Conversational Branding
I haven’t had a lot of time lately for talking about doing because I’ve been too busy, well DOING. Life Has Been Full and Has Been Full of Life. But the world of social marketing is changing and redefining (when does it ever stop?), and in my spare moments while stuck in traffic, chopping vegetables, or dipping sushi pieces into wasabi-rich soy sauce, I’m contemplating those changes and how my business needs to anticipate them.
Notice I said, “anticipate them” rather than “adapt to them”; important distinction there in how I view my business…the vision, though maybe not all the manifestations, are fluid instead of static. I may rarely succeed on being ahead of the curve on several things but I instinctively feel that doing so needs to always be my goal.
I’m still sorting out the changes, trying a few on for size, and remaining open to possibility. I’m not the only one out there doing the same; here are a few voices I’ve been reading lately. I read them because they are bloggers who value conversational branding, which I think may be the essence of what is going on with relational media these days.
- she’s done it in many posts but this is her most recent record of her Twitter Exploration. Penelope never fails to get me thinking and this is fantastic food for thought: when branding, how important is it to be the same in every compartment?
- Scott, over at Man Vs. Blog, has been exploring his use of Twitter and has a 3 part series worth reading.
- My very favorite blog guru, Darren Rowse, has a brilliant title followed by his typically-excellent content, looking at formats like the one Twitter uses, and just above, shares his exploration of another, Plurk.
My blogging list of things to do seems endless, with all kinds of things near the top vying for space. For instance, I have a great header I had designed for this site, a brand new business site needing launching, and a journal full of article ideas just begging me to find a quiet moment to sit down and seriously write. My client’s sites all have lists and my search for an assistant became so much of it’s own endeavor that I had to either find an assistant to help me find an assistant or cut out the search! When a new internet “exploration” becomes necessary so often, it’s helpful to know other bloggers I’m watching are exploring as well. It’s that synergy that the internet and social media thrives on and no one gets anywhere alone.
I think in “conversational branding” my favorite part is still the conversation. To me, that is the literate beauty of this media-rich tool we all use.
Reputation Management
Stephan Spencer’s recent article on DYI Reputation Management was recently a helpful reminder, which I thought would be a good idea to pass on. I am currently in the midst of a major personal life change and my primary blog is started out as a very personal blog; then evolved into something more topical and informational. The question of how to transition the blog along through my life transition has been pre-eminent on my mind this week.
The truth is, a blog only provides a slice of a view of a person’s life, yet like any powerful image tool, can sway one’s reputation amongst their peers or audience. Care must be taken, yet in a relational economy, honesty matters. In my case, so does the ability to have a certain level of transparency and the freedom to write through my creative process. When a site has aged and a loyal following of readers has developed, the relationship between writer and reader becomes entangled and opinions emerge. It has proven to be difficult to navigate.
From a tech-standpoint, this post of Stephen’s was an easily scannable, bulleted reminder of what concerns to keep in mind in a time such as this. It’s a good example of a layout well done. Many thanks to both writer and editor.
Setting Work/Home Boundaries as a Work-At-Home-Mom
I took this weekend off. As there was a server/spam issue over the same amount of days, it seems this blog and parts of others took it off as well. And I resisted the urge to allow it (yet another tech problem) to consume what was able to become a most quintessential fall weekend: dry, cool weather, blue skies, a new flea market, lunch out with great Mexican food, laughing with my husband, snuggling in bed reading to my little boys, a big pancake breakfast, an afternoon working all together in the yard, a great morning at church, and great friends….
I needed the time off. I’ve worked nearly every single day for months. Early on I started unplugging on Sundays but I’ve only pulled that off a time or two. Most of the time it’s meant, “I unplug for most everyone…unless if something ‘important’ comes up”…which it nearly always did. But this Friday, tired and frazzled, I wrapped up my “to do” list, shut off the computer, and called the week “done”.
I work at home which is nothing new. I work at home *for money*, which is new to us, and my family is all working on adjusting. My “office”, until we decide if we are either moving or adding on, is half of my closet and has no door. If I had to guess what the most important boundary to set is while working from a home office, I’d guess a DOOR. My task load is getting more intense, which actually seems to be making it easier to fit within a M-F work week, though I appreciate the flex of being able to swap out a late night or Saturday if I have an event during the week that makes work impossible to get to that day. Today I blog with a little boy on my lap and sunshine streaming in from a nearby window, so indeed the environment has it’s touchy-feely moments!
