Archive for February, 2007
February 27, 2007 by The Blog Coach |
Filed under Business Blog Design
[This is part of a series following on from a post on Better Business Blogging called “Business Blog Design“]
While I’ve written on this subject before, I feel that it is worthy of inclusion again as part of the Business Blog Design series.
It’s all about communication!
When we talk to someone face to face, either at a personal or business level, there will be a point when the conversation turns to questions such as “what do you do?”, “where are you from?” or something akin to “what team do you support?”. Why? Because we are interested in knowing more about the people that we deal with - it’s in our nature
In the same way, blogs are really all about communication too, as well as interaction and conversation. Personal blogs approach this with certain goals in mind - getting in touch with people with common interests or just wanting “to be heard” for example - while companies using business blogs have a different agenda and may be looking to generate trust, differentiate themselves and ultimately develop additional business.
In both cases, you need to make sure that people can find out more about you … and also find you! When you are reading a business blog and find what is being said interesting, it can be very frustrating if you want to contact the person or find out where they are based only to discover that that little (but crucial) bit of information is nowhere to be seen. Not only is this frustrating but it can also be damaging from a business point of view too!
Make your details easy to find
So make sure that you provide your readers with a clear way of finding out about the person who is writing the blog and who they are communicating with. They’ll already have a good idea but what you write and how you write it but help them on their way - always remember to put up a profile up on your Business Blog as well as a way for your readers to get in touch with you, though of course those can be on the same page.
If you prefer to include your details as part of your sidebar then keep it short and sweet – that’s part of your “prime real estate” that we talked about in the original post so you’ll have lots of business specific stuff that you also want to be highly visible there. I personally prefer a link through to a separate page where you have a little more space to include whatever details seem appropriate to you. And a photo … always remember a photo! Most of us work visually, so that help your readers picture you, even if you’re not totally comfortable with it like me.
What to include?
Some profiles will focus on past work and experience ( no CVS though, please), others will have more of a current focus and outline future plans. What ever you put there, try to make it personal though and don’t forget that picture as well! 
Remember that from a networking perspective, your Business Blog acts as the hub at the centre of that network - people are therefore going to be interested in the “real you” and what makes you tick so give them some insights into the person behind the Blog.
You also want people to be able to contact you. They can do this by posting comments on your blog, but they may also want to get in contact with you directly. So, make sure that you also have your contact details on your blog, either as part of your profile or in a separate section – or both!
Don’t forget your legal obligations
Finally, in Europe at least, a new law which came into force at the beginning of 2007 requires that emails and websites (and hence blogs) to display certain details about the company and/or individual that is writing them so make sure that you comply if necessary. There’s more information about this here.
Make sure that your profile and your contact details are clearly visible on your Blog - make it easy for others to find out more about you and contact you!
If you found this useful, then please share this post:
Tags: Blog Design, Business Blog Design, Planning a Blog, Setting up a Blog, Starting a Blog, Contact Details, Blog Profile
Some related posts you should also find interesting:
Your Profile and contact detailsProfessional Blog Set-up OptionsBusiness Blog Design: Navigation & using your Content
February 25, 2007 by The Blog Coach |
Filed under UK Blogging News
Some articles which have appeared in the UK online press over the past week which looks at blogging (primarily business blogging) and its uses. If you find any good articles that could be highlighted here, then please post the links below or send them to me directly at news[at]theblogcoach[dot]co[dot]uk and I’ll do the rest.
Should PR try to “sway” online opinion?
talks about another product aimed at monitoring brand mentions in blogs and other social media. Key thing to take on board though the price tag on this product is only for the bigger players, one feels.
Best of Brit Blog Awards 2007
announced by Metro which is jointly sponsoring them this year. But, horror or horrors, no Business Blog category!! What is the world coming to … will they never learn … oh dear …!
Irish Blog Awards attracts international voters
in contrast to the Brit Awards and across a wide range of categories which encompasses a whole range of areas … including Business Blogs!! [Have I got the message across yet?] 
Top 10 Marketing Blogs
A nice run through of some excellent marketing based blogs, some of which may take your fancy.
Lufthansa supports blog program
shows how advertising on blogs is taking off (sorry!) in the mainstream press as larger companies consider their benefits.
LIVE BLOG: Ireland vs. England
Not exactly a business blog but a nice use for one and a clear demonstration of the immediate publishing ability that it offers businesses. Pity about the result of the match though! 
If you found this useful, then please share this post:
Tags: UK Blogging News, Sway, Creston, Brit Blog Awards, Metro, Vox, Ask.com, Irish Blog Awards, Business Blogs, Marketing Blogs, Rugby Blog,
Some related posts you should also find interesting:
Blogging in the News - w/e 18 February 2007Blogging in the News - 11 March 2007Spotlight on UK Blogs - 16 February 2007
February 24, 2007 by The Blog Coach |
Filed under Writing your Blog, Marketing your Blog, Blog Marketing Tips, SEO for Blogs
As you sit down and write the next post on your business blog, you’ll no doubt have a clear idea of what you want to communicate and hopefully how you want to do it. Nevertheless, unless you can entice people to read this latest offering, then all your hard work will be in vain, so take care with the title you use for the post as it plays a key role in that process.
Why are Post Titles important?
Well, they’re important in the same way that a newspaper headline is - they attract our attention, offer an insight or a “teaser” as to what the post contains and hopefully encourage us to read the full article. With the huge amount of information that we have nowadays, it is so important to grab people’s attention in the short space of time that we are given before they move on to something else … and generally we only have the post title at our disposal to achieve this.
However, there is an added complication. We need to remember that we are in fact trying to attract the attention of two groups: readers (or should I clarify by saying ‘human readers’) and Search Engines.
