Are you ready to make blogging work for your business? If you already know the benefits associated with corporate blogging, then the next step is to put these concepts to work by creating your own corporate blog and sharing your company with the world. This is part 1 in a short series on tips for making blogging work for you.

1 – The first step is to find your domain name.

If you already have a website for your business, then the most advantageous option may be to attach your blog in some way to your normal business site. The next best thing would be to own the domain name that is most descriptive of your business when creating your blog. Either use your business name for your blog name, or your own name, so that you can help people link you and your blog with the company that you are intending to represent. Some of the most well known domain name registrars are GoDaddy, MyDomain, Register, PacNames and DotCalmDomains.

2 – Figure out which blogging tool or blogging platform is going to work best for you.

There are at least two different camps to consider when it comes to tools. The first is those who prefer self hosted blogs, and the second is those who prefer hosting tools. Where do you feel most comfortable? The decision is ultimately up to you but there are pros and cons associated with both options. Some of the options available to you are easily customizable hosted options like TypePad offered by SixApart, or Movable Type which offers more control than TypePad. If you want to host your own blog, WordPress may be more your style, as it offers a lot of customization and control and you can host it a lot more efficiently by yourself.

3 – Talk about yourself so your readers can get to know you.

Most blog templates have an “About” function. Use this wisely so that you may capture the true essence of who you are and what you are hoping to accomplish with your blog. You should aim to strike an excellent balance between human voice and “business speak” to show your readers that you mean business, but are just a passionate human being at the core.

4 – Register your blog and start spreading the word about your endeavor.

Get comfortable with your blog before you start speaking out about it. Once you have some content, and perhaps even a reader or two, you can start spreading the word about your blog. Register your blog at FeedBurner, available at http://www.feedburner.com so that you can provide RSS and e-mail feeds that people can use to gain access to your content. Technorati, at http://www.technorati.com is another excellent option as well as it will allow you to associate tags with your blog for better “findability”.

5 – Create a resource section or a blog roll to show your customers what you enjoy reading, or what resources you often visit.

Blog rolls are generous in two different ways, as not only do they allow people who you link to to find your blog, but they also help readers expand their knowledge by checking out the blogs that you recommend.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2009-01-19 05:07:46. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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(ie: should blog design match main site design?)

There are a lot of different considerations that need to be made when you are taking the initial steps to set up your corporate blog. For example, one of the first considerations that you should make is whether design integration is or is not important for your corporate blog. Should your blog design have the same design as your main site, or is there room for some creative license when setting up a site that is meant to be companion to your main site, but not necessarily part of the same website? The truth here is that either option is viable, as long as you are achieving what you intend to when designing the look and feel of your blog in its early stages on your website.

If your website has a distinct design that is classic and simple, then implementing it both on your main site and your blog site will add seamlessness for easy maneuverability, which is something that your readers will appreciate. As long as they can differentiate between the main website and the blog as they move from one to the other, there should be no underlying issues in creating a seamless design that remains the same from page to page. Because so many WordPress blog templates are designed to allow for extra pages, some corporate bloggers build the blog to spec and then add their main site around it, creating an entire blog and website combination from a single blog template. This is not the only option available to you however, so you should not feel locked into it.

On the other hand, as long as you keep a similar theme in place, there is no reason why you cannot create a website design and a blog site design that are unique to one another. If your website has a set of colors and a main graphical theme that is completely unique to your blog, you may be going for something a little too unique. However, design integration when it comes to hooking a blog and a website together does not mean using the exact same template twice – You can create an acceptable level of design integration simply by using the same images, the same basic color scheme or just a similar layout design. These small details will add up to show your readers that they are still on the same website while still making it easy for them to differentiate between your blog and your website, which can sometimes be beneficial to them.

The design details are ultimately up to you as you put your corporate blog together. What you should be aware of is the fact that both of these options have merit, and you can always add and change elements as you go to suit your style and to respond to comments from your readers. Your corporate blog and website do not have to have the same exact design implemented into both, but seamlessness can be nice when showing readers that the two sites have the same common goal.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2008-11-06 05:59:20. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Right now, one of the best ways to reach out to your customer base and increase brand recognition is through the use of a corporate blog. However, many companies aren’t sure where they should start and how they can take advantage of this trend. Here are some tips that make corporate blogging easy for any size company.

