Blogging

Blog images

Sick and tired of the same stale stock photos that everyone else uses? Here are a few free resources and techniques for professional do-it-yourself blog post images that will enhance reader engagement and click-throughs to your blog articles.[read more]

When you get your business blog started, it’s tempting to invest in a custom blog design, theme customization, or other features that will set your business’ blog apart from the rest. My advice on this is quite simple: DON’T.[read more]

Kind of has that too-good-to-be-true ring to it, doesn’t it? Well, I’m not going to try to sell you on some never-before-heard-of facts. Instead, I’ve rounded up some of the strongest case studies that demonstrate how blogging for business can lead to sales for your business. Check out the findings on content-based conversions.[read more]

At its core, every personal blog regardless of what is written on it, conveys the desire of the writer to communicate with other people. Although the internet has opened many doors that once seemed impossible to unlock, it has failed to completely satisfy the most basic of human needs: social empathy.[read more]

Richard Margetic, Dell's social media lead

Social Media Today had a chance to sit down with Richard Margetic, Dell's Social Media lead, to discuss some of the topics that will be covered at the Social Shake-Up Conference in September, where Richard will be speaking. Here is a transcript of that conversation.[read more]

I am seeing more and more business leaders, brands, bloggers, educators that are holding back on sharing the goods. Some are auto tweeting links to blog posts with out dated links or tools that expired over a year ago. Come on folks. This isn’t your best stuff.[read more]

Image courtesy of Zach Klein, Flickr.

Have you ever had an idea for a blog post, but before you can write about it, someone else beat you to it? If you write about social media and technology like I do, you probably answered "all the time!" It's actually quite rare for me to write on a topic that no one else has already. Jeff Bullas goes so far as to say that everything has already been said. I don't buy into that 100%, but I see his point.[read more]

twitter birds/shutterstock

In case you haven't noticed, favouriting tweets is now becoming a thing on Twitter. But what relevance does it have? And should you be clicking the star on tweets? The simple answer is yes.[read more]

Shareable content has a purpose. There is passion and authenticity behind it, a vision that is driven by overarching goals. Goals that were laid out when you started your blog. Before you begin to write your post, determine whether or not it is aligned with your desired goals. Will it produce the results you are hoping to achieve? Outlining the major points of your post and then fleshing each one out will keep you focused and on track.[read more]

image credit: worradmu/freedigitalphotos.net

In many ways, things are harder than they’ve ever been before for the 4.5 million SMB CEOs in the United States. Between tightened restrictions on bank loans, and rapidly-changing marketing best practices, the 50% of companies that survive past their 5-year anniversary are typically run by individuals that are both savvy and tenacious.[read more]

building your blog

If you want to learn how to write a blog then you need to understand your customers and write content that they are going to find useful and engaging. Do your homework and you will get more traffic, more click and more leads.[read more]

I know how hard it is to work as a content marketer as you must always be creative, ready to adjust to new challenges and learn fast. Though creativity comes and goes, we cannot allow ourselves to be dependent on it as it can be really costly for our business. Motivational quotes definitely rank high among different ways to get inspiration.[read more]

blogger outreach / shutterstock

Once you've gathered your intel, you're ready to start reaching out to your Influencers and building a relationship with them. Remember, everything in social media is about relationships. Sometimes a relationship can blossom overnight, but in most cases you'll need to harness it, to nurture it.[read more]

Posting incriminating evidence tends to be a regular habit of a lot of social media users. It happens enough for us to shake our heads in disbelief and wonder why. It’s my contention Gatsby was one such person who lacked the will or awareness to exercise due discretion.[read more]

In honor of the impending demise of Google Reader coming up in July, I wanted to offer an even better way to share your online goodness. People who write content on their websites need to make it easy for others to access it and unfortunately, those other people, even if they like your content, will forget to go to your website. It is so true.[read more]

Publishing meaningful content is incredibly important for businesses to cultivate, maintain, and grow their business. A strong digital and social media presence can be a deciding factor for many consumers who are increasingly looking to digital and social platforms to assist them with their purchase decisions. To develop a strong social media and digital presence, it is critical for businesses to create and sustain regular publication calendars.[read more]

Controlling how news is reported and disseminated is inextricably linked to power. That's why dictatorships have always censored or removed the free press and run state TV stations with a rod of iron. While much of the western world has moved on from that, media is often controlled by a certain group, making citizen journalism a vital part of the opening up of reporting to everyone.[read more]

Storytelling rocks!

Done right, sharing information through stories makes a message sing like NOTHING else can do. Someone who's great at it: Mark Hermann – music producer turned storyteller – on the Rock and Roll Zen blog. Inspired by his bio page, I shot him an email to pick his brain for bits of wisdom to share.[read more]

Photo credit: Dave McLear

The blogosphere is a pretty big place these days. So big in fact, it seems to be getting more and more difficult to pull in a decent readership let alone garner a healthy dose of engagement on your posts. This problem is particularly frustrating because of the incredibly rich content and innovative ideas that often go virtually unnoticed.[read more]

Ever wonder how much time you should devote to social media each week? While there is no set formula, this infographic breaks down the components of maintaining and measuring a social media strategy, based on a 40 hour work week.[read more]