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Add You - Introduction To Blogging - Part 2: Planning Your New Blog
Choosing a Business Opportunity - Getting Started in Your OwnMillions of people are desperate to escape the 9 to 5
grind. One popular alternative is to look for a business opportunity that turns you from an employee into a self-employed entrepreneur running your own business.There are many good reasons why this can be a wise move. Being your own boss means you can set your own hours. This can be very important if you have small children who need to be looked after, or simply want to spend more time at home.Working from home can also save valuable time, if the alternative is spending two or three hours every day commuting back and forth to your work place.And of course, working for yourself also gives you the opportunity to make a whole lot more money.In other words, being your own boss gives you that valuable commodity called freedom. It sets you free from the limitations of being someone else's paid employee, and in return makes you responsible for your own future. As a self-employed entrepreneur you are free to set your own hou another country, you may want to re-think your blog strategy. (Example below.)
With what frequency will entries be posted? Typically, it's wise to post entries two or more times a day, at least 5 days a week - although there are "weekly" blogs. Your blog entries do not always have to be large articles, and can often be summaries of other blogs or their articles, a list of resources, a few helpful hints, or relevant tips on saving money. However, every once in a while, you should write a longer article. To place higher in the Search Engines, your entries should be at least 75 words in length, when possible. Note that if your business is purely regional, and is unlikely to interest anyone outside of a certain geographical radius, blogging may not be as effective for you. In that case , you may want to set up a portal blog and invite other business owners from across the country/ continent/ world to participate. The "helpful hints" entries are of interest to all readers, but a region-specific blog entry could link to the writer's own business website. Keep in mind that the synergy gained from multiple points of view has proven itself in terms of web traffic on various blog networks. There is also less onus on a single writer to blog everyday, and the increased number of total daily blog contributions is likely to draw more blog traffic than for several small regionally-based blogs.
These are just a few of the questions you have to answer. I recommend that before you set up your blog, you also wr Best Ways to Make Money By Writing on the InternetThe internet is a great writer's medium. If you think that you
are good at writing, then you need to look on the internet.
You can find a lot of opportunities, there are thousands of
webmasters eager to find writers and pay them
to write for them, so if you are looking to offer your
services as a writer, you have a great opportunity.One point is very important, if you want to be paid to write
for webmasters, then you need to ignore those websites that
want you to write for free. It is easy to find paying jobs.
All you need to do is type "pay" on the search query field in
any search engine (google, yahoo, etc.) with the type of
writing that you want to do.You can get paid by writing essays and articles about your
interests on the internet. If you write articles for webmasters,
you need to know that you are writing articles for the Web,
that means that your writing needs to be less dense than
when you write articles in print.Other thing that you can do is review servic One common mistake new bloggers make is not realizing that managing a blog is similar to publishing a magazine. Your blog, to be successful, requires constant planning, research, analysis, and then more planning. You have to keep on top of your topic niche, but this means different things for different people. For example, if you are blogging about something you do everyday, and are offering "how-to" type of info, then you may not need to do a lot of reading to keep on top of your topic. On the other hand, if you are writing about new products in your industry, unless you are creating these products yourself, you will probably have to do regular research to keep up. I write several blogs that fall into different categories. For my computer programming blogs, I draw on my experience in a particular computer language and generally do not need to do any research, unless I want to blog about new software and tools. These programming blogs, however, take a great deal of effort, and any code I write has to be tested. The time investment per article is equal to or more than I spend on "research" blogs. For product-related blogs, I have to do regular, intense research. I use Google Alerts (http://google.com/alerts) to have snippets of web or blog pages delivered to my email on a daily basis. Google Alerts lets you type in a few keywords and your email address, along with a delivery frequency (weekly, daily, as-it-happens). I get updates on several keywords nightly. They're a boon to my research, but if I fall too far behind in checking the alerts, the resulting giant to-read list can get intimidating. (By the way, Yahoo! and MSN have similar services.) What I do with the alerts is skim over them. If a snippet interests me, I'll click on the link to visit the source web page and read the full story. I try to read several stories on the same topic, then summarize all of them into one short article, add links to the source stories, and add my own spin to the topic, either supporting or refuting what is being said in the stories. Adding your own spin is essential, as it is your opportunity to add your own personality - which is usually more evident in your original blog entries. Anyone can write a summary; make that summary yours. With blogs that document my experience on a topic, I try to think about what I know now that would have helped me when I was starting out. Someone out there can do with your guidance. Providing this guidance in a blog is an excellent way to build rapport with readers. I feel that anyone can do this, regardless of what type of business you are in. But there are some questions you have to ask yourself, and which you should answer before you start blogging:
- Why are you blogging? Are you essentially trying to sell products and services (either online or offline), or showcasing your experience for some other reason? I blog for several reasons:
- I love to write.