1. Plan your blog’s path out in advance.

It’s not enough just to create a blog, throw up a few posts and hope it will work. You will need to come up with a clear plan on what you plan to talk about with your blog, how often you will post and a general list of topics that you want to cover. By taking care of this in advance, you’ll be able to avoid a lot of the common pitfalls that make corporate blogs fail.

2. Design your blog to match your corporate site.

This sounds like a given, but it is actually a very common error. If you’re working on branding, you need to create that factor of instant recognition. By integrating your blog’s design into your site design you will be able to easily create that recognition. Many companies try to get crazy with wild themes or simply fail to have any sort of visual link between their blogs and their sites. This is a mistake that can be easily avoided.

3. Use an RSS management system.

Most blogs will have an RSS feed that will allow readers to receive instant updates whenever you publish new content. There are numerous services out there, such as Feedburner, that take this to a whole new level, providing you with tracking, format management and many other features. You can use these statistics to help shape your blog by finding out which posts are the most popular, which ones don’t receive much traffic as well as your overall readership. Pageviews aren’t enough when you’re trying to see if your blog is successful. You need to have that extra information at your fingertips.

4. Use a platform that is conducive to easy and frequent blogging.

If you are using blogging software that is complicated chances are you won’t want to post on a frequent basis. Likewise, you don’t want to have to spend a lot of time training your blogger to use the system. Go with an application that allows a simple type and post action to make it easier.

5. You’ve got to promote your blog.

If you don’t spend the time promoting your new blog, you may as well not have one. Take the time to use social networking sites and other avenues to build your blog readership.

A blog management company can help you accomplish all of these tasks and many more. Busy company owners find that having this kind of help makes corporate blogging incredibly easy and more successful. You will be able to leverage their experience and expertise to create a stellar blog that gets read.

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Originally posted 2008-06-25 05:36:54. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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If you are completely new to blogging, you may find that you have a lot of questions and at times, it can be hard to find the answers. We’ve compiled the most common issues facing new corporate bloggers and supplied the answers to these problems below.

1. Is this going to make my company more profitable?

Yes and no. It is important that you go into corporate blogging with the right mindset. Yes, it can be a very powerful means of promotion, but it’s going to take a lot of time and success will not happen overnight. The main reason that most companies get into corporate blogging is not to increase sales directly, but to improve their search engine rankings. Often, the result of a better ranking is more sales, but you should not view your corporate blog as a mythical tool that will rake in millions of dollars in sales.

2. What blogging platform should I use?

This is a tougher question because the answer is a bit nebulous. Everyone is going to have their preference, but overall, the most powerful and customizable platform has to be Wordpress. You’ll have two main options with Wordpress. First, you can set up an account on Wordpress.com, where they will host and install your blog for you, or you can download a free copy at Wordpress.org and install it on your own server.

For those that don’t have a lot of experience, the hosted version works quite well, despite its limitations. For those that need more options with plugins and configuration, installing it at the server level is the best option.

3. How do I promote my blog?

Once again, there is no set answer to this question, but there are several techniques that can be used successfully. First, you’ve got to make your blog easy to find on your own corporate site. Next, you’ll need to start promoting it in two different ways, directly and indirectly.

Direct promotion involves submitting your blog posts to social bookmarking and networking sites. Indirect promotion involves leaving comments on other blogs and leaving a link to your own blog inside. This should be used in moderation and your comments should always be related to the post and not blatant promotional attempts.

4. Is corporate blogging worth the effort?

Absolutely, but only if you are willing to spend extra time promoting your blog. If not, then it is a waste of your time. A good corporate blog will take a few months to catch on and you’ve got to be willing to take the time to really work on creating great posts and promoting them. Success is not going to happen instantly, and it will take work. However, you can see a big difference in your main site’s traffic and in public opinion when you really work on your blog.

