presents

Session 1: Intro to Corporate Blogging Blogs and social media Session 1: Intro to Corporate Blogging

Table of Contents Introduction What is a blog? What makes it a blog? Why should we care? Benefits and challenges Case studies The primary social networking sites Corporate blogging etiquette

Dell sucks Thousands of frustrated consumers eventually commented on and linked to my blog, saying, "I agree." I blogged an open letter…join the conversation your customers are having without you.

Dell joined the conversation

Other Dell social efforts 1980s: listservs, for example. April 2006: Online Community Outreach team July 2006: Direct2Dell blog and burning batteries Summer 2006: Expanded blog outreach to include any conversations about Dell. Sept. 2006: StudioDell Early 2007: IdeaStorm – tell Dell what to do “Tech Brad” on Yahoo Answers – so popular being used in ads

Happy ending “In the age of customers empowered by blogs and social media, Dell has leapt from worst to first." – Jeff Jarvis, Business Week First step: Dell dispatched technicians to reach out to complaining bloggers and solve their problems, earning pleasantly surprised buzz in return.

"These conversations are going to occur whether you like it or not, O "These conversations are going to occur whether you like it or not, O.K.? Well, do you want to be part of that or not? My argument is you absolutely do. You can learn from that. You can improve your reaction time. And you can be a better company by listening and being involved in that conversation.” – Michael Dell

Michael Dell: I think a strong company is one that constantly learns Michael Dell: I think a strong company is one that constantly learns. One of the best ways to constantly learn is to really listen to customers. The rapidly changing tech landscape makes it efficient and easier than ever before to listen, learn and connect with customers.  The emergence of social media is a tremendous opportunity to bring the "outside" in to your company.

Measurable results Dell saw a 27 point decrease in negative blog posts, from 49 percent at the peak of Dell Hell to the current 22 percent. Cost would have been hundreds of millions for similar ad campaign. How much would they have had to spend on an ad campaign to achieve that same result? if that same result is even possible through advertising. Hundreds of millions of dollars for a brand that large.

Michael Dell: "A company this size is not going to be about a couple of people coming up with ideas. It's going to be about millions of people and harnessing the power of those ideas."

Tips from Bob Pearson, Dell Focus group with 10 people, or listen to 10,000? Customers = partners Communities > individuals You should be easy to see and talk to Be truthful, transparent, diligent Customers = people, not lines of business Don’t try to fit old thinking to new environment. New set of metrics.

Social media is an umbrella term that defines the various activities that integrate technology, social interaction, and the construction of words, pictures, videos and audio. This interaction, and the manner in which information is presented, depends on the varied perspectives and "building" of shared meaning, as people share their stories, and understandings. - Wikipedia What is social media?

Social media is ... a way of using the Internet to instantly collaborate, share information, or have a conversation ideas or causes we care about. It’s a world where anyone can be a publisher, a reporter, an artist, a filmmaker, a photographer or pundit …. Even an activist or citizen philanthropist!“ - Beth Kanter in presentation What is social media?

Best way to find out is to compare to what we had before: Newspapers Magazines Television Radio Books CDs DVDs A box of photos Physical, paper mail and catalogs Yellow Pages What is social media?

What is social media? Can be changed Can participate Can sense popularity – comments, bookmarks, Techmeme Archives Mixed media – photos, videos No publishing committees Infinite – no quantity limits like words or time Syndicated - openness Mashable – widgets from 3rd parties - Robert Scoble What is social media?

What is social media?

Sites considered social media: Blogs Message boards Forums Social networks Video sharing Microblogging Slideshows Picture sharing (Photobucket) Podcasts Vidcasts Wikis Groups Virtual words or communities (Second life)

Base: US online adult social networking site users, Source: North American Technographics Media And Marketing Online Survey, Q3 2007

What is Web 2.0? Stickiness syndication Web 1.0 Web 2.0 DoubleClick Google AdSense Ofoto Flickr Akamai BitTorrent mp3.com Napster Britannica Online Wikipedia personal websites blogging evite upcoming.org domain name speculation SEO page views cost per click screen scraping web services Publishing participation CMS Wikis directories (taxonomy) tagging ("folksonomy") Stickiness syndication What is Web 2.0?

