Blogging to Drive Business
Create and Maintain Valuable Customer Connections
2nd Edition
Published on 18. October 2012
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-0-7897-4994-9 (ISBN)
Description
BLOGGING TO DRIVE BUSINESS
USE BLOGGING TO SUPERCHARGE SALES, CUSTOMER LOYALTY, INNOVATION, AND PROFITS
Blogging can help you deepen customer loyalty, reach new customers, gain indispensable feedback, and drive more sales. This no-nonsense guide shows how to craft a business blog that does all that, and more-building your business and increasing your profits. Top e-marketers and business bloggers Eric Butow and Rebecca Bollwitt help you define clear goals, generate the right content with the right tools, attract visitors, build communities, and avoid costly mistakes. They draw on their own extensive experience, as well as the work of innovators from companies such as Intel, Starbucks, ING Direct, Procter & Gamble, and Tumblr.
WHATEVER YOUR ROLE IN THE BUSINESS, YOU'LL LEARN HOW TO:
Launch a blog that truly represents the best of your business
Create a comprehensive, long-term blogging strategy to maximize
the return on investment (ROI) from your blog
Staff your blogging initiative
Integrate blogs with other offline and online marketing programs,
including social networking websites
Use your blog to drive customers and prospects to the business
Push up-to-the-minute information to customers via RSS
Build a thriving online community-and learn from what it tells you
Manage comments (and decide whether to have them)
Operate successful contests and sweepstakes campaigns on your blog
Utilize podcasts, vlogs, microblogging, and other new techniques
Gain business value from hot new Web 3.0 technologies, including widgets,
mashups, personal agents, and the Semantic Web
Track your blog performance, spot and respond to trends, and translate and
report data you receive from your blog
USE BLOGGING TO SUPERCHARGE SALES, CUSTOMER LOYALTY, INNOVATION, AND PROFITS
Blogging can help you deepen customer loyalty, reach new customers, gain indispensable feedback, and drive more sales. This no-nonsense guide shows how to craft a business blog that does all that, and more-building your business and increasing your profits. Top e-marketers and business bloggers Eric Butow and Rebecca Bollwitt help you define clear goals, generate the right content with the right tools, attract visitors, build communities, and avoid costly mistakes. They draw on their own extensive experience, as well as the work of innovators from companies such as Intel, Starbucks, ING Direct, Procter & Gamble, and Tumblr.
WHATEVER YOUR ROLE IN THE BUSINESS, YOU'LL LEARN HOW TO:
Launch a blog that truly represents the best of your business
Create a comprehensive, long-term blogging strategy to maximize
the return on investment (ROI) from your blog
Staff your blogging initiative
Integrate blogs with other offline and online marketing programs,
including social networking websites
Use your blog to drive customers and prospects to the business
Push up-to-the-minute information to customers via RSS
Build a thriving online community-and learn from what it tells you
Manage comments (and decide whether to have them)
Operate successful contests and sweepstakes campaigns on your blog
Utilize podcasts, vlogs, microblogging, and other new techniques
Gain business value from hot new Web 3.0 technologies, including widgets,
mashups, personal agents, and the Semantic Web
Track your blog performance, spot and respond to trends, and translate and
report data you receive from your blog
More details
Other editions
Previous edition
Eric Butow | Rebecca Bollwitt
Blogging to Drive Business
Create and Maintain Valuable Customer Connections
Book
02/2010
Que Corporation,U.S.
€37.32
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Persons
Eric Butow is CEO of Butow Communications Group (BCG), web design and online marketing ROI firm in Jackson, California. Eric has written a wide variety of computing books since 2000, and his latest titles include How to Succeed in Business Using LinkedIn , Droid Companion , and My Samsung Galaxy Tab . When he's not working in (and on) his business or writing books, you can find Eric enjoying time with friends, walking around the historic Gold Rush town of Jackson, and helping his parents manage their infant and toddler daycare business.
Rebecca Bollwitt is the cofounder of sixty4media in Vancouver, British Columbia, which specializes in WordPress development, and she has been blogging on Miss604.com about West Coast life since 2004. Miss604 is Vancouver's most award-winning blog and was voted "Best Local Blog" in 2009, 2010, and 2011. Rebecca was also named one of the Vancouver Sun's Top 100 Women of Influence in British Columbia. She is the local Twestival organizer and a member of the Canadian Red Cross Twitter Team, and spends her spare time at baseball and hockey games with her husband, or researching local history.
