Last night’s #blogchat was all about Open Mic and there were many discussions happening at the same time. I mostly followed my own advice when it comes to #blogchat and got involved in a couple of side discussions content vs. design, how blogging may or may not change journalism and how long I’ve been blogging.
Please check out the transcript. There were lots of great discussions happening about how long people have been blogging, guest posting etiquette, B2B blogging, whether you should focus on content or design (or both), and many others.
First-time #blogchat-ters:
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Chris Brogan (@chrisbrogan) joined #blogchat on 8/15/10 as a special guest host to talk about social media outposts and how they can help promote your blogging. You can check out the mostly RT-free transcript to get all of what he said.
Some first-time #blogchat-ters
Some top tips from Chris:
- chrisbrogan: Great Q, @MackCollier. It depends on what you want from your blogging. Is it business or just attention? If A, targeting helps. #blogchat
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat – So, stick your list of prospects/customers email addresses in, figure out where most folks spend their time.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat If you’re looking to find would be buyers, blogging and then just picking *any* social site isn’t helpful.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat One tool to use to find where your customers are? Flowtown - http://www.flowtown.com/ .
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat – one thing #NOT to do is use LinkedIn only for Business, FB only for fun, etc.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Need to develop a list and have no one yet? Maybe start with alltop.com and find which topics align, and start commenting.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Ultimately, once you find WHERE your marketplace is, spend some time understanding how that environment acts.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat (@MackCollier ) – if you’re blogging for business, PERIOD, it’s about knowing where your buyers hang out.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Another thing: never shove your updates all over the social networks. Make each environment its own beast. Be selective.
- chrisbrogan: @JimmySW – I just use FeedBurner. Old habits, etc. #blogchat #blogchat
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @ElFury – I use multiple networks at once. But it depends. I use 2-3 all the way.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat (@MackCollier) – it’s not a number of networks we need, but how many is too many. I’m finding Twitter & FB & LinkedIN good.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat – 3-4 networks is usually a lot to manage. Add in a private community and you’re loaded down.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Remember this: the goal of using networks to enhance your blog is to thread your ideas into other like-minded streams.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @GrandConsulting – StumbleUpon is my #4 traffic source.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @KRCraft @edytazach – for the most part, I think we should be one person for as much as we can. Splitting out dilutes.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat The #1 social network you’re neglecting: email marketing. 93% of people opt into a daily brand relationship via email.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat 93% of people opt into msgs via email, versus 19% in FB and 5% in Twitter (I might be wrong on the FB stat, but less than 30%).
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat By email marketing, I mean a newsletter subscription, but not necessarily just a blurty old newsspamming.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @LorneDaniel – treat them like gold. Don’t always ask them for things. Try to be as personal as possible. Be brief.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @longhaulproject – that’s trackable. Open rate. Clickthrough rate. Etc.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @sue_anne – I loathe popups as a conversion tool on blogs, even if they’re effective.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat If you don’t treat your community like the most valuable asset you have, why should they treat YOU well?
