Dealing with Blogger's Block

It happens to the best of us... you sit down at your computer knowing that you need to write a new blog article, only to tap your fingers impatiently due to lack of subject matter.  What do you write?  How do you start?  It's really frustrating!  Everyone's heard of writer's block, and blogger's block is no different.

So, what do you do?  There are several things.  First, you can blog about your site's keywords, which also helps improve your site's SEO.  Another possibility is to "repurpose" content you've used before.  Maybe you have a newsletter article that you wrote a while back.  You can easily freshen the content, update links and information, and post it to your blog.  That's a quick and easy way to recycle an old idea, and the hardest work is already done.

Another thing you could do is a simple internet search.  Look and see what other sites have to say about your industry and use some of those thoughts to spark a conversation.  Reading other blogs can also give you great ideas.  You can even help your fellow bloggers by linking to the articles you found.

When I was doing some research for this article, I stumbled upon another blog post that I think you'll find helpful.  In it was an extensive list of ideas for people suffering from "Blogger's Block", most of which could be applied to various different industries.  I'm planning to use them to inspire my own ideas and pass them on to clients for their blogging purposes.  Check out the link at the bottom to see this awesome article.

Get those blog posts flowing, and keep swimming along!

50 Blog Topics for Small Business

Keeping Your Web Design Fresh

I'm going to start here with a topic with which I know I can identify... food.  When you open your refrigerator, what food looks most tempting?  Is it that 2-week-old mystery object in the aluminum foil, or the rest of last night's apple pie?  If you're like me, you tend to pretend that science project doesn't exist until someone else does something about it (thanks, honey).  You're going to gravitate to the freshest items!

Websites are the same way.  People (and search engines) are drawn to sites that are constantly evolving, and why shouldn't they be?  Those are the sites that always have something new to offer and something interesting going on.  We all have our favorite sites that we check daily to see what they have new and exciting, whether it's sports scores, entertainment news, professional blogs, or humorous antecdotes.  (My daily dose of fun can be found at Clients From Hell and Cake Wrecks, among others.  Good stuff!)

A stagnant website is like a mediocre painting.  You may enjoy looking at it at first and may even come back one more time to make sure you didn't miss anything the first time, but that's about it.  You wouldn't make a special trip to that part of the museum to see it again before you leave.  You're just not that drawn to it.

You want a website for your organization that draws people back to it, and there are many easy ways to accomplish this.  Do you offer a Resources page where people can find useful information and links with valuable tools?  If you keep that updated, people will check back because you're giving them helpful resources all in one place.  Have you recently begun offering a new service?  You should use your website to promote it.  As I've discussed in previous posts, keeping an active blog insures that you always have fresh content, and it will also improve your SEO.

Keeping a website fresh does not have to mean a complete redesign.  Maybe your images could use a facelift, or you could decide to lay out the same information in different ways.  Another option is to have "featured products" on your home page that change from time to time.  The changes do not have to be drastic... a small change can freshen up a website just as much as moving a chair in your living room can change the feel in the room.  It makes you and your visitors feel good and refreshed.

When you make changes to your site, don't forget to announce them in your blog, on social media, or using email marketing.  That could be just the reminder that someone needs to visit your site, and who knows what kinds of leads that could generate.

Keep the fresh ideas coming, and stay out of stagnant water.  Until next time, keep swimming along!

Blogging for SEO Improvement

In my last post, I talked about using blogging as a social media tool to start conversations.  In this article, I'd like to address how blogging can improve Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

First of all, what is Search Engine Optimization?  As the name implies, it is literally optimizing your website to make it more "findable" for search engines like Google, Yahoo, and Bing.  There are many different factors that affect SEO, and a blog can help you improve several of these things in one shot.

The first factor is keywords.  Keywords are words or phrases that people use to find a site.  When someone types a term into a search engine to locate you, he or she is using a keyword for your site.  The more times you use that term in your site, the higher you will rank for it, and the better your placement will be on a search for that keyword.  Your blog entries should revolve around those keywords.  In fact, this is a great place to start if you're having a hard time finding blogging topics.  List words people would use to find your site, and revolve your posts around them.  Then, use those words in the title of your blog articles, in the body, and in the tags.

Next, blogging will help you to have indexed pages.  This is a term that refers to the number of pages the search engine has stored for your site.  Since each blog entry counts as a new page, you can quickly improve your number of indexed pages just by blogging a few times a week.  If you have more indexed pages, Google and other search engines see you as a more established site and will rank you higher than sites with fewer pages.

Fresh content is another reason to blog.  If you go a long time without adding content to your website, it grows stagnant and less appealing.  Search engines like new content.  A blog entry counts as an update to your site, so you're hitting another mark with each new article.

