Successful Blog

Smiling Harbor Sunday

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Smiling Sunday

Sundays start so slowly. They take a while to get up and rolling. Sundays would be a perfect day for a walk in the early morning.

I’ve wasted too many beautiful Sundays doing things meant to make an easier Monday. Sunday should be a day that’s kept for doing special things.

Smiling harbor out my window

I’m starting a small Sunday tradition of drinking my coffee while looking out the window. It doesn’t sound like such a miracle until I mention a sunrise is in the view.

A Sunday sunrise miracle and a cup of coffee combine to make a great way to start me my mind thinking of new ways to see the world.

This Sunday morning, the harbor seems to be smiling back at me.

I hope you find a way to do the same thing.

Liz's Signature

Image: mestrauss

On Suzie's Beach — Will You Try on that Comfortable Beach Feeling?

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Beach Notes While Suzie’s Away

gday logo

This morning as about to write something, I came across Suzie’s Beach Notes photo. Soon, I was walking beaches I’ve walked in Oz. I was thinking thoughts of the people I know there.

A beach walk is like grand music that fills me with space, light, and meaning. The feel of the sand under my feet, the expanse of the sky over the water conspire against any need to control things. Even wild stormy beaches make the world seem far more in control than I’ll ever be. It’s a reassuring, peaceful freedom.

Space to breathe, no noise, even the sailboats are made for sea — not for the people who sail them.

Every beach I walk gives me hope and calmness in my soul. It’s hard not to think that the world will keep turning when the water keeps returning. Sky, water, land . . . build a beach fire.

Last week Suzie walked this beach thinking about getting out of your comfort zone.

This week, I’m asking, Will you try on that comfortable beach feeling?

Liz's Signature

Image: Suzie Cheel

Surely You Have a Blogging Goal?

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The Ultimate Guide to a Wildly Sticky, Successful and Outstanding Blog
A SERIES

Finding A Direction — Goals, Titles, and Taglines

Whether you blog for money, or you blog for fun, a successful blog works like a successful small business. Every post is product made for customers called readers. Quality counts. So do schedule and budget. Having a mission and goals, knowing the what and how, and using the right tools for the job make your chance of success far greater.

Surely You Have a Goal? No? Gotta Get One!

A blogging goal gives a blog a heart and a direction. It’s powerful exercise in getting your thoughts focused in on why you’re actually doing this. In essence, a blogging goal provides a measure of success that is there to work toward.

  1. Should you be blogging? 23 Questions for Prospective Bloggers – Is a Blog Right for You?

  2. Wondering whether a blog is for you? Do you see yourself in this list of Top 10 Reasons to Start a Blog?

  3. Goals for New Bloggers is a straightforward outline of how approach setting up a blog on the path to success.

  4. We all have different reasons for why we invest time and sweat equity into blogging. Darren’s Blog Goals – Group Writing Project. Check out the complete list of submissions to read the goals of experienced and new bloggers who participated in the writing project.

  5. In the end, when it comes to Measuring Blog Success: It’s the Goals, Stupid! — No one else can decide the destination you’re seeking.

  6. Things changed dramatically the day I wrote My Blogging Goal. Every decision that I’ve made since has been to support what wrote in my blogging goal.

A Blog Title — Who Are You?

Names are the most important words that we know. They’re the first words we learn about ourselves. They’re how we begin to sort the universe. We say them soon after “hello” when we meet a new person. A blog name says something about the blog and about the person who named it.

Most importantly, outstanding blog titles are memorable and describe what the blog is about.

  1. If your goal is to write for yourself and few select friends, name your blog however you all might find meaningful. If your goal is to write for a large audience, name your blog using words THEY will understand and be drawn to find out more about. One way to draw them is to include Key Words in your blog title. Titles that Grab Readers are titles that simply say what the blog is about.

  2. Dorai answers the question How Do You Choose a Blog Title?

  3. For a look at the most popular keywords already being used, see How Do You Call Your Blog? Be careful on following advice in the post and comments. The information is interesting, but I don’t necessarily come to the same conclusions reading the data.

  4. Nick Wilson collected seven more articles on Killer Titles.

A Tagline — What’s Your Promise?