Rebecca Bollwitt is the cofounder of sixty4media in Vancouver, British Columbia, which specializes in WordPress development, and she has been blogging on Miss604.com about West Coast life since 2004. Miss604 is Vancouver's most award-winning blog and was voted "Best Local Blog" in 2009, 2010, and 2011. Rebecca was also named one of the Vancouver Sun's Top 100 Women of Influence in British Columbia. She is the local Twestival organizer and a member of the Canadian Red Cross Twitter Team, and spends her spare time at baseball and hockey games with her husband, or researching local history.
Content
Introduction ......................................................................1
How This Book Is Organized ........................................................2
Conventions Used in This Book ...................................................3
Web Pages ..................................................................................3
Special Elements ........................................................................4
There's More Online .......................................................................4
1 Why Are Blogs So Important?
Media Growth Is in One Area: Online ........................................6
Get the Message Out .......................................................................7
Blog Popularity ..........................................................................8
Hello, World! .............................................................................9
Promote Products and Services ..................................................11
Reach People ..................................................................................12
Keep Pushing Content ............................................................13
Drive People to the Blog .........................................................14
Crowdsourcing ..............................................................................14
Case Studies....................................................................................15
Intel Inside Scoop Blog ...........................................................15
My Starbucks Idea Blog ..........................................................17
2 Making the Most of Your Blog with Marketing Tools
Online Marketing ..........................................................................22
Website .....................................................................................22
Email Marketing ......................................................................22
Social Networks .......................................................................23
Search Engine Optimization and Marketing ......................25
More Work... and Potential Solutions .................................27
Offline Marketing ..........................................................................31
Pushing Information via RSS ......................................................33
Getting Customers to Subscribe............................................34
Taking Care of Your Readers ................................................35
Case Studies....................................................................................36
Katrina Sawa, JumpStart Your Marketing ...........................36
Northern Voice Conference ..................................................38
3 Creating a Blogging Strategy
Blogging Platforms ........................................................................42
WordPress.com........................................................................42
TypePad ....................................................................................45
Blogger ......................................................................................46
LiveJournal ...............................................................................46
Posterous Spaces ......................................................................47
Blog Software ...........................................................................48
Finding the Best Blog for Your Business ...................................51
Vlogs ..........................................................................................51
Photoblogs ................................................................................52
Podcast Blogs ...........................................................................52
Tumblelogs ...............................................................................53
Microblogs and Sideblogs ......................................................54
Moblogs ....................................................................................56
Combining Blogs with Other Networking Sites .......................57
Facebook ...................................................................................57
LinkedIn ....................................................................................58
Twitter .......................................................................................59
Google+ .....................................................................................60
YouTube ...................................................................................61
Vimeo ........................................................................................62
Instagram ..................................................................................62
Pinterest ....................................................................................63
Case Studies....................................................................................64
InsuranceMommy.com ..........................................................64
Vancouver Film School (VFS) ...............................................67
4 Blogging Responsibly
Listen to Your Audience ..............................................................70
Two-Way Discussions ............................................................70
Listen by Sharing .....................................................................72
Tools to Help You Listen .......................................................74
Comments and Responses ...........................................................79
Comment Forms .....................................................................79
When to Moderate Comments .............................................80
Negative Feedback Can Help You Grow .............................82
Deal with Negative Feedback ................................................82
Avoid Slip-Ups ..............................................................................83
Form a Game Plan ..................................................................84
Think About Fixes Before Slip-Ups Happen ......................86
Implement Fixes Quickly .......................................................87
Case Studies....................................................................................87
Molson Coors Brewing Company ........................................88
ING Direct's Direct Talk Blog ...............................................90
5 Choosing a Blog Topic
Build Blog Posts .............................................................................94
Themed Topics ........................................................................94
Include Photos .........................................................................95
Write Blogs for the Wider World ...............................................97
Create an Industry Resource Blog ........................................97
Create an Online Community .............................................100
Create an Internal Blog (or Blogs) for Your Company .........102
Keep People Informed ..........................................................102
Internal Blogs for Project Management .............................103
Product Blog (External) ........................................................104
Case Study: Procter & Gamble's Man of the House ..............106
Case Study: CafePress .................................................................107
6 Designing Your Blog
Understanding the Function of Your Blog .............................110
Readability Is Functionality .................................................110
The Functions of Color and Text .......................................110
Designing for Your Blog Audience ..........................................112
Finding Themes and Templates ................................................113
WordPress ..............................................................................113
Tumblr ....................................................................................114
Blogger ....................................................................................115
Other Blog Platforms ............................................................116
Tips for Editing Your Theme to Drive Business ..............116
Case Studies..................................................................................117
Tumblr Staff Blog ..................................................................118
