Gone are the days when blogs are regarded as personal online diaries. Its power and magic has turned millions of bloggers to instant celebrities and some, millionaires. Almost anyone can make a blog in a few minutes. Sign up at some blogging platform, log in, and then type your way to blogosphere.

Gaining more popularity and achieving success are corporate blogs. Why a certain company should blog…the list is endless. Why, it’s what this blog has been campaigning for since day one.

I’d like to make a recap of why companies should blog:
> blogs are more popular within the business world
> blogs are easily customizable and editable
> blogs are cheaper alternative to traditional offline marketing
> blogs are designed to rank well in search engines
> blogs make your clients and customers feel like your company is open
> blogs can make bring you unwanted attention that may someday bring more business opportunities

…and the list goes on and on. Not all companies are doing this smart marketing tactic because they simply don’t have time to write, However, there are companies offering business blog services that further increase the online popularity of a brand or company.

Corporate blogs for me are important because they help shape the reputation of a company. It’s giving prospective clients or customers a sense of familiarity with the company right away. While it requires effort, the results can be mind-blowing.

But remember, not all companies can and should blog. There are right ways to achieving a successful blogging career.

WebPosition 4 is a popular SEO Ranking software that I’d recommend, even if the only website you have is a blog. If you are trying to monetize your blog then you’ll need a way to track your conversions, right?

WebPosition 4 can do that and so much more.

Not only does WebPosition 4 track conversions, but it also reports your search engine rankings, helps you target your keywords better, uses a built-in expert to optimize your web pages more effectively, and submits your URLs to the search engines for you. It’s an automated process that is well worth the time.

There are two products that you might have an interest in: The standard edition and the professional. The standard edition is good if all you want to do is use a metrics system for your website or blog. But if you do any pay per click advertising at all then you’ll need the professional edition. The way it tracks and reports pay per click conversions is well worth the extra that you’ll spend on the professional edition.

The standard edition supports up to 5 domains, but the professional edition has unlimited domain support, so if you have multiple domains then you should think about shelling out the extra bucks for the professional edition. You can also have your reports e-mailed to you with the professional edition, which is a huge time saver. And two other new services that come with the professional edition are meta tag manager and link validation. I really like the link validation tool!

At any rate, before I go on too long, check out WebPosition 4. You’ll be glad you did.

I like Michael Martine. He offers useful insights from time to time, but I also reserve the right to disagree. This is from today:

Write your posts like they’re news stories: pay attention to your headlines and leads like a reporter would.

I somewhat agree. Yes, headlines make a difference. I believe news-style headlines are best. Action verbs, sentence-like structure, eye-catching and appealing. However, unlike news headlines, blog post headlines are more effective if they focus on the benefit of the content rather than sensationalized.

I can go two ways on blog posts. They can be like news stories. There’s nothing wrong with that style. But they can also be like op-ed pieces. People do care what you think. You are the expert and they are reading your blog for your expert opinion. Don’t be afraid to give it.

Always credit your source or inspiration for a story. The internet may be built out of html and links, but it’s “made” of people, and people deserve credit for what they’ve done, just as you would want to receive credit.

I fully agree with this. By giving credit to your sources you are not only covering yourself legally, but you are also drawing others into your blog, into your content, and into your conversation. More people will read you if they see that you are trying to do the right thing and giving credit where credit is due.

Maintain good relationships with others who are the sources of the information that’s in your blog posts.

Again, I agree. Business - online or off line - is all about relationships. That doesn’t mean you can’t disagree. You can. But when you disagree, do it in an agreeable manner. People will respect you more and your blog will be read.

Boing Boing doesn’t have a niche. Which I find really interesting, because nearly all of the blogging advice you ever read says thou must haveth thy niche as though it were a commandment, or something. But Boing Boing isn’t in a niche. Boing Boing appeals to a certain type of person: tech savvy, pop-culture aware, liberal, biased towards open source, sexually active, pro human rights, and anti-DRM (digital rights management). That’s not a niche… it’s a demographic, which is a much broader marketing category.