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @kmullett – right. I don’t mind using one device to send things out. I just don’t want to see the same THINGS go out.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @maricrisg – I quite agree. Content that someone wants will always trump random junk.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @JoeSorge – encourage, sure. But email is gold. If you get them to follow you, fine, but those are the outposts.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @jaredroy – I’m using Blue Sky Factory as my email provider and BatchBook as my CRM.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Adding my blog to LinkedIn via the WordPress app inside LinkedIn really added value to my profile there. Try it.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @alizasherman – it’s so rare as to be the exception. BECAUSE lots of us follow multiple threads of people, so we just see overlap.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat: @fianxu – interesting question. Blogs can be more freeform. Books should stick to one thesis. Blogs-to-magazines, more true.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat (@MackCollier) – outposts are off-main-site places, like Twitter, like FB, like LinkedIn, like forums.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat I recommend spending 50% of your social time on outposts, making relationships, prospecting, building connections.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Then, because those places are the outpost and not the home base, put the occasional “conversion” fork in there, to invite them
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @resultsrev – I’ve never tried using FB or Twitter to test email messages. I don’t get enough stats to use as metrics.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat by “conversion fork,” I mean a gentle invitation to your home base. Nothing too spammy. Certainly nothing overly repetitive.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @CoachKarenG – no. Frequency certainly doesn’t improve open rates. #RELEVANCEimproves open rates.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @nemock – Im’ not a fan of repurposing content across sites. That feels too much like phoning it in.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat – @MackCollier – outposts is about meeting with people on neutral ground, where THEY are, vs always trying to make them come in.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Promoting your own stuff over and over again is lame. Promote others 12x to ever 1x of your own stuff.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Referrals are a great way to get more blog traffic. Read @ducttape ‘s book, The Referral Engine - http://amzn.to/b682iO (afflink)
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @fianxu – I’m advocating promoting other’s great content at the Outposts like Twitter, etc.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat When I say promote others 12/1 over your own stuff, I mean on Twitter. Like, when @JasonFalls has a killer post, promote IT, not u
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat If your blog isn’t in your email signature, your Twitter bio, your LinkedIn profile, etc, try harder.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat If you’re looking to build from outposts, do good things for others on those outposts. Write referrals in LinkedIn, …
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Do good things elsewhere. Promote great causes on Facebook. Do TONS of not-promoting-you stuff with no hope or ask of reciprocity.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat My business card right now is blank besides my name and logo. Put the MOST RELEVANT contact on it at the time of handing it over.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Want more readers? Stop writing about yourself, except as a way to relate to others. Give THEM new tools to succeed.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @RLMadMan – promote the thing you most want traffic to. Your email or your blog or your twitter handle.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @hammerspeaks – better tires on your car? .. same kind of question. (I prefer wordpress)
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Then ask yourself the same about your email signature. What’s the GOAL of your email signature?
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @cubs2win – to promote others, just point out the articles you like (with a teaser as to why) and link to them.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @KevinFawley – update your networks when you have updates. Blogs? Daily or more. Twitter,etc? more than daily.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Your email signature should promote the thing you most want people to do after emailing yourself.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @prosperitygal – I’ve written 184 recommendations so far in LinkedIn.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @cpechayco – @Zappos has several HUNDRED brand ambassadors, and they sold for $1.2 billion. I’d say it helps.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat A good part of the sale (in all senses of the word) is showing others you understand them. Write about them.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat @joesorge – I love hamburger and i love soup, but not hamburger soup. Video *in* email. Not much. Link *to* it? Gold.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat Be wary of mental traps. How do you THINK you’re measuring yourself? Your blog? What do you THINK the goals are?
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat – Question was: Is SEO still relevant? I say yes. But I say it’s a blend.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat – So, between the two, I think SEO does matter, but not in that weird, inhuman, keystuffing stuff.
- chrisbrogan: #blogchat I use ScribeSEO on my blog - http://bit.ly/aRUeJW (aff link), but also believe that “human search” is important.
Check out the transcript to check out the rest of the conversation.
Earlier this year, I read this NY Times article and learned about Bloggy Boot Camp. Organized by Tiffany R. (a very pretty girl), the one-day conferences are held in cities throughout the U.S. The primary audience for these conferences is definitely the “mommy blogger”, but there were also single gals, married women without children, and grandmas in the room. (The only two males at our event in San Francisco were Ted Rubin [Open Sky] and the rep from FRSHE.)
The energy level throughout the day was pretty high. Tiffany did a great job in keeping speakers to their time limits as well as providing some great insights after each speaker. She also has a great format where she makes you get up and change tables between each event. While this was a little cumbersome with a laptop, it’s a great way to force people to get up and stretch between speakers and also network with a wider range of people than you normally would.
My top takeaways from the day:
- Jessica Bern (@bernthis) started the day with a great presentation on video blogging (#vlogging). I haven’t figured out when, or if, I’m ever going to incorporate video blogging into my blogging strategy, but Jessica made it seem very doable. She uses an improvisational style to do her videos. She’ll often do several takes and then use the one that’s best.
- Jennifer James (@mombloggersclub) talked about how to build your brand using social media for maximum exposure. One of her main tips was to be consistent. If you’re going to focus on Twitter, make sure you have a consistent presence on Twitter. I also liked her ideas on branding yourself the same way across all platforms – blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Make sure you register the URL and names on all the outposts.
