How Often Should I Blog?
In my search for new and useful marketing / business podcasts, I came across “Podcast answer man” by Cliff J. Ravenscraft. I found the post “285 – What Was I Thinking? How Essential Is It To Publish Every Week?”
The first 20 minutes was a bit of a rant, then he gets into the question: should someone do a podcast (or blog) every week? How often should one blog or produce podcasts?
Cliff’s advice was this: it’s okay to take a break when you need to, like when you are off on holidays, travelling etc. This does depend on what your “business/interest” is though. As Cliff said, he educates on podcasting, so it might be a bit odd for him to podcast sporadically, he is trying to set an example of the ideal podcaster. His users expect him to podcast once a week, and come to expect that, and search for his podcasts on his broadcast day. He suggested doing two podcasts at once, in advance of times he knows he will not be able to post something. Doing a few podcasts or blog posts at one time can actually save a bit of time.
I think of how I consume information. I do check a few blogs/audio feeds frequently – knowing that they publish every week. I do also consume information from others that may not publish every week (I use Google Reader for online reading of blogs, Google Reader > Listen Subscriptions for podcasts on my Android and iTunes on my iPad also for podcasts).
I consume good, entertaining, quality information. Ideally this information is published consistently (because if it is really inconsistent people may unsubscribe or forget about you/it). If all you can do is publish good, quality content infrequently – keep it going. If you can do this consistently – even better!
Blog on, and podcast on!
Read MoreGet ‘The Fifth Estate’ Marketing Book Free via 15 Minute Podcasts
This morning I was listening to my favorite Marketing Podcast, Six Pixels of Separation with Mitch Joel and had my interest peaked by Geoff Livingston, and his new (released in May 2011) book “The Fifth Estate – How to Create and Sustain a Winning Social Media Strategy”.
What I am particularly interested in is Geoff’s knowledge and passion for cause marketing. He focuses on cause marketing and was speaking about online fundraising and other nonprofit and social enterprise related topics.
Geoff is doing something that I am totally going to take advantage of, he is offering his new book, for free, via 15 minute podcasts on his Tumblr blog. He has already posted 14 podcasts.
Hope you enjoy!
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Why Build an Online Community – Presentation
Thank you to The Alberta Writer’s Guild for inviting me to be part of their Annual AGM and Conference.
As promised here is a copy of my presentation: Why Build an Online Community.
I highly encourage writers to become a member of the Guild, they provide members with a lot of support and resources.
Read MoreAuthor Markets Book and Personal Brand via YouTube: Dallas Clayton
In preparation for a workshop with Alberta Writers Guild, I came across these two videos:
Author Dallas Clayton talks about his book ‘An Awesome Book of Thanks“.
A reader puts Dallas Clayton’s book “An Awesome Book” to music.
I love the way Mr. Clayton uses music, humor and a beautiful creative space to shoot the video. The video told me more about him as an author, and made him relate-able and likeable – exactly what most people are striving to achieve as they build their personal brand. And it actually made me want to buy his book – it does look pretty awesome.
If you are an author, looking for ways to market yourself online visit Chris Brogan’s post: An Author’s Plan for Social Media (this is where I found the link to Clayton’s videos).
YouTube on.
Two Free Passes to MRUShift Digital Marketing Conference – Calgary!
Have you heard of MRUShift (Mount Royal University Social Media Shift) ? It is the first of it’s kind in Calgary. Put on by Mount Royal University, the one day conference that is focused on online marketing is likely to be one of the best to hit Calgary.
Watch for a blog post coming soon on speakers and why you should attend.
But right now I am trying to give away some free passes!!!!
I have two to give away:
- One pass to anyone that works or volunteers in a non-profit organization – cause you guys rock and you are changing the world !