Case Study: Ree Hammond, Pioneer Woman ........................119
7 Who Will Write the Blog?
Writing from Within a Company.............................................122
Identifying Authors ...............................................................122
Client Services and Tech Support .......................................126
Authentic Content .................................................................127
Hiring a Blogger ..........................................................................128
Tips for Hiring a Blogger .....................................................129
Hiring a Blogger from Your Industry ................................130
Create a Blogging Position ...................................................131
Case Studies..................................................................................134
Linda Bustos: An Elastic Blog from Elastic Path ..............134
Rob Jones: BuildDirect Blog ................................................137
8 Getting Eyeballs to Your Blog
Writing Effectively ......................................................................142
Editing for Word Count and Brevity .................................142
Sound Human ........................................................................144
Reading Blogs Helps You Write Blogs .....................................145
Commenting-More than Leaving a Calling Card ..........145
Blogger Outreach ...................................................................146
Linking Out to Get Incoming Links ...................................148
Search Engine Optimization ................................................148
Blogrolls ..................................................................................149
Linking to Other Blog Posts ................................................150
Write Interesting Content ..........................................................150
Highlight Industry Players ...................................................150
Company Profiles ..................................................................152
Being Searchable ..........................................................................153
Check Your Current Rank ...................................................154
Clean URLs .............................................................................154
Keywords and Tags ...............................................................154
Promotion ....................................................................................155
Social Media Networks .........................................................156
Announcing Your Blog Launch to Other Communities .156
Target Your Newsletter Members ......................................156
Press Releases .........................................................................157
Case Study: Vancouver Opera .............................................157
Case Study: Translink's Buzzer Blog ........................................159
9 Getting Interactive with Multimedia Blogging
Content for All .............................................................................164
Images .....................................................................................164
Videos......................................................................................168
Audio .......................................................................................169
Slideshows ..............................................................................171
Private or Members-Only Content...........................................172
Podcasting ....................................................................................172
Creating and Promoting Podcasts ......................................173
Show Notes .............................................................................174
Music .......................................................................................174
Editing and Publishing .........................................................174
Screencasts ....................................................................................176
Create and Promote Screencasts .........................................177
Contests on Blogs ........................................................................177
Prizing .....................................................................................178
Blog Contest Services ............................................................178
Legal Items for Consideration .............................................179
Select Winners .......................................................................180
How to Measure Success ......................................................181
Run a Contest with a Blogger ..............................................181
Case Study: Blendtec ...................................................................181
10 Taking Advantage of Web 3.0 Blogs
An Overview of Web 3.0 Technologies ...................................186
Wikipedia ...............................................................................188
APIs and Widgets ..................................................................189
Mash It Up! ..................................................................................190
Integrate Semantic Technologies ........................................192
Make Agents Work for Your Blog ......................................193
Go Mobile .....................................................................................194
Understand Smartphone and Tablet Differences .............195
Smartphone Moblogs ............................................................197
Tablet Moblogs ......................................................................199
Case Studies..................................................................................202
UrbanSpoon.com ..................................................................202
HootSuite for the iPad ..........................................................205
11 Maximizing Your Blog's ROI
What's Your Online Influence? ................................................210
Put Together Your Strategy .......................................................212
The Tools You Need .............................................................213
Tie Your Blog and Other Marketing
Strategies Together ..........................................................215
Present Your Recommendations ........................................218
Track Your Blog Performance ..................................................220
Set Up Tracking Tools ..........................................................220
Getting the Right Data ..........................................................225
Translate and Report Data ...................................................228
Trend Watching ..........................................................................229
Spotting One or More Trends .............................................229
What Does It Mean? .............................................................230
Case Studies..................................................................................231
6S Marketing ..........................................................................231
Autonomy ROI Blog Tracking ............................................235
A Important Blogging Sites
Technorati ....................................................................................239
Icerocket .......................................................................................240
Google Blog Search .....................................................................240
News Aggregators .......................................................................241
Podcatchers ..................................................................................242
Ping Search Engines ....................................................................243
Want to Advertise on Blogs? .....................................................244
Getting More Blog Traffic ..........................................................245
Software as a Service Product ....................................................247
B Moblogging Apps
Smartphones ................................................................................251
iPhone Apps ...........................................................................251
Android Apps ........................................................................254
Tablets ...........................................................................................257
iPad Apps ................................................................................257
Android Apps ........................................................................259
Index
How This Book Is Organized ........................................................2
Conventions Used in This Book ...................................................3
Web Pages ..................................................................................3
Special Elements ........................................................................4
There's More Online .......................................................................4
