How to Blog in 2013
Does it haveto be this complicated?
How to Blog in 2013
Larry LevensonChief Inbound Officer
Co-founder
@SigmaWebMktg
Pay per click
Print advertising
Press releases, PR
Social media
Other community marketing
EmailCompany Website
& BlogLocal Search/
Local Marketing Testimonials & reviews
SEO is tied into everymarketing effort!
Bring Order to the Noise
AgendaI. Five Keys to a Successful Blog
1. Identify Target Personas2. Create a Mix of Posts3. Write Great Posts4. Sustain It5. Spread It
II. How to Measure Your Blog
Exponential Effects
Blog
SEO• More Traffic• More Links
Social Media• Even More
Traffic• Even More Links• More Content
Key #1: Identify Target Personas
Kadient photo by: David Meerman Scott
Your Content Pulls in Your Personas
“Create the kind of online content that your buyers naturally gravitate to.”
- David Meerman ScottAuthor of The New Rules
of Marketing & PRwww.webinknow.com
What Keywords Will Attract Your Personas?
• Fill posts with them• Build an archive of content full of them
How We Pick Keywords: Keyword Grader
A Word of Caution
• Writing for your personas DOES NOT mean writing about the products and services you sell them
• Write about the things they want to learn about
Key #2: Create a Mix of Posts
Flickr Photo: jek-a-go-go
Plan a Mix of Posts
News
Feature
Video
Photos
Opinion
Different people are interested in different things!
Raisin Bran – Basic, Everyday Posts
• How to posts• Rich in
keywords• Get good at
whipping them out
• Make sure they’re useful or entertaining
Flickr Photo: greeneyesmilw
Spinach – Healthy, Thoughtful Posts
• Should establish your site as a thought leader in the industry
• Put time into them
• Don’t do too many
Flickr Photo: ulteriorepicture
Roasts – Big Blog Projects
• Lots of work• Lots of links,
discussion and attention
• Pick them well
Tabasco – Posts That Start Fires• Make a bold
statement• Be prepared to
defend yourself• Lots of comments
and links• Too many of
these posts could lose trust
Flickr Photo: ANOXLOU
Chocolate Cake – The Sweet Stuff• These posts make
your blog fun• A chance to poke
fun at yourself• Lots of
traffic/links • Often video,
images
Flickr Photo: scubadive67
Key #3: Write Great Posts
Flickr Photo: Olivander
No Need to Be Hemingway
Just follow a few simple rules.
Photo: Wikipedia
Tips for Post Structure
• Use Headings• 400-600 words• Lists are OK (just
not too many)• 1 idea per post
Blog Topic Ideas
• List of 5 ideas, trends or thoughts• Publish a list of links• Take a recent experience and share it• Answer questions you received recently• Comment on other blog articles• Turn a press release into a blog article• Check your email outbox
Always Add a Photo
• Flickr• iStockphoto• Shoot your own
How to Search for a Flickr Photo
Go to Advanced Search
Then search for CC licensed photos
Where Do You Get Ideas?
• Everywhere• Keep a list• When you learn something,
flesh it out• Ask your readers
Keep a list of blog ideas – you’ll find them everywhere.
Write Great Headlines
How to Write Great Headlines
• Write the headline before the article• Imagine the reader won’t see the article• Surprise people• No spelling errors!• Use your keywords
Blog Article Titles
• Funny: “GoDaddy's 16-Step Checkout: Brainless Marketing At Its Finest?”
• Enticing: “107 Ideas for Content Marketing”
• SEO: “Creating Your Long Tail Keyword Strategy”
Still on page 1 after 13
months!
2-3 downloads every day
Key #4: Sustain It
Flickr Photo: michalo
Pick a Publishing Schedule
• Once a week? Every Monday and Wednesday?
• Stick to it• The goal is to build up a
body of keyword-rich content (create an asset)
Different Ways of Doing Posts
• Email interviews• Video interviews (conferences, office
visitors, clients)• Guest posts from people with similar
blogs• “Best of” lists• “How we do it” posts
Should I Hire People to Blog for Me?It depends.
Pros:– You don’t have to do the work– You hire a “professional writer”
Cons:– Nobody knows your business like you do– You don’t build your personal reputation– You don’t participate in the conversation
Key #5: Spread It
Flickr Photo: felipearte
Think of Blogging Like a Job Search
Would you sit at home and wait for a call?
Take Comments Seriously
• Make sure you comment back• Find out who the people are
– Follow their links– Subscribe to their blog, follow them on Twitter
Use these links
Why Leave Comments?
• Karma
• Get noticed by other bloggers
• Get noticed by other blog readers
• Get links back to your blog
• Thought leadership
Tips on Comments
Increase the value of the article:
• Share an example• Add a point• Add a useful link• Disagree• Ask a question• Use your real name (not company)
Publish on Social Media
• Post directly• Post via twitterfeed.com automatically
• Post to your status• Post automatically via a feed to your fan or
profile page
Also consider LinkedIn, other sites.
Where Do You Link to Your Blog?
• Your homepage• Press releases• Business cards• Email signatures
AgendaI. Five Keys to a Successful Blog
1. Identify Target Personas
2. Create a Mix of Posts
3. Write Great Posts
4. Sustain It
5. Spread It
II. How to Measure Your Blog Success
Metric #1: Subscriptions
• A measure of you blog’s total reach• A “sticky” number
Metric #2: Pageviews
• Great for media sites selling display advertising• Potential problems for your business:
– Doesn’t measure RSS– Weak measure of engagement– What’s the business value of a “view”?
Metric #3: Comments
• Quantitatively, a good indicator of engagement• Qualitatively, a great way to listen to market
Metric #4: Inbound Links
• Measure the SEO impact of your blog• An indicator of your blog’s role in outside
conversations
Metric #5: Conversions
$
Thank You! Any Questions?
Larry LevensonChief Inbound OfficerSigma Web [email protected] 359.5501
Free tools:http://marketing.grader.com
http://sigmawebmarketing.com/blog http://www.googlekeywordtool.com
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