How to Sell Blogging to your CEO and Clients

How to Sell Blogging to your CEO and Clients, my slides from my talk for Search Engine Marketing New England are now online.

It was a lot of fun with a great group who keep me there until the end asking some very good questions.
I'll be attending more SEMNE events, assuming I've ever home! The talk was the only week out of the recent six I've been home. Traveling, speaking, and consulting on information lately (and having a blast, although I miss my 3 kids, wife, and dog too).

Topics included:
    * What are the characteristics of the most successful blogs?
    * What distinguishes the successful from unsuccessful blogs?
    * How to present the case for blogs and other social media to management.
    * How to handle the Return On Investment (ROI) issue.
    * How to present ‘baby steps’ to management; simple measures that show results.

Click to Download Here

A Web site updated daily that you can subscribe to?

It's a Web site that's updated daily and that you can subscribe too, says the Rock and Roll Guru about his new blog.

He doesn't use the word "blog" and that word will eventually fade into obscurity. Just like "podcast."
Just like they don't use the term "Chinese Food" in China (OK, bad example, but I think it's funny).

Hmmm, if the term "blog" goes away, I guess I'll need to rename this blog often updated Web site eventually.

BTW, The Rock and Roll Guru loves how I use quotes from rock music in Effective Internet Presence, and almost called me up at midnight when he read it. I'm flattered.

32 Ways To Keep Your Blog From Sucking

No one wants their blog to suck, and Scott Hanselman has a great list to help you avoid 'Sucky Blog Syndrome.'

You may not know Scott, but he's a super popular tech programming blogger.

I even agree with most of what Scott says, although a few things don't apply to most of us, for example "Have a Code Garage Sale" makes no sense if you don't write code (i.e. program).

Here's a partial list, with details. See Scott' blog for the full list/story.
Thanks to Bob Porter for sending me the link.

•    1. Know your audience
•    2. Keep overtly personal information out of your tech blog
•    3. Don't apologize about not blogging enough
•    4. Steer clear of politics
•    5. Don't Blog Bile
•    6. Think before you blog      
•    7. Don't post throwaways
•    8. Avoid "excessive quoting
•    9. Use Spell Check

Web Stats love

I love Web stats. The information you can get is amazing . . .

Why am I posting on "Blog Names" so much? The stats show you care. Yes, my posts on blog names are the most popular (that doesn't mean everyone cares, however, so I'm not "Blog names all the time").

Most popular posts? Yes, I know and so should you. Expand on popular topics.

I have a relatively new Website up on College Speaking -- and I know someone from "Suny Herkimer Community College" looked at it at 10:37AM this morning. I sent them a flyer on my College Speaking ("How to get a great job using the Internet" is my most popular topic).

I also know that 7 people Googled me yesterday and visited my main Web site, demop.com, and about 300 people have read my article on The 7 rules of Effective Email in the last 2 days so it's popular.

I also know some of the stuff I wrote that I thought was fantastic -- well, no one cares :)

I'm using a combo of StatCounter, which gives me real time info, and Google Analytics, which gives me more details, but only from yesterday back.

On yes, and I'm not paying a penny for either!

3 Taboo Topics for Biz Bloggers

Some topics are a no-win, and a possible big loss, as well as inappropriate and possible big losers for you. Here are the big three.

1) Politics

Politics have little to nothing to do with business! Avoid at all costs.

I don't care if you like Hillary Clinton, and you shouldn't care if I think Greece should revert to a Monarchy. However your or my opinions may offend or upset others unnecessarily, and are way off topic and inappropriate.

2) Religion

Religion is personal and not a business topic.

Your love for the Catholic Pope and his most festive hats, or my following the teachings of Zoroaster and praying in front of fire, or your sister sacrificing bananas to the only true god (in her opinion), a giant Troll who will descend from Fresno to free all true believers, is not our concern.

And if you can't speak without constantly mentioning  Zoroaster or Jesus or Ballingham (the Troll your sister worships), well keep in off your business blog.

Go start on another blog on religion if you'd like -- that's absolutely fine.