1 Why Are Blogs So Important?
Media Growth Is in One Area: Online ........................................6
Get the Message Out .......................................................................7
Blog Popularity ..........................................................................8
Hello, World! .............................................................................9
Promote Products and Services ..................................................11
Reach People ..................................................................................12
Keep Pushing Content ............................................................13
Drive People to the Blog .........................................................14
Crowdsourcing ..............................................................................14
Case Studies....................................................................................15
Intel Inside Scoop Blog ...........................................................15
My Starbucks Idea Blog ..........................................................17
2 Making the Most of Your Blog with Marketing Tools
Online Marketing ..........................................................................22
Website .....................................................................................22
Email Marketing ......................................................................22
Social Networks .......................................................................23
Search Engine Optimization and Marketing ......................25
More Work... and Potential Solutions .................................27
Offline Marketing ..........................................................................31
Pushing Information via RSS ......................................................33
Getting Customers to Subscribe............................................34
Taking Care of Your Readers ................................................35
Case Studies....................................................................................36
Katrina Sawa, JumpStart Your Marketing ...........................36
Northern Voice Conference ..................................................38
3 Creating a Blogging Strategy
Blogging Platforms ........................................................................42
WordPress.com........................................................................42
TypePad ....................................................................................45
Blogger ......................................................................................46
LiveJournal ...............................................................................46
Posterous Spaces ......................................................................47
Blog Software ...........................................................................48
Finding the Best Blog for Your Business ...................................51
Vlogs ..........................................................................................51
Photoblogs ................................................................................52
Podcast Blogs ...........................................................................52
Tumblelogs ...............................................................................53
Microblogs and Sideblogs ......................................................54
Moblogs ....................................................................................56
Combining Blogs with Other Networking Sites .......................57
Facebook ...................................................................................57
LinkedIn ....................................................................................58
Twitter .......................................................................................59
Google+ .....................................................................................60
YouTube ...................................................................................61
Vimeo ........................................................................................62
Instagram ..................................................................................62
Pinterest ....................................................................................63
Case Studies....................................................................................64
InsuranceMommy.com ..........................................................64
Vancouver Film School (VFS) ...............................................67
4 Blogging Responsibly
Listen to Your Audience ..............................................................70
Two-Way Discussions ............................................................70
Listen by Sharing .....................................................................72
Tools to Help You Listen .......................................................74
Comments and Responses ...........................................................79
Comment Forms .....................................................................79
When to Moderate Comments .............................................80
Negative Feedback Can Help You Grow .............................82
Deal with Negative Feedback ................................................82
Avoid Slip-Ups ..............................................................................83
Form a Game Plan ..................................................................84
Think About Fixes Before Slip-Ups Happen ......................86
Implement Fixes Quickly .......................................................87
Case Studies....................................................................................87
Molson Coors Brewing Company ........................................88
ING Direct's Direct Talk Blog ...............................................90
5 Choosing a Blog Topic
Build Blog Posts .............................................................................94
Themed Topics ........................................................................94
Include Photos .........................................................................95
Write Blogs for the Wider World ...............................................97
Create an Industry Resource Blog ........................................97
Create an Online Community .............................................100
Create an Internal Blog (or Blogs) for Your Company .........102
Keep People Informed ..........................................................102
Internal Blogs for Project Management .............................103
Product Blog (External) ........................................................104
Case Study: Procter & Gamble's Man of the House ..............106
Case Study: CafePress .................................................................107
6 Designing Your Blog
Understanding the Function of Your Blog .............................110
Readability Is Functionality .................................................110
The Functions of Color and Text .......................................110
Designing for Your Blog Audience ..........................................112
Finding Themes and Templates ................................................113
WordPress ..............................................................................113
Tumblr ....................................................................................114
Blogger ....................................................................................115
Other Blog Platforms ............................................................116
Tips for Editing Your Theme to Drive Business ..............116
Case Studies..................................................................................117
Tumblr Staff Blog ..................................................................118