- Ciaran Blumenfeld (@momfluential) spoke about how to work with brands and the PR teams that represent those brands.
- After Ciaran, Tiffany followed up with some great tips about working with brands. Specifically, she talked about making sure you have an elevator pitch and making sure you can describe who you are and what your blog is about.
I liveblogged my notes from most of the sessions (I had to step out during the last speaker).
There are some great Bloggy Boot Camps coming up in 2010 and 2011. Definitely check them out if you’re looking for a smaller, single day conference.
Social Media for Maximum Exposure – The Power of Relations
- Understand your readers, subscribers, followers, etc.
- Make sure you appreciate them
- If they speak to you, talk to them; respond to comments
- Create and provide value for your community and those that follow you
- Keep your branding consistent
- Remain consistent
- If you start a Twitter account, that you update regular
- If you start a Facebook account, update it
- People use social media differently, and it works in different ways for different people — Find an approach that you like that you’re comfortable with and stick with it
- Remember that someone is always watching
- Be careful about what you say when in the social media space
- Depends on objectives. If you’re really trying to build your brand, be careful about what you say.
- Interact
- Talk back to people that talk to you
- People are fickle. They can follow you one day and unfollow you the next.
- Acknowledge the people who acknowledge you.
- Let people know that you’re on social media and that people know about your other social media profiles.
- Put it on top.
- Make it easy for people to find.
- Use as many social media sites as you’re comfortable with.
- Make sure you’re in as many places as possible.
- Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, Whrrl, etc.
- Be realistic
- Most people are not going to get 15,000 followers in two days.
- Be realistic about your numbers.
- If your numbers aren’t growing fast enough, don’t have a meltdown.
- Be happy with what you’re doing and how the numbers are growing
- The more you put into it, the more you’ll get out of it and the numbers will grow.
- Brands love numbers. Make sure you are consistently growing your social media profile.
- Write down where you are today and chart it. Chart it and see where you are six months from now.
- Have fun!
- It can be frustrating, but at the end of the day if you’re not having fun people will pick up on that.
- If you don’t like Twitter, don’t use it.
- Pick an approach that works best for you, feel good about it and then maximize it.
- Tons of different approaches to social media.
- Use trial and error to find what works for you.
- Try to find the “target person” that you’re trying to talk to and find out where they are.
Selling Your Site Without Selling Your Soul by @momfluential
- Grew up with a father as an advertising executive (real-life “Mad Men”)
- Started doing reviews back in 2007
- There are a million different types of blogs out there
- All of us are consumers — We all use products and we all have opinions about the products
- We’re loyal to the products that we like
- “Experience” vs. “Review” — Is there really any difference?
- People are worried that writing about brands is going to give the impression that their other writing has been compromised in some way.
- Afraid of being judged by other bloggers — don’t want to be labeled as “swag whores”
- Bloggers will reveal their deepest, darkest secrets but aren’t willing to share what type of shampoo they use.
- Secret is storytelling
- Stories are not selling, their content — not ads
- Storytelling does not come natural to everybody
- Brands are getting savvy to schism between bloggers and are getting wary about the number of review bloggers
- Need to think of brands and how they relate to your life. Weave that in to a story.
- Good Examples
- Velveteen Mind – Tide “Loads of Hope” campaign
- Busy Dad – Did a campaign for beef – BusyDadBlog.com
- Busy Dad – Currently doing a campaign for Huggie wipes (Did a “crime scene investigation” to track the trajectory of his daughter’s poo.)
- Pictures are super important
- Even things in backdrop with other products
- If there’s things you love, include them in your photos and in your comments
- If you are truly enthusiastic about a product, people are going to respond to that enthusiasm
- Bloggers are about authenticity.
- Don’t shill about something you don’t like.
- How you can be compensated by working with brands.
- You have to put some things out there — let them serve as your portfolio.
- Can lead to advertising, brands sponsoring your site, satellite television tour and brands wanting you to talk about their product
- If you’re a business owner, it’s a way to get your own message out and get your name out there.
- Should you post negatively about something?
