Take a Walk on the Blog Side, Part III

Remember when I said that a blog is a dialogue? Not only do I encourage you to read other blogs out there in your industry or for your personal development, but I would encourage you to take the time to comment.

If you were reading here last week, you would have seen a call to action... a Point To Success challenge. The only one who took me up on the challenge was Troy Aeby of Duralum. Congratulations Troy! Your comment earned you a ticket into a drawing of one...and a pair of pearl earrings from Tesori Trovati...and two truffles from Sugar Cubed!

Bloggers thrive on the comments from their readers. We are all hoping that the readers will not only come to visit our little corner in the blog-dom, but we hope that what we have said will resonate with them enough to inspire a comment. When I write a post I have a plan....all my posts begin with a title to entice the reader, a quote to intrigue the reader and a post that ends with a call to action. Specifically, I will ask the reader a question related to the post so that I can ensure that there is a thoughtful answer. While I am happy that people stop by, I am happier when I receive a comment that tells me the reader is paying attention and stirred to action by what I have to say. Leaving comments like, "Hey, nice post today!" are really not effective.

There are some benefits from taking the time to write insightful comments. Most of my 67 followers on Treasures Found have leapfrogged to my blog from other seemingly unrelated blogs that I have taken the time to post an intriguing comment on.

Just yesterday I received a comment from Dr. Liara Covert from New Zealand. How did she find me? By clicking on my name in the comments of a daily inspirational blog called "The Jungle of Life." So now I have started an email conversation with Dr. Covert halfway around the world. And she is not the only one who has reached out to me from across the globe...I have regular readers/commenters from New Zealand, Australia, Poland, Nigeria, UK/Wales, France and Germany...and that doesn't include the North American reach that I have. And each time that I write I use it as an opportunity to further my brand. They may never buy something from me, but then again, they might.

Another benefit I have found is that all the comments I have made, if I sign them as Tesori Trovati, land me on search engines. Ever Googled yourself? I have found links to all sorts of comments I have made on other blogs. This exposure helps my company to grow in the search engine rankings as well.


If done correctly, a blog can attract a dedicated audience to your brand. How many of you wouldn't want that on a regular basis? So how can you boost your business with a blog and accelerate your online success?

1. Humanize your brand.
We all want people to be our clients. But blogs create a familiarity with a company and the author that borders on friendship. And that connection is what turns consumers into friend-sumers. Blogs should be written in your unique voice and give your brand a human face, this in turn assures your readers that there is a real person who cares about their needs. Promoting your company, product or service by creating a blog that features how-to advice, news and other information of interest to customers makes them want to follow you in turn they can post testimonials, feedback, questions and comments, plus participate in surveys. By taking an informal, non-sales approach, you can interact with customers, gain useful feedback and build an online audience that can ultimately be directed to your company's main website. And that blog allows you to put your personality into your brand much more personally than any website will do.

2. Provide exceptional customer service.
Think of your blog as an interactive FAQ as your customers can submit questions and you can answer them. Each post can share information of relevance to your customers through how-to articles and behind the scenes facts. And by showing that you have a commitment to carrying on a dialogue with your customers, prospective clients will be encouraged that you are providing good customer service.

3. Increase your credibility.
A blog is an ideal tool to position yourself as an expert in you field by sharing your thoughts, knowledge, experience and insight. Obtaining expert status can increase your earning potential, and help attract new customers. When you provide a well-written, regularly updated blog, you will build a following of loyal readers who will come to see you as a reliable source of good content. And with the built in archiving feature of blogs, by date and category, it will be easy for you to post new content on a regular basis and easy for your visitors to jump to the information that they want to find. And if they believe in you as an expert, they will feel more confident to buy from you.

4. Gain more exposure.
A website is essential to your company's image, but a blog can boost your traffic levels. When new visitors come to your blog, it is important to have your website prominently displayed so that they can hop over to check out the main sales website. You can entice the readers with links and even special offers. And it should work both ways. You should have a link on your website that takes visitors to your blog. Just as you should always sign emails and letters and even your business card with your name, company, website, email and blog. Never lose that opportunity to connect.

5. Promote your products or services...with a whisper.
There are some out there that use a blog as little more than a thinly veiled attempt to get you to buy something. I don't put much stock in those. I don't regularly follow the blogs that a just a steop up from a telemarketing call. Sure, I have come there voluntarily but I will just as surely leave when confronted by post after post touting the products or services as the best. And that is not positioning yourself as an expert and giving me something to think about. Rather, I prefer those that show the process behind the creation, the methods used in manufacturing, the thing that sets the raw materials apart from the rest....in other words, show don't tell. If you show me why your products are worth buying I will more likely buy from you. On my own blog I made a conscious decision that it would never be used to sell. Instead I prefer to focus on the inspiration behind a piece of jewelry or the technique that sets my work apart. I have driven customers to my website and more importantly engaged them in a personal conversation that has led to a custom creation. They want to buy from me when they see how I go about it and what makes me differnt. That is how I promote my products and services with a whisper.

