Tag Archive for 'Blogging'

Thoughts On: Blogging/This Blog

Published
by
Matt
on Apr 13, 2009
in ANM, Blogging and ideas
. Comments
  • I think Twitter has really changed blogging. I know it’s still a young medium itself, but I feel like I’ve seen a ton of “I’m not blogging as much because of Twitter” posts lately. The short-form stuff that we used to blog about now goes straight to Twitter. I’m not sure if it’s a bad thing, but it seems like a trend to me.
  • I’ve been thinking a lot about blogs and shifting the focus of the content; I’m wondering if it’s okay to change things a little bit. Obviously I’m not saying that I’m going to start writing about lolcats (but I should be able to if I want, it’s my blog after all), but I’m wondering if it’s disconcerting to the readers to experience a change. I feel like it would be a disservice to not allow the evolution of both the author and the audience. What do you think?
  • That being said, I change the tagline of my blog a lot. I feel like as I’ve been writing this more and more, I’m growing into a place where I’m really happy/comfortable with the style and content. If you’ve noticed, there’s been a lot more design/design thinking and visuals (inspired partly by Sir Armano). I’ve also become more comfortable with shorter posts because I’ve realized that if I sit on an idea too long, my motivation goes away. Gotta strike while the iron is hot.

But that’s just me. How do you feel about this stuff? What’s your take on the shifting focus of a blog? How have you grown changed as an author or a reader?

Fire away.

Some Blogging Tips

Published
by
Matt
on Mar 9, 2009
in Blogging
. Comments

So I’ve been blogging for a little bit now. Here’s some of my favorite tips, in the order that I thought of them:

  • If you don’t love it. Don’t do it. Or quit now and save yourself the trouble.
  • Go outside your comfort zone once in a while. Put up some visuals or a video post. Go way off topic.
  • Just because you think someone else has “said it better” doesn’t mean you can’t add your take on things.
  • There is absolutely nothing wrong with a link-baitey post every once in a while.
  • Someone will always say it better. But someone will also always say it worse.
  • It takes a long, long time to get a decent sized audience. Those people who have 10k readers in a week are like people that lose 100lbs on diet pills.
  • Decide why you want to blog before you start, but keep in mind that it’s a fluid concept.
  • Don’t be afraid to talk about whatever the hell you want sometimes.
  • Put a picture of yourself on your front page.
  • Use bold, headlines, bullets, etc. to make your stuff more scannable.
  • Don’t get caught trying to perfect an idea before you start writing. The inertia will kill you.
  • Do your best not to take yourself to seriously, get self-righteous or self-important.
  • If you want people to give you their time and attention, they have to get something back in return.

How To Write A Good Social Media Post

Published
by
Matt
on Jan 23, 2009
in Links and social media
. Comments

Just some thoughts (not rules) on what makes a good post on social media.

Be informative from an ideological standpoint.
This is where you let people know the basic gist of social media. The part where you advocate community building, engagement, interaction, and transparency. The “big picture”, if you will.

Be informative from a practical standpoint.
You can’t just leave it at ideological. No one wants to read posts that just say, “Get out there and be part of the community!” all the time. Great. Now tell us how. Be as specific as possible. Outline steps, metrics for success, ideas to take it a step further. Anything that’s specifically actionable.

Facilitate further learning.
There are no dead ends on the internet. Link out to some other people who have written great content on the subject.

Don’t get all social media is the omg greatest super ever crazy.
Trust me, I get the excitement. But you need to temper your enthusiasm with realistic expectations and understanding. If people are new to the whole idea of social media you don’t want to come off as a street-preacher.

And some good examples (and great posts)
-Finding and embracing your online evangelists in 5 minutes - Mack Collier
-Organic vs. Inorganic Communities - Beth Harte
-Humanizing Your Brand – One Customer at a Time - David Finch
-Will Facebook Be The Death of Twitter? - Alan Wolk

Common Mistakes In Starting A Blog

Published
by
Matt
on Nov 24, 2008
in Blogging and basics
. Comments

So you’ve decided to start a blog? Awesome. You deserve a hug, pat on the back, or at least one of those 80’s freeze-frame jumping high fives.

But wait. It might not be all sunshine and roses right away. There’s a few simple mistakes that a lot of us make in the very beginning that tend to decrease the effectiveness of our new-born blog. But the good news is that they’re almost always easily corrected. Let’s take a look.

Not letting us know who is writing it.

Letting us know who is behind your blog is extremely important, but for some reason it gets overlooked in a lot of new blogs. If your blog is a personal one, then this part is easy. Just let your readers know, often and early, who is responsible for the content (something like that dashing picture of me in the upper-right helps).

The same thing goes if your blog is for your organization or company. Make sure you highlight the fact that the blog has multiple authors (you can include small pics or bylines) and let each of their personalities show. Companies don’t blog - people do.

Not having a clear purpose.

The big question. The cosmic “Why?” of your blog. Make sure you spend some time thinking about this one before you sit down to write anything, because if you don’t you’ll soon find yourself wandering off track. A clear purpose helps keep you focused on the mission you had when starting.

Not having any content.

It seems simple, but you’d be surprised how many blogs I see with only one or two posts. Before you announce the launch of your new blog, make sure there’s some content there for people to go through. Nothing is more disheartening than hearing about a great blog launch and only finding one post to read.

In these cases, a soft-launch is usually a good idea. Start building your content and slowly invite people to check out your site. Start with a small group of people your trust, and go from there.

Not having “pillar” content.

Every blog should have a few home-run posts. These posts, often called “pillar” posts, are your best stuff, the stuff your blog stands on. It’s okay if you haven’t worked out your best writing yet, but presumably you had some good ideas when you decided to start a blog. Write out your best ideas into clear, well thought out posts and feature them prominently on your site.

You can check out my best stuff in my Must Reads section.

Monetizing right away.

I can’t speak for the interwebs at large, but I find it extremely silly when I visit a new blog and it’s covered in ads. You just started, you have no traffic or following yet, is that $0.09/month from AdSense really enough to justify cheapening the look and feel of your site?

I’m not an expert on when the “right time” is to monetize your blog, but a quick Google search will give you all the answers you need.

Not linking out.

Just like with Twitter, the beauty of a blog is the interaction. Unless you’re going for the really, really long tail, my guess is that there’s already some other blogs on the topic you’re going to be writing on. So when those bloggers come up with a great post, don’t be hesitate to mention it on your blog.

Also, you can’t worry about people navigating away from your site. If you have good content and a clear purpose, they’ll be back. When you link out and point to other relevant content you don’t lose readers, you gain trust. No blog is an island.

—
So there’s a few ideas from me. What do you think?

Also, if you’re still having trouble with your new blog or want to talk about getting started, feel free to email me at MattJMcD [at] gmail dot com.