Archive for July 2010
5 steps to start your blog before you start
start before you start? does that even make sense? these steps are necessary to integrate into business planning prior to diving head first into blogging. this post was prompted by a recent conversation i had with a close friend, soon to launch an online fashion boutique, asked me, “i’m going to blog… what do i blog about and where do i start?”
someone advised her to blog about her business ideas and “journey” prior to her launch! my mind screamed “NOOOOO!!! don’t give away your business and trade secrets!” instead of saying that, i gently said, “why don’t you establish your reputation, expertise and a following first?” ultimately, my friend would like to turn readers into customers. i advised her to simply become part of the thriving, online fashion community. listen to them, engage with them, tell them who you are.
since blogging is part of her communication strategy, i gave her these 5 steps to simply get started before the real blogging starts.
- create a persona of your reader. who are you writing to? what are their likes and dislikes, what do they do for fun? why would they read your blog? see Anthropologie’s example of a demographic profile
- brainstorm topics you would cover in your blog. what are your interests? why are you blogging? what about this topic interests you?
- do blogger’s homework. read some blogging basics and don’t overwhelm yourself.
- as you research your topic, keep track of your resources. do it easy and freely via http://del.icio.us. this account will help you delve into social bookmarking. don’t worry about the details just yet just open an account and begin adding your links and references. create descriptive tags for your links that are specific to the content.
- establish times you will blog and commit to it. once a week? twice a month? a realistic timeline will offer your readers constant, fresh content they will appreciate.
at the end of the phone conversation, my friend called said i was a genius. i’d like to think so, but it’s just information and knowledge i have by observing great bloggers combined with my background in public relations.
until next time!