Lastly, blogging will help improve your number of inbound links.  Many users do not realize that search engines rank pages based on the number of links it finds from other sites to that site.  The more links you have to your site, the better.  As more people learn about your blog, they will share your information and link to your most popular articles.  Each of these links will improve your ranking for search engines.

These are certainly not the only ways that blogging can help your SEO, but it gives you an understanding that you can definitely improve many aspects of your page rankings with one powerful tool.  The more often you post to your blog, the more it will help your SEO.  Get that fresh content out there, and keep swimming along!

Blogging as Social Media

When most people think of social media, they usually only consider sites like Twitter, Facebook, and the new Google+.  Believe it or not, blogging is just as important, maybe more so, as those other outlets. 

Think about it... Facebook and (especially) Twitter limit the number of characters you can use to get your message across.  You can get the general idea out there with these sites, but how else are people going to get to know YOU as a business or organization?  What do you stand for?  What issues are important to you?  No matter how hard you try and how succinct you are, you can't get that across in 140 or fewer characters!

Starting a blog really lets potential customers or supporters have an inside scoop about you and your priorities.  You can also really get into the dirty details in a blog.  While Facebook and Twitter allow you to generate interest in a product, idea, or cause, a blog article enables you to expand on that interest and provide relevant details.

Additionally, a blog is considered social media because it allows users to share your content with others, leave comments, and start a real discussion.  It doesn't get much more social than that!  These discussions can lead to valuable insight into what your customers or supporters need and want.

Getting started on a blog, however, can seem a difficult task.  What do you write about?  How do you get people to read it?  What if people leave rude comments?  Some people are reluctant to try blogging because they don't feel their writing skills are up to par.  You don't have to be a Pulitzer Prize winner to write a blog... I have read many blogs that have awesome and inspiring ideas that could have been written better.  That doesn't make what the person has to say any less valuable.

The first thing you do is read other blogs.  Check out blogs for your specialty area and leave comments.  I'm not just talking about "Hey, I agree!" types of comments.  Leave insightful opinions.  If you agree, say why you agree, but if you disagree with something, say so.  Just be polite about it.  Rational discourse is fine, but rudeness and name calling are not.  As a general rule, the more you read, the more you will learn about blogging.

Next, make a list of topics.  Write down anything that comes to mind, even if it seems insignificant.  You know your field better than anyone, so think of issues and suggestions that go along with what you do.  Once you have your list, highlight the five most important items.  Chances are that those will be your first five posts.  Your first post should just introduce you and your business, and then you'll expand on that in future posts.  It's also good not to be pushy in your blog... it's not always the best place to be selling something.  If people like what you have to say, they'll seek you out and show interest in your business.

Now, about those rude comments that people are afraid of receiving... if it's a complaint about something you said or your business, address it politely.  People will respect that you can handle differing opinions, and they'll see that you know how to handle conflict.  If someone has a problem with your customer service, for example, address the concern and move on.  Potential customers like to see that you can take criticism and that pleasing the client is important to you.  NEVER resort to name calling, even if the other person is rude.  You don't want to stoop to that person's level.  If something is unfounded, a prank, or uncalled for, delete it.  You be the judge, and your gut will tell you which posts need to be deleted.

Honestly, I'm pretty new to the blogosphere myself, but I'm finding it to be a wonderful outlet to express what is important to me.  Each blog post leaves me with a feeling of accomplishment, as though someone out there could be enriched by my writing my ideas.

Get those posts and ideas flowing!  In the meantime, keep swimming along!

Customer Service in Web Design

My husband and I recently needed to hire a contractor to repair some siding that had been damaged in a windstorm.  If you've ever had to do this, you know what a daunting task it can be.  We were not looking forward to it.

Our first thought was to call a friend of ours who is a contractor, but he wouldn't be able to get to us because of his busy schedule.  That pretty much exhausted what this CPA and his web designer wife knew about the subject.  So, I did what any self-respecting computer geek would do... I consulted Facebook with a blind "Does anyone know a good contractor who won't rip us off?" type of question.  Who can you trust, if not your 9,000 Facebook friends?

Sure enough, one of my friends sent me an inbox message with the number of a guy that she said was "awesome" and had even given her husband some tips to save money.  Out of all the recommendations we received (ok, that was the only one) we decided to give the guy a call. 

When this contractor came to give me an estimate, he was really friendly, and he actually came at the time he said he would.  Things were looking good so far.  We were walking around the house to look at what needed to be done, and the gate to my backyard was sticking.  After four years of dealing with it, I showed him that if you leaned here, pulled there, and held your mouth like this you could get it open.  His reaction, "I'd hate for you and that little girl to get stuck on one side or the other of this gate.  I'll be right back."  He went to his truck, got his drill, and had it fixed in about 3 minutes.  He also charged me NOTHING to do this.  Wait.... isn't he just here for an estimate?  At that point, he could have spoken Portuguese and I would have been sold.

