Posts tagged as:

Blogging

How To Hire A Writer For Your Company Blog

by Mark Ivey · February 2, 2012

By now, many social media managers have realized a hardnosed reality: Most subject matter experts within the corporate walls don’t have time (or the skills) to blog. So you have two choices:

  • Write/edit their blogs for them (and give up the rest of your life since writing is very time consuming)
  • Hire a specialist or “real writer” to write for them.

That would be a journalist or professional business writer. (I use these interchangeably, even though there are some solid business writers who were never journalists.)

Read More →
21 comments

The Power of A Blog

by Jason Falls · January 26, 2012

Why are blogs such a powerful communications tool in the arsenal of a company? There are lots of reasons, really. But the explanation I’ve used that normally gives those who don’t quite understand blogging have their “ah-ha” moment is a simple one. To understand the power of a blog you have to compare it to something familiar.

Think about your company newsletter. If you’re not that hip to blogging yet, your company newsletter is probably still printed and circulated in everyone’s box in the mailroom. Or maybe it’s mailed to everyone’s house. But in some form or fashion, some printed piece of information is circulated monthly or bi-weekly to everyone in the company. There are pictures of new hires, company softball team news, maybe even some tips and tricks articles for the sales team and a list of birthdays.

Read More →
13 comments

10 Better Ideas Than Looking at a Top 10 List for Advice

by Andrew Hanelly · January 10, 2012

Top 10 lists are like new year’s resolutions. They seem great at first, but they quickly make you feel bored, hopeless, and like you’ve wasted your time.

And that’s usually because they are filled with things you know you should do but can’t commit to doing. They’re too aspirational. Too shoot-for-the-moon-y.

Which is why I’ve kept this one bare-bones, tactical, and hopefully useful for you beyond the 4 days it typically takes us to crash and burn through our empty new year promises.

Read More →
4 comments

A Business Can’t Be Social

by Ilana Rabinowitz · December 1, 2011

A business is a legal entity.  Only the individual people within the business can engage in social media. That’s why, several weeks ago, I wrote about the major shift in thinking and behavior needed for a business to be successful in social media.

I’d like to take a deeper look into one of those areas: hiring and training everyone in the organization in the age of social media.

Read More →
23 comments

7 Steps for Overcoming Writer’s Block (And Writing A Brilliant Blog )

by Mark Ivey · November 23, 2011

Don’t you hate writer’s block? You know you have brilliant ideas, but there’s that damn blank screen staring at you when you sit down to blog. Nothing happens. The brain’s in idle. Frustration begins to creep in. (Remember Jack Nicholson in The Shining?)

Many people struggle with writing. But I believe anyone can write and blog with the right approach. It’s not brain surgery, but it does take some work.

First, get over the idea that you have to write a blockbuster blog every time. We find in our training that many corporate bloggers are by nature analytical and perfectionists, which creates a lot of extra agony. It’s great to hit a home run, but mostly this is about hitting lots of singles and doubles.

Read More →
12 comments

Education Is The New Marketing

by Ilana Rabinowitz · October 19, 2011

The internet has democratized education and businesses should take notice.  You are in business because you have some area of expertise.  Sharing your expertise is a way to help you build your brand and provide value. By using a combination of digital and offline tools, business can take advantage of the opportunity to add teaching to the marketing mix.

I’ve been reading The Education of Millionaires, a book by Michael Ellsberg that proposes that the best investment in education is one that offers lifelong, relevant knowledge that will make you financially successful.  He urges people to find mentors and experts to teach the skills they need, rather than investing six figures in a traditional college education that is unlikely to contribute to their ability to earn a living.

Read More →
52 comments

Broadening Your Content Core

by Stephanie Schwab · September 16, 2011

A couple of weeks ago I had a great baseball experience. It was a beautiful Friday night in Gary, Ind., and I was watching the Gary SouthShore Railcats, an Independent Professional Baseball team (like the minor leagues, but not quite that official), and I was surrounded by my extended family, including my parents, cousins, siblings, and aunts and uncles, plus my husband and 3-year old son.  Our group was about 20 people ages 18 months to 70 years, with a mix of rabid baseball fans and people who just came for the family and the beautiful night.

Read More →
8 comments

Are Blog Best Practices Bullshit?

by Jason Falls · August 23, 2011

Social Media Explorer is approaching its four-year-anniversary in the blogosphere. Our doors opened with post No. 1 on September 14, 2007 with a post by not me, but Doe-Anderson CEO Todd Spencer. The blog was originally penned in my role as Director of Social Media for the agency, though I retained ownership of the platform.

Social Media Explorer Logo

Image by Jason Falls via Flickr

Read More →
48 comments

Bloggers Are Promotional Partners, Which Is Bad For PR

by Stephanie Schwab · August 4, 2011

I’ve been ranting for some time about the disconnect between PR and social media, and particularly between PR and blogger outreach. In the evolution of social media, somehow blogger outreach became equated with public relations’ pitching to journalists, and so for years it’s been largely the domain of PR coordinators and account executives.

That’s seems wrong. I feel that PR should not be primarily responsible for blogger outreach. And likely not for other types of social media either.

Read More →
102 comments

← Previous Entries

Subscribe to SME via email!

Close (X)

Probably the best thing you will do all day.

Select your interests