- I can earn advertising money.
- I have a number of e-books that I'm writing, which I eventually hope to promote via some of my blogs.
- I showcase my blogs for small business owners who want to see what a blog for their industry may look like. For example, I have a couple of potential clients who are small- to medium-sized merchants that sell antiques or home decor and fashion. I've set up an example blog for them to view the possibilities.
- I showcase my experience on a topic, in order to gain contracts for website or blog architecting, design, or technical writing.
- Who are you writing for? My blogs are each targeted to different people. Even though several of them are showcases that exist in hopes of getting me contracts, they are written as any magazine on the same topic might be. For example, my antiques/ home decor blog is written for anyone who has an interest in such. In this case, I'm targeted buyers, not dealers. But the way I've set it up, my intent is to attract dealers to eventually write articles. My blog about spinning blogs is aimed at both people who write only one blog and those who write, or want to write, several blogs. I have to achieve a balance in my articles to cater to both types of readers.
- Who is going to write the blog entries? If you are the sole proprietor of the business you are promoting and have no employees, this will have to be you, as no one else knows your business as well as you do. If you have employees, you might have them participate: you sketch out ideas, they finish the articles. Or if your employees don't have sufficient writing skills, you might consider an intern who wants to learn your business.
- Who is responsible for the quality of the content? Someone has to take on the role of editor. Ultimately, as a business owner, you should "own" the content. If the blog is promoting your business, it must maintain credibility, otherwise that will reflect badly on your business. But in reality, someone has to edit the content, especially if you are not the writer or if there are multiple writers. If your business is large enough to have a marketing department, they are the most likely "owners" of the blog. Otherwise, the task of editor may fall to you. Some blogmasters-for-hire will assume the role of editor.
- Who will be the blogmaster? This is a hybrid task, falling partway between marketing and partway between (technical) webmastering. It includes managing the blog, posting of entries, optimizing content for the Search Engines, and analysis of blog traffic. Blogmastering is yet another task you will probably have to add to your own to-do list. However, some bloggers out there will help you manage a blog, typically for a monthly fee, or for a retainer plus a per-post fee. These fees may include promotion as well as analysis of incoming web/ blog traffic. The latter is crucial; geo-targeting is essential to businesses which have geographical differences or limitations. For example, if you run a local business, but are finding that much of your web traffic is coming from another state or even another country, you may want to re-think your blog strategy. (Example below.)
- With what frequency will entries be posted? Typically, it's wise to post entries two or more times a day, at least 5 days a week - although there are "weekly" blogs. Your blog entries do not always have to be large articles, and can often be summaries of other blogs or their articles, a list of resources, a few helpful hints, or relevant tips on saving money. However, every once in a while, you should write a longer article. To place higher in the Search Engines, your entries should be at least 75 words in length, when possible. Note that if your business is purely regional, and is unlikely to interest anyone outside of a certain geographical radius, blogging may not be as effective for you. In that case , you may want to set up a portal blog and invite other business owners from across the country/ continent/ world to participate. The "helpful hints" entries are of interest to all readers, but a region-specific blog entry could link to the writer's own business website. Keep in mind that the synergy gained from multiple points of view has proven itself in terms of web traffic on various blog networks. There is also less onus on a single writer to blog everyday, and the increased number of total daily blog contributions is likely to draw more blog traffic than for several small regionally-based blogs.