This is where Michael and I have hopped aboard different trains. I’m not sure why there is a distinction between niche and demographic. In my mind, they are the same thing. Boing Boing does have a niche. Their niche is providing interesting news and commentary on tech-related issues for a hip, culturally aware audience.

I tried to find Boing Boing’s mission statement, but it wasn’t there. Maybe they’ve decided that their niche target market will find them. It obviously has. But a difference between a demographic and a niche is like the difference between a squad of cheerleaders and the clothes they wear. One is about the people and the other is about the content. They go hand in hand. Your demographic is defined by the people you serve. The niche is defined by the content you offer. I’d like to know more about why Michael Martine makes the distinction the way he does.

This is where a lot of bloggers fall short: other than writing on a blog, they’re not doing anything interesting or worth blogging about. This is especially true of “make money” blogs.

This is useful advice, but I’m really not sure what it has to do with blogging unless the blogger includes details of his personal life on his blog. There’s nothing wrong with doing that. John Chow does it and he has an interesting “personal blog” about making money. Other make-make-at-home bloggers don’t get so personal and they appeal to a different audience. I think you have to determine who your audience is and what they want. Do they want to hear about your participation in the march for equal rights for penguins? If not, it doesn’t really matter. What does matter is that you provide the kind of content that your target demographic is looking for.

So many blogs are the same! I can’t stand it. One way to stand out is to champion your peculiar tastes. Each of the boingers has some interesting and different likes and dislikes, and their personalities come through on the blog.

Yes, I absolutely agree. You have to stand out. Be controversial, have a sense of humor, show a little bit of your vulnerable side. Get angry, be sad, get happy, be glad. You know, write interestingly about interesting things. The No. 1 rule of blogging is Don’t Be Boring!

One thing you don’t want on a team blog is too much similarity between the team bloggers. You want each one to offer something strong and unique, so that collectively as a team, the whole is far greater than the sum of its parts.

Yes, I’d have to agree with Michael on this one, but since I don’t write or participate in a team blog, I suppose I don’t have much to say about this one.

One of the reasons for Boing Boing’s success is simply its longevity.

Blogging is a commitment. If you’re not in it for the long haul then you’re not in it for the right reasons. Don’t do it just because it’s popular or because the competition is doing it. If you start a blog, be sure to follow through and post to it often - 20 times a day is fine if you have the time. You should blog every day. If you can’t, do it once a week. That’s better than nothing. If you have to, hire a ghostwriter.

Something I hear time and time again is how people don’t feel they have time to blog, or they think they aren’t even smart enough to know how to start one. True, they are time consuming, and can even be a bit daunting if you’ve never seen the admin side of one before, but that’s where blog and website services come in.

Sometimes it is better to leave it to experience hands at all levels of the blog creation and running side of things. That’s why companies such as ours offer to help those of you who just don’t think it’s for you, but still want that marketing power. We can set up your blog for you, host it, and even write the content for you if you like.

So what are you waiting for? Swing by and check out our services and prices today!

You’ve picked the template, got your blog set up, chosen the direction of your content, but once you’ve launched, how do you know how people are finding you?

Just about every web host gives you some simple statistics software with your account, but they aren’t always the funnest things to read.  You need something a bit more graphical, and you really can’t go wrong with something like Google Analytics.

You just set up your account, insert a bit of code in your page, and the service tracks just about every thing you can think of in the way stats.  How long they stay on your site, what they read, how they arrived at your page, and more.  It is well worth your time to set up and study every so often.  When you see something working, don’t beat it to death, but you certainly can do follow up posts.  Over time you’ll get a feel for what works before you even write a word.

This is a limited time offer. No, really! It is! No Hype! For a limited time, lets say through November 15th, 2007, Brick Marketing will be offering you free advice about your blog.

We will be giving you 6 tips on how to improve your blog. These are not just random blog tips you can get right here on Blog Marketing Journal. These are 6 things you can do to improve your blog. We will take a look at your blog and give you those 6 blog tips right here or in a private email where appropriate.

Just a free service we are trying out so we can help people improve the results they get with their blog. So comment if you would like to receive your 6 free blog tips.