3) Sex

If you're gay, straight, promiscuous, or if squirrels get you off, that's your business. And if you believe that interspecies marriage, like your brother and that smoking hot squirrel Sandy in Sponge Bob, is evil, well keep your views off your business blog.

Politics, religion, and sex -- no win topics on your business blog.

Besides, you should be staying on topic, right?

Addendum: Obviously politics, religion, or sex may be your business, so feel free to blog away.
For example, Nia Dark and Lovely certainly can blog on sex, Hillary Whatshername could blog on politics, and the "Dude with the Cool Hat "could blog on religion (even in Latin) if he wishes!

Your URL When Commenting

When you leave blog comments, most blogs ask for your name and URL. But if you don't have a blog or Web site or don't want to leave your blog URL for whatever reason, do you leave it blank or what?

Many people who actively read and comment on blogs do not blog themselves -- no big surprise. And sometimes I don't want to leave my blog URL if off topic, if for example I'm reading and commenting on a fishing blog.

Jason Alba, author of I'm on LinkedIn -- Now What???, suggests using your LinkedIn profile. This makes a lot of sense.

Also, your LinkedIn profile makes a good home on the Internet if you don't have a blog or Web site as Google and the other search engines rate LinkedIn profiles highly. When people Google you. it's likely to come up first or at least close to first if you're blogless and Websiteless.

Conversational Media Blog Traffic Tips

Conversational Media, not only blogs, but things like Twitter, Facebook, MyBlogLog, etc. can be used to grow traffic to your blog.

Admittedly, I use all three mentioned, but certainly not optimally!

Paul Chaney has a great post where he lists 5 additional steps you can take using conversational media to build blog traffic.

He ends with his sage advice:

If you don't do anything else, at least do these two things (make that three things):

1. Write exceptional content that's of interest to your readers.
2. Do it everyday and keep it keyword optimized and topically-relevant. Google will absolutely love you for it. So will your human audience.
   
3. Actively participate in topically-relevant communities and blogs (emphasis mine).

11 Tips for Getting Your Comments Noticed on a Popular Blog

An interesting and insightful list from Problogger:

1. Be the Early Bird
2. Share an Example
3. Add a Point
4. Disagree
5. Write with conviction, passion and personality
6. Use Humor
7. Ask a Question
8. Formatting Comments
9. Helpful Links
10. Comment Length
11. Lists/Break it down

Full details at Problogger.

And I'll add that a "me too," "I agree," "good post" or similar comment won't get noticed!

Blog Directories - Should I Submit My Blog?

A common question is "Should I submit my blog to blog directories?"

When starting a new blog I think it IS worthwhile to submit to a few blog directories just to get some links for the search engines, not because anyone will necessarily follow the links. The search engines may find your blog faster due to the links, and search engines like links. A new blog likely will have few or no links.

How many blog directories to submit to? Hundreds of blog directories? Some people do, but I say that's silly. Maybe 5-10 blog directories max is enough.

Now not everyone agrees with me on this. Some experienced bloggers feel submitting to blog directories is entirely worthless and conversely some believe submitting to hundreds of them is worthwhile.

So how do you find blog directories? Simple, Google "blog directory"

Submitting is usually easy and fast, although some may make it difficult (skip those!).

The only essential one in my mind is Technorati.com, which is actually much more than just a blog directory, but that's a topic for another post.

Take Months Of Your Blog Learning Curve

Finally, the "Secrets of Successful Blogging" audio CDs are ready!

A few promo copies are done, and the rest will be done any day.

"You are telling me how to do exactly the things I want to do to grow my online presence to a new level!"

- Becky McCray,  Co-host of The Small Biz Startup TV and author of Small Biz Survival

If interested and you want a discount and special bonus, signup for BizBlog+ newsletter in the upper right corner for the special pre-release offer.

Blog SEO Tips from Aaron Wall

Most Internet Traffic comes from the search engines, so paying attention to search engine optimization (SEO) when you blog makes sense.

