BlogWritingCourse

When I first started my blog, Topsy-Techie, I didn’t consider myself a Mom Blogger.  In fact, I hadn’t even heard of the term before.  Yes, I had a blog.  And yes, that blog was about my chaotic, tech-infused life with my family - - but I didn’t know I had a category! Now, of course, I realize that I am smack dab in the middle of the cultural revolution that is: Mom Blogging.

Mommy Blogging is basically a term for moms who use blogging as an outlet for their daily frustrations, struggles, and triumphs.  For stay-at-home and work-at-home moms, it can be an especially important outlet, since daily conversations for them can sometimes be limited to topics such as crackers vs pretzels, who gets reward stars for using their “inside voice”, or inquiries into just who put the whole roll of toilet paper into the toilet.  When you are home with kids everyday, blogging can become your chief connection with the world beyond the four walls of your house. And women need social interaction with other adults!

Moms also make terrific bloggers because they tend to be experts on almost everything.  If it involves medicine, a hammer, a book, a nail file, a newspaper, a paintbrush, an ironing board, a pep talk, a garden hose, or a leotard, we can probably blog about it.  Moms are, by nature, required to be multitalented, so they have a lot to offer in the way of advice and instruction.  They also tend to follow a wide variety of media, and have at least some knowledge about subjects as diverse as politics, pop culture, and psychology.  For this reason, they have a wide pool of topics to choose from to keep their blogs interesting.

When it comes to advertising power, Mommy Bloggers may just have the corner of the market. Because they are often the key purchasing agent for their household, their opinions on products and services carry a lot of weight in the corporate world.  That makes them a big demographic that internet advertisers want to reach.  Google Adsense, Blogher, Adbrite, and others make specific efforts to woo successful Mom Bloggers.  And stay-at-home moms are finding other creative ways to make money off of their blogs as well, such as writing product reviews, cross-posting on paid blogsites, and advertising their own home-made products and services.

Moms blog for many reasons: to keep their sanity, to chronicle their kids milestones and experiences, to vent, to engage in adult conversation, to give and receive advice, to network with moms in similar situation, to make extra money at home, etc.  Blogging validates the challenging, heart-wrenching, and often thankless job of being a mom.  If you are a mom who has been thinking about starting a blog, we’d love to help.  We offer two online courses to get you off and running.  The first course, Get Ready To Blog, is an automated introductory course to the world of blogging for those new to the idea.  The second course, Blogging 101, is a professionally taught course that will guide you every step of the way from setting up and designing your new blog, to writing quality content and growing a readership.  We believe moms deserve to have the best, clearest, and least time-consuming instruction available, and that is just what our courses offer.  So sign up today!

Until next time,

I remember the first time I considered I might like to become a writer.  It was in a high school English class, and we were required to keep a daily journal for our class, and each day as I wrote out my thoughts and feelings, my English teacher would write encouraging feedback. She would comment on my creativity, my ability to put things into words, and my humor.  Well, naturally, this made me want to be even more creative, expressive, and humorous.  I began working longer and harder at making my journal entries entertaining and readable.  There was just something about knowing that someone was going to be reading my work that made the writing process more compelling.

This is the whole idea behind blogging, really.  Putting down your thoughts and words for others to read and possibly interact with.  If you are a writer, or even an aspiring one, you might want to consider starting a blog to hone your talents.  There is no faster way to get your writing out to the masses than through a blog.  And there is no more efficient way to get feedback on your efforts. 

Have a story you’ve written but haven’t been able to sell?  Why not take that story, break it into blog posts, and let your readers decide why it may not have been publishable.  Not only will you get them coming back to find out “how the story ends”, but by asking them for their feedback, you will be getting free editorial advice. (But don’t ask unless you are tough-skinned enough to handle both positive and negative criticism…the blogosphere can be brutally honest!)

