Successful Blog

SOB Business Cafe 06-23-2006

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SB Cafe

Welcome to the SOB Cafe

We offer the best in thinking–articles on the business of blogging written by the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers of Successful Blog. Click on the title shots to enjoy each selection.

The Specials this Week are

Lorelle VanFossen discusses what she considers as she’s doing an informal study to find out the best days and times to post new content on her blog.

Keith Dsouza continues his series on the right software for blogging with a post on helping us choose the right blogging software and templates.

Ann Michael reminds us that all change involves conflict, and explores passive aggressive behaviors.

Manage to Change

Jason at Mental Tech pulls software from his archives to offers us free alternative software for popular office and photo-editing programs.

Mental Tech

Related ala carte selections include

Cheryl at Mad Baggage offers us hope for the Fairy Peguins. Linux lovers should like this.

Sit back. Enjoy your read. Nachos and drinks will be right over. Stay as long as you like.
No tips required. Comments appreciated.

Have a great weekend!

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Open Comments at 6:30 Chicago Time

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Tuesday Open Comment Night

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YES, the mike will be open again tonight. So start collecting your thoughts. Remember, you get to bring what you want to talk about.

The rules are simple — be nice.

We got things going really fast last week. If you missed it, stop by this week, and check it out.

Some things we might talk about could include whether:

  • Joe’s great interviewing skills.
  • What happened on the Dr. Who finale?
  • What are the donkey and the moose up to?
  • What’s the secret trip Liz is taking?
  • What’s the contest at Ben’s Blog about?
  • What you SUGGEST:

AND THE EVER POPULAR, WHERE IS EVERYBODY?

It’s like any rambling conversation. Don’t try to read it all. Jump in whenever you get here. Just go to the end and start talking. EVERYONE is WELCOME.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related articles
The Mike Is in Chicago!

Don’t Fear the Blank Screen — Be a Miner

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Staring at a Blank Screen

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Staring at a blank screen does nothing for me. In fact, I recommend against it. In my way of thinking, blank things encourage more blank things. When I want my head filled with information and ideas, not with blank, emptiness I do this. [Read more…]

Getting Customers to Stop by to See You

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Walking the Trade Show Floor

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Yesterday walking the trade show floor, I felt I was in a 3-D blog world. Aisles and aisle of blogs sitting side by side with real people in and around them. They were all in the same market, different niches. Some were not easy to tell apart. I was scanning the signage to get a clue. Oh my! 60% were woefully inadequate. Here’s what I saw.

  • Company names with not a hint of what they do.
  • A list of what the company does, but no name to pull it together.
  • Taglines that said abolutely nothing, i.e. making things happen — good things? bad things? It didn’t say.
  • Taglines that said the same five buzz words that I found at most every other booth.

It seemed clear to me that the folks who designed these books — 3-D blogs — were thinking of what they thought the customer should know rather than thinking of what the customer might have come to find out. Standing outside each booth that I’m talking about I only had one question. [Read more…]

Exploring for Ideas at Technorati

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Going Exploring

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I can’t help it. David Sifry hooked me. He did it when he let them name that feature at Technorati Explore. Had he only said, “Okay call it Browse.” Browsing is a nice thing. I’ve even been known to do it. I’ve browsed through books and browsed while waiting. Yes, I know how to Browse.

My life would be so much easier, if only David Sifry had chosen Browse instead of choosing Explore.

But no. My friend, Dave probably was a kid a bit like me. He probably knows the exact appeal of exploring. Maybe he even remembers hearing someone saying, “Where you going?” and answering back “We’re going exploring. Wanna come along?”

Slam dunk marketing that name. Explore. Even better, it lives up to its promise. [Read more…]

Blogging Improves Job Prospects

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The Boston Globe Says So

On Apri 16, boston.com, the blog of the Boston Globe, ran a story called Blogs ‘essential to a good career’. It’s a paid subscription to the old paper’s archives so I’m going to summarize the argument — use it when you need to explain blogging as more than an online diary.

The main points of the blog post are that

  • blogging gets folks visibility
  • blogs update more often and so rank higher in search engines when employers Google candidates, which employers are doing
  • blogging forms connection with other bloggers much like networking
  • blogging shows a blogger starting conversations and interacting with others, which are positive traits that employers look for
  • blogging is the consummate home page, resume, and interview put together
  • blogging is an education–in order to blog on any subject daily a blogger gets to know it well
  • blogging opens up opportunities–blogging IS walking the walk–a blogger can pretend to know and so opportunities start to show up.
  • blogging offers a chance to add content to the Internet rather than always taking it away.

But then, if you’re a blogger, you already knew that. In fact, you probably don’t need this list at all.

Here is the link to PAY FOR What’s Obvious.

Just kidding, Boston Globe. I’m the nice one. Really I am. I was also careful to have the article in the other room while I wrote this summary down.

[Hat tip to Kaps for helping me source link the article]
–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related articles:

Your Resume-The Brand YOU Brochure
Writing–Ugh! 10 Reasons to Get Jazzed about Writing
Brand YOU–You Are What They See
Who’s a Citizen Journalist?