What is a blog?

Portmanteau of “weblog” Written in chronological order Displayed in reverse chronological order A verb From Wikipedia entry for “Blog” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog

RSS Really Simple Syndication RSS in plain English

RSS Benefits Portable Mashable No email, guaranteed delivery Secure channel, can’t be spammed Easily share More visibility Good for time-sensitive info (special deals, etc., events) Users can control flow of info -> trust Builds up inbound links

Trackbacks Tells other blogs you linked to them, and then an excerpt of your post appears with a link back to your blog in the comments section of their post that you linked to

Pingbacks You get a notification that other bloggers linked to your blog, and an excerpt of their post appears on your blog with a link to their blog (opposite of trackbacks)

Example of pingback

Comments

Pings Blogs set up to ping send an automatic message to tens or hundreds of blog directories, telling them you just published something new. This not only spreads your blog further, but Google is known to follow these blog directories, and it helps Google pick up on new blogs quickly. Pingomatic.com is an example of a pinging service.

Tags Good for search engines; gives them more info on what the post is about Good for Technorati blog directory Good for finer categorization of posts

Tagging

“It’s a new media world that really returns us to old Main Street ethics. A shopkeeper within the town builds great relationships with his/her community members. There’s an intrinsic understanding that they need the community as much if not more so than the community needs the shop. And so the shopkeeper works hard for the community, and treats it well.“ - The Participation Ethos

Isn’t it a waste of time?

Other wastes of time: “Airplanes are interesting toys but of no military value.” –Marechal Ferdinand Foch “The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?” –David Sarnoff’s associates in response to his urgings for investment in the radio in the 1920s. “Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?” --H.M. “Harry” Warner, Warner Brothers, 1927.

Social computing is not a fad Social computing is not a fad. Nor is it something that will pass you or your company by. Gradually, social computing will impact almost every role, at every kind of company, in all parts of the world. - Forrester Research, Social Computing – How Networks Erode Institutional Power, And What To Do About It

Why should I care about social media?

The blogosphere – you’re already there Guess what – you are already there.

The blogosphere is doubling in size every 6 months

Growth of the blogosphere It is now over 60 times bigger than it was 3 years ago On average, a new weblog is created every second of every day 19.4 million bloggers (55%) are still posting 3 months after their blogs are created Technorati tracks about 1.2 Million new blog posts each day, about 50,000 per hour 34% of large corporations currently have a blog solution, 70% plan one by the end of the year

Who’s on the web? 70% of US adults use the Internet 91% of Internet users use email 91% use search engines 39% read blogs 5 of the top 10 most-visited sites are social

Word of Mouth - Trust

What do you prefer? Reading an annual report, or lunch with a key executive?

Word of Mouth It is claimed that a satisfied customer tells an average of three people about a product or service he/she likes, and eleven people about a product or service which he/she did not like.[3] Viral marketing is based on this natural human behaviour. (Wikipedia)

They don’t buy it anymore "76% of consumers don't believe that companies tell the truth in advertising." Yankelovich "85% of Chinese stop watching TV during commercial breaks. More than half change the channel, while the rest do housework, eat, chat or use the bathroom." (McKinsey & Co.)

They don’t buy it anymore "In 1965, 80% of 18-49 year olds in the US could be reached with three 60-second TV spots. In 2002, it required 177 117 prime-time commercials to do the same." Jim Stengel, Global Marketing Officer, P&G

Blogs and online user generated media content are reliable sources in North America. Asia & Europe are a close second and third.

