So you finally have your chance. You have a nice looking blog, it’s hip to your audience and you are all set to start pumping out article after article. You know your audience and you know what they like. So let’s have at.

A few weeks go by and it’s just not hitting the mark, something must be wrong. Is this thing on?

That advertising you paid for definitely kicked in, the dollars are moving out and it shows right here that it is sending traffic to the site. You check the stats and the visitor numbers show promise. Wait, the last 30 visitors came in through your main page and only stayed 2 seconds or less?

Let’s have a look at that page. Hmm the site title tells me that this is Bob’s Blog The Marketing Guru, might be interesting. Let’s find out. Scanning, scanning, scanning. Wait a second, I don’t get it, the “logo” says marketing but not a single title here gives me any indication that I am about to dive into a genius marketing article. Ah well time to move on, after all I have things to do.

People are scanning, sifting, shifting and moving fast. They rarely have time to decipher cutesy and creative. They want a headline that is going to grab and convince them that reading through this article is totally worth the risk that they might get caught taking a little too long of a lunch hour this afternoon.

Be concise, be direct and get some attention.

Oh and search engines forget it. They came to your site expecting market trends, ROI, and social media. You have given them red ball, green banana and blue sock?

Ok this was a bit harsh but it makes you think about what you’ve been writing doesn’t it?

I would be lying if I were to say that I am not guilty of this myself. I to have often found myself clearing a space on the shelf for my award having just been recognized for this clever piece of genius I have written.

Oh yeah back to reality. People are not scanning to see how clever you can be with that play on words you passed off last week as a title, they want you to get to the point. They want to know why the hell they just landed on your blog after endless searching and they want to know now.

Exercise Forget, for a second, what it is that your blog focuses on, clear your head of the articles you have published in the past week and take a quick glance at your front page. From the viewpoint of an outsider, is there anything that grabs you? Can you figure out what is there for you to read?

It’s ok, happens to the best of us. Now focus on how you will make it better in the weeks to come.

I think there are a lot of us out there that would react by hitting the delete key without a moments hesitation. But, is this always your best bet?

Personally I think you have to learn to take the bad with the good in this case. I usually advocate approving all comments even if they are not so shiny. (I do have rules, see below).

Why would I open myself up to bad reviews if I had the choice? For several reasons.

First off, if someone is upset with something you have written, a product you have produced or a service you have rendered and you don’t allow them to voice their opinion, chances are you will only fuel the fire. This can lead them to finding other venues to voice their now even stronger opinion. Worse case scenario, they have now made it their mission.

Secondly and this follows should you decide to approve the comment. Doing so on your own blog gives you a public place to control how it is handled. My advice, handle it immediately upon approval and handle it professionally. If you are in the wrong and there is something you can do to remedy the situation, then consider offering to do so. Possibly even taking it offline via email or phone to handle the situation.

Would you prefer to handle an angry client in the comfort of your own place of business or in line at the local grocery store?

The combination of the above will show your readers and customers that you are willing to accept the minor failures of your business as well as handle them promptly and professionally. This displays a certain level of transparency that consumers are slowly willing to expect from a company.

My Rules
I do follow a few important rules in making the decision to allow the bad or downright ugly.

1. I look for a professional tone in the reader when voicing their opinion. I don’t mind if some angry shows through but to leave a comment filled with cuss-words and other forms of obnoxious behavior will probably not make it through.
2. Comments sprung from a battered ego. – You have a successful site, the product is a hit, things are going well. Along comes a former co-worker that wasn’t one of your biggest fans to start with. Unfortunately this guys leaves a half assed comment just to bash you because you are who you are. Sorry, deleted.
3. The last and final is touchy. On occasion I will review another product and once in a blue moon I will get a rather unhappy user of that product to stop by. On one hand you don’t want to discourage your readers, on the other you don’t want to cause an issue with the creator of the product. Rules 1 and 2 apply here.

This is my take on blog comments and how they should be handled, I would be very interested to here how others handle the not so nice. Feel free to comment below.