A fabulous tagline says what’s in it for me — the reader. It makes a promise that I can resist, a promise the blog never fails to deliver successfully.

5 Blog Taglines

Do you recognize these?
You’re only a stranger once. . . . Helping Bloggers Succeed . . .
. . . Copywriting tips for online marketing success . . .
Make money online blogging . . . create your blog free

They are: Successful Blog, Performancing, Copyblogger, Problogger, and Blogger taglines. Each one tells the promise of the blog they describe.

  1. Follow this step by step coaching session on to write a killer tagline.

  2. For more resources, you might review the 25 additional links to posts about taglines included in this piece.

A blog on its own is not really a business, but a wildly sticky, successful and outstanding blog has plenty in common with one. The more you know about your product, your readers, and what brings them together, the easier it will be to catch the attention of those who love what you do.

How are you serving the folks who read your blog?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

More Wildly Sticky, Successful and Outstanding Blogs on Blogging

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A SERIES
The day before I left for the UK, I posted a challenge that you might add to a list of Wildly Sticky, Successful and Outstanding Blogs on Blogging that I had started. Some folks missed that last prepositional phrase “on blogging” and offered great blogs on other topics. Those don’t really belong on this list, so please don’t feel offended that I didn’t include them.

Here is the list I promised to compile, starting with the original ten I offered.

  1. Bloggers Blog
  2. chrisg.com
  3. ProBlogger
  4. SEObook
  5. Lorelle on WordPress
  6. Freshblog
  7. dosh dosh
  8. Copyblogger
  9. Daily Blog Tips
  10. seomoz
  11. The Blog Herald
  12. Wayne Liew Dot Com
  13. Blogsessive
  14. Network Blogging Tips
  15. Chris Brogan
  16. Blog for Profit
  17. Internet Duct Tape
  18. Performancing
  19. Lost Art of Blogging
  20. Quick Online Tips

That’s the list that we made together.

If you missed it, read the entire introduction to The Ultimate Guide to a Wildly Sticky, Successful and Outstanding Blog.
More is coming.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Want to know what’s wildly sticky? Work with Liz!!

The Ultimate Guide to a Wildly Sticky, Successful and Outstanding Blog

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A SERIES

Experts on Successful Blogs and the Blogosphere

Before you go anywhere, you have to know where you’re going. What’s your destination? What’s your plan? Building a blog of quality and relevance is an accomplishment. It’s not something that just happens by letting your fingers type anything. It takes planning, heart, and “a village” to make a successful blog, but a great blog is worth every minute invested in pulling those three together.

What Makes a Successful Blog?

Every individual has his or her own definition of success. I’m sure you have yours too. Take a look at what folks hold up as guideposts. Keep cornerstone advice close. Here are a few expert opinions to help you set bar of what you might strive for when build your successful blog.

  1. Let’s start with the key ingredient. You can put stock in Chrisg when he says, “Online or Offline, this is the Key to Success.” Thank you, Mr. Garrett.

  2. You’ll be a much more relaxed blogger if you have a sense of where you fit. You might want to take the Blog Review Checklist — the most comprehensive evaluation review tool. It’s backed by 20 years of working with readers and how they interact with text (online and off.)

  3. Pay attention to success reported by smart bloggers in their first year. They not only care about what you care about, but the learning curve is the greatest in the first few months. How to Build a Somewhat Successful Blog: 16 Lessons I Have Learned from the Positivity Blog is a top-notch example.

  4. A part of any blog’s success is related to links, tools, and measures. Read about Google Page Rank, Alexa Rank, and discussions of blog surveys and the ways a bloggers opinion of success can change over time. Meredith Wolfwater discusses these in What makes a blog successful? from Information Wants to Be Free

  5. Website or blog, the principles are the same. Listen. Seth knows what he’s saying. How to create a great website

  6. Becoming part of the community, the conversation, and the creativity of blogging are Essential Requirements to Starting a Successful Blog

  7. Understand that success comes from within. You’ll need the wherewithal to come to your blog and your readers every day. Three Traits of Successful Blogs – Focus, Passion, and Originality

  8. Know that readers know a lot about what makes a good blog tick. They share if you take the time to ask. What Makes a Blog Successful?