Many Blogs and Web sites get much of their traffic from the search engines. For example this blog got 25% of its visitors from search engines, primarily Google, last week. Some weeks it's much more!

Search Engine Optimization Aaron Wall has a two part interview at Problogger:
SEO Tips  and More SEO Tips. I also had the good fortune to interview and include Aaron in my book What No One Ever Tells You About Blogging and Podcasting.

Aaron's blog is well worth reading and his SEO Book ebook simply rocks!

Blogs and Ezines ? Complementary?

Originally Published in my ezine, BizBlog+

(Dawud Miracle's Recent Post If You Blog Do You Need An E-Newletter inspired me to post this now)

Are blogs and ezines, a.k.a. e-newsletters, complementary? Or are ezines a thing of the past, being quickly relegated to obscurity with today's email overload and aggressive spam filters?

My main blog, BloggingForBusinessBook.com, is complemented by my ezine, BizBlog+. I offer an ethical bribe, a free audio download (with more bonuses to come), to get people to subscribe.

Why? Why do I want a blog and an ezine? Why do I want people to subscribe? What's the benefit to me as well as my readers?

I've been studying how to successfully spread messages on the Internet. The most successful way to spread your message, any message, definitely includes an email component. Email works! No, I'm NOT condoning spam, but rather email to your optin list, to people that say "Yes, add me to your list, I like to hear from you occasionally."

Bottom line: if it's in your inbox, you'll at least read the subject no matter how busy you are. If it's on one of your favorite blogs however, you still might miss it.

Having a ezine increases your footprint, the number of people exposed to your messages. Some people read blogs regularly while others prefer to receive information via email. Not everyone gets as much email as you and I probably do and is adverse to a bit more!.

Many people will read both your blog and ezine.

Blogs are informal, friendly, and easier to write than ezines, and your personality really shines through. People get to know you through your blog. Any marketing or advertising messages can easily and unobtrusively be added to the sidebars. However blogs require more effort as most bloggers post at very least weekly.

Ezines are more formal, and although your ezine should match your personality, their more formal format is less personal and requires more work. For example I'll proofread this ezine several times, as compared to a blog post which gets one quick proofread. Many people who don't enjoy writing ezines find they truly enjoy blogging and its less formal format.

My recommendation? If you blog, consider adding an ezine. If you don't blog, consider starting. No, neither blogs nor ezines are for everyone or every business, but they are both appropriate for many, and any business trying to make money on the Internet had better be using email!

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Seeing The Forest AND The Trees: The Magic Of Metrics

Guest post by Shawn Chambers, a passionate plastics blogger who is having great success, and fun, blogging. In his own words:

As a WordPress.com user, it appears that I've got a bit of a luxury over TypePadders and BlogSpotters in that I'm provided with detailed, real time metrics right off my blog's dashboard explaining not only how many people are visiting but how they got there and what search phrases they used to find the blog.

It can be frustrating to watch day-by-day, minute-by-minute charting the number of people that read your articles.

You see good days. You see bad days. But, not all days are created equal and it's important that you recognize this to avoid taking up virtual cliff diving.

I've been at this about 2 months now. I've landed just over 5,000 visitors.
That sounds like a lot and it is to the novice. However, I'm just like most aspiring bloggers out there who sees a slow-read day and begins wondering how much value they're really contributing to the blogosphere and whether or not it's worth the investment of time and faith.

Consider your blog like publishing 7 different magazines. After a while you'll see that each day has a unique traffic pattern demanding different types of information.

For example, weekends typically attract non-business minds that now have some free time to think and explore new ideas - they might even be the same people that were looking for business-related stuff earlier in the week. Mondays - people want to get caught up over the weekend and are looking for both creative stimulus and a reason to get re-excited about their jobs. Fridays - well, people just want to make it through the rest of the day and, like Mondays, are looking for creative stimulus to bide the time. So, focus your publishing efforts based on what people are asking for on a particular day.
Remember - read the little charts that tell you what people are clicking on AFTER they've read your article (I usually put a source line at the top of each article referring to where I found the content) which will give you some insight into what is grabbing the interest of your readers.