WOM Spending …more than $1 billion is spent a year on word-of-mouth campaigns targeting Influentials, an amount growing at 36% a year, faster than any other part of marketing and advertising. That’s on top of billions more in PR and ads leveled at the cognoscenti. The Age and Influence of Social Media

Show me the money

ROI for Social Networking Community users remain customers 50% longer than non-community users. (AT&T, 2002) 43% of support forums visits are in lieu of opening up a support case. (Cisco, 2004). Community users spend 54% more than non-community users (EBay, 2006) In customer support, live interaction costs 87% more per transaction on average than forums and other web self-service options. (ASP, 2002) Cost per interaction in customers support averages $12 via the contact center versus $0.25 via self-service options. (Forrester, 2006)

ROI Community users visit nine times more often than non-community users (McKinsey, 2000). Community users have four times as many page views as non-community users (McKinsey, 2000). 56% percent of online community members log in once a day or more (Annenberg, 2007) Customers report good experiences in forums more than twice as often as they do via calls or mail. (Jupiter, 2006)

Measurable results: ROI Media attention Speaking requests Customer loyalty Inbound links to the blog Search engine ranking for the corporate site

Measurable results: ROI Corporate website traffic Leads/sales initiated Volume of blog traffic Technorati and other credible rankings Search engine ranking for the blog

Measurable results: ROI Increased company visibility within the industry Increased media coverage Improved customer loyalty Increased sales leads/revenue/new customers

Today’s leading brand Source: Millward Brown’s Brandz

Nature of advantage is shifting The big boys: Coke, P&G Google Decades and billions $0 on ads

“To blog or not to blog. The answer, simply enough, is to blog “To blog or not to blog? The answer, simply enough, is to blog. No better opportunity exists to engage in an open dialog and exchange of ideas with customers and potential customers.” Bob Lutz, Vice Chairman, General Motors

"If you blog, you exist." - Shai Agassi, former Board Member, SAP

Benefits Low cost and fast to set up Transparent and authentic Information is always up-to-date Blogging is innovative = you are innovative Inexpensive tool for external communication Quickly respond to critics

Benefits: Reach Get the right information to the right people at the right time. Broad reach via RSS and email subscriptions Opening a new marketing channel for products and services

Benefits: Financial Test out ideas on the blog before development Forrester research: savings from customer insights Low-cost, targeted for recessions: Brands which took advantage of social media marketing in 2007 avoided the slump in sales which affected some sectors and profited from their efforts, a new report has claimed.

Benefits: Search Engines Increased site traffic Increased rankings Search engines like: Sites that publish fresh content Sites with inbound links Keywords

Benefits: Thought Leadership Position you and your company as thought leaders in competitive markets Establish a true, credible voice in the marketplace Gain knowledge, stay on top of your field Tim Ferris launched The 4 Hour Workweek to New York Times bestseller list through blogging

Benefits: Branding Strengthen and promote your brand Give your company a human face Forrester research: increased brand visibility Forrester research: reduced impact from negative user-generated content, and increased sales efficiency

Benefits: PR Free and controlled news desk Damage control! Rapid response tool Create buzz - give small hints abt. new products, generate press interest Announce conferences/events Product development and launch

Benefits: Customer Relations Customer queries answered leading to reduced customer service or technical support calls Enhance customer loyalty Build sense of community Turn customers into your sales force Reach an active, passionate consumer base Reach people on their own terms

Benefits: Lead Generation Better communication with prospects Leverage existing customer base to spread your message Increased enquiries generated; subscriptions to newsletter/rss = ongoing A living white paper

Benefits: Lead Generation Customer support Education-based marketing More friends = Word of Mouth - 80% of online users trust the opinion of a friend or acquaintance more than any other possible web source

Benefits - miscellaneous Put a human face on the company Comment = customer buy-in Leverage opinion leaders’ influence

Benefits: Intelligence GM's Fastlane Blog’s Bob Lutz, says he receives better consumer intelligence from reading the comments on his blog than those from traditional market research channels, like surveys and focus groups. Quickly and easily poll your customers Get feedback Build better products from 2-way conversation

Benefits: Collaboration Company news and updates Project notes Centralized archives Instant documentation

Industry Benefits: B2B What going on in my market? What are my competitors doing? What activities do my buyers engage in?