These are just a few of the questions you have to answer. I recommend that before you set up your blog, you also wr Would You Make the Best Dressed ListIn any and every given moment of your life, you are either in command of yourself, or you are being commanded. Guy FinleyKeeping a wardrobe that is complete and always new is rare. The costs of buying clothing today and with the constant change in styles, bargains are a treasure. There is a definite challenge to being well dressed at all times, especially on a limited budget. For working women this is difficult, yet, it can be done.The key is in the planning. It takes money to build a wardrobe, or to start over from one season to the next. When you plan your wardrobe, keep in mind your particular style or look. If you find yourself asking questions like, What on earth will I wear today? Or, I have got absolutely nothing to wear! Another favorite is to telephone a few friends to see what they are going to wear. If you find yourself doing any of these, then, your goal is to plan.Asking yourself some of the following questions may prove helpful:Does your wardrobe consist of more t far behind in checking the alerts, the resulting giant to-read list can get intimidating. (By the way, Yahoo! and MSN have similar services.) What I do with the alerts is skim over them. If a snippet interests me, I'll click on the link to visit the source web page and read the full story. I try to read several stories on the same topic, then summarize all of them into one short article, add links to the source stories, and add my own spin to the topic, either supporting or refuting what is being said in the stories. Adding your own spin is essential, as it is your opportunity to add your own personality - which is usually more evident in your original blog entries. Anyone can write a summary; make that summary yours. With blogs that document my experience on a topic, I try to think about what I know now that would have helped me when I was starting out. Someone out there can do with your guidance. Providing this guidance in a blog is an excellent way to build rapport with readers. I feel that anyone can do this, regardless of what type of business you are in. But there are some questions you have to ask yourself, and which you should answer before you start blogging:
- Why are you blogging? Are you essentially trying to sell products and services (either online or offline), or showcasing your experience for some other reason? I blog for several reasons:
- I love to write.
- I can earn advertising money.
- I have a number of e-books that I'm writing, which I eventually hope to promote via some of my blogs.
- I showcase my blogs for small business owners who want to see what a blog for their industry may look like. For example, I have a couple of potential clients who are small- to medium-sized merchants that sell antiques or home decor and fashion. I've set up an example blog for them to view the possibilities.
- I showcase my experience on a topic, in order to gain contracts for website or blog architecting, design, or technical writing.
- Who are you writing for? My blogs are each targeted to different people. Even though several of them are showcases that exist in hopes of getting me contracts, they are written as any magazine on the same topic might be. For example, my antiques/ home decor blog is written for anyone who has an interest in such. In this case, I'm targeted buyers, not dealers. But the way I've set it up, my intent is to attract dealers to eventually write articles. My blog about spinning blogs is aimed at both people who write only one blog and those who write, or want to write, several blogs. I have to achieve a balance in my articles to cater to both types of readers.
- Who is going to write the blog entries? If you are the sole proprietor of the business you are promoting and have no employees, this will have to be you, as no one else knows your business as well as you do. If you have employees, you might have them participate: you sketch out ideas, they finish the articles. Or if your employees don't have sufficient writing skills, you might consider an intern who wants to learn your business.
- Who is responsible for the quality of the content? Someone has to take on the role of editor. Ultimately, as a business owner, you should "own" the content. If the blog is promoting your business, it must maintain credibility, otherwise that will reflect badly on your business. But in reality, someone has to edit the content, especially if you are not the writer or if there are multiple writers. If your business is large enough to have a marketing department, they are the most likely "owners" of the blog. Otherwise, the task of editor may fall to you. Some blogmasters-for-hire will assume the role of editor.