The bottom line: Measure your success by the weekly increase in daily visitors: This Sunday vs last Sunday, Friday vs last Friday, etc - regardless, don't lose the faith.

If you have something worthwhile to blog about then someone will find it.
Blog On!

5 Stupid Ways to Sink Your Blog!

1) Don't stay on topic!

Ahhh, you just had a baby -- please post a couple dozen pictures and blog on nipple soreness and whatever else for a few weeks. We won't mind, really.

And if your college curling team or favorite NFL team is in the finals or Super Bowl, please post about it for days on end. If you care then we must care. After all it's your blog, not ours. We are merely peasant readers.

What were you blogging on anyways?

2) Be insular.

Yeah, maybe they call it social media but you can be antisocial if you'd like. Don't link to others. Don't read, never mind comment, on other blogs.

Your never ending soliloquy is enough for us to flock to your blog  daily for the rest of our lives. If soliloquies are good enough for Hamlet, then they're good enough for us!

3) Write like traditional writing, not speaking.

Conversational, smonversational! We want perfect English, proofread multiple times and worthy of publishing in an encyclopedia (remember those?) or The New Yorker.

4) Don't let us know who you are!

No picture, no about us page, nothing personal. Your profound thoughts are enough for us! Your identity is your own business.

5) Lots of colors, dozens of fonts, flashing lights, autoplay audio.

Make it look like a casino. Or even MySpace  :)

Viva Las Vegas Jugheads!

Blog as if it matters – it does!

Blog as if it matters – it does! Although your audience may be small initially, each individual reader may be extremely important to your business.

When I first started blogging, one of my first (non friend/non family) readers hired me for a few thousand dollars to speak at their annual conference!

Lots of readers are great, but when you first start blogging you'll have a very small audience. Remember that each person matters. They may give you money, friendship, might even marry you :)

Hopefully you'll eventually build a large audience -- compromised of individuals each of whom is important! If your audience doesn't skyrocket, remember that there are plenty of great AND successful blogs that have 25 or less readers a day.

3 Tips to Hack Proof and Hijack Proof your Blog

My friend Reg's blog got hacked -- fortunately he didn't lose any data, although he lost a lot of sleep and probably hair I'll guess.

Did you know their is more money in cybercrime than the illegal drug trade?  And many cybercriminals would love to hack any established blog or Website?

Here are three things you NEED to do to protect your blog!

1) Choose a good password and CHANGE it regularly.

What's a good password? No dictionary words, certainly no words or phrases remotely connected to you like your favorite sports team, your daughter's name, or your blog's name either!

Ideally, suggest a combination of letters, numbers, and at least one non alpha-numeric character. Preferably something you can remember easily but that no one can guess easily.

Be creative! For example, Ba!dP0pe was something I used once that I could remember easily (note not just letters and numbers and non-alpha numerics, but capitals and lowercase too -- a good thing).

Despite what most "security gurus" tell you, you CAN write down your password if needed as long as you keep it safe and treat it like a credit card. For example keep it in in your wallet or purse, and if it gets lost change it immediately.

2) Back up your content regularly.

Just in case! Backing up your 'stuff' is critical, because you never know what may happen.

One entire blog network disappeared because they didn't have good backups . . .

Check out your blog platform's help for backing up your content -- most have pretty simple steps documented.

3) Update your Blogging Software regularly.

if you have your own Web server with blog software installed on it, for example WordPress.com, MoveableType or  ExpressionEngine, update it regularly.

Updates typically fix bugs and known security flaws the bad guys know about.

Note that If you are using a hosted solution like TypePad (recommended), Blogger (OK), or WordPress.com (good), they update the software themselves.

Will this actually hack proof your blog? No, but it will make it much less likely that you'll get hacked, just like if you're a safe driver it's much less likely you'll have an accident.

I could go one forever since I'm a security guy, but these three tips will make you MUCH less likely to get hacked.

Blog Naming -- Give Your Blog a "Reasonable Name"

Give your blog a reasonable name. Although avant-garde names are popular now, they are not appropriate for most business blogs. Actually your blog doesn’t even need a name; you can just use your name or organization's name in the header of the blog.