Challenges Open criticism Lack of control Time consuming Need to be consistent Need to make changes in how you work Your audience is not online Need to teach staff about it.

“I’ve never really found the time to blog, so to speak “I’ve never really found the time to blog, so to speak....I always have my BlackBerry with me. When I’m feeling inspired I jot something down. I’ve always been this way.” Bob Lutz, Vice President General Motors

Challenges Compliance and legal issues Untrustworthy member data 50% of blogs abandoned within 90 days Loss in workplace productivity Hard to measure success Need for openness

Challenges Most blogs don’t get a lot of traffic No ending date Blogging employees don’t represent the brand Cost – GMs cost $240k

The only people for whom Social Media is bad are ‘liars’.

Companies who should have cared, but didn’t

Comcast couch guy

AOL – cancel my account!

“Applegate” May 2007: “…earlier yesterday technology blog Engadget published what it claimed was an internal email from Apple that stated the iPhone launch would be delayed until October and that the Leopard operating system would be delayed until January 2008. Six minutes after the post, Apple's share value had sunk to $103.42, cutting Apple's company value by $4bn. - TechCrunch

“Applegate” “Apple has received formal government approval to sell its much-anticipated iPhone in the US, just a day after a bogus email, dubbed "Applegate", wiped $4bn from the company's stock market value.“ - Guardian

Target PR Nightmare Rep from non-profit concerned with media and marketing’s impact on kids writes to Target objecting to their ad. Target: “unfortunately we are unable to respond to your inquiry because Target does not participate with non-traditional media outlets. This practice is in place to allow us to focus on publications that reach our core guest.”

uh oh…

= PR nightmare

Target PR Nightmare Target was publicly slammed for having questionable advertising practices and elitist public relations policies. Story was picked up and repeated thoughout the blogosphere

Target PR Nightmare Shaping Youth is a small, grass-roots organization - that has a blog. Target is #33 in the Fortune 50 - with $59 Billion in revenue - but no blog.

When social media came to the rescue…

Johnson&Johnson sues Red Cross over use of Red Cross! vs. Johnson&Johnson sues Red Cross over use of Red Cross! J&J takes the dialogue beyond the standard corporate PR, and posts about this on their blog.

vs. The result? A large number of comments and stories generally providing broad support for J&J's point of view. While there are negative comments, the blog achieved what no other crisis communication's vehicle would have delivered.

GM leader in social media GM launched blog in 2005 – Fastlane Written by Vice Chairman 200 years: GM expanding social media strategy to include GMNext Isn’t that a waste of time?

GM says yes to SM Forrester compared the results of GM’s Fastlane blog to those of a focus group, and since a focus group costs about $15,000 a month, which works out to $180,000 each year, GM has achieved similar results via their blog, and saved itself $180,000 in cash per year.

GM says yes to SM GM is trying to engage their customers one car at a time. Transparency Increases chances of reaching younger buyers Profit? Increase of 2.6% in sales compared with January last year.

Growing pains: Ford Ford recently released their first social media release. Ford’s lawyers did a very unsocial thing and stopped some of their most exuberant fans from printing up a fan calendar with photos of their own Ford cars in it.

Growing pains: Ford “The folks at BMC (Black Mustang Club) automotive forum wanted to put together a calendar featuring members’ cars, and print it through CafePress. Photos were submitted, the layout was set, and… CafePress notifies the site admin that pictures of Ford cars cannot be printed. Not just Ford logos, not just Mustang logos, the car -as a whole- is a Ford trademark and its image can’t be reproduced without permission. So even though Ford has a lineup of enthusiasts who want to show off their Ford cars, the company is bent on alienating them. ‘Them’ being some of the most loyal owners and future buyers that they have. Or rather, that they had, because many have decided that they will not be doing business with Ford again if this matter isn’t resolved.” (From BoingBoing - read more there)

“Ford pulled the spark-plug right outta their hearts.” – Todd Defren Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ 15601547@N08/2077964472/