Corporate blogging is not for everyone. If you’re interested in getting started, it is best to remember that it will take a lot of time and effort. For those willing to make that sacrifice, success is just around the corner.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2008-09-16 05:43:49. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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(Blogger, etc… focus on how posts may be deleted forever without warning, lack of professionalism, etc…)

In a lot of different instances when it comes to blogging, making use of a free blogging platform can really come in handy. If you are writing a personal blog or a blog that is only meant to be read by friends, family members and casual colleagues, then making use of a free blogging platform like Movable Type or Blogger is actually a good idea. These blogs allow you to blog as part of a giant network where you can gain exposure and readership just by posting, which makes them an excellent place for you to start out when you are just beginning to get the hang of blogging. Unfortunately, these are not a long term solution by any means because as a blogger with a free blogging network platform, you are actually subject not only to someone else’s rules relating to blogging, but also a loss of apparent professionalism by not having that individuality or uniqueness that you would have if blogging privately on your own website.

Because you are subject to the rules of the blogging platform that your blog is based off of, you may find your blog posts being deleted for no apparent reason and absolutely no warning, which can force you to deal with a difficult blow. How would you like to write a really nice, really detailed post that will attract readers, only to find out sometime later that it was deleted from the server because a moderator for the blogging platform did not agree with it? No warning is given, nor is any real chance to save your work before it is gone. While most moderators on blogging platform sites like Blogger and WordPress are working hard to be fair, this does not mean that you are protected.

In addition to the risk that your blog posts may be deleted without any real warning or rhyme or reason, another threat that you face is losing your look of professionalism because you are blogging on someone else’s website. This is similar to the difference between having your own domain name, or parking your website at http://www.geocities.com.

Which is more professional, in your eyes, http://www.mycorporateblog.com or http://www.geocities.com/~mycorporateblog?

The same thing goes when it comes to your blog. You want your blog to be a representation of your professionalism as an employee with the company and a blogger on the internet, and what this means is having your own unique blog website using an open source blogging software. WordPress may have a network where bloggers can create their own blogs on site, but their software is also downloadable, allowing you to create your own customized blog off site as well. This gives you an opportunity to create a professional blog that will do everything in its power to uphold your image of professionalism, which is a good part of why you are blogging in the first place.

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Originally posted 2008-11-20 05:18:07. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Have you spent any time looking at blogging publication platforms? You have probably already become well aware of the fact that there are numerous to choose from. Some of the most notable blogging platforms that you can choose from include WordPress, Blogger, Text Pattern, Blog Lines, Moveable Type, Life Type, Serendipity and Flat Press.

All of these blog platforms offer a certain level of ease of use and versatility, but the best choice for most cases is WordPress. Word Press is considered to be the best choice for setting up a blog because it offers functionality, versatility and incredible potential for generating income. Even if you’re simply looking to blog without making any money, WordPress is still by far the best blogging platform that you can use.

Most bloggers avoid using WordPress because they have the wrong idea about it. They either believe that it is too difficult for them to set up, or they believe that it is too expensive for them to operate. Both of these reasons are complete but common misconceptions, however.

1 – WordPress is not too difficult to set up, though at first it may seem a little daunting.

This is especially true if you have never used an FTP program before, or if you know very little about coding or scripts. However, the difficulty associated with installing WordPress is actually directly linked to who hosts your WordPress blog for you. With many hosts, such as GoDaddy.com for example, setting up a WordPress blog is as easy as pushing a couple of buttons.

2 – WordPress is a free program, but setting up a good blog and maintaining it can cost a little bit of money.

Still, the cost associated with setting up and maintaining a WordPress blog is not expensive. For examine, setting up a .info domain only costs $1.15 a year, and you can get a basic hosting package for only $5 per month. You can have a lot of blogs hosted in one hosting plan, so the costs really don’t add up when you think about the rewards.

In reality, WordPress is both easy to set up and inexpensive to own and operate, providing that you choose the right hosting provider. If you want to blog because monetizing your website is a concern, then using a WordPress blog is ideal because you own your own content, you can customize your blog with a myriad of widgets, you can easily convert your WordPress blog into a website, and there are a myriad of other details that make WordPress the best option. In other words, if you want to choose a high quality blogging platform that will give you functionality and versatility without a lot of cost, WordPress is an excellent way to go even though many people assume that it is more complicated or more costly than it actually is.

