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How to Blog Like a Champ
Every blogger is a little different than the next. If you're super creative and a free spirit, you may read these rules and decide to throw them all right out the window and do your own thing, and that's cool. But for those who want a little Blogging 101, here are some things to consider as you foray into the wild world of blogging for business.
Think categorically. To get in the blogging frame of mind, brainstorm a list of topic categories that you can blog about on a regular basis. There should be some amount of keyword research involved with this step, as you want to be sure that you're covering subjects within your field that people out there are actively searching for. Use the Google keyword tool for this step. You can find it by Googling "Google keyword tool."
Add a personal touch. In addition to the highly searchable categories, you may also wish to personalize your blog with a bit of whimsy. Approach this the same way a magazine might design their monthly "columns." What do you want to talk about on a regular basis? Rants and raves? Ask (So and So)? News from the home front? You can get somewhat personal, but keep it in perspective. Remember that this blog will be promoting you professionally... so if you can't take the heat and don't want your worlds colliding, save the soulful outpourings for your Other Blog.
Select a blog platform. Wordpress is one of the most reliable and popular out there, and they offer all kinds of cool themes and plugins that let you soup up your blog any way you like. If you already have a website, keep in mind that you'll get more search engine love if you host the blog directly on your website's server. The new content that you add over time will be "yours," accumulating pages under your domain name, and not Wordpress's. Just know that you may need to grab the nearest web geek for this part, as Wordpress requires a MYSQL install to your server. This is not complicated or time consuming, but if you've never done it before, you may not be in the mood to try.
Other blog platforms are available from SixApart and Google (Google's blog software is known as Blogger). Either of these seem decent to me, but Wordpress does offer the most bells and whistles -- and they also seem to be really good at keeping spam away, thanks to their many spam-blocking plug-ins. I think, anyway. Blog at your own risk.
Custom design your blog. As I mentioned earlier, there are tons of awesome themes available to choose from, not just on Wordpress but on other platforms as well. You get to select the number of columns you'd like to see, and whether the posting area will be on the right, left or in the center... things like that. You also get to pick a color, font, background and header image... all these can be customized to your blogging heart's delight. Admittedly, this part can get overwhelming. You may decide that you have no desire to comb through the 800,000,000 available themes from Wordpress; in that case, call upon your trusty blog techspert again and have him or her select a few good themes going by your design requests ("I like Arial 9 point for the body text" and so forth).
If you really want to impress your readers and get known in your field, pay a graphic designer to custom-design a blog header that contains your logo and a striking image. Or, if you already know a thing or two about graphics, you can noodle around and make your own banner. You may even want to design your blog to compliment or at least color coordinate with your existing website, if you have one. That way, you'll be "instantly recognizable" with your audience.
Turn your blog into a selling machine. It amazes me how many people completely miss the boat on this one. They put all their energy into crafting blog poetry, yet in the end, no one can figure out who the heck they are or what they do. You want your blog to devour every potential sales lead that comes your way, and you also want it to serve as your 24-7 publicity and advertising rep. Do this by talking yourself up in the sidebars, and also at the bottom of every post that you create. Your blog geek can rig it so that each time you post a new entry to your blog, a "sig line" appears that explains who you are and why people would want to know you, as well as shares your URL and maybe even lets people enter their email addresses into a little sign-up box so they can start receiving the monthly dose from you right in their inbox. This is by far the most important part, so don't overlook it.
Think about links. Definitely add links to the sidebar of your blog that lead readers to various important pages of your website. And while you're at it, offer some link love to other experts in your field, as Google smiles upon liberal linkers. You may be thinking, well, why would I want to share links that send my readers straight to the competition? Well, you don't exactly... so if you're an expert on fly fishing and you're located in Oklahoma , maybe you want to share a link about another aspect of fly fishing that you don't cover, which happens to be in Maine or some other faraway state where there's no danger of them swiping your customers.
Keep a swipe file of bloggables. You can blog about pretty much whatever you want, but remember that the more relevant you keep this to your industry/business, the more likely you are to attract people who want what you have. Some days, the blogger well may be running dry, and you can refer to this handy file for creative inspiration. On other days, you may be on a blog roll, with more ideas rolling around in your head than is humanly possible to cover in a single day. It's better to space out your blog activity, so keep those little gems on file for later use. You can even dribble out half a post and then save it as a "draft" so you can go back later, edit for audience relevance, and then publish.
Post pics and vids. Don't forget that blog readers really appreciate all types of sensory input. Post Youtube videos, post pictures of your office or your new haircut, post covers of the books you're currently reading... post links to audio podcast tutorials. The more variety you add to your blog, the more interesting it will be and the more voracious blog readers will be returning for more. Get comfortable with the technology because as more and more people take it online, competition is going to get continually steeper. Speaking of that... don't forget also, to interview experts in complimentary fields. This is a great way to spread the word about others' talents and skills; after all, in the world of online business, we all want to know and be known.
Okay, enough talk... start blogging!
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