blogging 101 for professionals & small business success
DESCRIPTION
Blogs are a key tool for online marketing and public relations. Done well, blogging can generate interest in a business and popularize the writer as well. A regularly updated blog is often the "gateway" to a business's website. This slideshow outlines how to get started on your own business blog, as well as giving proven tips for writing an engaging, effective blog entry.TRANSCRIPT
Blogging 101 for Professionals & Small
Business
Presenter: Doug Hay, CEO
Dead Simple Internet Marketing™ Series
Presenter: Doug Hay
• Early adopter of Internet
marketing & social media
• 30 year marketing veteran
• Sought after speaker -
presented at local, regional
and national conferences
• Lectured at two universities
for the Sales & Marketing
Executives program
Our Services For Small/Medium Biz
• Website design & programming
• Social Media consulting,
implementation & training
• Small business SEO – Search
Engine Optimization: Keywords,
link building & content creation.
• Press release writing, optimization
and reporting
• Blog set up, strategy, and training
• Email programs
• Online reputation management
• Video production & marketing
• Staff training
Doug Hay
Direct: 250-756-0306 Toll Free: 877-226-3823
Free Internet
Marketing Analysis
More Sales?
More Leads?
Presentation
Q & A
Ask for Slides
Agenda
1
2
3
Blog lingo
A blog is a website in the form of
a ‘journal’ that is available on the
web.
• Blog. Slang for (weB LOG)
on the Web.
• Blogging. The action of
updating a blog.
• Blog post. The content of the
blog entry – an article.
• Blogger. Someone who
maintains a blog.
• Blogosphere. The
information available in blogs
on the Internet
Content Marketing
“Content marketing is a
marketing technique of
creating and distributing
relevant and valuable
content to attract, acquire,
and engage a clearly
defined and understood
target audience – with the
objective of driving
profitable customer
action.”Source: Content Marketing Institute
More than eight out of ten companies surveyed
said they were using some type of content
marketing to better engage with potential
and existing clients.
“The future of marketing is not about selling so
much as it is about engaging. This is what
resonates with customers and why marketers
have embraced content marketing in such
large numbers."
Source: Survey, conducted by HiveFire
Your Site
Visitor
VisitorVisitor
Objective: Leads & Sales
Sales Funnel
Prospects Sales
Readers
Social Media Leads
Content Marketing
Blogs Newsletters
Technorati Media - 2013 Digital Influence Report
Blogs Outrank
Social Networks
for Consumer
Influence: New
Research
Social Media Examiner:
http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/blogs-outrank-social-
networks-for-consumer-influence-new-research/
Strategy
Internet
Marketing
You Are Not Alone Out There
Your
Web
Site
How can
our site get
found?
Integrated
Marketing
Strategy
Integrated
Marketing
Strategy
Offline
Marketing
Integrated
Marketing
Strategy
Offline
Marketing
Integrated
Marketing
Strategy
Offline
Marketing
Referrals
Integrated
Marketing
Strategy
Offline
Marketing
Web
SiteReferrals
Integrated
Marketing
StrategyBlog &
Content
Offline
Marketing
Web
SiteReferrals
Integrated
Marketing
Strategy
Social
Media
Blog &
Content
Offline
Marketing
Web
SiteReferrals
Think Like a Publisher
Web site
Video
White
PapersAudio
Emailed Newsletters
BlogsPress
Releases
Case Studies
Articles
Brand
Brand
Brand
New Marketing
Brand
Brand
Brand
Brand
Brand
Brand
Blogging
Benefits of Blogging
• Get connected with
prospects
• Helps make your website
show up in Google
• Generates leads
• Key part of content marketing
• Use in Social Media
• Helps your reputation
management
• Allows you to connect with
influencers
• Tool to grow a following
• Low cost marketing
SuccessBlogging
Facebook Guru
Daily Blog Posts by Email
Blog Success
• Wegman’s - family-owned supermarket chain with
less than 100 stores
• Accolades from customers and media
• Named them the top US grocery chain in 2009 –
Consumer Reports
• Founder's simple mantra that “it is essential to treat
customers and employees right.”
• Blogged about behind-the-scenes stories from their
organic farm.
• Posts from both top executives and individual store
employees (chefs, deli workers, etc.).