Social Media Trends

Primary social networks

Facebook Events Causes Articles/Posts Shared Items Pages Photos/Videos Mass mailing

facebook statistics 40-50 million users. Over 40% over 35 Over 42m monthly uniques Over 78m widgets 6000 applications deployed Average visitor stays 20 minutes College educated White collar - Source: Your Facebook Strategy: Opportunities of a Ready-Made Platform

Things you can do with fb Conduct polls – 25 cents per response Facebook insights: Track demographics Add Flash or HTML to a Page Track page stats Tags in notes, videos, photos

Companies with fb widgets American Airlines: Travel Bag, lets Facebook friends share personal tips and experiences. Goal: to know more about travel preferences Coors Light - Consumers 21 and older able to send their friends invitations to meet for Coors Light

Power of facebook UK bank HSBC reinstitutes overdraft fees for recent college grads. 6,000 on facebook threaten boycott Ernst & Young answers questions from college students on facebook

What is twitter?

Ways to use twitter Personal Branding Get feedback Hire people Direct traffic Read news Network Company intranet Notify your customers Event updates Find prospects Provide live coverage Set up meetings Support your social media strategy – get votes for articles, etc.

Who’s on twitter Carnival Cruise lines Intel Software Adaptive Path PodTech Network Hillary Clinton Barack Obama Comcast Direct2Dell Dell Outlet JetBlue Airways

twitter case study: Comcast guy @comcastcares noticed a tweet from Michael Arrington, Eliason reached out to help, and Comcast soon dispatched a team to Arrington’s house to fix his Internet connection. It was, Eliason says, a turning point, but not in quite the way you’d think. Sure, Arrington’s experience with Eliason turned into a lengthy post on TechCrunch, but what seems to have interested Eliason more is how his Twitter followers rallied around him when some said that Comcast had only helped Arrington because he was Arrington. No, his supporters said, he’d helped out many other people too. Comcastcares was forming relationships.

twitter for B2B Sign up and spread the word Use it as a portable broadcasting channel Share knowledge from events Get feedback and opinions Publish product/service updates with links to site Publish useful info about your industry

Figure 2 Twitter Users Are Heavy Social Computing Adopters

Twitter Users Are Open To Advertising And Likely To Buzz

StumbleUpon for business Personalize your profile page. Join communities related to your business Add friends with similar interests Stumble often Label and tag your submitted pages appropriately Sponsor your site – very cheap and targeted

Digg/de.licio.us Digg home page = internet windfall with 20 million uniques per month Track trends and see what’s hot on the web Use de.licio.us as collaboration tool for sharing important info

friendfeed Lifestream Put it all in one place

YouTube 100 million videos watched every day Brand your video Less than 1 minute Put URL in description Create your own channel Choose good screenshot Use words like “exclusive” Push push push! You’ve got 48 hours!

Second Life More than 10 million user accounts 1.5 million residents log in every month Over $1m US spent every day (1st millionaire) Can own private property

Second life and branding Toyota – in-game models to promote Scion Peugeuot – virtual race track coincided with Frankfurt Motor Show BBC Radio 1 – stage with avatars of presenters and bands performing, virtual digital radio to listen

Social media overload

To social or not to social? Can I spare the time? What will the lawyers say? Will my employees waste time? Will my brand be damaged? Can I write? Will I see business results? Is it too technical for me? I’m afraid of losing control.

How to social

How to social Have a personality Don’t be afraid of failure Pick the right social media for your audience Make friends Add value to the community Don’t self-promote

How to social (cont) Be accurate Be transparent Be patient Increase your linkability Make tagging and bookmarking easy Help your content travel

If you give to your community 95% of the time, you win the right to take, i.e. promote yourself. Without giving, there is no taking.

