Archive for Blogs We Love

How Authentic is Your Blog Writing?… And,
How Do You Write Authentically?

AuthenticAll the data shows that people prefer doing business with authentic brands and authentic professionals. But how authentic is your blog writing? Do you sound authentic? And, how do you write authentically, anyway?

In my last blog post, I shared 5-steps for a good bio/marketing message for an e-newsletter:

  • Tell them who you are and what you can do to help solve their challenges.
  • Let them know what kinds of people you work with, and how long you’ve been helping them.
  • Don’t try to sound too good. People have antennae for hyperbole.
  • Read your bio out loud to see if it sounds authentic.

The problem is that when you try to write authentically, it’s difficult to know what exactly to do. What makes blog writing sound real, sound authentic? Read More→

Top 5 Content Marketing Blog Aggregators

5 Best BlogsHave you created a list of your top 10 blogs?  If not, you’re missing out on opportunity to improve your search rankings.  It’s easy, smart and can help your business blog get inbound links.

I’ve talked about creating your own Top 10 lists before, and it still makes sense, even more so given the way SEO works today. Besides providing valuable, relevant information for your readers, you also: Read More→

Top 10 “Ego” Blogs: Get Inspired, Write Better

I’ve been using Alltop.com to find blogs in niches. And I really enjoy their aggregated lists* of top blog personalities, or as they call them, Ego Blogs.

I have no idea what their requirement is to get listed as an Ego Blog, but looking at the individuals who are included, I’d say these are all big names in the Blogosphere and they have big readership followings.

Heck, some may even have big heads, but for sure, they all write with larger than life personalities.

It’s worth studying their blogs to learn the ways they write and include their personalities. These blogs are completely different, in various fields of expertise. But they are all strong personalities.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Content Marketing Institute Gives Best “How-to” Tips…

There are two great blog posts over at the newly launched Content Marketing Institute blog. If you’ve haven’t subscribed to this yet, do so. It has great promise for becoming THE place to get updates on how to “do” content marketing.

Here are the two posts I paid the closest attention to so far (although I probably should read the others as well…):

The Content Marketing Institute is the brain child of Junta42 founder Joe Pulizzi, who has managed to gather some of the best and brightest marketers who are experts in content marketing tools and tactics.

The idea is to have a place where marketers can learn the “how-to” tips that bring the best results and save time, energy and money in doing so.

Creative Blogger Award from Judy King & Mexico-Insights Blog

Beachside_hammock Okay, I'm outta here. I'm going to the beach with my gal pals this week. I'll be back in time for the Survey Webinar with Dr. Jeanne Hurlbert Thursday March 25 at 4 p.m. EDT. (If you're not already registered from last week, you'll need to sign up here: How to Use Surveys to Attract, Sell & Profit.)

Before I go, I'd like to share a Creative Blogger Award I got from Judy King, editor of the Lake Chapala Review and blog writer extraordinaire at Mexico-Insights.com:

"While I’d been thinking about returning to blogging, it was Patsi, with all her Writing on the Web  expertise and coaching and marketing enthusiasm that gave me the nudge I needed to make the commitment. … Patsi maintains a pair of daily blogs and several websites, conducts webinars and has Ebooks out there to help others."

Judy had burned out on blogging a few months prior and I was able to give her some tips to make her blogging tasks easier, faster, better. Judy writes a fabulous blog about Mexico and Ajijic, where I live, and is a top-notch writer, editor and Mexico expert.

If you're curious about Mexico, subscribe to Mexico-Insights.com, Judy's blog. Then come visit us! You'll love it… both the blog and the places Judy writes about.

If you want tips to save you time and energy with your own blog, get the Time-Saving Tips for Smart Blogging program here.

Marketing for Nice People Makes You Laugh Out Loud…

Devil_angel I'm taking a course called Marketing for Nice People with two of my favorite peeps on the Web, Sonia Simone and Naomi Dunford. These two have teamed up to deliver some really important lessons on content marketing for your business. They take a devil/angel approach, and you can guess which one wears the horns…

Click here to view more details about Marketing for Nice People…

If you're familiar with Naomi Dunford's blog, Ittybiz, you know she's got one of the most famous potty-mouths around, but she's also got a heart of gold, writing smarts, and is one keen biz whiz. She knows how to make money online, and knows how to teach you to do the same.

Sonia is the gifted writer/marketer behind the blog Remarkable Communications. She's such a talented writer that Brian Clark snapped her up as one of his permanent guest writers on Copyblogger.

If you want to know more about these two, I suggest you read this brilliant interview, Content Marketing Gets Real. Then go sign up for Marketing for Nice People, it's a gas (as we used to say)…Click here to view more details

Here's a sample lesson from something called 101 Tweaks to Fix Your Marketing and Your Business:

Read More→

5 Expert Tips on How Small Businesses
Should “DO” Content Marketing

Extreme Popularity: Chris Brogan Interview
with David Meerman Scott

Chris Brogan, uber blogger and Tweeter (can't call him a Twit!), reveals his secrets to being one of the most popular guys on the web: (via WebInkNow, David's blog post, Chris Brogan: popular with jocks, nerds, cheerleaders, and teachers too

This doesn't surprise me. Being helpful is one of the smartest marketing tools around, and it's free. Whoops, that doesn't sound right to tell you that you should be helpful because it will bring you business. You should be helpful anyway, period.

Chris spells out exactly how he does this on the Web. For example, he says that there is a big difference between saying this:

"I just figured out how to…"

and this:

"Here's how you can …"

Words make a big difference. How can I help you write better?

Here's how else you can learn about gaining popularity: Subscribe to both ChrisBrogan.com and WebInkNow by David Meerman Scott.

The Blog Squad Bailout: Last Chance to Get a Blog Squad Blog or Makeover

Blogger-with-community
What do smart professionals do when they decide to start a business blog? They call The Blog Squad to set up their blog, and learn how to use it for business results. Or they get a Blog Squad Makeover for an existing blog.

However, you won't be able to do that after March 31, 2009.

March 31, 2009 will be the last time you can get blog set up and training with our personal attention. The Ultimate Business Blog Set Up Program is being taken off the market. That means you've only got a few more days to get your blog with our help. After that, we're outsourcing to other resources.

If you're smart, you'll take advantage of this last special offer, a 25% discount for this service. You'll save $500.

Even if you already have a blog, and especially if you're not getting results with it, you should read more about how our special coupon can be applied to an Extreme Blog Makeover as well:

Read More→

3 + 1 Bonus Content Marketing Posts You Don’t Want to Miss

Doh
Have you ever worked too hard? And finally, finishing a project, find out you could have made it far simpler?

The other day I struggled for over an hour to come up with something interesting and relevant for you, my dear readers of this blog. I couldn't figure out a topic that appealed to me. (If it doesn't interest me and it isn't on topic for Content Marketing, how can I expect you to get excited, right?)

Well, two hours later, I came up with something, then saved and published. As soon as I did, I clicked over to Michael Martine's post on Remarkablogger:

Ten Ways to Crank Out Killer Posts in Ten Minutes or Less

Fist to forehead, I figure Michael owes me at least 50 minutes of time. If I had read his blog post first, I would have followed his great advice. I'm doing so now.

His first tip is #1: Pick  three blogs you respect and introduce your readers to them.

Read More→