6. Generate extra income.
A blog can be monetized using the advertising programs that are already in place in the blogosphere. Google AdSense is one such program, and each blogging platform will have another. I personally have chosen not to clutter up my blog with ads from other companies. I feel that my readers deserve that from me and I know they appreciate that sincerity that I am there for them not to make a buck.

Once you have decided to host a blog (and I hope that I have given you something to think about in that regard), you need to decide if you would like to host the blog in your own website environment or in an externally hosted server. Just pick whatever is best for your commitment level, talent with all things technical and corporate structure. Posting content to any blog platform is generally very easy, but maintaing it yourself can be a challenge, so choose a platform that fits your budget and level of technical experience.

Free developer-hosted platforms: Easy to use, low-cost or no-cost options that will have you setting up and launching a blog in as little as 5 minutes. Some even have features that allow you to customize aspects of your blog's appearance, address and functionality.

Try these:
Blogger.com
Wordpress.com
Blog.com
Vox.com
Typepad.com
Livejournal.com

Premium developer-hosted platforms: You will pay for premium features for a developer to host and maintain your company's blog. They will likely have online tools to customize the functionality and look of the blog. Those listed above will surely have options to pay for the premium features while still being hosted on these external sites.

Stand-alone platforms: The greatest degree of customization will be with stand-alone versions that you host on your website yourself, but this will also require the greatest degree of technical expertise. Usually, you will need to consult with a website developer to integrate this effectively into your blog, but there are platforms out there that allow you to use their software to host your blog yourself. You will need to manage your own domain name and troubleshoot on your own, but sometimes that might be worth that added cost.

Building that blog may take only a few minutes, but developing that blog into a living, breathing extension of your brand will take more time and thought. Isn’t that a risk that you are willing to take? Who here doesn't see the value in reaching out to your clients and connecting with them on a personal level all while positioning yourself as a subject matter expert and encouraging them to not only buy from you, but carry on a dialogue that will lead them to become your friend?

Take a walk on the blog side with me....and let me know by your comments how it works for you!

Working Words of Wisdom:

(in honor of my son hitting his very first out of the park homerun last week!)

“Progress always involves risks.
You can't steal second base and keep your foot on first.”
~Frederick B. Wilcox

Take a Walk on the Blog Side, Part II

If a website is your brand's face, a blog is like the intellect.

A good website is like the storefront...you can have the cleanest stoop and the most dazzling window displays and a clearly placed sign, but once that customer walks through the door, they are not likely to stay if you never speak to them, or tell them all about your goods, or show them that you have a unique passion for your product or service and convince them that they cannot leave without buying something.

Once you entice people in with your branded website, then what?

As mentioned before, a blog is less like a diary and more like a book. But one that can engage and encourage your clients in ways that you may never have thought.

That is why a blog can be called the intellect.

Since I started researching this topic a week and a half ago, there have been two more articles written on the Entrepreneur.com website alone. One just yesterday titled, "Recruit a Virtual Sales Force With Your Blog." Sounds intriguing, right?

Mark Stevens writes that "catching a virus can be the best thing you can do for your business." What?! (Don't get excited, Hugh!) He is talking about the phenomenon of viral messaging in the whole social networking craze. The kind that rolls out like a growing wave reaching tsunami heights. The kind that happens when one person tells two friends who each tell two more friends...and they all are talking about how great your blog is and posting links on their blog and writing about you and your products and...well...doing the viral marketing for you. That is gold. You don't have to know how they find you to know that it is great and it works. You just need to be ready to pan the prospects.

While the website you have created might entice someone in the virtual door, it is what you do for them while they are there that makes them want to stay and, more importantly, come back and bring friends. So think of a blog as a way to connect on a personal level with every one who comes to your virtual storefront.

To be effective, a blog needs to be these things:

Educational not Commercial. This is not the place to sell everything for $9.99 or posting obvious sales pitches like that guy who screams at you on t.v. about everything from insurance to laundry soap. Blogs are a conversation, not a commercial. You need to inform your clients and show them the reasons why they should buy from you. Remember that you are the Subject Matter Expert (SME) and you have a lot to say about your product or service to those who are listening. That being said, you need to stay on message and keep building that brand with every word you write. But there are plenty of ways to show and not tell that get your message across while taking advantage of that teachable moment when you have them reading.