Hopefully your blog will be a successful and longterm endeavor. Choose a name that will be "reasonable" in the long run.

Cute, trendy or off-the-wall names might just seem absurd or unprofessional in a year or less.

I've talked people out of the following names for professional blogs!

• Skanky Bitch Chronicles - for a life coach's blog
• I, Negro - an Afro-American blogging on marketing
• He's Dead Jim - a mortician blogging on, yes, choosing a funeral home, funeral services, and prepaid funeral plans
• White Supremacist Nosepicker - a sales trainers blog (says he just liked the name for its absurdity)

Hey folks, I'm all for strange, bizarre, unique, etc. where at least slightly appropriate, and a far out blog name CAN work for a business blog sometimes, but were the people above thinking? Hmmmm, maybe, maybe not . . . .

Pick a blog name that won't seem as inappropriate as that dumb ass tattoo you got when 17 years old and drunk!

Use your Blog Comment Name for Personal Branding

Use a consistent name when leaving comments on blogs. Consider appending a tagline, perhaps your blogname or other personal brand name.

When I leave comments, I'm now "Ted Demopoulos, The Blogging for Business Guy."

Before I was just "Ted Demopoulos" or sometimes "Ted Demop" or even "teddemop." Long ago I decided I needed a consistent name when leaving blog comments, so I started exclusively using "Ted Demopoulos" even though it's looooong.

A few months ago I noticed others adding "tag lines" to the name they used for leaving blog comments, and decided to append my blog name, making me "Ted Demopoulos, Blogging for Business." I like this much better than just my name!

Friends sometimes introduce me as "The Blogging for Business Guy" -- hey, I did co-author the Blogging for Business book. My blog comment name is now "Ted Demopoulos, The Blogging for Business Guy."

So, if your name is Joe Smith or even Zaphod Beeblebrox, consider using a consistent name with a tagline when you leave comments on blogs.

Some Blogs to learn from

I learn a lot about blogs by looking at and reading blogs.

You can observe a lot by watching.  -- Yogi Berra
And you can learn a lot too, as I'm sure Yogi knows

Here are three relatively new blogs you and I might learn something from:

What's The Diff?
A group blog exposing Quicken Loans as a fun place to work.
From their about page: " THE DIFF blog is all about the things that make the difference in business and in life.  Most of the time, it's the little things."

Holder's "Stuph File"
Peter Anthony Holder is a fixture on Montreal talk radio and a great interviewer - he's even interviewed me on the air. Man can this guy write well, and he's funny too! Welcome to the blogosphere Peter!

The Plastic Spork
Shawn Chambers has "A Passion For Plastic And The People Who Use It" and it's obvious. He's been blogging about 3 weeks and Shawn says "I've already had almost 600 visits!!!! And other industry people have noticed and linked to me as well..."
Great start Shawn and welcome to the blogosphere (and thanks for the book review too)!

And in case you don't know what a spork is.

Handling Negative Posts

It can be hard to know what to do about negative posts or comments.

Some negative posts as well as blog swarms (groups of negative posts feeding off each other's energy) should obviously be ignored, but some equally obviously need a response.

In this month's Blogger and Podcaster Magazine you can read an excerpt on negative posts and blog swarms from our Blogging for Business book (pages 32-39) as well as an exclusive interview with Shel Holtz and me on the state of blog swarms today, aggregators, my thoughts on how there are multiple parallel blogospheres today, and more.

The Art of the Quick Post

Some of my best posts have been written, proofread, and posted in 3 minutes or less! Yes, some posts takes MUCH longer, but some of my best -- most popular, most read, most commented on, most linked to, etc. -- have been written super quickly!

How?

I've been thinking about this post for a few days. It's already been written and re-written in my head several times. Right now it's just pouring out of my mind on to my blog. The thinking has been already done.

You ever have a post in mind? Maybe while driving or flying or whenever you have no blog access? You write and improve/re-write in your mind with no conscious effort, and then when you sit to type, it just pours out beautifully?