Nick Stamoulis and experts at Brick Marketing provide expert professional, yet very affordable, blog marketing services for increasing your blog traffic and website sales.

When it comes to effective blog marketing campaigns and management, we are known for thinking “outside the box” for noticeable results!

Affordable Business Blog and Social Marketing Pricing

New Blog Package – Create a New Blog:
Includes: Customization of Blog Template, Category Selection & Development, 1 Year Hosting,
Full Launch of your new company Blog!
1 Time Cost: $599

Daily Blogging Copywriting Service
(For Existing & New Blogs)
Includes: Copywriting in your new or existing Blog every single day, 7 days a week –
Save time & money!
Monthly Cost: $499

Blog SEO (For Existing Blogs):
Includes: Keyword Selection & Optimization of your Blog, Ping Service Recommendations, Submission to 10 Web 2.0 Social Bookmarking sites.
1 Time Cost: $499

Social Media Optimization
Includes: Search Engine Reputation Management,
Social Marketing Team Launch & Management
Request a custom quote.

This is the excuse I hear most often. Okay, we’ll call it a reason, not an excuse, why so many people say they cannot blog everyday or cannot start a blog at all. They don’t have time to blog everyday and don’t have time to properly promote the blog.

That very reason is why many blogs fail. The writer stops putting the time and effort into it or loses interest or they don’t see immediate results from their blog and think that it just doesn’t work.

Here are some blogging tips to help you manage your time and still maintain a daily blog.

1. Blog by email.

2. Look up mobile blogging and try that.

3. Ask people to be guest bloggers. Do it often. Pick the days you know it will be hard for you to blog and get another blogger to fill in for you. Offer them a permanent link back to their blog or a link at the bottom of the blogpost they make.

4. Hire a blog ghostwriter or content provider.

Now, no more excuses.

I know calling people cheapskates sounds a little harsh, but if you are being pennywise and pound foolish, you need to rethink your blog marketing strategy.

Yesterday we talked about domain names in part 1. Today, in Part 2 we will go over blog hosting.

First let’s talk about free hosting for blogs. Blogger.com, Wordpress.com, and others will let you set up your blog on a subdomain of their domain name at no charge.

Remember the phrase there is no such thing as a free lunch. Free hosting for your blog may sound like a good idea but there are some serious drawbacks to using a free host.

1. You have to abide by their terms of service. That means they get to make the rules about what you can or cannot do on your blog. While you may have never had a problem with your blogger blog or your blog at wordpress.com or other freehost, it does not mean you will not have one in the future.

What if they decide to change their terms of service? They do not have to notify you of anything. The rules can change without notice. They can say you can’t have any advertising except adsense. They can say you cannot blog about google or wordpress. They can say anything they want because they make the rules.

With your own domain name and hosting, you get to write your own terms of service. You are in charge. You make the rules.

2. Web surveys have said publicly that 70% of the blogs on free hosting like blogger.com are spam blogs. Likely you are in the 30% of legitimate blogs, but you are associated with the spam blogs because you are on the same hosting.

Almost all spammers are going to take advantage of free hosting services. They do not want to spend any money they don’t have to. They are not investing in their business. If you are blogging professionally, you should be willing to spend money on a real hosting service for your blog.

3. Free Blog Hosting is inferior to the web hosting that is available to you. There are good hosting services out there where you have more control over your blog. FTP access for one. The ability to alter the htaccess file, permissions, etc. allows you to do more things with your blog.

4. There is no “flagging” when you have your own domain name and hosting. On blogger.com, anyone can flag your blog as spam. Anyone, including your competitors can do this. It can be just their opinion. Some people believe that any blog with any commercial purpose at all is not a legitimate blog. They will flag you because they believe they know what you should be doing on your blog.

When you get flagged, blogger.com can shut down your blog and lock you out until they have a chance to review your blog to see if it is spam. It is not innocent until proven guilty. They lock you out and you have to respond to them to ask for a review so you can get back to blogging. If it has not happened to you, it does not mean it won’t. It does happen to legitimate bloggers. Go to google groups about blogger and see all the people posting about being locked out of their blog.