- Who will be the blogmaster? This is a hybrid task, falling partway between marketing and partway between (technical) webmastering. It includes managing the blog, posting of entries, optimizing content for the Search Engines, and analysis of blog traffic. Blogmastering is yet another task you will probably have to add to your own to-do list. However, some bloggers out there will help you manage a blog, typically for a monthly fee, or for a retainer plus a per-post fee. These fees may include promotion as well as analysis of incoming web/ blog traffic. The latter is crucial; geo-targeting is essential to businesses which have geographical differences or limitations. For example, if you run a local business, but are finding that much of your web traffic is coming from another state or even another country, you may want to re-think your blog strategy. (Example below.)
- With what frequency will entries be posted? Typically, it's wise to post entries two or more times a day, at least 5 days a week - although there are "weekly" blogs. Your blog entries do not always have to be large articles, and can often be summaries of other blogs or their articles, a list of resources, a few helpful hints, or relevant tips on saving money. However, every once in a while, you should write a longer article. To place higher in the Search Engines, your entries should be at least 75 words in length, when possible. Note that if your business is purely regional, and is unlikely to interest anyone outside of a certain geographical radius, blogging may not be as effective for you. In that case , you may want to set up a portal blog and invite other business owners from across the country/ continent/ world to participate. The "helpful hints" entries are of interest to all readers, but a region-specific blog entry could link to the writer's own business website. Keep in mind that the synergy gained from multiple points of view has proven itself in terms of web traffic on various blog networks. There is also less onus on a single writer to blog everyday, and the increased number of total daily blog contributions is likely to draw more blog traffic than for several small regionally-based blogs.
These are just a few of the questions you have to answer. I recommend that before you set up your blog, you also wr Who Took My Million Dollar Job?It is obvious that many people go to colleges, universities get their degrees and thought that life is going to be good and the future is going to be great. It is after struggling to find a job for months do they realise that it is not as straight forward as it seems. You might be a graduate from MIT or even Harvard but if you don't have a good resume, it will kill you.You have invested in yourself by spending tens of thousands of dollars to get your degree. Your whole life had been studying and learning to the point that you are ready to reap the rewards. What do you do then. Go to Google and grab a resume template. It sounds really idiotic but just wait a minute and ask yourself this question. Isn't everybody doing that too. Oh yes, you've just joined the me-too group of job seekers.In lot's of marketing events you will always hear the marketing gurus say this. You need to differentiate yourself. You need to stand out from the rest. It is true. In every industry, only the top 5 players can umber of e-books that I'm writing, which I eventually hope to promote via some of my blogs.
I showcase my blogs for small business owners who want to see what a blog for their industry may look like. For example, I have a couple of potential clients who are small- to medium-sized merchants that sell antiques or home decor and fashion. I've set up an example blog for them to view the possibilities.
I showcase my experience on a topic, in order to gain contracts for website or blog architecting, design, or technical writing.
Who are you writing for? My blogs are each targeted to different people. Even though several of them are showcases that exist in hopes of getting me contracts, they are written as any magazine on the same topic might be. For example, my antiques/ home decor blog is written for anyone who has an interest in such. In this case, I'm targeted buyers, not dealers. But the way I've set it up, my intent is to attract dealers to eventually write articles. My blog about spinning blogs is aimed at both people who write only one blog and those who write, or want to write, several blogs. I have to achieve a balance in my articles to cater to both types of readers.
