Blogging

Quality Content Trumps All in Social Media

Posted by Bill On July - 6 - 2009ADD COMMENTS

qualityWhen it comes to engaging in social media, it often seems one can become overwhelmed with all the advice that can be found out there today. I would argue that while there is a lot to consider, essentially you only really need to focus on one thing… providing quality content to those you engage.

That one sentence says alot, so what exactly is quality content you may be asking. Keeping the following points in mind can help you to create quality content and offer content that is truly valuable to your audience:

Original Information

Everyday thousands of people are writing about lots of issues and topics. Are you providing information that is original or will others find the same information in other places?

A Unique Perspective

You don’t necessarily have to discuss something original all the time. When you discuss topics that are being discussed elsewhere are you providing your own thoughts and point-of-view to the conversation?

Timeless Content

Sometimes you may want to discuss current hot topics. However, also remember that in social media and the online world all most all content is indexed and archived by Google and other search engines. It is very possible that through search others will discover your content weeks, months or even years after it is published. Are you focusing on creating content that will still be valuable in the future?

Simple Content

You may have read Simple Content and said ‘Huh?’ By simple, I mean short and easy to scan. Online, people don’t read like they read on paper. Websites have taught us to scan. When creating content, format it in a way that is very simple for people to scan to find information. Assume your audience is not going to read every word you write so use bold, italics, lists and bullet points to highlight the most valuable content. Are you considering what is most important in your content and making that standout for your audience?

Popularity: 62% [?]

Types of Blogs

Posted by Bill On June - 25 - 2009ADD COMMENTS

blogMaybe you’ve thought about starting a blog, but you are afraid you just won’t have enough to write about. The great thing about blogs is that they come in many different forms. You may find that a photo or video blog works best for your digital strategy. If you are considering launching a blog or want to revamp your current blog… consider the types of blogs listed below and what might work best for you.

Video Blog

  • Posting original video content to convey ideas, news, and opinions
  • Formats: reporting, testimonials, interviews, rants, confessions, etc.

Audio Blog

  • Posting original audio content to convey ideas, news, and opinions
  • Formats: reporting, testimonials, interviews, rants, confessions, etc.
  • Text summaries typically accompany audio posts

Photo Blog

  • Posting a series of original images over time to tell a story (or multiple stories)
  • Posts may or may not contain text descriptions

Live Blog

  • Blogging real-time events
  • Posting content on the fly to capture events as they occur

Insight Blog

  • Sharing original perspectives and ideas
  • Original think-pieces, essays

Brand Blog

  • Posts about brands and products sharing positive attributes
  • Thought leadership platform for company executives to communicate with stakeholders
  • Consumer brand evangelists (or vigilantes) also write brand-specific blogs

Piggyback Blog

  • Posts about hot news topics
  • Expanding upon  widely covered stories and providing your own POV

Review Blog

  • Testing and reviewing products and services
  • Providing honest, balanced opinions to guide your audience

Interview Blog

  • Conducting interviews and posting Q&As, audio, or video
  • Using transcript excerpts to formulate original blog angles

Life Blog

  • Posting real life information in a diary-like format
  • Sharing personal storylines to vent and/or create connections with real and virtual friends

Group Blog

  • Multiple authors contributing to one blog
  • Authors can either cover particular beats, or contribute to one overall topic

Guest Blog

  • Contributing an entry to a blog that isn’t yours
  • Guest posts are great for relationship building and getting a wider audience invested in a blog

Link Blog

  • Posting links to interesting or thought provoking content (e.g. articles, white papers, statistics, blog posts, videos)
  • Link blogs may  contain short blurbs to describe each link

As you read through the list you probably already came to this conclusion, but most blogs today are actually hybrids combining one or more of the preceding to create one’s own unique blogging style. So… what type of blog do you have, or what would work best for you?

Popularity: 99% [?]

getting_started

This is a question that has crossed the mind of most buiness owners at some point. Unfortunately there’s not one answer that fits for every business. The answer to this question depends are what your goals are. In other words, it is important to have a digital strategy that clearly lays out what you are looking to accomplish.

However, tactically speaking one option that is often a good place to start for many businesses is a blog. A blog can be created for free using a service such as WordPress.

A few reason blogs are beneficial include:

  • A blog is a simple way for a businesses to begin conversations related to their industry and provide a unique point of view
  • Blogs are great for search engine optimization; they allow multiple entry points for internet visitors to find out about you
  • Blogs let you dialogue with others online through the use of comments on your blog

Blogging can be as simple or complex as you want to make it. However, below are some tips for effective blogging:

  • Keep post relatively short – typcically no more than 200-300 words
  • Blog on a consistent schedule – readers will learn to expect new content regularly
  • Use photos and videos in your post to add visual appeal
  • Use headlines that will catch people’s attention and make them want to read your blog posts
  • Include links to relative content and items you discuss in your posts

Many small businesses in a variety of industries are using blogs, often as their homepage.

Popularity: 73% [?]