Have a writing genre that you have been too chicken to try out?  A blog is the perfect platform for an experiment.  If you have always written prose, but want to branch out into poetry, start a poetry blog and see if other people respond to your verse.  Or go really wild, and blog about your day using iambic pentameter.  You will have learned something about yourself and your writing by stepping out of your comfort zone, and you will have lost nothing in the process.

There are numerous ways to practice your creative writing talents through blogging.  You can:

• Write a free-form thought association blog
• Try out your humor material on a tough audience
• Write a mystery or sci-fi serial that will keep your readers coming back for more
• Practice your review skills by critiquing books or websites, etc.
• Invite your readers to join you in creating an interactive story
• Create a choose-your-own-adventure blog, where your readers get to pick how they want your story to go

The possibilities for creative writing blogs are endless, and limited only by - - well - - your creativity.  If you would like to get started writing your own blog, we would like to help.  Sign up today for one of our online courses to guide you through the steps of creating and writing your very own blog.

Until next time,

The most asked question by new bloggers is always…”How can I drive traffic to my blog?”  We’ve talked about many traffic-building ideas in this blog, but today we are going to explore one we haven’t yet covered.

One of the easiest, most painless, and free ways to increase traffic to your blog is by participating in a blog carnival.  For those of you unfamiliar with blog carnivals, the best way to explain them is to compare them to well…a carnival.  Just as a carnival travels from town to town, blog carnivals travel from blog to blog.  And just as a carnival draws a crowd…so does a blog carnival!

A blog carnival begins with a host - - a blogger who is willing to oversee the carnival, choose the topic and date of publication,take submissions, promote the upcoming carnival, and ultimately gather the submissions and publish them in a single post.  The host, though, is reliant on submitters - - bloggers who are willing to follow the guidelines of the carnival and submit a blog post from their blog that corresponds with the carnival theme.  Finally, you have the readers - - folks who are interested in the carnival subject and enjoy coming to a one-stop-shopping destination where they can read posts related to that subject.

You can see that the possibilities for blog promotion are tremendous with a blog carnival.  The host benefits by having submitters become familiar with his or her site, by networking with like-minded bloggers, and by receiving lots of hits on his blog following the carnival posting.  But even carnival participants can see spikes in traffic after their post has been featured in the carnival.  A carnival is a chance to showcase your work, and without much effort, readers will be flocking to your site to see more of what you have to offer.  A blog carnival directly links to one of your posts, so readers who have never heard of you before will click on your link to see what you have to say about the topic they are interested in.

Blog carnivals can be on almost any subject.  If you would like to find a blog carnival that matches your interests, go to Blogcarnival.com, which is a directory of all ongoing carnivals.  Not only is it a great way to increase traffic for your blog, but it is also a terrific outlet for meeting people with similar interests.

If you would like to learn more specific ways to grow your blog, sign up for our eight-week online blogging course, where you will cover all aspects of blogging from building a blog to writing quality content to promoting your blog.  This instructor-led course will guide you every step of the way toward creating a successful blog.  So….step right up!

Until next time,

If you have been thinking about starting your own blog, you might be wondering where to begin.  I recommend you first familiarize yourself with all the vocabulary and introductory issues surrounding the world of blogging.  One of the best ways to do this is by taking our free online Get Ready to Blog course.  This fun and easy introduction to blogging will help you overcome any intimidation you feel about starting your new adventure in blogging.

Your next step would be to come up with a theme for your blog.  Will this be a personal blog, where you share the ups and downs of your day to day life?  Will it be an informational blog, where you provide insight and commentary on a specific topic?  Or perhaps you want to start up a business blog, with the purpose of bringing attention or promotion to your product or store.  Then even within those major themes, you will probably get even more specific with your focus.

Once you have your theme in mind, you have to have a location to start writing.  This means choosing your blogging software.  There are many factors that should come into play when making this decision.  Each software, although essentially the same, has subtle differences that might need to factor in, depending on your needs.  If you are not technically savvy, for instance, you will want to go with a platform that does most of the “behind the scenes” work for you.  Your budget will also be something to keep in mind as you decide between free or subscription-based plans. This will also be the point that you will need to decide if you will use a host for your blog, or set up your own domain. 