Who is going to write the blog entries? If you are the sole proprietor of the business you are promoting and have no employees, this will have to be you, as no one else knows your business as well as you do. If you have employees, you might have them participate: you sketch out ideas, they finish the articles. Or if your employees don't have sufficient writing skills, you might consider an intern who wants to learn your business.Who is responsible for the quality of the content? Someone has to take on the role of editor. Ultimately, as a business owner, you should "own" the content. If the blog is promoting your business, it must maintain credibility, otherwise that will reflect badly on your business. But in reality, someone has to edit the content, especially if you are not the writer or if there are multiple writers. If your business is large enough to have a marketing department, they are the most likely "owners" of the blog. Otherwise, the task of editor may fall to you. Some blogmasters-for-hire will assume the role of editor.Who will be the blogmaster? This is a hybrid task, falling partway between marketing and partway between (technical) webmastering. It includes managing the blog, posting of entries, optimizing content for the Search Engines, and analysis of blog traffic. Blogmastering is yet another task you will probably have to add to your own to-do list. However, some bloggers out there will help you manage a blog, typically for a monthly fee, or for a retainer plus a per-post fee. These fees may include promotion as well as analysis of incoming web/ blog traffic. The latter is crucial; geo-targeting is essential to businesses which have geographical differences or limitations. For example, if you run a local business, but are finding that much of your web traffic is coming from another state or even another country, you may want to re-think your blog strategy. (Example below.)
With what frequency will entries be posted? Typically, it's wise to post entries two or more times a day, at least 5 days a week - although there are "weekly" blogs. Your blog entries do not always have to be large articles, and can often be summaries of other blogs or their articles, a list of resources, a few helpful hints, or relevant tips on saving money. However, every once in a while, you should write a longer article. To place higher in the Search Engines, your entries should be at least 75 words in length, when possible. Note that if your business is purely regional, and is unlikely to interest anyone outside of a certain geographical radius, blogging may not be as effective for you. In that case , you may want to set up a portal blog and invite other business owners from across the country/ continent/ world to participate. The "helpful hints" entries are of interest to all readers, but a region-specific blog entry could link to the writer's own business website. Keep in mind that the synergy gained from multiple points of view has proven itself in terms of web traffic on various blog networks. There is also less onus on a single writer to blog everyday, and the increased number of total daily blog contributions is likely to draw more blog traffic than for several small regionally-based blogs.
These are just a few of the questions you have to answer. I recommend that before you set up your blog, you also wr Intuition in Business - A Key for Decision MakersDo you ever hire or put work teams together? Are you ever developing relationships with clients, advisors, supervisors, or your staff? Do you ever have to make career choice decisions? Are you ever in position to decide about a new product and what quantities to produce, distribute, or acquire? Do you have to stay ahead or at least up with the trends? If you answered yes, then you may want to read on and explore how you can tap your deepest and strongest levels of wisdom...An executive buyer for a national retail chain of full service department stores played a "hunch" and created huge profits and national recognition for her stores. She had learned her job over several years and understood her customers but when it came to predicting the fashion trends she was still more guessing than using statistical analysis. Her intuition told her that an overlooked style would be a "hit" and proceeded to order the dress in certain fabrics and in large quantities. The manufacturer, being an honorable business a e articles. Or if your employees don't have sufficient writing skills, you might consider an intern who wants to learn your business.Who is responsible for the quality of the content? Someone has to take on the role of editor. Ultimately, as a business owner, you should "own" the content. If the blog is promoting your business, it must maintain credibility, otherwise that will reflect badly on your business. But in reality, someone has to edit the content, especially if you are not the writer or if there are multiple writers. If your business is large enough to have a marketing department, they are the most likely "owners" of the blog. Otherwise, the task of editor may fall to you. Some blogmasters-for-hire will assume the role of editor.Who will be the blogmaster? This is a hybrid task, falling partway between marketing and partway between (technical) webmastering. It includes managing the blog, posting of entries, optimizing content for the Search Engines, and analysis of blog traffic. Blogmastering is yet another task you will probably have to add to your own to-do list. However, some bloggers out there will help you manage a blog, typically for a monthly fee, or for a retainer plus a per-post fee. These fees may include promotion as well as analysis of incoming web/ blog traffic. The latter is crucial; geo-targeting is essential to businesses which have geographical differences or limitations. For example, if you run a local business, but are finding that much of your web traffic is coming from another state or even another country, you may want to re-think your blog strategy. (Example below.)