Source: Inc. Magazine
Source: http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/how-alaskan-mom-brings-millions-to-her-carpentry-blog/ (2012)
Social Media Stats:
• Website: Ana White Homemaker
• Facebook: (Under “Knock-off Wood”): 50,000 (2012) fans
• Twitter: 2,550 followers
• YouTube: 30 videos
Highlights:
• Ana White’s blog draws nearly three million unique page
views every month.
• 90-95% of her Facebook content comes from fans, and
she leaves it all public.
• Pinterest is the #1 referring site to her blog, bringing 6,000
unique visitors a day.
• In year two, the blog began bringing in enough advertising
revenue to support her family.
“Do you have advice for other women who
might aspire to a blog-to-book career like
yours?
I put 90% of my time into creating content and 10%
into other stuff like answering emails, social media,
and promoting posts. If I had started with the
opposite, just 10% on content and 90% on
promotion, I don’t think I would be here today. Try
to create content that’s so valuable it shares
itself, and then you can focus on doing what
you love.”
Read more: http://www.thegrindstone.com/2012/10/17/mentors/homemaker-ana-
white-i-would-love-to-be-the-rachael-ray-of-diy-719/#ixzz2YT6TWQVQ
Set up business
blog
Homework & goals
Write
posts
Link to website
Blogger relations
Promote your blog
Click thru to website
Homework
What Do You Want To Achieve?
• Set goals
• What audiences
should you be
communicating with?
• Set up metrics to track
the results
• Choose a platform e.g.
WordPress
• Build a blog
• Add features – called
plug ins
Starting Your Blog
• Download from
WordPress
• Hosted by
WordPress
• Doesn’t give you
search visibility
Free Blogs
1. Find URL e.g. www.yourname.com
2. Arrange hosting e.g. Media Temple
3. Purchase theme (design)
4. Upload theme to your hosting
(needs a programmer)
5. Add content – text, images, video
Your Blog
• System for building a
website/blog
• Automatically resizes
for monitors, tablets
and smart phones
• Custom for each –
viewing, navigation
and load time
Responsive Themes (Designs)
Keywords
Keywordsare words or phrases
that describe content
such as webpages,
blogs, text pages,
photographs, audio
files or video files.
Search Enginesindex content using
keywords to make it
easy for users to
quickly find things
that they are looking
for
SEO Steps
• Keyword research1
• Write web pages with your keywords2
• Add fresh content: blogs, video, pix3
Key Word Research
• Do your Keyword
Research
• Look for words and
phrases that people are
searching for, so you
get the most traffic to
your blog
Keyword Research
The Long Tail Keywords
Long tail keywords are keyword
phrases that:
• Have lower search volume
• Competing pages are smaller
• Can generate quality search
results
• Likely more sales
https://adwords.google.com/o/Targeting/Explorer?__c=1000000000&__u=1000
000000&ideaRequestType=KEYWORD_IDEAS
Commercial IntentDoes the keyword show the
intent that could lead the
searcher to become a
customer
e.g. used cars for sale Miami (good)
e.g. colors of the rainbow (bad)
Writing
Your audience
Content is king Search Engines
• Search engines
will crawl your
website more
often if you have
a blog which is
updated regularly
What’s in
it for the
reader?
A Blog is Not… Blogs Are
Not• A blog is not
objective—they have
informed and biased
opinions
• People write blogs—
not the corporate
communications
department using
‘Corporate Speak’
Write For The User
• Know the product or service your client is selling.
• Write compelling content about that sector or industry.
Depth vs. Length
Tell Your Story
• Use blogs to help tell your story
• Brings a face to your organization
• Search engines love them
• Cross link to your site
What a Blog Is
Tell Your Story
• Is it new to your target audience?
• Skip the “same old thing”
Uniqueness
“What counts as a high-quality site?
Our site quality algorithms are aimed at
helping people find "high-quality" sites
by reducing the rankings of low-quality
content.”
http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.ca/2011/05/more-guidance-on-
building-high-quality.html
From Google…
• Would you trust the information presented in this article?
• Is this article written by an expert or enthusiast who knows the topic well, or
is it more shallow in nature?
