blogging

The Indecision of Being a Blogger

morning perch Sometimes being a blogger is no fun.

I don’t mean that from a, “Oh, woe is me, I have to blog” point of view. Nor do I mean it from a, “Why hasn’t my blog been turned into a book yet?” viewpoint.

Besides, how much of a letdown would a book that’s made up of recycled blog posts be?

No, it’s more from the perspective of getting the best user experience, without overloading that same experience with too much clutter (and when I say user experience, I mean it from you, the reader’s, point of view).

For example, anyone that’s read my blog for a while will know that I’m constantly experimenting with design, features and layout to make your time here worthwhile.

I really appreciate you taking time out of your day to stop by here, read what I’m thinking, and then share your own thoughts in the comments.

So one of the areas I’ve experimented the most in is the comments section. I’ve tried third-party comment systems (then switched back); video and audio comments; and commenter social profiles with Twitter and latest blog post options amongst other experiments.

And still I stay undecided at times. Just the other day, I tweeted that I almost switched back to the Disqus comment platform following their new updates, but that I’d miss CommentLuv too much (Disqus isn’t compatible and I think CommentLuv is one of the best blogger tools out there).

Another option I can never make my mind up about is social sharing. This is where, if you like the post enough, you can share it with your own networks (Twitter, Facebook, Stumbleupon, etc).

I’ve messed around with a few options here too. Sexy Bookmarks, Add This and BackType are three that I’ve used previously.

Currently I use Digg Digg, which provides the floating share option to the left of this post. I also use Share This at the bottom of each post, to offer a wider amount of networks than Digg Digg. And then there’s the Apture Bar at the top of the page, which I’ve just switched back on and only comes into view as you start scrolling down the page. (Note: since posting this I’ve had to switch the bar off as it looked like it was causing formatting issues on my design).

Yet is this too much? Just right? Not enough?

There are a ton of other little things like this that I constantly question when I look at my blog. While I write what I’d like to read, obviously a big part of any blog’s “success” is its community, from readers to commenters to subscribers. So making your experience a good one is just as key as me writing a (hopefully) good post.

Perhaps it’s just part and parcel of being a blogger? Always questioning not just your content but the content area. And perhaps that’s why bloggers are such an oft-misunderstood crowd – if we don’t know ourselves, how can anyone else?

How about you? If you blog, do you go through the same indecision and similar questions? And if so, what are some of the things you’re constantly asking yourself?

photo credit:?bgblogging

Posterous Grows Up as a Blogging Platform

I’ve loved the idea of Posterous from the start.

As a quick-start blogging platform, Posterous offers a pretty robust platform to build your blogging expertise from.

One of the biggest things that puts many folks off from starting a blog is often the time commitment needed.?Yet with the ability to post via email, Posterous allowed anyone to experiment.

I’ve introduced a few clients to blogging via Posterous, and it’s given them the confidence to swap to “full-on” blogging via WordPress and self-hosting.

And I have a Posterous account that I use for short-form blog posts. Ideas, basically, that I might expand into longer thoughts here. So, yeah, I’m a fan of Posterous.

Yet for all the good stuff that Posterous offers, it’s always been a lightweight version of blogging (at least to these eyes). No search engine optimization offerings, no real ownership, and none of the ability to expand your blog the same way you can with a dedicated one (pages, for example, and sidebars/toolbars).

Until now.

Posterous Grows Up with Pages

A new feature just announced by Posterous sees the platform become a more bona-fide alternative to full-on blogging. With the addition of Pages, you can now have a pretty cool little online hub to build your brand, business or services from.

Previous to this addition, all you had on your Posterous blog was your posts and any sidebar that came with the theme you chose (Posterous has about a dozen or so pre-built templates for you to choose from). While this is ideal for a simple blog, it doesn’t really offer much in the way of additional information (About, Services, Contact, etc) that you see on more “traditional” blog platforms.

Pages now allows this, and a little bit more.

Now you can have a dedicated About Page with Posterous, where you can expand on who you are and what you do/offer. You can also offer a Contact Page, a Services Page – heck, anything you want to add, you can. And setting it up couldn’t be simpler – just add the new page from your admin area, fill out the content and hit Publish. You can even drag-and-drop the navigation to rearrange where the page sits on your nav bar.

The other cool feature that Pages allows you to do is redirect that page. Let’s say you want to use Posterous as a simple outlet, and your main site is an e-commerce one elsewhere. You can set up a page called Store, for example, and use the redirect function to open up your full-on e-commerce store.

On my Posterous account, I’ve used the new Pages redirect feature to direct folks to my Contact Page here, as well as my accounts at Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

This feature alone puts Posterous above many premium WordPress themes – although the Headway theme (affiliate link) I use on this blog has this ability – and suddenly turns the platform into a more fleshed-out option for bloggers.

Does Posterous Replace Dedicated Blogging?

Having said that, Posterous still doesn’t beat a full-on self-hosted WordPress blog just yet.

There’s still no dedicated SEO options (although you can tag your post with keywords). Nor are there options for plug-ins that a WordPress blog offers, which can really turn a blog into a free-standing social hub. And obviously, as a free platform, you’re still restricted by the terms and conditions of using Posterous.

But then again, that’s probably not the audience that Posterous is after. The platform offers a quick and easy introduction to blogging, and with the addition of Pages, allows even the most inexperienced of bloggers a great starting point.

And that’s all that matters at the end of the day, no?

Note: This blog no longer runs on the Headway framework. Instead, it’s a custom WordPress design by Lisa Kalandjian of SceneStealer Graphics.

Quick Question on Posterous

Hi guys. Since you helped me immensely when I asked your views on a blog redesign (which will be unveiled soon thanks to Lisa Kalandjian of SceneStealer), I’d like to ask your views again, if that’s okay?