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Originally posted 2009-02-18 05:18:43. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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If you are publishing a corporate blog that has an RSS feed, and you should be, it is important to use a service that will allow you to enhance that feed and learn from it. One of the best services out there for this is Feedburner, and it can make a big difference in the way that you publish your content, and what you learn from it. Let’s take a look at just a few of the benefits that using this service can bring your corporate blog.

1. True estimate of readership.

Although your blog may have the ability to track page views, this really is not an accurate estimate of your readership. With Feedburner, you will be able to see how many people are clicking on feed links, which stories they are reading and how many subscribers you have. Tracking data is supplied on a daily basis and there are options to enhance the kind of information that is provided. When you first start your corporate blog, this is a very nice feature to have since it allows you to see if the time you are spending is worth it in terms of how quickly you gain readership.

2. One permanent feed address.

Perhaps the best benefit of using a service like Feedburner is that you get an RSS URL that will never change. Once you pick your Feedburner URL, you can redirect any of your own URL’s to it, so that your readers only have to subscribe to your feed once. If you change blogging platforms, or if you change the RSS feed, this will never actually affect your readers. This is very vital for companies since it is possible to lose hundreds of readers with one feed address change.

3. Gauging what posts work and which ones don’t.

With Feedburner, you will be able to see which particular posts are garnering the most interest. This is data that you can really use. By paying attention to these statistics, you can start publishing information that your readers want to read – and that is how blogs become successful. Sure, you may adore writing about a certain topic, but if your readers aren’t feeling it, you’re wasting your time. Use these stats to help you figure out which direction your blog needs to go in terms of the type of content you are publishing.

4. The software your readers are using.

Most blog readers use an aggregator to deliver their news, and there are many choices out there. Feedburner lets you see which ones your readers are using, and this can be beneficial when it comes to formatting and making sure that your blog is displaying properly. It can also let you know how many readers are actually just going to your website to get the blog and how many are actively using a feed to get there. This is useful information that you can use to shape the way that you publish your blog and the way your blog is designed.

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Originally posted 2008-08-25 05:32:08. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Once you know what niche or industry you will be blogging about, the next step in the process that you need to consider before you actually begin writing is some basic blog design tips. When designing and modeling your blog, you absolutely need to be able to keep your readers in mind. You need to create a design that has enough individuality and pizzazz that it will attract new visitors to your blog, but your design should also be comfortable and warm so that readers will return again and again, and striking this balance is not always simple. Here are five tips that will help you create a design for your corporate blog that is balanced between appealing and comfortable.

1 – Choose your blog theme wisely.

The blog theme that you choose should correspond with whatever industry or niche you have decided to blog about. Don’t go off target when it comes to pictures, symbols and other visual aids if they do not have relevancy or a relationship with the niche you are writing about. Your blog theme may be a subtle part of your blog but it is a vital one all the same, reinforcing the affiliation of your blog with the niche or industry that you are promoting.

2 – Introduce yourself so that your audience can get to know you.

Every blog should feature either an about me page, or an about me section where you can introduce yourself to those who are reading your blog. Tell your readers who you are and why you are blogging about the topic you are in, and even more importantly, what objectives you hope to fulfill by blogging. Your readers will appreciate getting to know you.

3 – Offer your readers methods for contacting you.

Do not keep your contact information obscure or hide it from your readers all together. Your readers should have easy access to you through a phone number or e-mail. This has a very powerful effect on building relationships with your readers and customers so do not underestimate its importance when styling your corporate blog.

4 – Make your best work easy to find.

If you write something that attracts more readers or more commenters than usual, make this post more readily available by categorizing it separately or linking it in a section on your sidebar, such as the “Most popular entries” section so that these posts can be regularly read and accessed by your readers and customers in the future.

5 – Make your blog visually appealing as well as easy on the eyes.

This one ought to be pretty straight forward – Don’t jazz your blog up too much with eye catching details because they can strain the eyes and cause difficulty reading. Good fonts to use include Times New Roman, Georgia and Arial. If you want to get a little fancy without sacrificing readability, consider Calibri. You can’t go wrong with dark fonts on light backgrounds, which are the easiest for readability.