Now comes the fun part.  It is time to sit down and set up your blog!  This will involve signing up with your chosen software, or host, and getting an account.  You will be picking out your graphics theme, setting up sidebars, and choosing from various display options.  There are many ways to customize your blog, and for some formats, you are limited only by your technical know-how and your creativity.

Finally, its time to start writing your blog. Hopefully, if you have been thinking about starting a blog, you already have some subject material in mind.  So it is likely that your first posts will be easy to crank out.  Continuing to write strong, readable content takes a little more effort and persistence, but will be crucial to your blog’s success.  Having a clear goal and theme in mind before you begin will be the key to writing quality posts.

You would think that the process of starting a blog would end there…but it doesn’t.  Blogs need readers.  And to get readers to stop by and check out your blog, you are going to have to promote your blog.  There are multiple ways to get the word out, including registering on blog directories, sending out emails to your friends and family, and adding your blog url to outgoing messages and in forum signatures.

This, of course, is only a very basic overview of what it takes to start a blog.   If you are considering taking the plunge, and beginning a blog of your own, why not let us help?  Our eight week, in-depth, instructor-led Blogging 101 course will guide you every step of the way from beginning to end.  Not only will our experienced blogger and teacher hold your hand throughout the blog setup process, but you and your classmates will form a circle of support for each other as you provide helpful feedback and comments along the way.  There is simply not a more thorough or fun way to learn to blog than with the Blogging 101 course.  So sign up today for either our free introductory course, or our full guided blogging course, and then…get blogging!!!

Until next time,

Small business owners are constantly competing in an overwhelming market of corporate collateral.  Their competitive edge is often the personal touch they are able to offer vs. the aloof persona of a chain or large corporation.  The website of a small business owner can be a strong tool for making connections with potential and current clients or customers - - especially those who like having personal relationships with their community service organizations or retailers.  It can be an even more powerful tool if you use a blog on your website to draw traffic, and to create a sense of community between your customers and you.

The first thing to be sure of is your target audience.  Who are you trying to reach with your blog?  Are you trying to create a line of communication between you and your current customers, or are you trying to grow your business and get the word out to a wider audience.  Or maybe you are trying to do both.  Knowing your audience helps you create better content for your blog posts, and makes sure that you have goals for them.

The next thing to focus on is providing quality content.  If you aren’t a natural writer, find someone else within your company, or even hire someone to write your blog.  No one will visit your blog if it is poorly written, and doesn’t contain useful information.  Use your blog to go in-depth about your field of expertise - - this is the time to pull out all the stops and write something that people will be eager to visit your website for.  Good writing draws traffic, and traffic increases business.

Another priority for a small business blog should be keeping it updated.  An up-to-date blog is a sign of an engaged retailer - - one that focuses on customers, and knows them well.  The worst thing a business can do with its website is create it, and then forget about it.  This says to potential buyers that you don’t make your customers and their needs a priority.  By writing consistent, current blog posts, your website visitors know that you are interested in them, and willing to go the extra mile to meet their needs.

Lastly, you should learn how to promote your blog.  You can start by inserting your blog address into newsletters, business cards, bulk mailings, and anything that you use for printed advertisement.  But to go a step further, it is important to learn how to promote your website and blog online.  Online marketing opens the door to expanding your business beyond your local venue.  Many small businesses have become large companies just by knowing how to market themselves across the world wide web.  By understanding search engine optimization, keywords, and content strategies, you can go a long way toward bringing in traffic for your blog, and ultimately for your business.

To learn more about blogging, and how it can benefit your small business, you can sign up today for one of our introductory blogging courses.  Our free online Get Ready To Blog course will introduce you to the basics of blogging terminology, platforms, and promotion.  This course will fully prepare you for our eight-week instructor led course, Blogging 101.  This course will guide you every step of the way through setting up your first blog, designing it, writing your first posts, and growing your readership.  Blogging your small business can be a key aspect of your small business marketing strategy, and we are here to help you get started.