• Does the site have duplicate, overlapping, or redundant articles on the
same or similar topics with slightly different keyword variations?
• Would you be comfortable giving your credit card information to this site?
• Does this article have spelling, stylistic, or factual errors?
• Are the topics driven by genuine interests of readers of the site, or does the
site generate content by attempting to guess what might rank well in search
engines?
• Does the article provide original content or information, original reporting,
original research, or original analysis?
• Does the page provide substantial value when compared to other pages in
search results?
• How much quality control is done on content?
• Does the article describe both sides of a story?
• Is the site a recognized authority on its topic?
From Google…
• Is the content mass-produced by or outsourced to a large
number of creators, or spread across a large network of
sites, so that individual pages or sites don’t get as much
attention or care?
• Was the article edited well, or does it appear sloppy or
hastily produced?
• For a health related query, would you trust information
from this site?
• Would you recognize this site as an authoritative source
when mentioned by name?
• Does this article provide a complete or comprehensive
description of the topic?
From Google…
• Does this article contain insightful analysis or interesting
information that is beyond obvious?
• Is this the sort of page you’d want to bookmark, share
with a friend, or recommend?
• Does this article have an excessive amount of ads that
distract from or interfere with the main content?
• Would you expect to see this article in a printed
magazine, encyclopedia or book?
• Are the articles short, unsubstantial, or otherwise lacking
in helpful specifics?
• Are the pages produced with great care and attention to
detail vs. less attention to detail?
• Would users complain when they see pages from this site?
From Google…
Google: My Conclusion
Write great content for your target audience!
Format
• Use short sentences and short paragraphs
• Lots of sub-headlines
• Bullet points
Update Frequency
A blog is best
updated regularly—
daily if possible but
at least 2 to 3 times
per week.
Become An Opinion Leader
• Your peers respect opinion leaders
• Position yourself as a thought leader by
writing blog posts that are factual, timely
and interesting
• Be realistic and write to be understood
• Be persistent—fame in your niche is not an
overnight activity
Length Of A Blog Post
• Typically not less than
500 words
• Eliminate any
unnecessary words—
keep it simple and easy to
understand
• Keep sentences short
• Keep paragraphs short
• Short = easy to read
Yes I will read it, no I won’t…
Stay on message
Be unique
Understanding? To Be
Understood• Write clearly: would
someone who knows
nothing about this
subject understand the
post?
• One idea per sentence
• No jargon that they
won’t understand
• Define acronyms with
the first use
Keep It
Upbeat
Data Hook
• Provide
information others
will want
• E.g. 10 secrets to
….
The
Humor
Hook
Quiz Hook
Create an
interesting
quiz or puzzle
“How To” Information
• “How to”
information is the
number one
selling product on
the web
• Write a unique
tutorial
Ask Questions
• At the end of a
post
• The whole post
Pictures & Video
• Include pix with your
blog posts
• Video can be
embedded or
included by linking
to it
A picture is worth …
Track Your Keywords,
Competitors, News, etc
Proof Reading• Respect your readers
• Check for typos
• Informal writing style is
fine but use good
grammar to make it a
professional and
understandable
communication
• Find your style and stick
to it
Image credit: http://www.gapingvoid.com
Blogs are
informal
35 comments
Headlines
1. Get What You Want (In Health, Wealth, Relationships,
Time and Lifestyle) Example: “The Secret To Getting
More Money For Your Property!”
2. Crystal Ball and History Example: “10 Predictions on
the Future of Social Media”
3. Problems and Fears Example “Get Rid of Your Debt
Once and For All”
4. Fact, Fiction, Truth and Lies Example: “Little Known
Ways To Make Money On The Stock Exchange”
5. How To, Tricks Of The Trade Example: “How To Plan
The Ultimate Holiday”
6. Best and Worst Example: “The 10 Worst Mistakes Made
by Bloggers
- From Authority Blogger
News Items
Find a news item
or statistics that
can be used in
the blog post
Optimization
Memo
Create great content for your target audience and the search engines will reward you!
Spamming
Don’t use any
keyword
excessively, as
search engines
may perceive
this as
spamming.
How Often To Use Keywords
Keywords?“Keyword Density [is] not really a
factor. Yes keyword should be
present but density is not
important. Include the keyword
but make writing sound natural.”
