This is a copy of the presentation I made on April 5, 2011, at the Greater Moncton Chamber of Commerce's Social Media Day. (Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada)

1. Blogging 101 By Brian Cormier

2. Short for “web log” = blog Online diary, log News Photos Video What is a blog?

3. Google Blogger (“Blogspot”) WordPress TypePad Tumblr Where to get a blog?

4. What are you passionate about? Niche-market blogs get the most traffic General interest blogs are much more difficult to promote Blogs are excellent for showing your expertise in certain areas: Crafts Collectibles Entertainment Specific issue Choose a subject

5. Be concise Entries don’t have to be “major” – they can just be quick thoughts Post-date blog entries for convenience Update often – a few times per week Don’t ignore your blog Use photos – these are searchable in Google and will help get you traffic Use video Content for your blog

6. Google Images Search for “free stock images” in Google Give credit for photos whenever possible Take your own photos – more personal and exclusive Sources for photos

7. YouTube Dailymotion MySpace VideoSurf Google Video Facebook Sources for videos

8. Resist using coloured fonts Use what’s easy to read If readers’ eyes are bugging out of their heads trying to read your blog, they will simply move on You may think it’s “pretty” and “cool” and “awesome”, while others may think it’s simply “annoying”, “loud” and “excessive” Make your blog reader-friendly Use labels to allow readers to find similar stories on your blog Make it easy to read

9. Show archives Allow readers to search your blog Make it easy to read

10. Register your URL in Google Comment on other bloggers’ posts Post links and talk nicely about other related bloggers, including links to their blogs Post links to social media websites Facebook – start a FB page, too! Twitter If your blog posts features one of your own YouTube videos, make sure the link to your blog post is in the video description on YouTube Promoting your blog

11. Write an e-book on your area of expertise and post it to your blog for everyone to share People love free stuff Establishes your credibility People will gladly share it with others Give credit to others in your e-book and they’ll definitely help you to promote it Promoting your blog

12. Many ways to earn an income online Google AdSense Ads will be placed on your blog based on what you’re writing about Niche-market blogs most successful at this, i.e. knitting ads on a blog about knitting will tend to get more clicks Payout is about 60 days after reaching $100 U.S. in your account Earning an income

13. Earning an income Example of a Google banner ad

14. Earning an income Example of Google text ads

15. Membership site Exclusive content for members of your site for a monthly fee Teaching / mentoring / coaching Professional advice and tips Online community open only to a few Affiliates Commission-based Selling books, e-books, courses, etc., for others, including Amazon, Chapters Indigo, other bloggers, mentors, coaches, etc. Earning an income

16. Yes, definitely enable commenting Yes, definitely enable moderating Gives you control on what is being posted Allows you to eliminate spam Allows you to eliminate haters and trolls Strongly advise not to allow anonymous comments – this will cut down 95% of spam, haters, trolls Respond to your comments, even if it’s a simple “Thank you!” Don’t ignore comments on the links you post to social media site – they count, too! Comments on your blog

17. It’s OK not to get bullied into fighting with someone online “Free speech” also has consequences Remember, your friends, work and online colleagues will see your blog, too – and read the comments Comments on your blog

18. Number of comments on your blog Number of comments on Facebook Number of RTs and replies on Twitter E-mails from readers Income earned Mentions on other blogs / websites Mentions in the media Traffic statistics How to determine success

19. Google Analytics Visitors Time spent on website Where are they from? Top content Top search engines Bounce rate Figuring out your traffic

20. Figuring out your traffic

21. Blogging platforms www.blogger.com www.wordpress.org www.typepad.com www.tumblr.com Social media www.facebook.com www.twitter.com www.youtube.com Resources

22. Professional bloggers / coaches / mentors Yaro Starak: www.entrepreneurs-journey.com Resources

23. Professional bloggers / coaches / mentors Gideon Shalwick: www.gideonshalwick.com Resources

24. Professional bloggers / coaches / mentors Darren Rowse: www.problogger.net Resources

25. Professional bloggers / coaches / mentors Sue and Steve Soucy: www.sueandsteveshow.com Resources

26. Be professional Remember... it’s public Treat it like a business Show up for work Learn how to spell Layout isn’t everything but it’s something Promote! Promote! Promote! Share! Share! Share! The more you give, the more you’ll receive Conclusion

27. Brian Cormier www.briancormier.com Brian Cormier’s Blogtastic World! www.briancormier.blogspot.com Lowcarbdude www.lowcarbdude.com brian@bricorcommunications.com My blogs

28. Blogging 101 By Brian Cormier Thank you!