That's the art of the quick post. It's already written mentally.

OK, written, proofread, less than 3  minutes. Time to hit "publish" now.

Comments: Who are you ? I am . . .

Dawud Miracle, a frequent commenter, once wrote that he would sometimes leave comments as "D Miracle" other times as "Dawud Miracle" etc. He decided he should always use the same name -- "Dawud Miracle". Makes lots of sense.

Recently I got a comment from "Joan Steward, The Publicity Hound" and I though "Hey, Joan is pretty smart, and THE Publicity Hound. A great way to extend her brand and get attention.

Then I noticed my friend Shel Horowitz had become "Shel Horowitz, Ethical Marketing Expert" in comments.

I'm now "Ted Demopoulos, Blogging for Business" in comments. It makes me stand out, extends my brand, I just like it, and it makes sense too.

How about you? Are you just "John Smith"? Maybe you should be "John Smith, ZXyyz of Pogghyet" or similar?

Great Blog Advice sources

I learn a lot about blogging from Mike Sansone, who I was very happy to include in one of my books.

Mike lists some of his "Blog Coaches" -- and I'm proud to be included! I'll be perusing his list over the next few days as I'm not familiar with all of them. Many I know well, and Mark and Robyn appear along with Mike in my book What No Ever Tells You About Books With Absurdly Long Titles Blogging and Podcasting.

Check them out, including Mike too, who many of you no doubt already read!

• Mark White at Better Business Blogging
• Claire Raikes at Business Blog Angel
• Divya Uttam at Blogging to Fame
• Laurence-Hélène Borel at Blog Till You Drop
• Shonnie Lavender at My Blog Coach
• Derrick Sorles at Business Blogging Tips
• Ted Demopoulos at Blogging for Business
• Alicia Dorset at BlogWorks
• Robyn Tippins at Practical Blogging
• Tan Kian Ann at Blogopreneur
• Toby Bloomberg at Diva Marketing Blog

Reading Blogs Offline Easily

I spend too much time staring at a computer screen, and still never quite finish reading all my feeds . . .

Enter RSS 2 PDF, which can convert any blog (or other site with a RSS feed) into a PDF file. For most blogs, it includes the last 5-10 posts which is perfect!

I've just printed out, as on paper, the following blogs and am going to go sit and read in the sun with a good cup of Joe:

isabont
Blogopreneur
Healthy WebDesign
Success from the Nest

Then I think I'll RSS 2 PDF a few more for my plane flight.

I also like the idea of converting to Morse Code, but  would prefer mpeg format. Morse Code? It's about as dead and obsolete as sailing!

5 ways to scare off blog visitors

The most critical part of your blog is the part visible in a browser without scrolling.

The MOST important stuff needs to be there, "above the fold" as it's often called, because the average visitor will never scroll -- especially if they don't like what they see. 

But people constantly make horrible mistakes about what's above the fold. I've certainly been guilty of it.

Here are five common mistakes to avoid:

Blog: Backup or Die

Backup your Blog

There once was a blog network -- a whole bunch of related blogs, and one day the hosting service they used went bankrupt. No warning, nothing, just the servers and data all gone.

The commander in chief of the blog network of course had backups of all the blog data -- but they hadn't been tested. The blog backups were corrupt and useless!

That day the blog network died. All the posts, comments, etc. was gone forever.

This is a true story unfortunately, and you don't want this to happen to you!

So what do you need to do? Simple.

1) Backup your blog!
2) Make sure the backup works.

More Blog Suggestions for me

Blog Advice for All

I've written about the BusinessBlogWire SOAP Program, where any blogger can sign up and give and receive blog tips. It's currently closed, but version 2.0 is due sometime.

It's a free program where you are assigned a blogger, check out their blog and offer them tips, and someone is assigned to you also.

Easton Ellsworth, Mr. BusinessBlogWire himself, offers me these SOAP tips -- my commentary follows

Blog Search -- I should have it

Terry Kineda writes, "Great blog, but I was trying to search for specific info on your site but there's no search?"

