’ll find folks will start wanting to connect to you.

Know any other hints I should add to the list?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Would you like to work with Liz to build your network?

7 Incredibly Intelligent Ideas for Blogging More Efficiently

December 21, 2007 by Liz

Be a Power Blogger

This week, b5 business bloggers were discussing ways to bring more value to our readers. The question was barely asked when Eric Eggertson offered an answer on how to blog with power and more efficiently.

Eric Eggertson knows a bit about where he comes from. He’s been involved in corporate communications since 1987. He’s conceived and executed internal and external communication strategies for government agencies, non-profits and co-operatives in Saskatchewan. He blogs about public relations and has been doing so since January 2005 on the Common Sense PR blog for b5 media.

As soon as I read Eric’s email, I asked if I might use his email as a blog post. I thought what he had to say should be published. He graciously agreed.

“Be my guest, Liz!” is what Eric said.

So I give it to you raw and unplugged, like the value content that it is. By the way, Eric didn’t name this post I did. I think his ideas truly are incredibly intelligent and I’m hoping you’ll put them to use right away.

7 Incredibly Intelligent Ideas for Blogging More Efficiently

by Eric Eggertson

When there’s a lot of discussion in the comments of a post, or if there’s some critical info added in the comments, create a short post quoting the most relevant info and pointing people to the contents of the prior post. This isn’t cheating. It actually really helps people who subscribe via e-mail or RSS, as they may not be aware of what’s being said in the comments.

When someone writes about something you’ve posted, and their post adds something significant to understanding the issue, create a short post quoting briefly and pointing people to the other blogger’s post. This helps people who don’t see the Trackbacks and Pingbacks to your post (ie. RSS/e-mail subscribers).

Create a short post linking to the top posts for your blog, or the most controversial, or the ones you sweated over that everyone ignored, or links to all parts of a series.

When you write a guest post on another blog/site, create a short post linking to the post. Even if the item’s a bit off topic for your blog, this may be worth doing if you want people to get to know you a bit better.

Break bigger pieces into smaller ones and spread them out over a few days. Use the first one to introduce the topic and solicit responses, then post the others, including any reader feedback.

Ask readers for suggestions for further reading/best tools/best tips/weirdest news, etc., then post the results as link lists. You can do a separate post per topic. This isn’t cheating. Some of the best items on some blogs are short links to other sources, without a lengthy explanation of all the background about it.

When you see something that is striking, unusual, awful, humorous, etc., post a short item about it, without feeling you have to find a weighty rationale for pointing it out. Think of it as the equivalent of a little item tucked in the margin of a magazine or a book – 15-30 words about it.

Seven incredibly intelligent ideas to make your work worth more to your readers, and at the same time make your life easier. What more value could a blogger or a reader need for the holidays?

How many of these will you be using before the year is over?

Thanks Eric, for letting me share these with the folks who read Successful-Blog!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
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