  9. Follow the lead of those who’ve been there and succeeded before you. How I Chose 18 Thought Leaders to Follow (and Their Links)

  10. Do the work and understand what works. As with life, success with a blog is more investment than luck. How to Build an Authority Blog: Tips from the Experts

The Culture of the Blogosphere

Once we realize that people are talking to each other on the Internet, it’s not long before we figure out that blogosphere has a culture of its own. New circumstances often inspire new ways to interact. We can’t see who’s on the other side of the screen. We only see the words, images, and sounds send us. The filters we use in person don’t work to decide who is telling us the truth. Authenticity and transparency are two words that you’ll find important to the community and culture of the blogosphere.

Check out the blogosphere. Get to know what blogging is about. Find your favorite blogs and bloggers. Figure out what it is that keeps you returning to read them. Just as important, notice what turns you off.

  1. A great start is John Dvorak’s Understanding and Reading a Blog (for Newcomers) This entry is timeless, relevant content.

  2. Get to know all of the ways you can read a blog . . . The Blog Realm: RSS, Aggregators, and Reading the Blog Fantastic by Greg R. Notess

  3. Know what to do to make the most of the experience. “Ah – blogs – one of the best ways to waste lots of time. Here are the top 10 tips we’ve found for being more productive when reading blogs.” Top 10 tips for effective blog reading – part 1 by Nev a Dave

  4. Honor the cultural traditions and mores of Internet interpersonal communications. Act with netiquette to show you are a respectful and savvy citizen of the virtual world.

  5. If you’re trying to figure out what makes a blogger a blogger, this quick look works as well as any other.What Is A Blogger?

Just know that the blogging community is worldwide and incredibly helpful. Finding your way around the blogosphere doesn’t have to be arduous or take from here to forever.

Ten Blogs on Blogging

Ten that I find consistently readable in no particular order.

  1. Bloggers Blog
  2. chrisg.com
  3. ProBlogger
  4. SEObook
  5. Lorelle on WordPress
  6. Freshblog
  7. dosh dosh
  8. Copyblogger
  9. Daily Blog Tips
  10. seomoz

I’ve listed ten blogs on blogging. Now, here’s my challenge.

I’ve left out plenty that could be on this list. Add them in the comments. When I return I’ll compile them. We’ll set up criteria. Then we’ll determine which blogs you suggest make

The Ultimate List of
Wildly Sticky, Successful and Outstanding
Blogs on Blogging.

Which blogs do you nominate?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Want to know what’s wildly sticky? Work with Liz!!

The Business of Connecting and Doing What We Need

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Okay, Rodney, I Finally Gave In!

relationships button

It was about a year ago that I heard these words from my friend, Rodney Rumford. You’re a connector! That’s what you are . . . like in the Tipping Point.

I thought, Yeah, I can see why someone would say that, but I’m not one word.

Yesterday, Rodney said, “How’s business, Liz?”

I said, “Rodney, I finally gave in. I’ve taken on the title, Connector. Try as hard as I might to say that’s not what I am. When I looked around, all I saw was me connecting — people, ideas, relationships, steps in a process.”

I have to admit that since the day that I connected with the word, connector, my whole life has made more sense. I’ve connected all of my strengths. I’ve connected all of my values. I’ve sorted out my major disconnects. I know my unique purpose. I know what I bring and what I need for success.

The Business of Connecting and Doing What We Need

Have you noticed how easy it is to be with folks who know where they’re going? The energy that we lose trying to focus on too many things gets released when we set our sights on purpose number 1 — what we most need to do for ourselves is what we best do for everyone else.

Every bit of me needs to be connected — relational and whole. Fragments frustrate me. Loose ends nag and aggravate me. I’m best when I connect parts into meaningful big ideas. The business of connecting is right for me. I see relationships — among people, ideas, and things — that are are relevant and whole.

What does every bit of you need to be? . . . at peace, in service, authentic, useful . . . what word drives you? What business are you really in?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Are you looking to get unstuck?