Business Blogging - How to Build A Better Blog

Blog engagement: forget the Amazon campaign

This past month we've been asked to participate in a couple of big Amazon book launch campaigns: Mike Jay's Upping the Downside and What Can a Dentist Teach You about Business, Life and Success?.

Awhile ago, Patsi and I decided we were not going to do these campaigns anymore. We don't want to burn out our lists and we get solicited to participate in these launches ALL THE TIME. However in the case of our two colleagues we agreed to do blog posts.

Now, here's another option.  Rohit Bhargava, Senior Vice President, Digital Strategy & Marketing at Ogilvy Public Relations, and an acknowledged thought leader and expert in social media, is launching his new book Personality Not Included: Why Companies Lose Their Authenticity And How Great Brands Get it Back on Friday, March 28.

Rather than do a big Amazon campaign, he's engaging the blogosphere and his fans to help him build buzz for the book.  Check out his post on how bloggers can participate. Rohit also created a fan page on Facebook and is keeping fans apprised of launch parties, as well as showing various incarnations of the cover, and a sneak peek at the contents.

Essentially, what Rohit is doing is a blook tour with interviews posted around the web. Frankly, I like this approach better. It's a win-win-win.

1. The author gets wide exposure for his new book.
2. The blogger gets great content and access to a big player in their niche (and link luv from an influential blog).
3. The blogger's readers get to learn about an important new resource and get insights about the author and their expertise.

By the way, even if I didn't know Rohit and he hadn't asked me if I wanted to submit interview questions for my blog (watch Biz Tips Blog for his interview), I would buy the book. Why? Rohit Bhargava is a pro and expert and I want access to what he knows. I also read his blog, Influential Marketing, religiously so I can stay on top of the social media trends.

What do you think? A good idea? How would you engage the blogosphere to promote your book?

It's a Blogging Evolution

One of the first business bloggers I met, I think in early 2005, was Paul Chaney (currently blogging at Conversational Media Marketing). Paul is smart, a thinker and one heckuva nice guy. We've met several times in person at blogging conferences and I always enjoy spending time with him.

Paul has written an excellent history of business blogging beginning in 2003 when early adopter marketing folks started paying attention to the medium.  I believe it was 2004 when "blog" was Merriam Webster's word of the year.

Though a lot of social media distractions have evolved along side blogging -- Twitter, social networking sites -- I believe business blogging remains one of the most powerful ways for a service professional and small business owner to get the word out about what they offer while creating connection, credibility and trust with their prospective clients. There just isn't a better way to communicate online in a simple, frequent, inexpensive and information way that also helps your ideal client find you. Period.

What do you think? What changes have you observed in the business blogosphere?

Business Blogging Tip: Put Your Name on Your Blog

I'm continuing my education with video and have added a Logitech QuickCam Ultra Vision to my arsenal. As you can see from the video tip below, I'm still a novice at this video thing, especially when it comes to editing! Here's my business blogging tip for today: why you need to put your name on your business blog.

Blog Squad Spring Sale is On! Save 81%

If you missed it last month, we've brought back our big teleseminar sale:

8 Teleseminars with Online Marketing Experts, 2 Bonuses, 2 Chances to Win and $568 in Savings.

Two days only -- through Friday, March 21 at midnight ET (9 p.m. PT).

Here's what you will learn:

• How to gain visibility through pitching bloggers
• How to mount a viral campaign with a blog
• How to write and market your book with a blog
• The secrets that make an info product sell like hot cakes
• Advanced writing and marketing techniques with lead-generating white papers
• New ideas to fast-track your success

Show yourself a little love and give yourself a Spring Break by investing in our expert Internet marketing teleseminar series at 81% off the regular price.

Take a look at what we have for you and check out the bonuses and the contest.

Mark Cuban gives advice on how to be a blogging star

An article in the New York Times: So You Want to Be a Blogging Star, covers the tried and true ways to get known as a blogger in your niche. Several high profile bloggers, including Mark Cuban, give their tips for building an audience and maintaining a successful blog.

Mr. Cuban said: “Blog about your passions. Don’t blog about what you think your audience wants. Post because you have something you are dying to write about.”