If they both reacted in the same way to words then things would be easy, if a little boring. However, they don’t and nor are they attracted by the same things. While human readers are attracted by humour, nuance, plays on words as well as information, Search Engines are attracted purely by the words which we provide.
Where do we see the titles?
However, we also have to bear in mind what people actually see in different situations and places - bear with me here, it’s important! The first obvious place is on your blog itself - at the top of your post is the title which will hopefully inspire you to read the post below it. Nevertheless, you are already on the blog, so in some ways the battle is already half won!
The title of your post also appears in the main Blog Search Engines such as Technorati or Google Blog Search and in the RSS Feeds that people receive in their readers. As people browse here, then the title is critical in attracting their attention as they skim through the articles on offer. The more information that we all try to process in as short a space of time as possible then the less time we’ll have to attract attention and the more critical it will become.
Post Titles and Title Tags
However, when it come to the main Search Engines, things are slightly different. What appears on the results pages of Search Engines such as Google and Yahoo is not actually the title of your post but the “Title Tag”. This is distinct from your post title and something which you can control separately. The “Title Tag” is doubly important because it is an important element that the main Search Engines look at when ranking pages - they do take note of the title of your post, but they take much more interest in the “Title Tag”.
So which way to go? My own preference is to keep the title interesting without making it too cryptic, and I always try to include the main keyword for the article. In addition, I make sure that, where necessary, I modify the “Title Tag” to ensure that that is keyword rich. (More details in my SEO series on Better Business Blogging and a great Wordpress plug-in from Stephen Spencer to help you).
In other words, I try to appeal to both audiences. You are best placed to know what will appeal to your readers and you can guess that, for Search Engines, the principal keyword phrases for the post are going to be key. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to combine both as well as you can.
This you have to read
So where to find more information about titles, headlines and how to write them? Well, if you only go to one place, then head on over to Copyblogger’s posts on Magnetic Headlines. Highly recommended!
If you found this useful, then please share this post:
Tags: Business Blogs, Writing a Blog, Writing Blog Posts, CopyBlogger, Headlines, Title Tags, SEO Blogs, Search Engines
Some related posts you should also find interesting:
Generating yet more ideas for your Business BlogWhat is RSS? A Beginners GuideBlogging for Business
February 23, 2007 by The Blog Coach |
Filed under UK Business Blogs
In a slight change to the normal Friday fare of putting the spotlight on UK Blogs, here I am passing on a list of the Irish Blog Award finalists for your delight and delectation.
This year, as I have already written, I am particularly chuffed because two of the finalists in the Best Business Blog category are businesses that I have worked with and so I am naturally very pleased to see that they are so highly recognsied here. While I haven’t included all categories (I do after all focus on Business Blogs and their benefits), I have included as many as possible.
I hope that all the finalists - and indeed everyone else who goes along - has a great night at the Irish Blog Awards night!
Best Business Blog
Best Blog
Best Blog Post
Best Political Blog
Best Group Blog
Best Technology Blog/Blogger
Best Designed Blog
Best News/Current Affairs Blog
Best Specialist Blog
Best Newcomer
Best Podcaster
Best Podcast
If you found this useful, then please share this post:
Tags: Irish Blog Awards, Best Business Blog, Krishna De, Biz Growth News, Allagi Consulting, Blogging Awards, Blog Design
Some related posts you should also find interesting:
The Blog Coach and the Irish Blog AwardsBlogging in the News - w/e 25 February 2007Spotlight on UK Blogs - 22 September
February 21, 2007 by The Blog Coach |
Filed under Setting up your Blog, Marketing your Blog, Business Blog Design, UK Business Blogs, Blogging Strategy, Corporate Blogging, Business Blogging
Well, I am very pleased to say that two of the blogs which have made the short list for Best Business Blog in the Irish Blog Awards 2007 come from organisations which The Blog Coach has been working with over recent months.
Two very different sites as well and it’s nice to see that they have been so well received after all the hard work put in by Krishna De and Ann Greene who write and run them.
A traditional blog in terms of format, though one that is absolutely full of information for a business looking for ideas and new information about anything and everything to do with developing business and building a brand online and offline. Podcasts, webinars and offline seminars as well as the blog itself and yet that is still only scratching the surface of what Krishna offers.
In March, we’ll be looking in a little more detail at the thought processes that went on in terms of the modifications and the implementation of the final result that you see now. However, as you read the posts, you will see that all that this does is complement the great content that Krishna provides. A blog which just cries out to be in your RSS reader!
This is a full Blogsite (that’s to say a complete website including a blog which is all built using Blog software) which has given Ann Greene, who runs Allagi Consulting, total control over the whole of the site in terms of being able to add and change content as she requires, as well as the ability to add pages and so grow the site when she needs to - with little to no intervention from anyone, including me.
The site also incorporates the Allagi Blog which Ann uses to great effect to look at her specialist area of expertise of team building and team development. Although it’s still in its infancy, the blog was already considered worthy of a place in the shortlist and you can’t say fairer that that!
Do check out both blogs and I wish them both the best of luck in the final which will be announced at the Awards Dinner on March 3rd. In the meantime, so as you don’t miss any, I will be listing the nominees in the main categories in a special version of Spotlight on UK Blogs (in this case Spotlight on Irish Award Blogs) this Friday.
If you found this useful, then please share this post:
Tags: Business Blog Design, Irish Blog Awards, Krishna De, Biz Growth News, Allagi Consulting, Ann Greene
Some related posts you should also find interesting:
Spotlight on Irish Blogs: Irish Blog Awards finalistsBlogging in the News - w/e 25 February 2007Have I disappeared?
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