At wordpress.com you can be shut down if they think your blog is too commercial. They will tell you, your blog is not a “legitimate” blog. So the admin people at wordpress.com have decided what is or is not a “legitimate” blog. If you do not conform to their idea of a “legitimate” blog, then they can shut you down. Again, on free hosting, you have absolutely no control.

Now enough about why free hosts for your blog is a bad idea. What about those of you who want to pay for your own webhosting? How do you choose the right hosting service for your blog?

Of course every business, including those whose business is blogging, has a budget they have to work with. But finding the cheapest hosting for your blog is not the answer. Hosting is a very important decision.

Hosting can even affect your seo. If your blog loads too slow, this does have an affect on how well you do in the search engines and on your visitors. Those of you who have been blogging a long time also need a lot of room for all those old posts and images you have used in the past.

Don’t be cheap when choosing a host for your blog. Every business has to have some investment to be really successful. Choose the best host for your blog and consider it part of doing business on the web.

The ultimate goal is to have your own dedicated server where you choose all the options you want your hosting to have. This can cost you as little as $200 per month and as much as $500 per month, depending on the level of hosting and service you want.

If you own or manage a lot of blogs, you definitely should be on dedicated hosting. You can assign seperate IP addresses for each blog and with some you can even choose to have a different c class for each blog you own. That means when you link one blog to another, the links will have more value.

If your busget will not allow you to go with dedicated hosting, you still need to make sure your host has certian features. And do not think because you recognize the name of the company that it is automatically better than other hosting services. GoDaddy is huge, but they are not a hosting service I would use for any blogs.

1. Shared hosting plans, especially from companies that host thousands of websites, sometimes means your blog is never truly in one place. It is served up to viewers from whatever machine has the most available bandwidth at the time.

I’m not techie enough to explain it fully, but suffice it to say, some shared hosting plans that move you around from server to server depending on their current load are not the best option. Some smaller hosting companies are better options simply because they don’t need to move you around. They don’t have the same bandwidth issues.

2. Customer Service: There are level 1, 2, and 3 techs at many hosting companies. Level 1 techs are the guys that answer the phone and when you tell them your problem, they type it into their computer and it gives them a pat response that was already written for them to say. An dmost of the time thye just say, it must be a problem on something you did because everything is fine with our hosting.

When they have no pat response, they send you to a level 2 guy that knows how to make some changes on your server and that person tries to resolve the problem. If he can’t and you are being too difficult, like making them do actual work instead of playing halo 3, they send you to a level 3 tech.

Level 3 techs are supposed to be able to do anything to the server that needs to be done. The problem is that it takes you an hour on the phone to get to one because you have to go through all the people that don’t know how to fix your problem before you get to this person.

There are some hosts that actually allow you to choose whether you have a level, 1, 2, or 3 problem and you get right to the person you need to deal with. They are rare with most hosting plans, but more readily available with dedicated hosting.

3. Windows Hosting: If you want your hosting to be worse than your operating system, you can always go with windows servers. Everytime you hire a coder to do anything, it will cost you more money. This is not an option for blog hosting in my honest opinion.

4. Databases: One question you need to ask your hosting company is how many mySQL databases can I have? You need one everytime you set up a new blog so make sure you have the capability of doing so, even on subdomains if you want to at some point.

5. Bandwidth: This is where they get you. First of all there is no such thing as unlimited bandwidth. If you are checking out a hosting company and it says unlimited bandwidth, they are lying to you. Go check out another hosting service.

A blog should not have any bandwidth issues unless you are getting 100,000 uniques per day. Make sure you check what happens if you go over your bandwidth allotment though. Do they shut down your blog with a page that says exceeded bandwidth or do they charge you an exhorbitant fee for the overage? You need to know this. The more bandwidth they offer, the better, but again, there is no such thing as unlimited bandwidth.