How to set up guidelines Clarify what is off limits Can employees social on company time? Disclaimer? Be careful…

Wholefoods blog, Nov. 2007 Dear Stakeholders, A Special Committee of our Board of Directors' is conducting an independent internal investigation into online financial message board postings related to Whole Foods Market and Wild Oats Markets. In light of this, it is in the best interest of the company to temporarily hold off on posting on my Company blog. The ability to post comments to this blog will be disabled during this time as well. I look forward to resuming our conversations and plan on being in touch with you again soon. Best regards, John

4 basic rules for social activity Personal Responsibility Keep Secrets Keep Rules Be Nice

Setting up social guidelines Do not defame a colleague or discuss their behavior Do not write anything defamatory Do (or do not) social on company time Do not reveal confidential info or trade secrets. Do not refer to customers or partners without their permission Copyright

Setting up social ethics (Do not) Avoid inflammatory or controversial topics. Respect your audience Take privacy seriously

Why business blogs fail Not getting many comments Not enough subscribers Didn't see any increase in traffic to their website Too hard to come up with new content every week Couldn't figure out how to promote their products and services

Over 50% of blogs are abandoned within 90 days. So let’s get it right…

First and foremost…Strategy!

Strategy questions What are our goals? Who is our audience? Are they using SM? What will it take to get there? Activities and tactics: what will you do? Outcomes and benchmarks: what happened?

Goals Impacts Improved Services to Members Improved Positioning of Organization Greater involvement of Members in the organization Growth of the organization

Goals Goals Programs Organizational Capacity Partnerships or Alliances New Members New Gatekeepers New Donors/Sponsors More or Diversified Funding Organizational Visibility or Recognition Positioning Media Coverage Awareness Salience Attitudes or Beliefs - Commitment Public Will Membership Growth Growth of non-traditional membership demographic - new audiences

Audience Members Nonmembers Industry/Community Leaders Investors Business Leaders Sponsors/Donors Popular Culture Gatekeepers Media Staff/Volunteers

Who’s on the web? 70% of US adults 17% of global adults 91% of internet users use e-mail 91% use search engines 67% get news 66% visit a government website 39% read blogs 93% of teens are online

Audience

Does my audience use SM? Age Gender Occupation (What else?) Social network Tool: Forrester Social Technographic Ladder

What will it take? Capacity: Funding – can be costly: GM's program cost $240k, but it had a profitable ROI. Skills Infrastructure Staff

What will it take? Preparation and planning Data Problem assessment Goal setting Partners Message Materials

Activities and tactics Evaluation, Analysis, Research Relationship Building with Decision-Makers and Thought Leaders Board, Staff, Gatekeeper Education Proposal Development

Activities and Tactics PR Newsletter (electronic or print) Media coverage Briefings/Presentations Viral - participation within existing communities Blogs

Outcomes and Benchmarks Benchmark first, so you can measure success. Desired outcomes: New partnerships New users/clients Embracing new demographic New sponsors/donors Increased funding/profits Increased visibility Brand strengthening Media coverage Awareness

Forrester’s POST People – who are you targeting – social technographic tool Objectives – what are your goals Strategy – how will you do this Technology – what tools will you use

Types of people – Forrester Creators – publishers of original material Critics – ratings, comments, forums, wiki Collectors – tags, rss feeds, digg Joiners – has profile on social networks Spectators – reads, watches, listens Inactives - nada - The Forrester Social Technographics Ladder

Co-marketers Brand Evangelists - they LOVE you. Promoters - they are loyal, but not crazy, and will promote you. Co-creators - These people thrive on being part of a group that helps you make a product better, launch a new product, advise you on new menu items or even helps you co-create marketing.

Objectives Listening – learn from customers (used to be research) Speaking – create emotional attachment, advertising (marketing) Energizing – Excite your fans, WOM (sales) Supporting – peer-to-peer support (support) Embracing – Members become contributors (development)

Strategizing Build or join Experimentation Market intelligence Advertising Embrace and lead communities Deploy campaign

Levels of Corporate Adoption "The Tower" - Purely centralized adoption of social media tools; Central person/organization that mandates all social media activities. "The Tire" - Uncoordinated adoption at the edge of the organization; Organization that works on the edges of the company. Not coordinated. "Hub & Spoke" - Best model. Central organization with flexibility at the edges.

