blogging and twitter

© Copyright Tamar 2010 | Presentation Zen© Copyright Tamar 2010 | Presentation Zen© Copyright Tamar 2010 | Presentation Zen

Blogging Getting the most out of it


Don’t focus on having a great blog. Focus on producing a blog that’s great for your readers.

Brian Clark, blogger

© Copyright Tamar 2010 | Presentation Zen© Copyright Tamar 2010 | Presentation Zen

Good blogs…

© Copyright Tamar 2010 | Presentation Zen


What makes a good blog?

• Give it some personality– Write in a unique style; develop regular

features; have a strategy!

• Update regularly– Give people a reason to come back!

• Facilitate discussion – social media– Enable comments; encourage the use of

‘share’ tools

• Moderate with a soft hand– Allow people their voice


What makes a good blog?

• Get some SEO benefit out of it– Ensure keyword research is utilised and

maximised

• Aggregate your content– Join blog communities; invite guest-posting

• Figure out your niche and stick to it– Readers will decide what they will and won’t

accept

• Use multimedia well– Videos; Images; Widgets etc

• Make it look nice


‘If you build it, they will come’ – WRONG!

How do you get people TO your blog?

• Establish relationships with other bloggers

• Invite guest contributors

• Join blogging communities and networks

• Promote and discuss on other social channels

• Encourage interaction to promote repeat visits



The bottom line is that blogging is like sex. You can’t fake it. You can’t fake passion. You can’t fake wanting to engage with the public. If you do, it will ultimately be an unsatisfying experience for both the blogger and their readers.

Kevin Anderson, blogger


Tweet tweet


What is Twitter?

From Wikipedia:

“Twitter is a social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read messages known as tweets.

Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters displayed on the author's profile page and delivered to the author's subscribers who are known as followers.”



Who does it well?



The IAB’s top tweeting tips

• STOP! Why use Twitter? Is it because it’s the thing to do or because it will add to your communications?

• What are your objectives for using Twitter? Be clear on your strategy at every step.

• Don't get Twitterjacked. A foolhardy consumer may already be talking under your name. Claim your space.

• Ensure communication is legal, decent, honest and truthful. Follow the CAP Code.

• Don't over-tweet and overwhelm your audience. The traditional rules of consumer engagement still apply.

• Allocate appropriate resources. Twitter is not a five minute job.• Establish a tone of voice appropriate to your product and

audience. This is YOUR brand talking to real people.• Think about how you will measure success. Is number of

followers enough if they’re not engaged?


http://community.brandrepublic.com/blogs/iabblog/archive/2009/03/10/don-t-get-twitterjacked-get-involved.aspx

http://bit.ly/MQxv6



• Be current. Twitter is immediate, so make your updates relevant, topical and insightful.

• Don't hitch your wagon to popular trending topics. Learn the lessons of Habitat.

• If you want to drive sales, make it easy. Give customers online vouchers or discount codes.

• If you have specific products, services or incentives to promote, set up a dedicated Twitter feed.

• Try to respond to direct messages, especially those from users interested in learning more about you.

• Ask questions of followers, don’t treat Twitter as just another broadcast vessel. Encourage interaction.

• Embrace the re-tweet. If you see a post that will interest your audience don't be afraid to re-tweet it.


http://community.brandrepublic.com/blogs/iabblog/archive/2009/06/25/habitat-s-tehran-branch-how-not-to-use-twitter.aspx



• Promote your Twitter feed. Don’t expect people to find you. Advertise the fact that you use Twitter.

• Always innovate. Whoever you are, 100 followers isn’t enough. Use your imagination to enlist more.

Plus a few of my own…• Don’t worry about following everyone back – have a unique

Twitter experience• Take part in regular features - #FollowFriday, #CharityTuesday

etc• Have a little bit of personality, if you can• Don’t worry about ‘rules’ – do what works for you and your

brand• Track traffic from Twitter back to your site



Homework time!

• With your new blog, we’d like you to write a post critiquing two corporate Twitter accounts:

– One who you think ‘gets’ Twitter– One who doesn’t quite get it yet…

• Any questions?



[email protected] @henweb

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blogging and twitter

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