Mark Cuban's advice is a bit contrary to what we recommend for a business blog, though not completely. You need to find a balance between your passion, educating your prospects, informing and entertaining in order to convert readers to customers. That may not be Cuban's goal but for most business bloggers, the bottom line is to attract readers to click the buy button or pick up the phone to find out what you can do for them.

That being said, there's some excellent, if not new, advice about how to build a successful, popular blog.

In a nutshell:

Multiple Blogs for Your Business: Smart or Scattered?

Marc Lerner, a client in Ann Arbor, Michigan asks: "Is there a benefit in having separate blogs with different addresses? How can several sites be linked together and create the best traffic?"

The Blog Squad answers: "We have more than 10 blogs, and 3 main ones where we post actively several times a week. Each blog is branded with a unique domain name. And, we link frequently to each of them and often list related posts from each of them."

The more blogs and websites you have, the more likely people will find you. This is the "multiple fishing pole" theory of Internet marketing.

The benefits of having separate blogs lies in the fact that each one has a different audience of readers. We want to target the readers' interests and needs and not confuse the issues nor be too broad. Here's how we do it:

1. This blog, BuildaBetterBlog, focuses on readers who want to learn how to best use a blog for their business.
2. Our other blog, www.WritingontheWeb.com, focuses on readers who want to learn how to write for online marketing purposes, for example, writing for a blog, for an ezine, for info products, white papers, reports, and articles.
3. Our 3rd main blog, www.BizTipsBlog.com, focuses on readers who use the Internet to grow their businesses, and how to save time, money and energy with online marketing tips and tactics.

Blog Designers: TypePad is Looking for You

Are you a blog designer? Or a graphic designer who designs blog themes? If so, Six Apart ( parent company of TypePad, Movable Type, Vox and LiveJournal) is looking for you.

A contest is currently underway for blog design themes. You may enter your design through April 4. Contest details here.

Design It with Style

Inspire bloggers around the world to bring their ideas to life by entering the HP"What do you have to say?" theme design contest. All you have to do is design a theme that showcases your personal style and creativity. The winning themes will be made available to millions of bloggers on TypePad, Vox and LiveJournal. If your theme is chosen as the winner, you will get some cool prizes from HP.

When I saw the announcement last night, there was one entry. Today there are now 24! If you're a designer you can get a lot of exposure so go to it!

Wall Street Journal Features Comments by The Blog Squad

How to pitch bloggers is once again a hot topic. Today's online version of The Wall Street Journal has an article called Attention, Bloggers. And for a little shameless self promotion...I was interviewed for the article! Whoo hoo.

NOTE: If you are not a WSJ subscriber you'll be asked to subscribe. I created a pdf of the article you can download instead. Download Attention Bloggers

There are good case studies of successful blogger pitches including one I submitted from Becky Sciullo about how she and her father, artist Robert Yonke, pitched bluegrass music blogs to promote his paintings of bluegrass musicians.

When I asked Shelly Banjo, the WSJ reporter, how she found me, her response: "Google, of course!"

How to get bloggers to write about you

This is a quickie today. Via my colleague Mike Jay, I found this article by Cory Doctorow on 17 Tips for Getting Bloggers to Write About You. These tips go hand in hand with how to pitch bloggers.

From the perspective of a blogger who may write about people, products and services and from the perspective of a blogger who may want other bloggers to write about you, study these tips. Take a look at your sites and blogs and see how you can tweak them to be more blogger-friendly.

Related Posts
Pitching Bloggers: I got one that worked!
Jounalists Want to Blog
Pitching Bloggers: 10 Things That Make Bloggers Angry
Pitching Bloggers: 15 Rules to Obey

Quality Blog Content for Your Business: The Great Challenge

So much depends upon the quality of your blog posts:

1. Traffic
2. Subscriptions
3. Comments
4. Community of fans
5. Conversions, registrations, sales
6. Number of new clients
7. Number of new joint venture opportunities

It's no wonder you might feel a little overwhelmed and pressured when you sit down to write a new blog post!

Don't do that! That's a quick road to blog block. Relax. Nothing to worry about. Put on a little music, close your eyes and breathe.

Yet it's very true: if your blog posts aren't interesting, original, thought provoking and provide real value to readers, they aren't going to keep coming back. So think and be smart about your next business blog post.