He sent us the estimate, we hired him, and he came and did his work.  Along the way I kept seeing little extra things he had done, like fixing a deck table where the leg had come off.  When some of the white paint on our deck railings came off during power washing, he told me that if I got the paint he would take care of it.  I thought he meant that he would touch it up, but he ended up painting the entire deck.  When we got the invoice, I was expecting it to be more than his estimate because of all the extra things he had done.  Instead it was exactly what he had quoted us, no more.

I thought customer service like that was a thing of the past, but this man gave me a renewed hope for humankind and showed me that you don't always have to get "McService" everywhere you go.  And why should we settle for that?  If people want a certain kind of service, they should give it themselves.
There are countless stories of web designers keeping their clients waiting ridiculous amounts of time for work to be done and charging an arm and a leg to do it.  Well, I have a message for you: STOP IT!  You're making the rest of us look bad.  Then again, maybe you should keep it up so that you can drive business to designers who will do better by their customers.

Each client should feel special, as if he or she is the only client that the designer has.  Additionally, web professionals should listen more than they talk, be honest about how long something will take, and do what they say they will do when they say they will do it.  Do things sometimes come up?  Definitely.  Just be honest with the client instead of putting him off.  What does this do for you?  Well, clients are going to be a lot more excited to advertise for you with their colleagues and friends if you treat them right.

We teach children to treat others the way they want to be treated, but too many adults miss the mark in this area.  I think it's time for website designers to lead the way in changing customer service for the better.  By the way, if you live in the Central Virginia area and need a contractor, I have a great prospect to send your way!

In the meantime, keep swimming along!

Sizzling Email Marketing

Pull out the sunblock, flip flops, and beach chairs, because summer is in full swing!  Your customers and supporters have sun and sand on their minds, so it's the perfect time to remind them about you!  More and more people have email at their fingertips, no matter where they are.  At the beach, pool, everywhere... we are definitely a mobile society.

So what does this have to do with you?

Simple... email marketing is a perfect way to reach your projected audience.  So many people are accessing email on their mobile devices, and it's a proven way to keep your organization at the forefront of people's minds.  Regardless of the nature of your organization (business or non-profit), it's a remarkable way to stay in touch with your clients and supporters.  You can update your neighborhood association about events, tell customers about a new service you're offering, or send a holiday greeting.  You don't always have to be "selling something".

If your target audience is kitchen fanatics, for example, your newsletter could have featured recipes for the current season.  While a reader may be excited to try something new, she may realize that she was going to order the attachment that goes on the gizmo you sell.  Receiving the newsletter from you reminds her, and she ultimately calls and places an order.
Check out these Top 5 Reasons to Use Email Marketing for a better idea of why it works. You can also refer to the related links on this page for more information.

How do you get started?

There are many services out there that can help you get started, several of which are free for up to a certain number of subscribers.  These services can help you set up your list and even design emails that look professional, regardless of your design abilities.  They will also help you design forms that people can use to sign up for your newsletter, and they keep track of who subscribes and unsubscribes to your information.
Additionally, most of these services will provide you with data about how many people open your mailings and how many of those readers click links within your content.  You can even see which individuals opened your email and how many times.  If a user reads your information multiple times, that may present an opportunity that you may not have had without your email marketing campaign.

Check out the additional links below, and keep swimming along!

Helpful Links:

• Why Use Email Marketing?
• Reviews of  Email Marketing Services
• Email Marketing Blog
• Tips and Resources
• Best Practices

Web Design Mommypreneur

"Mommypreneur" is a term a friend of mine coined to describe a stay-at-home mom who also runs a business.  My business of choice?  Web Design.  The moment I heard the term, I was hooked, and I have often used it to describe what I do.

Not long ago, I saw an article about the top questions people ask a freelancer.  Even though the article was actually for freelance writers, I definitely identified.  People were talking about others not understanding what they do and how it looked like they were just "playing" on their computers all day.  I've even had someone call me a "kept woman"!  Seriously?  Spend a day trying to take care of a toddler and running a business during nap time, and then come talk to me!

Regardless, I love what I do.  I thrive on helping businesses and non-profit organizations meet their goals for a great web presence at prices they can afford.  Since I started my professional career as a teacher, "AHA!" moments have always had meaning for me.  Seeing one from a client who learns how a strong web presence can help him or her is just as fulfilling as witnessing a student grasp a concept that had previously been difficult.

So, here I am... entering the blogosphere with ramblings about what I do, hoping it will be useful.  If you or someone you know needs web design, social media management, email marketing, or any other services, send them swimming in my direction!

In the meantime, Just Keep Swimming!