Compelling. We are bombarded daily by things to read every where we turn. So keep that in mind when you write. I believe that people are seeking community and will come back time and again if you are seen as writing something worth reading. You will be surprised at how much you have to say. It doesn't have to be long, and it helps to have pictures to support your writing. But there are all sorts of industry-specific updates and even your own personal insights and customer testimonies that are important to your target audience and can give you a boost in keyword search engine rankings.

And once you start making connections you might find that someone else is a great ambassador for your brand and can be called upon to write a guest post or regular column. Or how about switching perspectives with others in your company to keep the voices fresh? I am currently a contributing editor at the Watch Me Create blog and I will be doing four guest posts in the month of June for the Art Bead Scene blog. Each time I post to one of these blogs, I find that I get a spike in readership and new commenters. But the best part is that people like what they read and sign up to be a regular follower. Today I am at 63. Last week I had only 54. Pretty good for only posting once last week.

Frequent & Timely. I know people who write a blog post a day. Usually, they are really short posts that are fun to read, but that sort of pressure might just be too much for most. I personally have a Blogging Without Obligation button that basically frees me from feeling that it is necessary to stick to a hard schedule. I have an imaginary schedule, but it is pretty loose and based on the fact that something needs to spark my creativity for me to write about it. A blog is a periodical. If you only write once a month, why bother. You do have to keep to some sort of timeline, and I have found that once or twice a week is ideal. Too much and you are saturated. Too little and people won't let the door hit them on the way out as they seek inspiration elsewhere.

Exuding Your Distinct Voice. I asked several people why they haven't considered a blog. Several said that they don't have time (you don't have time to connect personally with your clients and potential customers?! Really!?), but most often I was told that they felt they couldn't write. You are the greatest ambassador of your brand, and your clients deserve to hear from you. It will personalize and humanize the experience of buying from you. From Derek Gehl at Entrepreneur.com, "You don't need to be a brilliant writer; you just need to be able to relate to your audience and give them good content."

For my own blog, I decided against making it merely a sales pitch for the latest creation that I made and instead focus on the mantra "inspiration is everywhere." I have found that there are a lot of people who are seeking connectivity on that very subject, and there is infinitely more to write about than just what beads I used in a piece. From there they see my creative process and a finished piece. I actually do get a lot of requests for purchase, and I try to connect with every regular follower through email as well, and some of the leads have turned into sales or sales-in-progress. All because I regularly share my passion and knowledge as a SME, and I have enticed people with my content and easy conversational style. They want to comment. They follow me. They come back. And they bring friends. And that is the sort of virus that I don't mind catching.

While you can start a blog in as little as five minutes, to truly be effective and to keep people coming back again and again takes a lot longer. But armed with a little thought and effort you can turn your blog into a strategic tool that drives traffic and sales to your online and in person business in a uniquely compelling manner.

I have heard it said that there are too many blogs in the world. I agree. Everyone with a soap box and a keyboard can have one. But really there aren't enough great blogs. If you keep those tips in mind, you cannot help but having one of the greats. (And I promise to be one of your first followers!)

Point to Success Challenge:

Let's start the dialogue!
I will give away a pair of Tesori Trovati pearl earrings to one lucky commenter this week.

Rules:

• Must be a member of the BNI Point To Success chapter.


• Must leave a comment on this post related to the challenge below.


• Must tell me what blog you found (just cut and paste a link in the comments).


• Must tell me why you like this blog that you found.


• The following blogs, while great examples, do not count since I have used them as examples in my article: Treasures Found, Watch Me Create, Art Bead Scene, Motivation Manager and Entrepreneur.com

Find at least one blog in the next week that you would enjoy reading regularly, whether for personal or professional reasons, and start reading their current and past posts. Make sure to add an insightful comment at least once on that particular blog. And leave a comment here to let me know that you are part of the conversation!

I will pick a winner on Tuesday, May 26th for our next meeting!

Working Words of Wisdom:

"I will prepare and someday my chance will come."
~ Abraham Lincoln

Take a Walk on the Blog Side, Part I

"In today’s environment, hoarding knowledge ultimately erodes your power. If you know something very important, the way to get power is by actually sharing it."
~Joseph Badaracco

Quick survey:

• Who here has a website?
• Who is on Facebook? Twitter? LinkedIn?
• Who here has a blog?

If you don’t have one, why not?

Everyone knows that you need to have a website. But websites are not that easy to set up, cost a lot in hosting and maintenance fees and are not that simple for the average user to update. However, they are as essential to business as the business card and I am not denying how important that they are. I don’t know about you, but I am a website snob. I see a lot of them every day and I know what I like and what I don’t like. And when a business doesn’t have at least some sort of web presence, I find myself not believing that they are at all real.

