Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

I caution how elementary and "duh" the following questions are, but they bear asking.  How are blogs started?  How does one determine which service to use (I just visited the Blogger site)?  What else is involved to create/have one?

I`m new to this popular form of communication (and the RSS feed stuff) and want to learn as much as possible.  I know blogging requires time commitments and I intend to commit once I know what I`m doing and decide when to begin.

Please educate this potential blogger  Many thanks!

Ok, so I came across this info http://www.wikihow.com/Blog.  What are your thoughts on it and how close, if at all, does it resemble your initial blog experience?

The link you provided conveys some great information about blogs.  I have never denied the fact that I am somewhat "technically challenged" - as a "creative type" my brain just doesn`t seem to work in the necessary manner - but when it came to setting up my own blog others have said "it`s so easy, even Jeff can do it!"  I was somewhat hounded into initiating a blog by others in my industry.  Once I sat down to get things set up, I found that I was up and running with my blog within a couple hours.  I was stunned at how easy it was - and kind of ticked at myself for not starting it earlier.

These days I try to have a new entry posted every two or three days.  I can even write several posts in advance on one day, save them as drafts and then upload them the day I wish.  I`ve posted articles I`ve written, links to articles posted elsewhere, industry "fun facts" I`ve found online, my press releases, book reviews I`ve written, travelogues and more.  It`s all part of projecting myself as a "expert" in my field - and now a major part of my business marketing (all at no cost).  I am very selective about the other blogs/sites that I use as links on my blogs.  In addition to my blog, I have set up a MySpace.com page - which also allows you to set up a blog.  On that blog page I simply post links to my current blog entries and find it draws many people my way.  A Google search of my blog`s name - bLog-oMotives - consistantly results in about 12,000 references - so it`s easy to see why so much traffic is being directed to my business web site.

Earlier this week I gave speeches to design students from two colleges and another to members of an advertising federation organization.  For the students I discussed the use of blogs as a portfolio of their work and an online resume for potential employers to review.  With the ad group I mentioned the use of blogs for posting articles, press releases, new client projects, and other company efforts.  Blogs are becoming an increasingly valuable marketing, promotion and sales tool.

Best of luck as you enter the blog-o-sphere.  Dive in!

- J.







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Jeff Fisher | Jeff Fisher LogoMotives | Tweet! Tweet!

I wrote a post on my Family Travel blog about RSS feeds recently; maybe it`ll help sort it out for you. My RSS feeds are indispensable to keeping my blog fresh.

My advice after only a few months blogging is that it is all-consuming.  I get itchy if I haven`t posted something daily.  The topics for travel literally span the globe, and even when I try to neck down to those related to just family travel or travel with kids, it`s still a lot.

Took me awhile to get a grip on search engines and basic HTML as well.  There`s a great site called ProBlogger that has been immensely helpful.

Then again, I`m living what I love.

The key thing is writing good content that interests and engages people; all else falls behind that.

Best wishes, Sheila

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Seafarer

Author Web site |

Family Travel blog |

Every Dot Connects blog

I use Blogger.com works great.

If you want your own blog you get get a webhost and use wordpress (free software).

Another one that works great is

http://www.writingup.com?referer=7965

I`d start with writing up because it`s a thriving community.  You`ll learn alot there!

 

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Bryan C. Fleming

http://www.BryanCFleming.com

There`s no shame in asking what blogging is.  To a certain degree, blogging has been overblown to be more than it is - people sharing things they write with other people as things occur around them in their lives and in their world.  I`ve seen blogs that give better persepectives and information than some newspapers or magazines and I`ve seen others that read like the diary of an 8 year old with the grammar skill concommitant.

What`s interesting is that blogging has been around in one form or another since the Internet first hit the general public.  The 16-28 demographic, an early adopter of technology, was no exception in this area.  But as time went on, it got even easier than typing something and hitting a button.  With things like trackback and RSS to share content and the media attention to the "blogosphere revolution", it just hit the big time.  Just be careful about what the media says about blogging.  It is after all - starting to become their competition.

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"Forget inspirational quotes to keep you going. If by doing what you do, you get an hour every day to relax, be with the ones you love in comfort without doing wrong, then it is all worth it." -Anon.

How does one increase their webpresence for their website buy using a blog if it is not directly connected to your website. Do you just make references and add links to your content of your blog?

How do you use RSS feeds to your advantage?

I have a link to my Family Travel blog on my (more static) author Web site, and a link back to the author site (my Bio page) on the blog.

When I make comments on other blogs or Web sites, my signature has the author site URL below my name if it`s a general or writing topic, or the blog URL if it`s about travel.

The blog is hosted by BootsnAll and has a built-in RSS feed button at the top.  I`m not sure how many have clicked it to sign up for me, though. 

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Seafarer

Author Web site |

Family Travel blog |

Every Dot Connects blog