Bastille Marketing is a social media consultancy founded by Jenni Brand. The document provides an overview of Brand's background and experience in traditional and social media marketing. It then covers the basics of blogging, including what a blog is, why blogs are popular, types of bloggers and readers. The rest of the document offers tips on choosing a blogging platform, setting up a blog, engaging readers, and examples of nonprofit blogs.

1. Bastille Marketing
Storming the Marketing Establishment…Through Social Media
Jenni Brand
Founder & CEO
June 15, 2009

2. Who is Jenni Brand?
 Founder & CEO of Bastille Marketing
– A Social Media Consultancy www.bastillemarketing.com
 Social Media Consultant for five years with New Media Strategies
– Helped brands establish, manage and maintain a positive presence
within the online landscape
– Worked with numerous Fortune 10, 50, 100, 500 companies
• Non-profit/Gov’t, CPG, Fashion/Retail, Travel/Tourism,
Financial, etc
 10+ years in traditional marketing & sales
– Fields of grocery retail marketing, radio sales, non-profits, energy
 Extra-curricular activities include:
– Speaking circuit; seminars on Social Media
– Two blogs; contributor to others (Blondes I-View, Bastille
Marketing)
– Event planner (DC’s 1st Annual Cupcake Contest, Wedding,
Charity Events)

3. What We’ll Cover Today
Blogging for Beginners - An Overview
 What is a Blog?
 What’s the Big Deal with Blogs?
 Who are Bloggers?
 How to Choose the Right Blog for You
– Which platform, what type
 Setting Up & Owning Your Blog - The Bells & Whistles
 You’ve Got a Blog - Now What?
 Examples & Resources

4. What is a Blog?
According to the Wikipedia definition, a blog is a type of website, usually
maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of
events, or other material such as graphics or video.
A blog is basically a streamlined website that has easier technology
and is designed to facilitate a two-way conversation.

5. What is a Blog? (cont’d)
 Bloggers are those who write (called
posting) original articles for the blog and/
or oversee the editorial process of a
blog.
 Commenters refer to the online
public who read and interact with the
blogger(s) by leaving a ‘comment’ on a
blog post.
 Content is a common term for the
information written on the blog.
 Blogosphere is a term for all blogs as
a family and their interconnectivity - a
‘social network’ of all blogs. It is common
practice that blogs link to each other and
share or comment on each others’ posts.
 Syndication/RSS Feeds -
Syndication means the ability to make
blog content available for other bloggers
to use and publish, typically at no cost.

6. Blogs: Why the Hype?
 There are more than 133 million blogs with 1.5 million created
weekly.
 94 million US blog readers and 23 million American bloggers. Nearly
1 million blog posts every 24 hours.
 95% of the top 100 US newspapers have reporter blogs.
 Blogs in 81 languages and 66 countries.
Resource: Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere 2008

7. Blogs: Why the Hype? (cont’d)
 20% of bloggers
think newspapers
will be obsolete by
2018
 50% think blogs will
be primary news
source by 2013
 37% have had a
blog post quoted in
the traditional press
 61% learn about
products &
services from
other blogs
 Only 1/3 turn to
TV/Print as a
source of info
Resource: Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere 2008

8. What the Average Blogger Looks Like
Resource: Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere 2008

9. What the Average Blogger Looks Like (cont’d)
Educated, financially stable, 25-49 y.o.
Resource: Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere 2008

10. Who Reads Blogs?
 42% of internet users have read a blog(s)
 33% read blogs regularly
 11% read blogs daily
Resource: Pew Internet & American Life Project July 2008 (Aaron Smith)
http://www.pewinternet.org/Commentary/2008/July/New-numbers-for-blogging-and-blog-readership.aspx
 8% of Americans have a blog
 46% of blog readers saying that they visit the same blogs regularly
 54% surf for new and different ones
 43% of blog visitors notice ads on blog websites
Resource: Synovate 2007 http://www.synovate.com/news/article/2007/08/new-study-shows-americans-blogging-behaviour.html
 28% of US blog readers have taken an action based on a blog post
Resource: Edelman, Corporate Guide to Global Blogosphere http://www.micropersuasion.com/2007/01/edelman_study_b.html
http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/edelman/whitepaper010907/index.php

11. What Makes Blogs Special?
 Everyone is Welcome - No matter your internet or technical abilities;
everyone can blog. The free platforms make it easy and available to all.
 Conversational Content - Blog content is designed to be an opinionated,
two way conversation. It is based on personal interests, expertise, etc. This
applies to a corporate or organizational blogs.
 Reader Interaction - Blogs by nature invite reader commentary. It is
recommended to allow comments, with or without an approval feature.
 Freshness - Frequent posting is necessary to attract readers, create stickiness,
gain credibility, and rank in search engines. No less than once weekly.
 Interconnectivity - Blogs create communities by reciprocal linking, blog rolls,
blog networks, etc.
 RSS Technology - Real Simple Syndication allows for content to be
instantaneously updated to other blogs, blog readers, etc.