Case Study: Ree Hammond, Pioneer Woman ........................119
7 Who Will Write the Blog?
Writing from Within a Company.............................................122
Identifying Authors ...............................................................122
Client Services and Tech Support .......................................126
Authentic Content .................................................................127
Hiring a Blogger ..........................................................................128
Tips for Hiring a Blogger .....................................................129
Hiring a Blogger from Your Industry ................................130
Create a Blogging Position ...................................................131
Case Studies..................................................................................134
Linda Bustos: An Elastic Blog from Elastic Path ..............134
Rob Jones: BuildDirect Blog ................................................137
8 Getting Eyeballs to Your Blog
Writing Effectively ......................................................................142
Editing for Word Count and Brevity .................................142
Sound Human ........................................................................144
Reading Blogs Helps You Write Blogs .....................................145
Commenting-More than Leaving a Calling Card ..........145
Blogger Outreach ...................................................................146
Linking Out to Get Incoming Links ...................................148
Search Engine Optimization ................................................148
Blogrolls ..................................................................................149
Linking to Other Blog Posts ................................................150
Write Interesting Content ..........................................................150
Highlight Industry Players ...................................................150
Company Profiles ..................................................................152
Being Searchable ..........................................................................153
Check Your Current Rank ...................................................154
Clean URLs .............................................................................154
Keywords and Tags ...............................................................154
Promotion ....................................................................................155
Social Media Networks .........................................................156
Announcing Your Blog Launch to Other Communities .156
Target Your Newsletter Members ......................................156
Press Releases .........................................................................157
Case Study: Vancouver Opera .............................................157
Case Study: Translink's Buzzer Blog ........................................159
9 Getting Interactive with Multimedia Blogging
Content for All .............................................................................164
Images .....................................................................................164
Videos......................................................................................168
Audio .......................................................................................169
Slideshows ..............................................................................171
Private or Members-Only Content...........................................172
Podcasting ....................................................................................172
Creating and Promoting Podcasts ......................................173
Show Notes .............................................................................174
Music .......................................................................................174
Editing and Publishing .........................................................174
Screencasts ....................................................................................176
Create and Promote Screencasts .........................................177
Contests on Blogs ........................................................................177
Prizing .....................................................................................178
Blog Contest Services ............................................................178
Legal Items for Consideration .............................................179
Select Winners .......................................................................180
How to Measure Success ......................................................181
Run a Contest with a Blogger ..............................................181
Case Study: Blendtec ...................................................................181
10 Taking Advantage of Web 3.0 Blogs
An Overview of Web 3.0 Technologies ...................................186
Wikipedia ...............................................................................188
APIs and Widgets ..................................................................189
Mash It Up! ..................................................................................190
Integrate Semantic Technologies ........................................192
Make Agents Work for Your Blog ......................................193
Go Mobile .....................................................................................194
Understand Smartphone and Tablet Differences .............195
Smartphone Moblogs ............................................................197
Tablet Moblogs ......................................................................199
Case Studies..................................................................................202
UrbanSpoon.com ..................................................................202
HootSuite for the iPad ..........................................................205
11 Maximizing Your Blog's ROI
What's Your Online Influence? ................................................210
Put Together Your Strategy .......................................................212
The Tools You Need .............................................................213
Tie Your Blog and Other Marketing
Strategies Together ..........................................................215
Present Your Recommendations ........................................218
Track Your Blog Performance ..................................................220
Set Up Tracking Tools ..........................................................220
Getting the Right Data ..........................................................225
Translate and Report Data ...................................................228
Trend Watching ..........................................................................229
Spotting One or More Trends .............................................229
What Does It Mean? .............................................................230
Case Studies..................................................................................231
6S Marketing ..........................................................................231
Autonomy ROI Blog Tracking ............................................235
A Important Blogging Sites
Technorati ....................................................................................239
Icerocket .......................................................................................240
Google Blog Search .....................................................................240
News Aggregators .......................................................................241
Podcatchers ..................................................................................242
Ping Search Engines ....................................................................243
Want to Advertise on Blogs? .....................................................244
Getting More Blog Traffic ..........................................................245
Software as a Service Product ....................................................247
B Moblogging Apps
Smartphones ................................................................................251
iPhone Apps ...........................................................................251
Android Apps ........................................................................254
Tablets ...........................................................................................257
iPad Apps ................................................................................257
Android Apps ........................................................................259
Index