Twitter Inspiration abounds on Twitter if you are following the right people and by that I am talking about the people discussing topics relevant to your niche. Pay attention to what people are talking about, follow a link or two and I almost guaranty you will find something worth writing about.

Pick Up a Book Or a newspaper, or a magazine. Over the past few weeks, with a renewed devotion to blogging, I have stumbled upon more than one topic by simply reading a book. I’m not talking about a full on book review, I am just talking about a simple chapter or even a paragraph that has sparked the imagination and given me reason to write.

Get out and see the world That’s a bit of an exaggeration, but what I mean is take some time to see what’s going on in the community around you. Pay attention to what people are talking about, eavesdropping I guess you might call it. There are always people out there talking about the economy, how they just discovered Twitter or how they can’t seem to get their business off the ground.

Watch a Video, TV Program, Movie Several Topics have come to me while watching the evening news, think about it these are the things that are somewhat relevant in the world today. These are the topics that people are interested in learning more about.

Go now, find your own topics to right about, they are everywhere!

With that I would like to share with you a short but informative article I wrote quite awhile ago for a personal blog that has since gone by the wayside.

Begin Article…

I was approached yesterday by a local business owner with an interesting question regarding the benefits of creating a company blog. The question: What are the benefits? Off the cuff I was able to provide a pretty good answer to the question but I felt as though there was more to discuss, so I did a bit of research last night and would like to expand on my ideas.

Reason #1

First let me say that you as the business owner know your industry and customer better than anyone, you will know if a company blog will benefit them or create an unwanted hassle for you and your employees. Bottom line is, an effective blog requires some work beyond just good design and development. It requires work on your part as well. Articles or “posts” need to be well written, optimized and pitched as a real benefit to your customer, not just another advertisement for your product. If you approach your blog as creating a learning resource for your customer, it will be well received and ultimately benefit your business.

The benefits of a company blog are both up front and obvious as well as behind the scenes. Here are some of the up front reasons. The ability to share news and updates about your company on a regular basis going beyond the monthly or quarterly newsletter you may already have in place. Let’s be realistic, economically it does not make sense to send out a newsletter every time there is a new development and by the time your quarterly or monthly newsletter makes it’s way into the hands of the customer, some of your news may be outdated. With a blog your customer is able to check back at their own free will to keep updated on your company.

Reason #2:

Reinforcing your brand and positioning yourself as an expert. Ok I could be a great sales person. I know just enough about my product, Widget A, in order to close the deal and make a comfortable living. However if I was viewed as someone that knows more than “just enough”, a real expert that could provide answers to your questions now and into the future, would I not be more likely to get your business? Constantly putting your brand in front of the customer, letting them know that not only do you create Widget A, but your know everything there is to know about Widget A, positions your company as an expert in the field. Translated: It makes your customer feel comfortable when purchasing your product.

Reason #3:

Answering your customers question before they even walk through the door. Chances are your customer has some questions and they are more than likely to do some research of their own. If you are the one providing those much needed answers, who are they likely to come to first when making the final decision. Answering questions and providing value, reinforces your overall brand in the eyes of the customer.

Reason #4:

Encouraging customer interaction and feedback. A blog is not just a place to share information, it is also a place to encourage interaction and feedback. Wouldn’t it be valuable to hear what your customers are saying.

Reason #5:

Providing a more personal look at your company and the people within. Lets create an example here. You have two local hardware stores. Store 1 has everything you need and some pretty decent prices, problem is that when help is needed the employees seem to disappear, your questions seem more of an annoyance and when it comes time to check out the clerk might as well be a robot scanning your items. No smile and no friendly hello. Now Store 2 takes a different approach. They are always there to assist you with a smile on their face. They take the time to get to know you as a customer and in return you get to know them. They make you feel welcome. Let your customer get to know you before they walk in the door.

Reason #6:

Identify with the community. You don’t need to set out to create a blog that is nationally known, instead focus on your community, your target market.

