Business Blogging - How to Build A Better Blog

Blog Outreach: Are You Missing This Traffic Tactic?

One of the most overlooked tactics for driving traffic to your blog is the information we cover in the second module of our 4-point Better Business Blogging teleseminar series: Outreach.

If you're not reading and commenting on other blogs in your field, you're missing out. It's one of the most powerful ways to get known, get visitors, and get inbound links to your blog.

Many professionals are so focused on what they have to say, they forget blogs are a conversation and way to interact with people. But if you're not getting enough visitors, you're not going to get comments, and you mavy feel like you're writing to a void.

You must start the ball rolling by finding and subscribing to other blogs in your field. Here are three  ways to find other blogs:

POLL: Social Networking Sites - Which ones do you use?

We have a new poll posted on Biz Tips Blog:  we want to know what social networking sites you use to market your business.  Will you take one minute to complete the poll? 

Social networking and social media is becoming more and more essential to business success. An article on Dosh Dosh gives a thorough argument about why social media marketing is so important.

In February, we're participating in the Social Media Telesummit, hosted by Leesa Barnes. This is going to be an amazing event with top notch speakers on all aspects of using social media.  The Blog Squad will be talking about using a blog to extend your brand.

You'd be wise to pay attention to what's going on in this arena which includes blogs, social networking sites, microblogging, Internet radio, social bookmarking sites, podcasting, video sharing and more.

Authors: Are you selling enough books?

Authors waste too much time worrying about the wrong things when it comes to selling books online.

They spend precious time, for example, fretting about the perfect shade of lavender, the primary color at the site, so it doesn't clash with the green cover of the book that's displayed prominently.

Missing are a gold mine of free articles, a link to a content-rich blog, pages optimized for the search engines, and one of those obtrusive boxes that bounces down from the top of the screen as soon as a visitor arrives.

Social Media Telesummit Preview Call - 7 Social Media Tools

On Wednesday, we join Leesa Barnes, conference organizer extraordinaire, for a conversation about 7 Social Media Tools.  This is a free event and precedes the Social Media Telesummit that opens on February 20. The 9 day extravaganza features two dozen experts (yes, that includes The Blog Squad!) helping you understand and use the myriad social media tools available to businesses.

Back to our conversation with Leesa.  We're going to spend 30 minutes talking about how these tools can be used in business:

1. Microblogging - Twitter, Pownce & Jaiku
2. Blogging - Blogger, Wordpress, Typepad
3. Podcasting - live using BlogTalkRadio or Talkshoe, recorded using Podango or Wordpress
4. Social networking - Ryze, LinkedIn, MySpace, Facebook
5. Social bookmarking - StumpleUpon, Digg, del.icio.us
6. Photo sharing - Flickr, Bubbleshare
7. Video sharing - Blip.tv, YouTube, Revver

The call is free, but you do have to register.  The conversation is at 8:00 pm Eastern Time (5 p.m. Pacific) on Wednesday, January 30.

Trust: How to Build It With Your Blog Design

How do you build trust with readers of your blog? It's not only by writing with candor and transparency. Granted, authenticity is a key element of successful business blogging. But there are other important factors to pay attention to.

Like with your blog design... yes, everything about your blog (not just your words) can build up that elusive trust factor and contribute to turning readers into clients and raving fans. Consider these elements on your blog:

1. Your banner - Does it clearly describe the focus of your content?
2. Your tag line - Does it add to the definition of what readers will find, including who the author is?
3. Your name - Prominently displayed as author in several locations
4. Your photo - A professional photo where your face is clear and inviting
5. Your bio on your About page - Write your bio in the first person and clearly explain what your blog is about as well as why anybody should believe you

These are just 5 of at least 11 elements of effective blog design. If you want to learn more about how advanced blogging tactics can improve the results on your blog, join The Blog Squad as we coach you to implement these and many more design tips for four weeks  beginning on February 5:

Better Business Blogging: Boost Your Blog for Better Results
…how to use the 4-point CODA system to take your blog to the next level
www.boostyourbusinessblog.com

Related post:
The Trust Factor: 7 Ways to Build it

Does your business blog have the blues?