Currently I have an account at Posterous, which I use for short and punchy thoughts. They’re mainly ideas and views that I always refer to as too little for blogging and too much for Twitter. They also helped provide the content for my free marketing ebook, Why Simple Works.

Thankfully, folks seem to appreciate the short posts as much as the long form that you find here, which is really nice.

I also enjoy the freedom that Posterous gives me, inasmuch I can just throw some thoughts out there that don’t necessarily need to be formulated into a longer post and discussion with definitive answers.

Now, though, I’m curious as to whether the format would work right here? While Posterous is fantastic for such short posts, I’m also trying to integrate my outposts better and make sure I’m giving you the very best of my time and resources. So having another third-party option for you to go to makes me wonder if it’s the right approach?

So, once again, I defer to your wisdom. Which would you prefer – a separate Posterous account as it currently is, or have it all under one roof here (perhaps even in a dedicated section of its own)?

Love to hear your thoughts. Cheers!

Why I Love Bloggers with Balls

There’s a great post over at Blog for Profit today called Blog Comments Are Not Roadkill, about blog comments and some of the discussions around them.

Written by Grant Griffiths, it’s a great counter to the numerous posts on why blogs don’t need comments.

The reason I love this post is because, reading it, it’s clear Grant has balls. Big balls.

He doesn’t care about reputations, or whether a viewpoint is by a blogger usually revered by the masses and who can (in many eyes) do no wrong.

Instead, he goes after people like Michael Gray and Seth Godin – not in a link-bait way, but with countered reasons why their views may not be the right ones (or even contradict themselves).

And it’s something that too many bloggers don’t do for one simple reason.

Social Media Has Made Us Soft

While social media is a fantastic medium for working smarter for businesses, it’s also softened us a little. There’s almost a kumbaya feeling of not being able to speak your mind, because when you call a “name” out in social media, or disagree with them, you’re labeled a hater. Never mind the fact you have a valid opinion – you must be a hater because your opinion isn’t the same as The Chosen One(s).

This leads to blog posts being praised to the rooftops, despite being rehashed content from two months previously (sometimes even less – I’m looking at you, certain A-lister). Comments rain in – “Great post!”, “So true and only you could say that!” and so on.

Now, I’m the first to really praise a blog and share it on my networks when there’s great content, as well as comment and show my appreciation. Yet more and more I’m feeling less inclined to comment, because I land on a post with the same safe viewpoint, or circle jerk comments. And this is a shame, because blogs (and their community of commenters) can really offer fresh takes on tired subjects. Instead, we see the warm fuzziness of adoration – and there’s no real need for that.

Grow Balls – Grow You

We’re all individuals. We all have opinions – sometimes right, sometimes wrong. We all have unique personalities and thought processes. This is what makes us such an interesting animal. So why are we softening this up?

If something isn’t right and you feel it isn’t, say so. If you land on a post of the biggest blogger on the planet and it’s dire, tell him or her. Show why it’s crap, and challenge them to live up to their reputation.

And if you’re the blogger yourself, don’t go with the flow just because it’s easier than swimming against it. Instead, be like Grant, or Mark W. Schaefer or Bill Sledzik and have the balls to speak out. Show your readers respect and why they put their faith in you in the first place.

After all, it’s the very least they deserve, no?

photo credit: Robert in Toronto

Opening Up Social Media for Local Small Business

While becoming more mainstream, social media still holds fear for many businesses, especially small local business.

Fear of time involved; fear of where to start; fear of where to be.

While this fear is understandable, it also means that many local small business owners miss out on social media and all the benefits it can offer, especially when it comes to competing with the big boys.

While I’ve written before about how expensive social media can be from a corporate campaign viewpoint, for small businesses it’s still one of the most cost-effective methods of being visible to your customers, new and existing. Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube – they all offer possibilities for the small business owner.

Then there’s the real workhorse – the blog. The best marketing tool you will ever have as a small business owner, a blog can be a myriad of things:

A promotional tool.
An information hub.
A resource centre.
Your own personal social network.
A live, ever-fresh FAQ section.

In fact, the only limitation to what a blog can do for you is the limitations you put on the blog itself. And again, this is where many small business owners – especially local small business owners – bypass social media’s strengths and opportunities.

Fear comes back in. Fear of what to blog about; fear of how to target an audience; fear of how to promote a new (or existing) blog; fear of setting yourself apart when there are so many other voices around.

Apart from that fear, perhaps the biggest stumbling block is setting up the blog in the first place. If you’re not doing it yourself, where do you find a designer (and for many small business owners, one that doesn’t break your budget or rip you off). Again, this fear is only natural.

Yet help is at hand.

In the next couple of weeks, a new course will be unveiled that takes the fear out of social media and blogging for small business owners. Some of the features will include:

Using social media and your blog to market your small business.
Using online tools to benefit your brick and mortar business (or a simple home-based one).
Getting a fully-functional blog and social media tools set up from day one.
Course “mentors” that bring a vast and comprehensive set of skills to the table (oh, and me).

These are just some of the features and benefits, with more to be announced over the coming weeks. It’s a course designed specifically for small and local business owners that get social media and its benefits (like blogs), but need that extra bit of help to really start utilizing it. Best of all, it won’t cost you anywhere near $22,000 a day…

More information will be available very soon. To make sure you get the latest updates, as well as details of what’s in store and who’ll be part of the course, you can sign up for the latest news via the newsletter form below. Don’t worry, you won’t be spammed and you definitely won’t be sold to any dodgy characters!

Social media and blogging was made for small business owners. Here’s a great chance to be that business – look forward to seeing you in a few weeks.

photo credit: DBarefoot