Here are the top 3 questions I get emailed about:
- If I don't have a website yet, should I start a blog? (Or, if I start with a blog, do I really need a website?)
- If I have a blog, should I also do a newsletter? (Or, If I have a newsletter should I do a blog?)
- Should I go with WordPress or Typepad for my blogging platform?
Here are my 3 answers:
- Yes (and yes)
- Yes (and yes)
- It depends
Don't you love it when I give short answers? So rare, too. Well I could go into all the reasoning behind my answers, and qualify each according to who's asking the question and what their needs are.
Here's my current thinking…
Check out the options offered by Men with Pens. They offer WordPress blog customization, web design, and copywriting services.
You need to have a strong web presence so that you show up everywhere on the Internet when someone with a problem goes looking for a solution.
It's what we call Massive Online Visibility. It's what Denise Wakeman and I have been promoting with our programs for Better Business Blogging and social media.
And your site needs to be clear, focused, easy to navigate, and user-friendly. Oh, and it needs to work for branding your business, too.
Don't try to do your site design yourself. I'm going to make a big fat suggestion for anyone who needs a site re-design, or a new template: talk to the Men with Pens first.
Unless you're trained in search engine optimization, web design, Internet marketing, and graphic design, this is not something you should try to do yourself. Not if you're serious about your business.
Yes, there is easy to use software that makes it possible for you to update and run your site. But don't try to create a new site on your own unless you know what you're doing. Even then, you need an outside expert to help guide you to see the things you can't see because it's your own business.
I recently asked for help on a site less than a year old that it wasn't working well. Who did I call? Men with Pens. (Don't tell The Hubby or The Kitties, but I'm secretly in love with The Men. Both of them, James Chartrand and Harry McLeod.)
Not only did they show me I needed more than I thought I did, they were able to take my very vague explanation of the look and feel I wanted and translate it into graphic reality. See new site here…
They were intuitive, thorough, and fast. They were patient and stayed to answer my nit-picking questions for days, maybe weeks after the site went live. Oh, did I mention they were extremely reasonable, price-wise? I love them.
I'm not alone. I went to leave a testimonial on their testimonial page, but got mired down in all the love-goo. And half of these love letters were from other men!
Here's my new site: www.ContentforCoachesandConsultants.com. If you were familiar with the old site, you know what a difference this site makes.
Everyone knows that as The Blog Squad, we recommend blogs on Typepad for most professionals. Denise and I know a few things about business blogging, and we have extremely high standards when it comes to business blogs.
So you can take this suggestion as carrying a lot of weight. If you need a good strong site, go with good, strong Men with Pens.
Start with a Drive-By Shooting. The boys will examine your current site and give you the feedback you need to hear. It's up to you to take action to correct what you've got. Or, maybe like me, you'll realize that sometimes it's best to start over, start anew.
Please drop me a line and tell me what you think of the new site, www.contentforcoachesandconsultants.com. I'm still finding things I forgot to link, etc. so your feedback is very important to me.
Related Posts:
Massive Online Visibility: Website or Blog?
Typepad vs WordPress vs Blogger
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