12. The Anatomy of a Blog
Resource: MintBlogger.com - http://www.mintblogger.com/2008/07/understanding-blogger-template-part-1.html

13. The Anatomy of a Blog (cont’d)
Clean design; easy navigation
Topic Tabs
Subscribe
Feature
Follow Me
Buttons
Date & About Tab Advertising Tab - easily could be a Donate Tab
Author -
linked to bio

14. The Anatomy of a Blog (cont’d)
Easy to
Share
via
Twitter
Clean
design of
blog post
Picture
insert; yet
not
cluttered
(pls credit all Interactivity - recent comments; frequent commenters;
photos!) encourages time spent on the page

15. The Anatomy of a Blog (cont’d)
 Hyperlink to Author’s Bio and Post Archive
 Comments visible - link to full list
 Blog community badges
 Blogroll

16. The Anatomy of a Blog (cont’d)
 A guest post with featured blogger bio & picture

17. The Anatomy of a Blog (cont’d)
Social Sharing Features & Find Me Functions on
Mashable’s Summer of Social Good blog

18. Which Blog Platform to Choose?

19. Setting Up & Owning Your Blog
How to Select a Blog Name
 Make it: Easy to remember & spell
 Make it: Relevant to your business
 Make it: As close to your name or acronym as possible
 Make it: the same as the URL
 Make it: Letters only; no numbers, punctuation, etc.
 Don’t use “blog” in the name - it’s redundant
Secure the Domain Name
 Use a free service, but buy the domain name
–www.bastillemarketing.com, not www.bastillemarketing.blogspot.com
–Google or GoDaddy.com - very simple instructions
–Buy the .org, .com, .net, etc - its worth the $10/year for people to find you easily!
The Intersection of Blogs and Print
 Incorporate your blog into ALL print pieces; Wherever your website is
printed, so should be your blog
 Put it in your email signature (Read our blog: www.associationABC.com)
Resource: http://www.problogger.net/archives/2006/02/16/choosing-the-domain-name-for-your-blog/

20. You’ve Got A Blog! Now What?
 Know the Rules of the Game Before You Start Playing
– Read up on similar blogs, or blogs written about blogging
 Spend Time Introducing Yourself Online & Creating Loyal Followers
– Communicate often & on topic - even if its in an informal tone
– Share Useful Content from media, industry, other blogs
 Determine Your Key Consumer Audience & Target Them!
– Remember that they are Consumers before Members
– Remind them of the WIIFM - What’s in it for them
 Connect with Key Influencers in the Social Mediasphere; Your Industry
– i.e., Social Media Influencers = ChrisBrogan.com, Mashable, & TechCrunch
– Link to them; Share news from their blogs; leave comments on their posts
(remember to sign your name & URL)
 Coordinate/integrate With Traditional PR/Marketing Efforts
– Company news can be a blog post if it’s compelling info and offers original
content (interviews, etc) beyond the press release information
 Recruit Internal Bloggers
– Solicit people from within the organization to be bloggers
– Develop an editorial calendar - STICK TO IT!

21. Examples of Non-Profit & Gov’t Agency Blogs

22. Additional Resources
Blogging Terms - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_blogging_terms
What Not to Do on a Blog (Tips) -
 Coding Horror -
http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000834.html
 Use It - http://www.useit.com/alertbox/weblogs.html
Blogs about Non-Profits & NP Blogging -
 Frogloop - http://www.frogloop.com/
 Beth’s Blog - http://beth.typepad.com/beths_blog/
 Non-Profit Tech Blog - http://www.nonprofittechblog.org/
How-to Tips on Good Blog Design -
http://www.blogdesignblog.com/blog-design/how-to-blog-design-style-guide/
Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere (Education & Stats) -
http://technorati.com/blogging/state-of-the-blogosphere/
Mashable - The Social Media Guide - http://mashable.com/
Social Media Tools 101 -
http://www.interactiveinsightsgroup.com/blog1/socialmediabeginnersguide/social-me
Social News for NonProfits - http://www.idealistnews.com/

23. Questions?
Thank you.