You're right Terry, a blog search feature is very helpful to visitors. I SHOULD have blog search and will add it soon.

Many blog platform have a built in blog search feature that's easy to implement. TypePad, which I'm using here, doesn't have a built in blog search feature, so I'm going to implement Google Search on this blog. I remember seeing something in help about it, and it should be relatively straightforward.

I'm going to try and do it now, but as I have no power (freak snowstorm) and limited Internet, it may have to wait a day or two!

10 Tips for Utterly Destroying Your Blog and Your Credibility

The always insightful Reg at Elemental Truths says "If you want to understand the "secrets" of building something great, use reverse engineering and list all the best ways to destroy it."

Here's part one, starting with:

Step 1: Don't Link to Anyone Else.

Links help internet users find interesting, useful and useful content. In bound links especially stir up attention from search engines like Yahoo, Google, MSN Search, Ask Jeeves, or Lord forbid, Dogpile. Generally the more incoming links a site has the higher it is rated. You wouldn't want any of that pesky traffic slowing down the death of your site.

Read the rest at Elemental Truths.

Blog Improvement Suggestions: SOAP

The SOAP program is still open and free.

I SOAPed Brooke Long's nice blog Snippets n Blurbs - check it out and see if you have any additional comments or if you disagree with any of my advice.

Like your writing style! Great job. And the blog looks great too.

Here are some suggestions:

• I'd add a picture of yourself for sure. It makes blogs much more personal. The SnB and Brooke link is good, but a picture would add a lot.
• Writing about things you feel are important or just interesting is great. But in order to build a big readership, which may or may not be a goal, you need more focus. Sure, some bloggers can write on anything and get lots of visitors, but many of them either started long ago when the rules were different or were already well known before they started blogging.
• Along the lines of the above paragraph, your title tag is "Where a little about a lot will take you a long way." I like that, but not as a title tag, what appears in the upper border of the browser window, because search engines place a lot of importance in it. It doesn't give the search engines any clue what your blog is about and help them send you traffic.

Blog Advice for Me

Tony D. Clark, the man behind Success from the Nest, was chosen to be my SOAPer (program still open and free). His advice to me follows. Tony obviously knows his stuff -- Thanks Tony!

Honestly, I couldn't find a whole lot to improve upon. You obviously know what you're doing (hence the books ;). But what you said about being blind to what you do for yourself made sense. I'm that way myself. So my approach was to take it as I would with any client during the initial assessment, and point out a few tips that you may or may not already know about.

Design

First off, I like how you have the images of the books above the fold. That's the "reason" for the blog, so that's terrific placement. I also like the picture, and think it helps your readers see you as a real guy, not just a faceless writer or consultant.

The biggest downside I see is the standard TypePad template. It looks like a lot of other blogs and doesn't really set you apart. One of the first things I recommend to clients is a custom look. If you have to use preexisting templates, then pick one that is professional, but maybe not one being used by others in your field. I'm not too familiar with how TypePad does it, but tweaking WordPress templates is pretty easy. And there are template designers who can do it for you for a pretty reasonable price.

I think that one change, to a more custom look, will really help your blog to stand out.

Traffic

The things I've had the best luck with are:

- Guest blogging on a popular blog with a similar audience. I contribute to lifehack.org, and a few others that send a good deal of traffic my way.

- Commenting on other blogs in my niche and similar niches. I've actually had a lot of folks mention that they found me through comments on other blogs.

- MyBlogLog is a great way to get new readers. It has a "MySpace" feel, which I don't like, but most of the folks coming to my site are professional. I've picked up quite a few new readers and subscribers from MBL.