With what frequency will entries be posted? Typically, it's wise to post entries two or more times a day, at least 5 days a week - although there are "weekly" blogs. Your blog entries do not always have to be large articles, and can often be summaries of other blogs or their articles, a list of resources, a few helpful hints, or relevant tips on saving money. However, every once in a while, you should write a longer article. To place higher in the Search Engines, your entries should be at least 75 words in length, when possible. Note that if your business is purely regional, and is unlikely to interest anyone outside of a certain geographical radius, blogging may not be as effective for you. In that case , you may want to set up a portal blog and invite other business owners from across the country/ continent/ world to participate. The "helpful hints" entries are of interest to all readers, but a region-specific blog entry could link to the writer's own business website. Keep in mind that the synergy gained from multiple points of view has proven itself in terms of web traffic on various blog networks. There is also less onus on a single writer to blog everyday, and the increased number of total daily blog contributions is likely to draw more blog traffic than for several small regionally-based blogs.
These are just a few of the questions you have to answer. I recommend that before you set up your blog, you also wr How to Protect Your Boss From Bad MeetingsTough times mean more meetings. This happens because executives respond to
problems by calling meetings to fix them. And when the meetings fail to produce results, they call more meetings. In some companies, people have even called meetings to figure out why their meetings didn’t work.Rather than watch your boss trudge off to an endless schedule of meetings, here are
things you can do to help make the most of them.1) When someone calls to schedule a meeting for your boss, ask for the agenda. If
there is no agenda, check if your boss wants to attend. Lack of an agenda is the
number one cause of bad meetings. Ideally, your boss would insist on having an
agenda because time is money. For example, I doubt that your boss signs blank
checks.If the caller replies that your boss will receive an agenda at the meeting, state that
your boss wants to see the agenda at least a day before the meeting. This gives your
boss time to prepare and avoids being ambushed by surprises. another country, you may want to re-think your blog strategy. (Example below.)
With what frequency will entries be posted? Typically, it's wise to post entries two or more times a day, at least 5 days a week - although there are "weekly" blogs. Your blog entries do not always have to be large articles, and can often be summaries of other blogs or their articles, a list of resources, a few helpful hints, or relevant tips on saving money. However, every once in a while, you should write a longer article. To place higher in the Search Engines, your entries should be at least 75 words in length, when possible. Note that if your business is purely regional, and is unlikely to interest anyone outside of a certain geographical radius, blogging may not be as effective for you. In that case , you may want to set up a portal blog and invite other business owners from across the country/ continent/ world to participate. The "helpful hints" entries are of interest to all readers, but a region-specific blog entry could link to the writer's own business website. Keep in mind that the synergy gained from multiple points of view has proven itself in terms of web traffic on various blog networks. There is also less onus on a single writer to blog everyday, and the increased number of total daily blog contributions is likely to draw more blog traffic than for several small regionally-based blogs.
These are just a few of the questions you have to answer. I recommend that before you set up your blog, you also write at least 10 entries to get a feel for things. Starting up and maintaining a blog, on top of your daily business commitments, is a lot of work. It's your public face on the Internet - more so than a regular website - and you want to maintain credibility. So plan your blog well.
HTTP = HTML link (for blogs, profiles,phorums):
<a href="http://www.addyou.info/article/58668/addyou-Introduction-To-Blogging--Part-2-Planning-Your-New-Blog.html">Introduction To Blogging - Part 2: Planning Your New Blog</a>
BB link (for phorums):
[url=http://www.addyou.info/article/58668/addyou-Introduction-To-Blogging--Part-2-Planning-Your-New-Blog.html]Introduction To Blogging - Part 2: Planning Your New Blog[/url]
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