Until next time,

A friend of mine - - we’ll call her “Marge” for the sake of this post - - has recently begun a blog.  Marge did a lot of research on blogging before she took the plunge.  She read articles on Wordpress, and followed search engine links to multiple sites promising to dispense sage advice on blogging.  Unfortunately, most of this advice was aimed at someone pretty familiar with the blogosphere, and much of it went right over poor Marge’s barely-techie brain. 

Marge got lots of instruction on making money with your blog, links and trackbacks, and even current trends in blogging.  What Marge didn’t get was good solid information on how to start a blog, and how to grow it.  So she decided to figure things out for herself.  After contrasting and comparing her blog platform options, she felt there wasn’t all that much difference between the big names.  She knew she didn’t want to have to pay for a host, so she decided to go with the Blogger platform.

After signing up for her new blog, Marge spent the better part of two days trying to navigate through the unfamiliar world of creating a heading, designing sidebars, and choosing a display theme.  Finally her blog template was ready, and Marge wrote her very first post.  She was incredibly proud of herself for her hard-earned efforts.  But as soon as the post was up, and Marge read over it, she got this funny feeling in her stomach that something wasn’t right.  The subject she had chosen for her blog just wasn’t cutting it.  She realized she hadn’t given her theme enough thought, and she hadn’t really worked out exactly how she wanted her posts to “sound”.  She decided to tweak everything…her blog title, her tagline, and of course her content.  And she did. For two more days, Marge thought, and tweaked, and thought, and tweaked.  And finally, she rested.

Then, when she had recuperated from her ordeal, Marge was ready to get back to blogging.  So imagine her surprise when she logged back into her Blogger account only to find everything gone. Her entire blog content seemed to have vanished into bits and bytes of ephemeral smoke.  She contacted Blogger, and thankfully their customer service department contacted her back - - TWO WEEKS LATER!  With an automated response email!!

Well, in that two weeks, Marge has understandably given up on her dream of becoming a blogger.  She figures that if it is that difficult, she will just take up bird watching. 

Thankfully, I am Marge’s good friend.  I will not leave her jaded and defeated.  I will explain to her that there is an easier way….a sure-fire way to learn about blogging in a step-by-step fashion, and to have a successful, experienced blogger guide her every step of the way through deciding on a theme, setting up a blog, and building her audience.  Stay tuned for our next post when I will share with you the advice I shared with Marge on learning to blog the easy way!

Until next time,

Nonprofits, especially ones with smaller budgets, often don’t put a lot of time and effort into their online communications.  Their website, if they have one, usually consists of just a few pages dedicated to the mission of the organization, the services they perform, and instructions for volunteering, or sending in donations.  While this no-frills type of website is certainly better than having no online presence at all, it is far from ideal in providing adequate communication between you and your supporters.

Technology can be a valuable tool to keep donors, supporters, and volunteers engaged with the daily operations of a nonprofit organization.  Unfortunately, many worthy causes have settled for one-sided communication with their donors in the form of monthly newsletters and occasional fundraising appeals.  This method may have sufficed years ago, but in today’s world-wide-web culture, people expect more.  They want to know they have a voice, and that the causes they support are willing to listen to their ideas and suggestions.   An active internet presence can provide this two-way communication.  Your nonprofit could use any or all of the following methods to encourage interactivity with your supporters:

• Email Updates - You can easily create a section on your website where supporters can sign up with their email addresses to receive current status reports or news items.  Occasional email “bulletins” sent out to these addresses might include a particular victory your agency has experienced, an urgent call for help with a specific task, or a reminder about an important upcoming event.  Because a sign up for this type of mailing is voluntary, you can count on these updates to be read and attended to. 
• Electronic Newsletter For Volunteers - volunteers give selflessly of their time and effort, but that doesn’t mean they don’t need to be told how much they are appreciated.  A special email “newsletter” for volunteers could be sent out monthly or quarterly, and could include special “inside” information about the agency, highlights of a particular volunteers contributions, notices about upcoming volunteer needs, and of course, generous appreciation for  their efforts. 
• Dedicated Information Email Address - this would be located in a prominent place on your website,usually in the “Contact Us” section, and would be checked daily by someone in your organization who is talented at answering inquiries and taking feedback.  By providing an information email address, you are saying to your supporters and potential supporters that you have nothing to hide and are eager to answer any questions, concerns, or suggestions they may have
• Interactive Calendar - this would be a website feature that would allow the nonprofit to update as often as needed with current data on activities and events, and would allow the user to click on items on the calendar to receive more details and information
• Blog - Blogging is becoming one of the fastest growing methods of communication.  A blog, or web log, is an ongoing journal of information related to your cause.  It is almost limitless in its type of content, but could include news about your nonprofit, pictures of recent events and activities, editorials on the issues surrounding your cause, or spotlights on people who have made important humanitarian or financial contributions.  Blogging can be an uniquely effective tool, in that it allows readers to comment and interact with the content. This creates a sense of active participation for supporters, and gives them a way to express their ideas and to vent their feelings.  If your organization is interested in adding a blog to your website, but aren’t sure how to begin, you might want to sign up for a blog writing course, that will guide you through all the steps of designing, writing, and promoting your new blog.  Qualified nonprofits can receive a discounted subscription for the Blogging 101 course.

There are many other ways to use your nonprofit website to encourage participation and involvement from your supporters, but hopefully these ideas will get you started on creating a two-way communication that will benefit your cause for years to come.

Change is difficult. Change is usually incremental. Change is sometimes necessary. But if you are a non-profit organization operating in the 21^st century, change is CRUCIAL. The way today’s non-profits communicate with their potential donors, their consistent supporters, and their volunteers is radically different than the way they communicated even ten years ago. Newsletters and mail-outs, while still in use, are not usually the preferred means of receiving information for most supporters under the age of forty…and that demographic must be reached in order to continue to grow a foundation of ongoing support and continued fundraising.

Today’s grass roots boosters aren’t satisfied to sit back and be spoon fed information about the causes and organizations they support - - they want to interact with their chosen movements. They want to feel like they are not only aware of the problems of the world, but are a part of the solution.

This is where blogging comes in. Almost 30% of internet subscribers read blogs on a daily basis. For many of these, blogs are their top source for news and information. This is partly because the blogging format, like no other medium, provides a dialogue beween the author and the reader. A blog is almost never one-sided. Non-profit agencies who incorporate a well-written blog into their communication strategy, are likely to achieve several worthy goals:

• Drawing interest from people formerly unfamiliar with the organization and its goals
• Keeping their supporters and potential supporters up-to-date on issues and news stories relevant to the mission of the organization
• Keeping constituents aware of upcoming events, immediate needs, or current fundraising drives
• Highlighting the selfless efforts of volunteers who give of themselves daily
• Providing a platform for supporters to interact with the organization and other supporters via blog comments and feedback
• Increasing a sense of overall connection and immediacy between the non-profit and its base of supporters through timely informational posts
• Putting a personal face on an impersonal fundraising entity, and makes supporters feel personally invested in the ups and downs of its daily operation

If you are interested in finding out how to quickly and easily integrate a blog into your communication efforts, click here to find out more about taking our Blogging 101 course.

Until next time,

Immediacy.  Technically, it is defined as “the quickness of an action or occurrence.”  But on an emotional level, immediacy can be incredibly important.  If someone we loves is injured or in need of help, we want to know immediately.  When we have good news to share, we can hardly wait to find a listening ear.  Births, marriages, deaths - - they all appear as soon as possible in the local newspaper.  Finding out news when it happens makes us feel connected in a real way to those it is happening to.

For nonprofit agencies, this can be an important truth to digest.  Donors almost always feel emotionally connected to the causes they support.  For any myriad of reasons, they believe that their chosen cause deserves attention and funding, and they are willing to put their own hard earned time and money into it.  But just like any investment, donors deserve a return.  And, rightfully, this return ought to somehow involve timely news on how the agency or organization is managing its resources.

