Is a blog a worthwhile strategic marketing investment for your company or a waste of time? Find out what your should know about blogs in order to make the most of the technology, and how to avoid common pitfalls of newbie bloggers. Presented by Fred Greenhalgh of Hall Web Services.

1. Get Your Business
Blogging

2. Who We Are
Fred Greenhalgh
Internet Marketing/Communications Manager
fred@hallme.com
Hall Web Services
www.hallme.com
• 10+ Years in Business
• Over 80 Search Marketing Clients
• 98% of Customers "Very Satisfied"

3. Got Questions?
• Use GoToWebinar “Chat” or “Ask
a Question”
• Twitter with #SEOvision tag

4. What is a Blog?
(Would it be a blog by any other name?)
• Reverse-chronological order
• Easy to update
• Personality
• Focus
• Archives

5. The Magic of RSS

6. How are Blogs Used?
• Personal Blogs
• Professional Bloggers
• Business Blogs

7. How Businesses Use Blogs:
• Launch New Products
• PR
• Demonstrate Expertise
• Disseminate Information
• Answer Common Questions

8. Benefits of Blogging
• Establish authority in an
industry
• Network with others in your
field
• Expand Brand Awareness
• Communicate with sales leads
• Create personality for your
business

9. Other Benefits of Blogs:
• More content for your site
• SEO optimized
• Great source of links
• Indexed quickly by Google
• Google will revisit your site
more frequently

10. Getting Started
• Windows or Linux Hosting?
• Which Software?
– Wordpress
– Movable Type
– Typepad
• Create (or choose a theme)
• Integrate Plugins
– SEO plugins
– Multimedia Sharing
– Social Media Sharing
Technical Considerations

11. Start Blogging!
• Title – Should be quick
and catchy
• Content – Concise, clear, lots
of formatting
• Media – Photos help spruce up
text
• Categories/Tags – Aid in organization
• Publish – Just do it!
Essential Aspects to a Post:

12. What to Write About?
• Appeal to a Need
– “Ten Secrets to Saving Money with
Accounting Software”
• Debunk
– “5 Myths of Online Recruiting
Debunked”
• Resource
– “100 Best Sites for Researching
Accounting Software”
• Respond to News
– “What Washington's New Family
Leave Act Means to You”
• React to Another Blog Post

13. Writer's Block?
• Shed Mental Barriers
• Take a Walk
• Don't Take it Too Seriously
• Just Start Writing
• Write During an Assigned Time
• Browse the Web a Bit
Sometimes it'll be tough,
but you just need to write!

14. • Keep up to date
• Keep on-subject
• Provide value
• Show personality
DO!
Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/seandreilinger/439462046/

15. • TMI
• Lambast the Competition
• Get (too) Political
• Forget to Update
• Advertise Events that Already
Happened
DON'T
Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephenr/2275553683/

16. Keeping Up With the Blogosphere

17. Measuring Success
• Increased Traffic
• Comments left on Blog
• RSS Subscribers
• Inbound links
• More conversation about your
brand/company through the
blogosphere
Know What You Want,
So You Can Know When You Get It

18. Are you Ready to Blog?
• Ready for the
commitment?
• Ready to say
something great?
• Ready to lose control?

19. Re-cap
Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/5-0_og/1304841776/
• Say something worth
reading
• Keep at it
• Be honest
• Listen!

20. www.hallme.com
Learn More!
• SEO Vision Blog - http://www.hallme.com/blog
• Webinars – Every Tuesday at 2PM EST
http://www.hallme.com/webinars
• Email Me: fred@hallme.com
• Follow us! http://twitter.com/hall_web