- StumbleUpon. When I first started blogging, someone submitted a few of my posts and I got TONS of traffic from it. And it was targeted traffic, unlike what might come from Digg. I like StumbleUpon because of the way the community rates and reviews sites. There are several great articles on using it for traffic:

http://www.10e20.com/2007/02/23/how-to-use-stumbleupon-for-your-business-the-definitive-guide/
http://www.seomoz.org/blog/stumbleupons-fantastic-ability-to-drive-traffic
http://blog.seoptimise.com/2006/10/how-to-increase-stumbleupon-traffic.html
http://www.searchenginejournal.com/?p=4346
http://www.doshdosh.com/blog-website-promotion/a-comprehensive-guide-to-stumbleupon-how-to-build-massive-traffic-to-your-website-and-monetize-it/

Search Engine Rankings

I find SEO both fascinating and overwhelming. But I've learned a lot in the past few months from reading. Writing good content, then using some of the traffic building things above will help here too. Traffic tends to generate backlinks, which helps your rankings.

I also think the design will play a part. I've seen this first hand with clients. Sites and templates designed with search engines in mind, helps make the spiders more friendly.

If I had to give one piece of advice about SEO, it would be to get Aaron Wall's SEOBook. It's the single greatest resource on the subject that I've found, particularly for small businesses. It's $79, but WELL worth the price.

http://www.seobook.com/

Aaron also has a lot of great info on his blog, and some free tools too.

Well I hope this gives you a least a little something to think about. All of this is from my own experience, but I've found it to be pretty universal.

If you need any more clarification, or have any questions, let me know. This has been fun, and I'm glad to help out.

Don't "Bury The Lead"

Don't bury the key information of a story somewhere in the body of the article -- put it first. Newspaper reporters learn quickly not to "bury the lead" and it's at least equally important for bloggers.

People don't read on the 'net -- they scan, even more so than with newspapers. Make sure the most important information comes first, so it benefits both scanners (most people) and those who decide to read in more detail.

This is sometimes called the "inverted pyramid structure." The most important stuff comes first, and less & less important details come further down.

Look at the following paragraph and compare it to the first of this post:

You've got 3 seconds -- then they're gone!

3 seconds -- that's how long the average web surfer will spend before they decide to stay or leave.

You NEED to make a great first impression!

Your blog had better NOT be ugly. Heinous glaring colors, too much stuff all over the place, hard to read fonts, unexpected audio that starts playing, etc.
So, what's ugly? Can you tell? I can not!

Secrets of Successful Blogging

Secrets of Successful Blogging, a 40 page compilation of tips from hundreds of people is not only done, but even available via Amazon now!

I'll also be implementing KickStartCart, my recommended shopping cart, in the next few days and selling it directly.

People seem to like it a lot. If you buy it and don't I'll buy it back.

"This is a terrific little book! The suggestions and services recommended were mostly ones that I had already been using and had good success with. A new blogger who is looking for an easy overview of how to make the most of their blog should most definitely check this out." - Bruce Allen, Boston Sports Media Watch

Ted Demopoulos' "Secrets of Successful Blogging" booklet covers a huge range from the most basic tips to precious pearls for building your business through blogging. You get the feeling Ted is right next to you, showing you surefire ways to maximize every blog you have, all in plain, simple English. Whether you have a blog or are thinking about creating one, be sure to let this booklet contribute to your success. - Paulette Ensign, The Tips Booklet Queen

What's in it? Here's the Table of Contents:

Include Images in Posts for Visual Appeal

Including images in your blog, perhaps one per post, makes your blog much more visually attractive. It helps draw people in.

I'll admit I rarely do this -- I'm just not a visual guy, Although I like images in other peoples blogs.

I'll try harder in the future though. Some people like Robert at Freaking Marketing take this to a near art form!

Oh, this picture? One of my heroes. Just say Moe!

Your Classic Hits - put 'em in your email signature

I wrote previously about classic hits, your most popular blog posts, and how you should somehow highlight them, maybe by listing them in the sidebar as I do, or creating a "Most Popular" category or similar.

Dennis McDonald lists them in his email signature, as below:
________________

Dennis D. McDonald
www.ddmcd.com
weekly top ten posts
________________
That's a great idea! I may simply list my most popular 3-4 blog posts in my email signature.

My most popular blog post of all time BY FAR is Blog Names are Very Important.

What's yours? -- please leave them as comments.
(and now I'm off to read Dennis' top ten)