- Matt Cutts, senior engineer
at Google
Blog Optimization
• Title tag
• Description tag
• Headline (H1 Tag)
• Sub-headlines (H2 Tags)
• Body of the text page – write with
keywords
Tags
Information (code) in a
web page/blog not
intended for users to
see but provides
information to search
engine crawlers.
Title Tag
• Tag used to define the text in the top
line of a Web browser
• Utilized by search engines as the title
of search listings
• Make them short - around 65
characters with spaces
• Include at least one targeted keyword
(phrase)
• Never duplicate a title tag
Unique Title Tags
• Title tag (label) for
each page must be
unique
• Just like each child
needs their own
name
Title Tags Show Up in Search Results
Description Tag
• An tag to provide a description for
search engine listings.
• Descriptions should include very
specific, keyword-rich writing.
• 130 to 150 characters
Description Tags Show Up in Search Results
Write The Headline
• Use the keywords as
close to the
beginning of the
headline as possible.
• The headline
should not be
longer than 65
characters (with
spaces) for Google
or 85 for Yahoo.
65
Write The First Paragraph
• Use main keyword in the first
paragraph.
• Put a link to your website at the
end of the first paragraph, using a
keyword as anchor text for the link.
Write The Body Of The Blog
• Use your main
keyword a few more
times in the blog and
once in the last
paragraph.
• Link to your website
at the end of the blog
Key Word Repetition
• Start the text of the page with that
phrase or word. i.e. beginning of
headline
• Use it few times, in context, so that you
have around 2% of the word count.
• Make each page/blog 500 words long.
Make Links Informative
Don’t use “click here”. Rather than click
here for more information, use descriptive
key words:
• E.g. Top stock picks for savvy investors
(key word: stock picks)
• E.g. Compare widget prices with 5 other
suppliers (key word: widget prices)
Links
Linking Strategy
Write Post• Research,
write & optimize a blog post
Insert Link• Blog post
has one or more links to web page
To Selected
Web Page
• Helps create inbound links to website
Linking
Write The Body Of The Blog
• Use your main
keyword a few more
times in the blog and
once in the last
paragraph.
• Link to your
website from the
blog – NOT
ALWAYS THE
SAME KEYWORD
Love those links
RelationsBlogger
People Know Other People
Blog Search Engines
Bloggers
• Search on the Blog Search Engines
• Find the influencers
Comments
• You
commenting on
other blog
posts
• Others
commenting on
your blog posts
Engage
Promote
Track Results
• Attach to your website
• Add to printed material: business cards, letterhead, brochures, etc.
• Promote on your social sites: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, google+
Promoting Your Blog
Blog Directories
• Bloglines is a popular
blog-collection service
• Best Blog Directory
And RSS Submission
Sites From Robin
Goodhttp://www.masternewmedia.org/rss/top55
• Words In A Row Listhttp://www.wordsinarow.com/blog-registration.html
Metrics
Track Results
• Search ranking for blog
• # of bloggers allied
• # of positive blog posts written about your business
• Inbound links to your site and blog
Keeping Score
Better Financial Performance
• Significant positive
financial results for the
companies who have the
greatest breadth and
depth of social media
engagement. Source: The
ENGAGEMENTdb study
(www.engagementdb.com)
Create Great Content by
Blogging
Source: Data from over 1,500 small businesses - http://bit.ly/XDkQV
Blogging Attracts More Links
Source: Data from over 1,500 small businesses - http://bit.ly/XDkQV
Blogging Attracts More
Visitors
Blogging Generates Leads
Social Media is for Leads
and Sales
Source: State of Inbound Marketing Report - http://bit.ly/aewfHr
Social Media Marketing…
Givers Get
Takeaways
Write for your end user
Do your homework & have a plan
Write great content
Optimize for search
Write on a regular basis
Promote on social sites, email, etc
Doug Hay
Direct: 250-756-0306 Toll Free: 877-226-3823
Free Internet
Marketing Analysis
More Sales?
More Leads?
Contact
Doug [email protected]
Direct: 250-756-0306
877-226-3823
Website: www.doughayassoc.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/doughay
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/doug.hay
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/doughay
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Doug Hay.
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