We hear about people getting great results from blogs, yet many professionals new to blogging aren't getting the results they want or expected. Why is that?

People will naturally focus on whatever they feel most comfortable with their blog. If a professional likes writing, they'll focus their time and energy on the blog content.

If they are technically  inclined, they might focus on the design of the blog, or search engine optimization.

To be really effective, though, there are four critical elements that must be in place to have a great business blog:

1. Content
2.  Outreach
3 . Design
4. Action

Business Blog Results: $875,000 generated so far this year...

We love to hear your success stories, and get all puffed up and teary eyed when when one of our beloved clients goes down the road to business blogging glory...

Denise and I were blown away by this email from client Mark Siegel, Managing Director, Golfasian Co. Ltd. His blog is the ThailandGolfZone.com. I don't even golf, but I love reading Mark's blog about golf and tourism over in Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.

Evidently so do a lot of other people who have become great customers. Here's Mark's story:

"Hi, Patsi and Denise,

How are things going? I see that you continue to do great work on business bogging and I wanted to share another success story with you.

This week, the blog that you and the Blog Squad help set up for me, the Thailand Golf Zone, reached it's 300th post! This major milestone highlights the usefulness of my business blog to connect with clients, provide accurate and timely information on our product, services and market, and most of all generate credibility and respect for my company across the globe.

How to Avoid Business Blog Failure - Audio Replay

If you missed it, here's the audio replay for the interview we did today about how to avoid business blog failure: http://www.boostyourbusinessblog.com/replay.html

We are offering a $100 Early Bird discount on our Better Business Blogging program, sponsored by Leadership University, that begins on February 5. The discount expires at 11:59 p.m. ET on Friday, January 25.

If you're a member of Leadership University, tuition is included with your membership.

How You Can Prevent Business Blog Failure

Free Teleclass: How You Can Prevent Business Blog Failure
Mike Jay interviews The Blog Squad
January 24, 2008 at 3 p.m. ET (12:00 p.m. PT)
Dial-in: 218-486-1300 PIN 792414#
No registration required.

In this conversation Mike Jay, Founder of Leadership University, asks The Blog Squad to reveal why they claim blogs are the best darn business marketing tool on the planet. There's a lot to love about blogging: it's fun, inexpensive, and satisfying to see your thoughts and words published on the Web.

But if you aren't seeing tangible results for your business, you could be on the verge blog failure.

In this info-packed interview you will learn:

• Why every business needs a blog
• What every professional must do BEFORE starting a business blog
• 3 things to do if you're new to blogging
• 5 reasons a business blog fails
• 4 key elements essential to business blogging success

This is a preview call to their teleseminar program in February:

Better Business Blogging: Boost Your Blog for Better Results
Presented by The Blog Squad: Patsi Krakoff and Denise Wakeman
Tuesdays: February 5, 12, 19, and 26
5 p.m. ET - 70 minutes
More info about this program to take your blog to new heights >>>

Blog Branding: How to waste a perfectly good marketing opportunity...

File this post under "Pet Peeves: Stupid mistakes otherwise smart bloggers make." It frustrates my marketing bones to find a good blog with great content, only to have to hunt and search for the author's name.

Furthermore, if you don't have your name up in the title of your blog, you are missing a great marketing opportunity for getting your name and your brand out there.

Let me explain why this important. If you use an email subscription service to deliver your blog feeds, such as with Feedblitz, your blog post/feed gets delivered into subscribers' email inboxes with the title of your blog in it. If you're like me, and many others I'm sure, you may forget who writes which blog. But I never forget an author's name. If I subscribe to their blog it's because I like what they have to say. But I can easily forget the title of the blog. Plus, many blog authors change their blog title as it evolves.