Roles Social media strategist: organizes and supports the program Internal facing program manager Community manager External facing program manager Customer support PR Blogger Relations, etc.

How Can’t spread yourself too thin, or you won’t have any results Listen before speaking – needs of members first Members are in control Allow for discussions Be transparent – admit you’re marketing Become a resource – best way to start Integrate with other marketing initiatives

Setting up a blog strategy

Step 1: Goals Why? Who? What?

Step 2: Naming your blog Blog is extension of brand and marketing goals Research competitors’ blogs Research industry keywords: Keyword Discovery or Wordtracker Simple URL

Step 3: Incorporate with site Give blog prominent placement in site’s navigation and vice versa Share branding elements: colors, styles, fonts Publish press release/newsletter announcment

Design Simple, uncluttered – don’t make them think! Attractive=professional; branding Do not use a template, and if you do, make sure you’ve modified it enough. About page! Examples: uses template Ogilvy, Hill & Knowlton, CEO and Senior Exec blogs

Selecting a platform Blogger Typepad Movable Type WordPress.com WordPress.org

Spice it up Latest readers Recent comments Categories Tag cloud Recent posts Featured video Photo gallery Subscribe to email/RSS

Create blogging strategy Write with a human voice Post frequently Be transparent about who’s writing Create a conversation Link to useful resources Comment on other blogs

Blog etiquette Try to balance facts and opinion Link to reliable sources Be careful…

Measure your progress Feedburner Technorati twitter Blogpulse Google Blog Search Compete Google Analytics Alexa Social networks

Identifying key bloggers Technorati Google blog search Blogpulse Techmeme Blog directories Other blogs

Staying on top of things Google Alerts RSS feeds Email subscriptions Aggregators (popurls, Techmeme, twitter, facebook, MediaPost)

Blog Promotion

Linking Strategies Identify A-listers Use your RSS reader Seize opportunities Use keywords

Search Engines Submit Keywords Adwords Backlinks GMOZ

Guest blogging Carefully select blogs Bio with link to site

Commenting Mini posts Do it regularly Be useful! Engage with your commenters

Blog Carnival or contest http://blogcarnival.com/bc/

Press Releases PR Web Business Wire Social Media Press Release

Free white paper Only for subscribers Give links for reviews Allow free distribution Place on scribd, docstoc, slideshare

Schedule and tasks

Basic Weekly Blog Schedule ½-1 hour 3 times/wk Read RSS feeds and Google Alerts find new blogs 3-5 posts/wk Write blog posts 1 hour/wk Managing comments & responding 1 hour a week Writing comments on other blogs 2 hours/wk Study analytics (subscribers, visitors, web mentions)

Bonus blog tasks  Write pillar articles Interview a “celebrity” Guest blog on other sites Release press release Adwords campaign Create a video Offer free white paper

Simulation: Blog for “Accelerate” Accelerate is a new sports drink released by Enerdrinks Ltd. Enerdrinks is a small company with limited resources that wants to increase brand awareness. Accelerate is unique for the following reasons: Organic, no chemicals etc. Special squeezy bottle with velcro strap for portability Green promotion: Every purchase puts 10 cents to buy a tree Accelerate is targeting 18-32 year olds, and while they don’t have much money, they can afford to invest time in a blog. Help them create a blogging strategy.

Accelerate Blog Strategy Who are they targeting? What are their goals for the blog? What steps do they need to take? Current state of brand? Competitors? Activities Extra offerings Guidelines Layout What are you measuring?

The web is the network

"To find something comparable, you have to go back 500 years to the printing press, the birth of mass media...Technology is shifting power away from the editors, the publishers, the establishment, the media elite. Now it's the people who are taking control." Rupert Murdoch, quoted in Wired, July 2006.

www.illuminea.com mschwab@illuminea.com Thank you! www.illuminea.com mschwab@illuminea.com Also see us at: WordPressGarage israelplug Twitter facebook