Reason #7:

Working behind the scenes. A well written and functional blog creates fresh, useful content. Fresh useful content is considered valuable to search engines and can ultimately improve your ranking.

So that’s it, I have covered some of the key points to take into consideration when asking yourself the question. Would a blog be useful to my company? As I said the final decision is in your hands, as you know and understand your product and market best.

If you feel that I have left something out, I encourage you to add it below.

End Article

That offer is still open, please feel free to add your thoughts below.

So how do you get readers? A number of ways I imagine, good writing, excellent SEO, advertising elsewhere etc. What about commenting? Are you really taking advantage of this oh so important aspect of blogging like you should be?

To start take a look at the last 5 or so comments that you have left elsewhere. (If you have been at this more than a month and you can’t count 5 comments left elsewhere you need to start right now!) Anyhow back to it, 5 or so previous comments. Do they all go something like this, “Great article, thanks for writing”. Don’t get me wrong it is nice to give people a pat on the back for an article well written but that aside what have you really added to the conversation?

As a blogger myself, I personally have gotten comments like this and although appreciated I really don’t have any way of responding to that other than thanks, end of conversation. I am more likely to start a dialogue with someone who start’s out like this, “Great article, well written, here is what I find most interesting…blah blah blah, and this is what I would add to the list…blah, blah, blah.” Ahh, very nice commenter #6, Bob, interesting thoughts on my article blah, blah, blah.

See not only did commenter #6, Bob let me know he enjoyed my article but he let me know how it was useful and even added his own insight, which in turn warrants a response and more than likely a click through to his own site to see just who Bob is. Turns out bob is a marketing guru who blogs daily about the uses of social media for small to medium size businesses. Guess what, Bob just got himself a new reader. Even more interesting is the fact that two months down the road when I am writing a short article on marketing via social media, I remember a piece I read over at Bob’s blog and now find that it would be extremely useful for my readers if I linked to it from this particular article.

Ok there is the first relationship Bob has formed from simply leaving a thoughtful comment on my blog, let’s have a look at the other benefits.

Cindy, searching Google for “Commenting on Blogs” turns up my post here on Viral Thinking. She reads through the article and notices a number of comments. Like me she thinks it was very nice of Jimmy (comment #1) to tell me I wrote a great article, but she is more interested in what Bob has to say. Hmm Bob brings up an interesting point, Cindy says to herself, let’s see who Bob is. Wow, turns out Bob is in the business of consulting small business on how to use social media to market their product! Guess what, Cindy owns a small boutique and knows that she could be reaching out to a whole slew of new customers if she could just figure this facebook thing out. Bob just scored himself another new reader and more than likely a new client.

Commenting is about getting involved, sharing ideas and adding to the conversation. It’s how you build relationships, meet prospective clients and grow your online presence. It is one of the most powerful tools you have for marketing yourself, your blog and your business. Make it useful and make it count, and by all means, make it a priority.

I have owned a couple of blogs for around two years, my writing has been sporadic at best and my traffic even more so. But I’ve been paying close attention throughout the journey and I think I am finally starting to get it, writing for the web that is. Getting readers, not just traffic.

My Observations

Keep it focused – Try to stay focused on what you set out to write, people like personal but if you go off on a rant about how your dog just chewed power cord on your mac when you set up to right about how you are marketing your freelance business you might lose them. If you have a story that illustrates a point then by all means, but if it’s just a drift into lala land then drop it. People came to your post titled “Top Social Networks of 2009″ for a reason so give that and write about fluffy elsewhere.

Get to the point – Going on and on just doesn’t cut it when it comes to the web so edit and cut it short. People are used to short and sweet when it comes to the web so get to the point and move on. Hey if you have more to say there is nothing wrong with writing a follow up post right?

Small and Scannable – Don’t get me wrong there is always a place for longer more in depth articles, I read them daily, but let’s face it most of us do our online reading on the go. We are shuffling through tabs, working on projects, jumping on a plane or wasting time at work. We want info, we want it now and we want to pick out what we don’t find necessary. Hey it’s time to move on to the next, what are you still here for, go already.