One way that nonprofits are successfully handling this in recent years is by creating their own blog.  The whole premise behind blogging is bringing up-to-date information to the public, and that is exactly what savvy nonprofit agencies are doing.  They are nurturing the emotional connection of their donor public by bringing them up-to-date news on the ups and downs of the issues involving their organization.  When supporters get current information about the cause they support, they feel emotionally linked with its successes and failures.

Large nonprofits such as the One Campaign, are utilizing this tactic successfully.  The One blog is not only featured prominently on the agency’s website, but is updated several times daily.  To donors, this says that the organization has its eye on the ball, and is keenly involved in its own agenda, and in keeping others informed with its progress.  These are key ingredients to getting and keeping support. 

The Greenpeace organization goes even one step further, and encourages its supporters to blog about subjects relating to environmental concerns.  They then link the contributing blogs to their own blog site, Making Waves, thereby increasing attention to their cause and creating a community of like-minded bloggers who feel passionately connected to the nonprofit and its issues. 

If you are involved in a nonprofit organization, and would like to learn more about blogging, and how it could benefit your cause and your supporters, why not sign up for our free Introductory Blogging Course and discover the basics and the vocabulary of the world of blogging.  And if you decide that your nonprofit might truly benefit from an ongoing blog, then you will definitely want to take the Blogging 101 course where our experienced instructor will guide every step of the way through designing and setting up your blog, writing quality content, and building your audience.  Then you will be well on your way to delivering the timely information and creating the immediacy that your organization’s supporters want and deserve.

Until next time,

My recent interview with Christine Moers got me thinking.  She talked about using blogging as free therapy, and I think maybe she may have stumbled upon something.  Writing is incredibly therapeutic.  In fact, other than getting my fingers in the dirt, I can’t think of many other things that calm me as much as putting words together into sentences.  I’ve probably been writing for therapy for as long as I can remember.  I know I kept a diary all the way back in the third grade, and I was writing whole stories in junior high. 

When I am emotional, I write about it.  When I need to work something through, I write about it.  When I just want to blow off some steam, I write about it.  Not everyone uses writing to deal with their issues, but for me, it is a sort of lifeline to sanity.  So, I suppose I was destined to discover blogging.  Blogging is basically just “public venting,” if you think about it.  Instead of keeping all those thoughts inside, or just writing them down in a notebook, a blogger makes himself or herself vulnerable and lets the blogosphere have a window into their mind. 

Of course, this can be a precious gift, or a disastrous decision, based on your mood at the moment of posting.  If you are centered, and feeling secure about yourself, an insightful blog post can be incredibly beneficial for everyone who reads it.  If you are overly emotional, and out of sync with your true self, you can say some things on your blog that you might seriously regret later (thank goodness for that terrific edit/delete functionality!).

But overall, blogging really can be therapeutic.  Even if you are writing a purely informational blog, you are still exercising your talent of expression when you post.  The words, phraseology, and tone of the information is all right from the core of who you are.   Even business blogs can have a positive effect on your psyche if you are able to talk openly and honestly about your product or service.  If you feel strongly about the item you are blogging about, then there is no better therapy than letting others know how important it is to you, and why it could be important for them.  Personal blogs are probably the most expressive type of blog, because your readers are getting all-you-all-the-time.  There are no filters, no editors, and no censor between your mind and your audience - - just your words coming through loud and clear.

So, if you have considered finding an outlet for your thoughts, dreams, or insights, you might just be the next big thing in blogging!  You will never know unless you give it a try…so why not sign up for our free Introductory Blogging Course today?  If you discover that blogging is something you want to pursue, you will definitely want to take our Blogging 101 course, which will help you set up a new blog, start the writing process, and build your blog audience.  What can you lose…except some overpriced therapy bills??  Why not blog instead?  

Until next time,