Business Blogging Quickstart: Anatomy of a Blog

Slide 1: Business Blogging Quick Start: Anatomy of a Blog Part of the Social Media and CRM 2.0 Professional Certification Seminar Series

Slide 2: Agenda • Anatomy of a blog • Connecting – The business blogging ecosystem – Blogging etiquette – Connecting with customers and prospects – Tips for successful blogging and a successful blog • Earning customers’ hearts, minds and attention – Competitive survey – Planning for visibility – Identifying like minds and experts – Action plan framework

Slide 3: Anatomy Of A Blog

Slide 4: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: The Main Page • Header • Center column • Sidebars • Footer

Slide 9: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Postings • The reason readers show up • Regularly updated • Many options on length, tone, etc.

Slide 10: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Outbound Links • Connections to others • Builds community • Links to supporting facts and good ideas • Shows respect

Slide 11: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Full vs. Truncated Postings • Full postings show the entire entry in the center column • Good if posts are typically “short” • Fewer, longer posts appear on the main page

Slide 12: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Full vs. Truncated Postings • Truncated postings show a portion of a post in the center column • Requires an additional click for the user • Lets readers see “snippets” of more posts • Considerate (and consider it) if posts are very long

Slide 13: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Full vs. Truncated Postings • Click brings reader from the snippet to the full post • Can be decided on a post-by- post basis

Slide 14: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: “Permalinks” • Link to a particular post • Prevents others’ links from inaccuracy over time • Enable search engines to index individual posts

Slide 15: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Author Biography And Contact Info • Link to background of blog author • Information on how to contact author directly • Adds a human dimension to the blog

Slide 16: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Author Biography • No “typical” form for content • Can range from resume-like to free-form • Usually includes not only professional history, but personal interests as well

Slide 17: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Contact Information • Email • Phone • Many use Skype • Email may be “spam- proofed”

Slide 18: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Author Identification (if multiple) • Some biz blogs have multiple authors • Typically identified in the post • Typically listed in a side bar • Different, sometimes dissenting, voices

Slide 19: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Comments • The cornerstone of conversation and interaction • Can be anonymous, or identified • Can be moderated, or unmoderated • Can link back to author • Some posts get zero comments, some get dozens or hundreds

Slide 20: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Authentication Systems • May ensure identity of a commenter • More often simply used to ensure that a commenter is a person (not a program) • Aids in the prevention of “comment spam”

Slide 21: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Archives • Provides access to prior posts • Allows new readers to peruses “the back catalog” to get a feel for the tone and history of the blog • May be by date, or category or another organization scheme

Slide 22: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Recent Posts • Quick links to a handful of most recent posts • Allows readers to catch up on “recent events” • Gives a feel for current hot topics

Slide 23: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Search • Search within a blog • Usually powered by the public Google, Yahoo! Search engines • Provides readers way to find specific posts

Slide 24: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Categories • Many bloggers assign each post to one or more “categories” • Allows a reader to easily find all posts on a particular topic • Useful for both search engine optimization and “tagging”

Slide 25: Aside: RSS (or “Really Simple Syndication”) • “TiVo for blogs” • Stands for “Really Simple Syndication” • RSS is a format that shares the “content” of blogs and web pages • Most blogs publish an RSS feed • RSS feeds from multiple blogs can be aggregated into portals such as MyYahoo! • Offering an RSS feed greatly extends a blog’s reach

Slide 26: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Subscriptions • It is critical to allow readers to “subscribe” to your blog • “Subscribed” readers have access to your content without having to visit the web site • Many different technical choices • RSS, portals, “aggregators” • At minimum offer an RSS feed, other mechanisms if space, layout, and effort allow

Slide 27: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Email Subscriptions • RSS is the future, email is the now • For the near-to- mid term, email familiarity will greatly outstrip familiarity with RSS • Email subscriptions fill the gap until RSS integration is ubiquitous

Slide 28: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: “Artifacts” • Aid in making the anonymous more personal • Give a more “360 degree” view of the author • Photos • Personal favorites – Books – Music – Games – Affiliations – Etc.

Slide 29: Anatomy Of A Typical Blog: Blogroll • A public list of links to the homepages of other blogs a blog author finds noteworthy • A public endorsement of sorts • May contain few or dozens of links to other blogs

Slide 30: This presentation is a portion of the Social Media and CRM 2.0 Professional Certification Seminar Series Learn more about the series here: http://www.socialcustomer.com http://www.bptpartners.com/socialmedia_agenda.aspx http://www.the56group.typepad.com/

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