- And one pass to ANYONE else that wants to rock this conference – cause you are likely awesome too
All you have to do to enter is scribble #MRUShift somewhere – on your cheek (face cheek!), fridge, food, wall, floor etc. Then snap a picture of it, and Tweet it (make sure to use the #MRUShift hashtag and tag me @sbkelsick), Facebook it (be sure to tag me: Shannon Bowen-Kelsick) or email it to me and I will share it.
Sound like fun?! Contest ends June 17th. Winners announced June 18th on this blog.
Enter as many times as you like!
Thank you to Mount Royal for the passes.
PS – please don’t harm our enviro, your body, or any innocent animals in the response to this context LOL!
Read MoreWhy Blog? Merry’s Answer: Meeting People
I asked the blogging community – Why Blog? Here is what Merry Kuchle of Merry with Children had to say.
Merry lives in Calgary, Alberta. She blogs about family life, and she includes some really beautiful pictures in her posts, as well as GREAT ideas for parents – like taking nice pictures of your kids artwork instead of keeping it all. Enjoy.
What kind of a blog do you have?
Merry With Children is a personal blog about my family, my daily life and family friendly cooking. When I first started out I posted tons of pictures along with anecdotes about my new life in Canada with my husband and step children. I have moved away from talking about them as much because they are getting older and I would never want to embarrass them. My four year old, Evan, is still fair game though! I also post the occasional product review but reviews are definitely not the focus of my blog.
How long have you been blogging for?
I started blogging in January of 2006. Back in the early days I was a very sporadic blogger and I mostly posted for the benefit of my family and friends that live in the United States. Since then I have tried to become a more consistent blogger and I have readers outside of my “in real life” social circle.
How often do you think one should blog?
It really depends on what your goals are. I think that bloggers who blog consistently are more successful than sporadic bloggers. If your readers check back and see that you haven’t blogged in a week or two, they often won’t check back as frequently after that. If you blog every day or every other day, readers develop a routine around checking your blog.
What have been the rewards of blogging?
The single biggest reward has been the people I have met through blogging and social media. After blogging for a few years, I started using Twitter as well. Through these two platforms I have met many wonderful, like minded people that I would probably have never met otherwise. It has definitely been a big help in developing friendships in Calgary since I moved here 7 years ago.
Why might you recommend blogging to someone?
For businesses, I often recommend blogging as a way to put a personal “face” on your corporation. As a consumer, I love to be able to see the humanity behind the brand. For individuals, I recommend blogging as a “virtual scrapbook”. Though I realize that blogs as scrapbooks are sometimes not that interesting to readers, they rarely stay that way for long. Bloggers get used to blogging and find their voice. Usually the rest is history.
Do think that blogs can be beneficial for developing business?
Yes, definitely. As long as you have a strong writer and blog about relevant, relatable items, I think it can be definitely beneficial.
What blogging platform(s) do you use and would you recommend (WordPress, Blogger, etc. Do you use free or premium templates or design your own?
I started out my blog on Blogger. I would recommend it for beginner bloggers that aren’t really sure about blogging long term. It is easy to learn and investment is low. I moved to self hosted WordPress a few months ago and I have been very happy with it so far. The cost of self hosting and increased complexity definitely make WordPress a more investment intensive option. Since I also work full time in Sales, I did not have time to deal with all the complexities of moving my blog from blogger to WordPress. I hired someone to handle the move and design a new blog template and banner for me. There are a few technical things that I still need to fix but overall I am very happy with my current platform and template.
Where do you see your blog going in the future or what goals do you hope to achieve with your blog in the future?
I would love to increase my readership going forward. I think that tweaks I have made in my blogging frequency and content are helping me move towards that goal. Since my blog is not a full time venture, I try to stay realistic with my goals. Goals regarding blog monetization require much more time than I currently have to devote to my blog. Overall, I am happy with my little blog and I am true to myself and my family and in the end that is what is most important to me.
Thank you to Merry for taking the time – she is an uber busy lady, with a beautiful blog: www.merrywithchildren.com and check out Merry on Twitter @merry120.
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