Taking the weekend off was ironically highly productive! I feel refreshed and the jumble of tasks I had now seem easier to organize and tackle in a rational manner, which is ultimately going to help me accomplish a lot more than if I’d worked the weekend through.
As this is still relatively new to me, I often feel like I’m winging it, and I’d welcome suggestions from those who’ve been at it longer. If you have a suggestion, send me an email at Tia AT bloggingwithflair DOT com, along with your blog link, post, or strategy for setting work/home boundaries and I’ll compile a list of them here.
Tia Graham, blogsultant, builds, manages, and empowers business blogs that can help you generate income, improve publicity, and interact with your audience. See bloggingwithflair.com for more information.
Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Feed?
RSS Feed…what is it that scares so many away? You know who you are…you hear the term and maybe briefly recognize it as a “techie” word and then run in fear dismiss it, moving on through your list of blogs that you check every day. Once in awhile you notice that funny orange button with the white sound wave-looking things and maybe wonder what it all means, or maybe you think it’s just a neat design feature. Anyway… who has time to figure it out? You’re busy just trying to keep up with all the blogs you check every day and since trends on the internet come and go, you figure this one will “go” too.
But you know? There’s only so many hours in a day. Time Management matters. And there are a lot of quality sites out there…. wouldn’t it be nice to actually have a moment or two to go browse a few new ones? And if you discovered a new favorite, rather than add it to a cumbersome “favorites list”, what if new and updated material came to YOU rather than requiring you go and hunt around for it again?
When I first started asking this question, I turned first to Wiki…otherwise known, along with Google, as “the tool that keeps me from sounding stupid”. Don’t know something? It’s easy enough to go to Google and find the Wiki for an answer. And so, the day came when I typed in “RSS“.
This was only a partial solution. This particular Wiki is a bit cluttered. It made my eyes blur over the technobabble and history. But it answered a key question: “What do those letters stand for?” The answer? Real Simple Syndication. The persistent problem? This still didn’t make it feel relevant to my world. It did give me my next lead, the term, “feed reader”. Off to google I went.
Turns out there is a site for software called FeedReader. But I was still a neophyte who clung to the familiar. And oh-happy-day, google has a reader too. Not only do they have a reader, but they have a TOUR, in kind-to-beginners language and Real Simple Terms.
Baby steps. That’s what it felt like. My dark-and-stormy-night was now sans thunder and lightening and it looked like the rain was beginning to ease up a bit. I signed up, which gave me a reader home page.
Now I needed to go get some feeds!! This was FUN. I had about 25 blogs I already checked every day. True, true my internet connection is fast one but also true, true, it’s frustrating to visit sites every day that haven’t been updated. Now I clicked on the little orange button (or on the words RSS in their meta section) and it took me right to the google reader subscription page and signed me up.
I drug my reader page into my toolbar so it would be easy to one-click on it every day and then gushed about it (in Real Simple Terms) for a friend on my blog. Suddenly I had lots of extra time every morning because the updated blogs were highlighted and I didn’t waste time waiting for stagnant pages to load. This broadened my world because I devoted a little more time to reading and looking for new things. I could even argue that getting over Feed Fear was instrumental in starting my business. At any rate, a threshold had been broken…and it’s a whole new world.
Feeds are fantastic things. A subscribed reader will read ALL of your content. After they are hooked, your design may not matter much, where your ads are placed can be irrelevant, and your sidebar clutter becomes invisible. What matters most is that what you have to say is relevant and interesting. You’ve earned the most loyal kind of traffic there is but beware…it is not complicated to unsubscribe from a blog that no longer interests, compels, or posts. I would imagine this is kind of like Walmart though…once they have you in the store, they know you are most likely going to buy something. Unusual indeed is the shopper who leaves empty handed (ask me how I know).
And it’s wide world out there! Not only can posts be subscribed to but so can comments. You can offer email subscriptions to your feed. Feedburner has nifty ways to track your stats; as they put it, all the “izes”….publicize, optimize, analyze, and monetize. Yah, I know, new words and you aren’t quite sure how they work. Baby steps. But that scary storm is over and the sun is shining….. get going. 
Tia Graham, blogsultant, builds, manages, and empowers business blogs that can help you generate income, improve publicity, and interact with your audience. See bloggingwithflair.com for more information.
Want more? Find out How To ToughenUp Online, Work Smarter, Not Harder, or subscribe to my feed!
How often do you say, “I don’t know”?
