Blogging: Time Saving Devices

Part 2
Blogging: Time Savers

We've already established that time is a commodity many of us do not have in abundance. Therefore, making the most out of our time is essential.

Here are some other quick and easy-to-use time saving tips when blogging.

1. Have a theme for your blog
2. Ideas
3. Plan a series
4. Use blog features
5. Scour news stories
6. Be user friendly
7. Get rid of nasty code



1. A Theme:

Having a theme for your blog will greatly cut down in the frustration of wondering what to post next. This will give you a place to begin. Use a notepad (or word document on your computer) and list some ideas for your blog. Pick the one idea that is the most encompassing of your general overall customer reach or client base.

2. Ideas

I have too many ideas and too little time. Therefore a handy device that I use is Mind Mapper software. You can search online for free versions, in fact Wikipedia has several download links for free software. This has been a life saver for me in terms of organizing ideas for upcoming book projects. This can even be used for work flow, or to-do lists. I own software that has been purchased (MindMapper 5.0) and it has paid for itself many times over. When writers block strikes you can look at your idea list and pull some fresh ones out. Make sure you add some when you take some away.

3. Plan a series

One idea can lead to another and another. If you think about your blog post as one long series that will help you keep with the topic flow and expand upon another thought. I personally know authors who have taken their blog posts and turned them into free e-books or obtained book contracts because of the number of blog followers. Why would your readers come back daily to check on your posts? Is it because you have enticed them with a "what's coming" at the end of the post? Use these devices and watch your numbers soar. (You will spend less time in advertising your blog as well.)

4. Use your blog features

You can write blog posts many days ahead of time and schedule when they will become "live." This is a time saving feature. Write when you have the time.


5. News Stories

Does your blog contain up to the minute news? If not, you may consider inserting some trends from time to time. This helps your readership, does not take long to find (make sure you subscribe to information sites that provide good sources), and will liven up an otherwise  same-ole post.

6. Be user friendly

Are there applications on your blog that will allow readers to tweet or facebook a post of interest? Does your blog speak down to people or is it easily understood. If you use a word the reader may not understand do you link to the site with the information readily available. Don't make your reader work. Let your blog be a place to find information quickly and easily.

7. Nasty Code

If you use a word processor to write  your blog (and you should), many times there is html code that is embedded in the document. If you control-copy-and-paste from the word document into your blog post screen, you will bring all that code along and mess up your blog post. Use this simple life saving technique. Copy your word document (Highlight your document (Ctrl key and A), then hold the Ctrl key, and hit the "C" for copy)...then open notepad... and paste (Ctrl key and the letter V). Then copy the entire document from notepad and paste it into your blog. It will look identical to your word document all without the annoying code.

Review shortcuts to copy and paste:
Highlight All: Ctrl + A
Copy All: Ctrl + C
Paste All: Ctrl + V

Next post: Keywords...using them will help your blog ranking.

Social Media: Networking Online

Part 1

Mastering Time:

Time is the number one commodity we own and the most valuable. In order to run our businesses and become the most efficient we need to master the time-monster. It eats away at so much of our day. I think the last time I heard someone say, “Time just goes so slowly,” was a childhood friend as we awaited the approach of Christmas. We all want to learn  short-cuts, what works, and how to minimize our time online and get more bang for the buck!

Social Networking: Time Thief

As I determine the biggest time robber in my daily life the finger squarely points at social networking, online. Several years ago everyone in my business (I’m an author), jumped in squarely with both feet and took off running. Some of them stumbled, shook off the dust, and took off again. Others sat right where they fell and decided never to get up again. I took the cautionary and scholarly approach, I studied. Not only did I study social networking for almost two years, keeping up with the head dizzying trends, but I joined several social networking membership sites. The old adage you get what you paid for was correct. I received much for the thousands of dollars I invested.

Wisdom in Your Approach to Social Media

What I learned was to be cautious, to be smart, and to be on the cutting edge. One of the things, surprisingly missing from my classes, was to be a friend. Yes, value was mentioned, in “value laden posts”, or “value driven offers”, but none of the classes I took really discussed the nuances of being a friend, first and foremost. All of marketing boils down to one important ingredient: relationships. We like doing business with people we trust, products we like, or helpful individuals.

Be a Friend First

If you learn nothing else about the business of social networking, please know that being a friend and being trustworthy should come foremost in your dealings. No one would believe the marketing ploy with headlines blazing, “Hi! I’m Trustworthy! Give me Your Money!” Yet, everyday we see posts from people wanting us to join a membership site, purchase an eBook or opt-in to one more mailing list (giving our overtaxed email address and name) to receive a worthless eBook product. Unfortunately, these people have given all online marketers a bad name.

The Big-4: Blogging, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn

In the next few posts we will discuss the nuances of social networking and etiquette, online. We will discuss what I term the Big-4. For me they are Blogging, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If you don’t know what they are, go ahead and study them. I also urge you to proceed with caution. Remember, the internet is a great place but news travels fast. You will want to set up some precautions and check those security features on you online accounts. If unsure it is better to be cautious.

Here are some tips I have gathered lately about creating a Blog. If you have not entered the world of Blogging but have a website you will want to see if you can enable an RSS feature. Without becoming too technical, this is a way for your information will be updated and sent to subscribers. Feed features are one of the key reasons blogs are so powerful. Your information (if worthwhile) can be accessed easily by readers.

Your Customer Base

A blog is a place to point your customers so they can get to know you. In the arena of social media we are told to not even try to sell unless you have thousands (yes, thousands) of contacts. To begin to attract more customers, you should make sure your blog includes:

Keyword rich content: give the search engines something to find that is keyword specific

• Content that is informative, entertaining, or at the very least contains value
• Be Social: let others know about your posts via social media connections, do not go overboard
• Keep your content unique, this is very important, don’t plagiarize
• Keep your focus narrow but don't be narrow focused: you can talk about different related topics but make sure it reflects your mission statement or marketing plan
  
• Your calling card: your blog reflects Y*O*U…make sure it shines
• Applications: use them or loose them. If you aren’t using the apps that your blog has available to you, you won’t be driving traffic the way you should.
• Learn: After two years I know how much I do not know. Take at least fifteen minutes or more each week to learn more about social media, and share it with a friend
• Be a Friend: this means post a response on this blog and others, email it to a friend and help to propagate the message.
• Follow a Blog, visibly. Help the numbers by following other blogs
  

We are all in this together….hmmm, wasn’t that a song? Let’s make this network strong and work together to help each other and share what we have learned with business friend.

Next Post: Blog Basics, time saving devices

Felice Gerwitz
Speaker, Author, Publisher, Consultant to Aspiring Authors
http://www.InformationInANutshell.com
http://www.MediaAngels.com
http://www.MediaAngels.com/socialnetworking