Images – I don’t know what it is but people seem to love images especially the clickable type. You don’t have to go overboard here but it’s not a bad idea to brighten things up a bit. A little eye candy can go along way when it comes to grabbing their attention.

All flourishes and elegance – Write in terms that the general public is willing to sit and listen to, leave the fancy talk to Shakespeare. Hey if you audience is a bunch of Scientist that understand what you are talking about then go for it but if you are writing for me drop it down a notch.

Conversation – Start a discussion, it might even mean pissing off a reader or two but it needs to happen. Oh and once you get those comments rolling in don’t take flight and feel like you have succeeded in mission. Stay involved and keep it going.

And finally Design, I hate the fact that this one rarely appears on the how to be a better blogger list. I am not saying you need to win an award for most innovative blog design in 2009, but give it some attention. You could have a completely white page, text only and as long as the page is organized, the font is nice and the writing is halfway decent I am probably going to stick around. However if you have flashing lights and rainbow colored text on a lime green background I am going to have to say goodbye, and I don’t care if you write award winning essays.

It’s not the comprehensive guide to writing a better blog post but if you follow some of these simple observations you are bound to see some improvement.

To me the idea sounds pretty interesting so you can count me in, besides I can’t wait to see what kind of content gets cycled through this little project. Kudos to Chuck for such a smart idea!

So are looking to bring in the casual reader who is just looking for a little relief from the daily grind and more apt to skim. Or are you focused on the reader desparately searching for the next big idea that is going to catapult their business into the realm of success overnight and is more apt to hang on your every brilliant word. Don’t know? Figure it out and then tailor your product (writing style) to appeal.

How focused are you? Are you looking to provide content to one elite group of people who fully understand the ins and outs of your niche, or are looking to appeal to those informed and those interested. Let’s say for instance the topic of Nanotechnology. You are an expert on the subject and all you really want to do is content with others in the same boat, that’s your market. So go for it, use all of the fancy terms and technical terms you would like. But lets for a moment say that you are looking to appeal to a reader more like myself, I might be interested but if you start throwing out the big words too soon, chances are I will loose interest pretty quickly and go searching elsewhere. Start me out slow, “dumb it down a bit” as they say, real me in and then wow me. Bottom line is learn to relate to your reader. This should be one of the easiest things in the world because chances are if you are interested enough to write about it then you are interested enough to read. YOU ARE PART OF THE MARKET so relate to your peers, just like you would anywhere else, whether it be the halls of a prestigious university or the dark corners of the neighborhood tavern. Make it personal and find a way to relate.

You have a ton of great ideas and a passion to share them, but if you don’t focus on appealing to the “people who give a damn” about your brilliance or lack there of then you will forever being asking yourself who gives a damn about what I write.

I will not leave you without provide some useful information however  so take the time to head over to one of my favorite blogs and check out the first few of a 10 part series dealing with simplifying and organizing your use of social media platforms, by  Muhammad Saleem.

Consider this the first post in the return of Viral Thinking

Whatever the case may be it is important that you exploit your goal. For instance if you are blogging in hopes that you will generate a nice income through advertising then design that into your site at it’s conception. You may spend the first several months focused on producing exceptional content, building links and generating high traffic forgoing advertising altogether at first but when the time comes you are ready to gradually integrate money making opportunities as they arise. Basically you are approaching the creation of  your blog just as you would any other aspect of business, by laying the foundation with a well formulated plan.

If you are looking to establish credibility and become recognized as in industry expert with the goal of networking, then let it reflect in your content. Prepare well thought out and thoroughly researched articles. Be readily available to answer the questions of your readers. If you are going to use it as a networking tool then get out there and start networking. Add your blog to your social networking profiles, your signatures and even your business cards.

The point is, start with a well formulated goal for your blog, create and implement a strong plan and then follow that plan just as you would in any other aspect of your business or career. Your organization will be apparent, creating a more professional and enjoyable experience which will benefit both you and your future reader.