I made my first business traveling trip this week. I met with a new client for dinner, meeting a new inquirer at the same time, stayed the night with an old friend and new client, and the next morning, had another meeting with yet another new client getting up close and personal with her very dynamic project. The whole thing was a ton of fun and a lot of talking and listening.
More than once I was asked a question that I didn’t immediately know the answer to. I’m resourceful and smart and know how to find the answers given time but in these settings, restaurants and away from my computer, I wasn’t in “do your homework” mode. My clients and inquirers have one steady trait: they all put a lot of thought into taking on a new endeavor such as a blog. They tease it around in their minds, ask lots of different people questions, do research, take advice, and give the idea time to ruminate. They ask GOOD, thoughtful questions. Along side this is the highly adaptive world of the internet and things are always changing and developing. What may be true today may be enhanced tomorrow. This is certainly true in the sphere of podblogging and vlogging; more is available every day both on the center stage and behind the scenes.
And so foolish is the expert who claims to know everything. Better is an honest approach. Say, “You know? I’m not sure but I know how to find out and will get back to you.” Tell them when you’ll get back to them with the information. Make no guarantees when you aren’t confident. An example of this is promising something will make your client money when you don’t fully have a grasp on the process that you both will be experimenting and learning with, as is the case with new and ground-breaking material.
Honesty breeds respect and respect breeds loyalty and trust. If you honestly don’t know, then say as much, and follow it up with what you DO know: that you can find out and serve them best with your willingness to learn more about how to meet their needs. The result is integrity which is worlds better than a facade of knowing all there is to know.
Other posts that may be helpful:
Want to read more Blogging About Blogging from theblogsultant.com? Subscribe to my feed!
Tia Graham, blogsultant, builds, manages, and empowers business blogs that can help you generate income, improve publicity, and interact with your audience. See bloggingwithflair.com for more information.
Time Management in the world of Web 2.0
Thanks to Darren, aka problogger.com, who is quickly becoming my “go to” sitemaster for great tips, links, and information, I “found” the blog of Stephan Spencer today and quickly subscribed. I guess the blogosphere can be a small world sometimes because I’d already read about Stephan’s daughter Chloe and her fantastically successful Neopets Cheats site from the BlogHer site, only I didn’t know until today that they were related. And I think she came by her blogging streak naturally, because her dad’s got some great tips on his site.
As a blogsultant, I appreciated this post on how to “do” blogging right, especially for the business blogger. As a business owner and busy Mom I owe him a little debt of gratitude for this most-helpful list on time management. Follow the link to read his notes (and then go deeper into the archives…it’s worth the time) but I instantly resonated with the suggestions to “batch tasks”, “focus on the critical few”, and “outsource your life”. I delegate poorly; something I need to work on as my business continues to grow at a rapid rate.
Most time management systems I’ve come across lately focus on time slot allotment. Anyone who has tried to tell an angry two year old that “it’s not your turn yet” knows that a system like that won’t work…and who has time to chunk up their day into little slots anyway? Creative minds have to work fluidly and get it while the gettin’s hot. So “batches” work marvelously.
Thin Skin, Criticism, and Life on the Internet.
Yesterday I had an experience that unfortunately isn’t as uncommon as it should be. Here’s how it went:
Man A: I need recommendations for a service.
Man B: I am very happy with so-and-so. Here is his website.
Girl A: I took a look at the site. I noticed something that other designers should beware of. (what follows is a minor site critique along with suggestions for solutions other designers can make).
Man B: upset and defensive. Suggestive that a line was crossed and that someone was unfairly criticized.
Whoa. Some one? Where’s the error here? Ah…it was not a personal critique but rather a review of some THING. And not even specifically that one thing; indeed, it served only as an example of a design error frequently committed that other newbies could learn from.
And like I said, this happens all too often. Maybe it’s because our work and ourselves often become so intertwined that it becomes hard to differentiate between them. Maybe it’s because we want to be influential with our recommendations and any offered variety seeks to threaten our supposed influence. Maybe it’s because we’re too hung up on what others think of us. Whatever it is, it’s dangerous.
The internet is a big, big place. Make that a big, big, public place. Getting our work, designs, writing, opinions, style, etc out there means we are asking for, encouraging, and often stimulating discussion OF IT. Feelings absolutely must be somewhat distanced if one is going to make it; skin needs to be a little thicker. In other words, don’t take it personally if someone seemingly arbitrarily chooses your site as an example of what they wouldn’t do, don’t agree with, or think exemplifies what is wrong in an area. Likewise, don’t take it too personally, getting puffed up and proud, if someone seemingly arbitrarily chooses your site and mimicks the design, links like a following puppy, or encourages others to align with your content. It may be less about YOU than you may think.