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Originally posted 2009-01-30 05:59:02. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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If you are just getting started in the world of corporate blogging, you are probably already aware of the fact that there is a lot to take in, and plenty for you to learn. One of the concepts that you need to understand when turning your corporate blog into a popular destination online is trackbacks. If you want to get the most out of your blog, and to constantly know whether or not it is doing what you intend for it to do, then trackbacks may be the answer. Here is a guide to trackbacks for corporate blogs explained.

A trackback is one of three different types of linkbacks, which are methods for website owners to request a notification whenever one of their documents or web pages is linked to. This allows for website owners to keep track of who is linking to or referring to their articles or content. There are a number of different types of web log or blog software programs that automatically support pingbacks, meaning that all the links within a published article will be pinged as soon as it has been published. Some of the blog software programs that support these automatic pingbacks include Movable Type, WordPress, Typo and Community Server.

Trackbacks essentially operate as acknowledgments. This particular type of acknowledgment is sent via a ping or a network signal from the originating site to the receiving site. The receptor will often publish a link back to the originator, which indicates its worthiness. In order for a trackback to operate properly, both sides need to be trackback-enabled for this connection to be established properly. The trackback does not, however, require that the originating site be linked physically to the receiving site.

Trackbacks are most commonly used in order to facilitate communication between two or more different blogs. If a blogger writes an entry that comments on or refers to an entry that is found on another blog, and both of the blogging tools that are being used have support for the trackback protocol, then the commenting blogger can automatically notify the other blog of the comment or reference using a trackback ping. The receiving blog, then, will typically display a summary of all of the commenting entries below the original entry, including links to those entries. This allows the creation of conversations that span several different blogs, allowing those who are reading the blogs to easily follow along with the entire conversation.

When it comes to building up a powerful base of readers for your corporate blog, trackbacks can be absolutely vital. When you visit other blogs in your niche and comment regularly in them, the bloggers will become aware through the trackback protocol. When you refer to other blogs in your blog, the same thing will happen. By creating these powerful trackback links between your blog and other blogs in your niche, you can give readers of the other blogs a way to find yours, which is a powerful and simple way to attract an entirely new reader base to your corporate blog.

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Originally posted 2008-11-25 05:25:38. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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There is a lot of controversy over which blogging platform is ideal for corporate blogs. With so many schools of thought on the matter, it can be difficult to figure out which one you should be using. We have two main favorites, Blogger and Wordpress, and both are very well suited to corporate blogging.

The two main benefits of both of these platforms is that they are incredibly easy to use, and incredibly search engine friendly. That solves a lot of problems right there. While we typically don’t recommend free services for corporate blogging, now that Blogger allows you to attach your own URL to your Blogger account, they’ve moved up in our estimation.

Basically, if you don’t want to go through the trouble of using server space for your corporate blog and you need a publishing platform that is literally idiot proof, then Blogger is ideal. It has many of the same features as Wordpress, and since it is owned by Google, you’ll have a pretty good chance of getting a good ranking as long as you keep publishing quality content.

For corporate blog owners that need a little more control, Wordpress is our natural favorite. There are thousands of customization options that are available and it is very easy to get started. With the right plugins, you can make a very advanced site without breaking a sweat, and you’ll be optimizing your content at the same time.

While there are other platforms that work well for corporate blogs, we really prefer Wordpress for two main reasons:

1. Smaller learning curve.

Wordpress takes less than five minutes to install, even if you have no prior experience. Everything is spelled out for you in the dashboard for your site and publishing is incredibly easy. With the right configuration you can easily build a very popular corporate blog without any effort.

2. More options for optimization.

There are thousands of plugins for Wordpress that are designed to help you manage comments, optimize your content, take advantage of SEO trends, and keep everything running smoothly. These are all easy to install and use and most require very little interaction on your part.

The bottom line is that not everyone can afford to hire a web designer or programmer. Either one of these solutions is absolutely free to use and in most cases, they are more capable than the platforms that actually do cost money. For those that need to get a quick start and do not have the time to learn HTML, PHP coding and basic blogging set-up, you can’t go wrong with either of these platforms.

Try setting up a sample account on Blogger, or install Wordpress on your own server and play around with them for a few minutes. Chances are you’ll be able to get the hang of it immediately and you will be well on your way to becoming the owner of a successful corporate blog that is completely tricked out and reader friendly.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2008-10-01 05:55:30. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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