- If you’ve been sent a “free” sample by a brand, make sure you tell the brand about your negative experience. Ask them to send you back a shipping label and return the product.
- Be aware that if you post negatively about brands, you may be less attractive to other brands who are looking for bloggers to talk about them.
- Don’t be pushy.
- Be careful about sticking affiliate links into storytelling posts.
- Ideas for how to write a creative post for a product you believe in.
- Tell me about 3 products that you’ve used for 3 years or longer.
- Describe the most special outfit you’ve ever seen or owned. Who made it? Why was it special?
- What’s the one thing in your suitcase right now that you REALLY need? Write a story about why you need it.
- Be Transparent and Authentic about what you were doing and people will respect it.
- Almost every product has an affiliate link out there.
Tiffany’s perspective:
- There’s something wonderful about being approached by a brand, but remember the big picture.
- If blogging is not fun at some point, you need to stop blogging for a bit.
- Women say “yes, yes, yes” and take on everything. Blogging should never be stressful.
- Your blog can be a resume for so much more and people can find you.
- You’re probably more of an expert, than most of the people that are calling themselves experts — Brands are starting to realize that women are better than 20-something interns.
- Check out CollectiveBias.com and join.
- Working with a brand tips:
- Have an elevator pitch about yourself
- Most brands are good at getting contracts out. If they don’t, make sure you do a really clear scope of work — What work you’re going to do for them and what you’re going to get paid for that work. (How many tweets you’re going to do, how long the ad is going to run, etc.)
- From @momfluential – People are not going to consider you an “accomplished” blogger until you hit 10,000 hits per month
- If you’re not getting the eyeballs, use Twitter. Ask people with larger followings to RT your stuff.
- Tiffany says not to automatically post tweets from your blog. (Sue Anne note: I disagree.)
- Started out just with Blogger blog to post pictures of her son to share with her extended family.
- Started out on parenting forums — lots of drama.
- Was tired of the drama and the cliques (“high school cool girl”)
- In 2007, decided that she wanted to talk to talk about her.
- Blog name came from a coworker’s nickname
Topic – Are you going to use your real name:
- Do you use your real name? Last name?
- Some people are branded by their real name.
- Maybe use your maiden name instead of your married name.
- Do you have permission to use other people’s names.
Topic – Location
- @angryjulie lives in a small town. Only had one time where someone that she was dealing with at work recognized her from her blog.
- Are you going to talk about vacations before you leave?
- Do you use location based applications?
Topic – Blog Tracking Programs
- You can know how many times people are on their site, know your IP address.
- People are watching.
- Will sometimes use a different computer to go to other people’s sites so that they don’t know its her.
- Google Analytics; StatCounter, Sitemeter mentioned as tools on WordPress – Good to see what days are more popular on your blog.
- You can map people’s IP address if they visit your blog, make a comment, etc.
- Even if you comment on a blog anonymously, people can still figure out its you by your IP address. Be careful not to troll blogs because people can track you down.
Topic – Photos
- @angryjulie considers herself a photo editor
- Currently uses Flickr as main photo option
- Licenses all her photos as Creative Commons.
- You can make photos on Flickr private. You can post them on your blog at a certain size, but you can’t see them on Flickr.
- You can have a “mom blog” and not post pictures of your kids / family online.
- Kid’s birthday parties – There are people who don’t want pictures of their kids on the Internet. Make sure that you are mindful of that when deciding whether or not to post pictures online.
- Watermark – Unless you put the watermark across people’s faces, they are pretty easy to edit out of the photo.
Topic – Content
- Make sure you’re asking yourself “is this too personal”
- Follow your stats and find out what people are searching about
- Stuff doesn’t go away if it’s been public — even if you delete things, Google (or another service) may have saved it.
Topic – Facebook
- @angryjulie only has people on her friend’s page on Facebook that she’s met in person.
Comments
- Have a policy about comments.
- Don’t feed the trolls.
- Think about locking down comments after a certain time period or if the conversation has had any drama.
Scripting News: Proposal: A new kind of blog comment system
In a post on Scripting.com, Dave Winer says the following:
I can’t disagree with him more. Especially if you’re just starting out, comments are a huge part of building community. They are and should be part of the blog conversation.