And so what if it’s not? Maybe it was meant very, very personally. Who cares? Toughen up a bit, don’t be so easily swayed by others’ opinions, and you’ll find yourself not only more even-keeled but also really surviving in the internet world. Healthy perspective is critical for that survival.
If you find yourself in a dither, taking something more personally than you should, try the following:
- get up. Go for a walk. Talk to a real person. get some fresh air. In other words…distance yourself physically from the environment for a bit.
- consider the view from their shoes. Try to understand what motivated them to say what they did. Chances are they don’t have it out for you or naturally mean…they may have been trying to be helpful. Maybe they possess little tact. Maybe they are poor at communicating their intentions. Have a little compassion.
- sleep on it before trying any kind of reply (one may not even be necessary or productive).
- let it roll off…get involved in something else; go to a “happy spot” and regroup.
- understand it won’t be the last time
- resist the urge to scold them; if you must say anything, try a humble, neutral stance, apologetic even.
Tia Graham, blogsultant, builds, manages, and empowers business blogs that can help you generate income, improve publicity, and interact with your audience. See bloggingwithflair.com for more information.
Technorati is letting me down….
I’m bummed. As a practice of blog management, I always claim the sites I work with on Technorati. I have three that I’ve been trying to claim for over a month…first the embedding code was missing. I tried the “quick claim” option and emailed them with a question about the missing code. No response. Now when I try to go and claim blogs I’ve started the process with, I get a “Technorati is borked right now” screen..something about their missing monster.
I suppose this is an attempt to be cute when the site is down. Strangely, no other part of the site seems to be having an issue…so are they just not accepting new blogs? What’s going on?
I googled, “alternatives to technorati” and these are what I found. Apparently Technorati was having some issues that led to death rumors back in 2005…they seemingly did NOT die, if we are still using them today. But I’m not impressed. Take a look at what these articles offered; I gathered some helpful tips from them all.
Tia Graham, blogsultant, builds, manages, and empowers business blogs that can help you generate income, improve publicity, and interact with your audience. See bloggingwithflair.com for more information.
You Can Lead A Horse To Water But….
I’m not really calling any person a horse. But I was reminded today that ultimately, no matter what we do for another person, change or development is up to THEM.
In my business, I manage blogs and work on traffic growth for the client. For a monthly fee, they can email me at any time for assistance, guidance, or maintenance. I teach them the ropes of the blogging world. I network their site and coach them on what is relevant and “hot” at the moment. I feed the pets and get the paper when they’re out of town. Okay, not really…. but in essence, I do watch things for them even while they’re away.
In every case, their traffic is growing by literal leaps and bounds. Life. Is. Good for the blog getting TLC from me. But what can I NOT do for any client?
I can not be them for them. I don’t write their content. I can only fan the air that they give lungs to. Ultimately, it’s up to the owner to own their own stuff. And when they have an audience, to speak to it.
I have a great bunch of clients who all understand this. It’s proven to be a fun and synergistic business for me; a very good fit for my service-oriented mind and creative spirit. My toddler may not care that I bought him cute fire-truck undies, show him where the potty is, and offer to wipe him when he’s done…it’s up to that little horsey to drink from the river I provided him when he’s good and ready.
Somewhere I heard a quote that said something to the gist of, “never do for someone else what they can do for themselves.” Well, that leaves those of us in a service-industry in a little pickle. But the sentiment of empowerment and ownership is not lost on me tonight.
Tia Graham, blogsultant, builds, manages, and empowers business blogs that can help you generate income, improve publicity, and interact with your audience. See bloggingwithflair.com for more information.
New Toy to Address Amazon Associates Hurdle
I found this tonight and uploaded it on every single one of my wordpress sites tonight. The demo looks amazing; I’ll let you know what my mileage is.
At Your Service
bloggers about blogging
My Sites
pleased to meet you
Sites I Manage
- Casa de Sara’s Blog
- Connecting The Dots of Healthcare
- Decontaminate Toxic people
- Get Noticed and Be Influential
- Great Lives Blog
- Jana’s Journey
- Living Rich
- Making Teamwork Happen
- MDPNN
- Speakers Bureau Blog-Eagles Talent
- Speaking of Service Excellence
- Tech Strategists
- The Contented Cow Blog
- The Corporate Cowgirl
Archives
- June 2008
- February 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- September 2007
- August 2007
- July 2007
Categories
Meta