So why not start a blog?

On Entrepreneur.com I found dozens of articles written about harnessing the power of blogs to grow your business. In fact, one of them was published just today, May 11th and I will add that information to a future installment.

First, a little crash course..

BLOG is an abbreviation of “web log” since they started essentially as a diary. A diary is a monologue, never intended for others to read (and if you had an older sister, you know exactly what I am talking about if you ever happened to break the rickety lock and read her darkest secrets…you realized quickly that no one would really want to read it!) That is exactly what I thought a blog was about…self-centered, weepy losers with too much time on their hands ranting about whatever irks them the most or telling the most inane details of their daily life….

When people suggested that I should start a blog, I admit I was skeptical. Who would want to read what I have to say? Why would they care? What would I possibly have to write about on a regular basis that might be even remotely interesting? When I started, I didn’t even use the “b-word” as I felt there was that stigma attached to it and I wanted my writing to be more than just mindless chatter about what I had for dinner or even what the latest and greatest bead that I found to use. So I set out with a mission, a direction and a plan for how to get there.

A BLOG is actually more like a BOOK. If you were to write a book to promote your ideas, position yourself as a subject matter expert and share your unique expertise, you would find a way to take it on a book tour (like our friend Tom Girolamo). A blog can help you to connect with the thousands of people in the world who are seeking your ideas, your expert perspective and community with like-minded individuals. Blogs are all about building community and it is a great way to go on a virtual book tour without leaving home. And there are millions of people who are seeking what you have to say. Trust me. Now you just need to say it. And that goes back to having a mission, a direction and a plan for how to get there.

For my path to blogging, I started by seeking out blogs, and to my surprise they were everywhere! And they were good! I also ordered a great publication called Artful Blogging to which I now subscribe. This magazine is a primer on how to make your blog stand out from the crowd, and although it is targeted to creative types, the suggestions and examples would help anyone interested in starting their own blog.

There are some who will tell you that you shouldn’t waste your time blogging because it cannot be monetized and therefore is not helpful to growing your business. I will tell you that is dead wrong. How can it be wrong to connect with an ever-changing community of people who are carrying on a dialogue with you on the subject that you are most passionate and excited about? You never know where the next great opportunity will find you and I can tell you that they can come from all around the world with a blog. And they can actually be monetized to even make a little money on the side while you sit back and keep doing what you are doing. But more on that at a later time…..

So, why should you jump on the blog band wagon? In just a few short years, blogging has taken cyber-space by storm. According to Entrepreneur.com there are an estimated 175,000 new blogs and more than 1.6 million blog updates online every day. So, should your small business start a blog? I say yes, and over the next few installments I will tell you why. But here are a few good reasons why you should consider blogging….

• Blogs cost little, if any, money, are extremely easy to create and maintain and you can do this with virtually no training required.
• Blogs allow your business to appear more alive and approachable giving your company a personal voice which can boost customer loyalty.
• Blogs can help you gain insight into your customer’s needs and interests which you can use to develop products or services or simply fine-tune the ones you have.
• Blogs allow you to engage with current and potential customers in a direct, informal, no-pressure way.

Stay tuned for more tips on how to use a blogs and other social media to your advantage to be successful.

After all, you are a subject matter expert in your field and in our BNI Point to Success Chapter. You have something unique to say. Why not share it with the world?

And if you are a member of the BNI Point To Success chapter and you are reading this...please leave a comment on your thoughts so that we can continue the dialogue that this blog is meant to be....

Working Words Of Wisdom:

"Sharing knowledge is not about giving people something, or getting something from them…Sharing knowledge occurs when people are genuinely interested in helping one another develop new capacities for action; it is about creating learning processes."
~Peter Senge

Keep the Momentum Going

KEY #6: ACTIVELY SEEKING MOTIVATION

"Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it." ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower


There is no end to the mountain of motivational ideas and materials available to small business owners -- tapes, books, CD's, seminars, workbooks, videos and more. Why are there so many different motivational products, authors and speakers? Because people are buying these materials. Used effectively, they are effective and therefore they sell! But if they are just sitting there gathering dust, they won't do you any good.


But how to weed out the grain from the chaff in the realm of motivation?


It is easy to be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of self-help and rah-rah materials out there. One way to see through the clutter is to find yourself a motivational guru who can speak to the heart of the matter in a way that will not only be easy to understand but helpful to keep you on track when you might be in danger of derailing. You need someone who can get you "fired up" about working and improving your business.