6. Storage Space: Web hosting companies love to tell you about all the storage space they will give you while they give you very little bandwidth. bandwidth is much more important. You really do not need near as much storage space as most of them offer to you unless you run a photo or music downlaod type blog. So don’t be too impressed by storage space. They sell way more storage space than they have because they know that rarely will anyone actually use all of their storage space anyway.

The bottom line is do not be cheap when choosing a hosting service for your blog. Choose the host that provides everything you need and one that provides good service.

Part 3 of Are You A Cheapskate will be about advertising and paid inclusion.

Well, are you? I understand that if you are blogging as a hobby or just getting started with blogging that you might not be able to or may not want to invest too much money into blogging.

However, if your goal is to be a professional blogger or to run an online business of any kind, you need to invest a little money to make it happen. It’s not that different from running an offline business. You have to spend money to make money.

The investment of your time, or “sweat equity”, is also important. So if you are unwilling to put the time into your online business or blogging career, then no need to plan on what you will do when you become a successful blogger. It won’t happen.

Let’s go over some of the areas where I find people who want to make their living online, but are unwilling to spend either the time or money to make it happen.

Let’s start with the basics;

Domain Names: I hear people all the time say that they are going to get their domain name at the cheapest registrar they can find. Why? Is the difference between paying $6.99 per year for your domain name and paying $50 per year for your domain name going to make or break you? Is your business plan so weak that this will eat into your profits? If so, you have the wrong business plan or you are not very confident in it in the first place.

Find the best domain name for the main key phrase you want to target. It does not matter if it is dot com, dot net, dot org, dot cc, dot pn, or dot whatever.

I can’t wait for the domainers to read this because they will come in and argue that ccTLDs like dot pn don’t do well and that dot com is the only way to go. If you think you are a domain expert and you are reading this, before you try, you have to know I can prove you wrong.

I can show you blogs with dot pn, dot cc, and others that are PR5 and above and have great search engine rankings for their main keyphrases. The ONLY way that dot com is better than other TLDs is IF you plan to advertise on the radio or TV. People do remember the domain name with dot com better than other TLDs.

However, on the web, they click links in search engines and on web pages or they click banners and ads and do not care what the domain name is. They use bookmarks and still do not care what TLD is at the end of your domain name.

So choose a domain name that is your exact key phrase you want to target in whatever TLD it is available in. Some ccTLDs will cost you more money. You might have to pay as much as $100 per year for your domain name. OMG!

Again, if your business plan will not support getting the domain name you want, then maybe you should re-examine your business plan.

Now I’ll probably get the SEO gurus saying the domain name does not matter. Again, if you are an seo expert and plan to say thyat then I warn you I can prove you wrong there as well.

I can show you many many blogs with the number one listing in google that have the exact key phrase they are targeting as their domain name.

And before you say it, of course JUST having the domain name that matches your key phrase does not automatically mean you will rank high in the search engines for that phrase. But you want to do everything you can to get those listings and it all starts with the domain name.

So the domain name is worth the investment. Invest in the domain you want. Don’t settle for something that will not help you such as abbreviations only you understand or made up words no one will ever search for just to save a few dollars.

I know I planned to continue blogging about blog directories, but I’ve decided to go back to the basics and to the beginning to help people get started on making some money on the web.

Blog and Social Marketing Services from NickStamoulis.com.

———————————————————–

New Blog Package – Create a New Blog:

Includes: Customization of Blog Template, Category Selection & Development of Linking Strategy.

Full Launch of your new company Blog!

1 Time Cost: $599

————————————————————

————————————————————

Daily Blogging Copywriting Service (For Existing & New Blogs)

Includes: Copywriting in your new or existing Blog, targeting your keywords and phrases, every single day, 7 days a week

Save time & money!
Monthly Cost: $499

—————————————————————

Blog SEO (For Existing Blogs):

Includes: Keyword Selection & Optimization of your Blog, Ping Service Recommendations, Submission to 10 Web 2.0 Social Bookmarking sites.

1 Time Cost: $499

————————————————————–

Social Media Optimization

Includes:

Search Engine Reputation Management,

Social Marketing Team Launch & Management

Request a custom quote