Luckily for our BNI Point To Success chapter, we have just such a guru in our midst.

No. I am not talking about your resident Motivation Manager. (Although, I am pleased if you thought that I might be able to motivate you!)

I am talking about our founder, Dr. Ivan Misner.

Last week Dr. Misner was in Milwaukee for the BNI National Convention. So cool to have that located right in our backyard, so to speak. And even more cool that there were some of our members who were able to take the time to journey to witness the motivation first-hand.

Mark Pinkala, Sarah Mahon, Eileen Davis, Tim Cullen and Rick Pavlik attended the events. Some even had the good fortune to meet Dr. Misner in person. But all of them walked away with "aha" moments. I have asked those who would care to share the golden nuggets of wisdom they learned (and boy, did they learn a lot!):

• I learned that..... if we never give up "No Matter What", we will never fail to achieve what we set out to do. (Rick Pavlik)
• I learned that one of my life mottos “no matter what” has helped a lot of other determined people. (Tim Cullen)
• I met a BNI Director from Connecticut His chapter has 71 members. They always get done on time. They do 30-second 'sales manager moments'. He said that the 30's are much better than the longer versions used to be. They also get more referrals. He said "bigger IS better." (Mark Pinkala)
• It was very inspiring to be in the company of hundreds of people who truly believe in building their business through referral-oriented networking. I came away from the conference, inspired to spend more time on MY networking activities. I occasionally hear people in our chapter comment on how it's so hard to make the time to follow "BNI model networking." These people are not focused on growing their companies! (Mark Pinkala)
• I learned that... it is first and foremost about cultivating relationships by giving to others. (Rick Pavlik)
• My business is willing to serve the market like it has never been served before. (Tim Cullen)
• The motivational presentation by Lisa Nichols caused me to revisit how I interact with the people within my company. Openly recognizing the 'good' in my coworkers is regrettably an all-to-often overlooked part of my professional life. (Mark Pinkala)
• At Hazel Walker's session on on-line networking, I met a guy from Chicago who uses"LinkedIn". He asked me about my business, and advised that I check it out. Bottom line, he believed it would help me sell more work. Hazel also provided a comprehensive list of "do's" and "dont's" of online networking. (Mark Pinkala)
• I've learned that I must keep up with technology like Twitter, Linkedin, Facebook, for social networking that turns into business contacts. (Tim Cullen)
• I will make great gains in life if I immerse myself in learning. (Tim Cullen)
• I learned that getting "IT" means I either (I)nform members of my products & services or I (T)rain them on how to introduce me to or get me in front of groups of people who are potential clients. (I) gets me a little business and (T) can help me make a living. (Rick Pavlik)
• I learned that members holding other members accountable is one of the keys to strong chapters. (Rick Pavlik)
• I've learned that my life is not about me. (Tim Cullen)
• I learned that you should never prejudge someone because the wisdom that they have to share might be exactly what you need. (Rick Pavlik)
• I learned that Ivan Misner is a very approachable person and enjoys conversation. (Tim Cullen)
• I got to meet Dr. Ivan Misner. How cool is that? (Mark Pinkala)

If you are still stumped in finding just the right motivation for you, try asking your BNI friends whom they might recommend. Check out the self-help and motivational section at Book Finders or Book World. Sign up to receive some motivational e-newsletters. (One of my favorites: The Happiness Project)

Be open and aware of what is going on in the motivational industry and how it might help you become more enthused and positive about your business. Do some light research of your own to find some authors and speakers that interest you. Simply doing a Good Search on the term "motivation" yielded 10,413,872 results.

("Motivation in business" brought that number down to a more manageable 4,769,482....whew!)

But I would caution against making a huge investment in this. Check out the library. Borrow from a friend. Download podcasts. Cruise websites. Get yourself on a few mailing lists of e-newsletters. Go to Entrepreneur.com to find the latest and greatest (and even Dr. Misner's monthly column). Sample as many different viewpoints as you can.

But do these resources really work? Yes, but only if you make the effort. Just like exercise, you have to work the muscles -- in this case your mind muscles.

It is up to you to take that information and apply it to your own life and business. Really use the motivational ideas over a period of time and you will begin to see results.

Motivation is what moves us forward in our daily and business lives. Take the time to examine your motivating factors and use some of these keys to improve your focus and renew your enthusiasm. If you keep on track, the motivation momentum can't help but carry you forward.

Working Words of Wisdom:

Courtesy of our guru, Dr. Ivan Misner from the book The 29% Solution:

"Becoming a Master Networker is a journey, not a destination....There's no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, just lots of gold along the way and more up ahead."