Presented at SocialCrush Charlotte on September 13, 2011

1. Blogging on Fire!
Tin Dizdarevic - Zemanta

2. Blogging on Fire!
BASICS
• Setting up and optimizing your blogging platform
CONTENT
• Content Strategy
ENGAGEMENT
• Find your audience and engage with them
MEASUREMENT
• Bare Bones Analytics
• Social Media

3. Blogging on Fire!
CONTENT
ENGAGEMENT
MEASUREMENT

4. Blogging is the MOST effective Content Marketing
Strategy for Small Business.

5. Content Marketing = MEDIA
Storytelling - Exclusivity - Rhythm

6. Why would I read
your blog?
• Thought Leadership
• News
• Spotlight
• Report

7. 1hr Content
Marketing
• Setup infrastructure in 1hr
• Spend 1hr per day/week blogging
• Spend 1hr per month analyzing reports

8. Blogging on Fire!
Set up and Optimize your Blogging Platform
- WordPress (self-install) or WordPress.com
- Other options (Blogger, TypePad, MovableType
other CMS platforms)
- Find a web host that offers excellent support for your blogging
platform.

9. Blogging on Fire!

10. Blogging on Fire!

11. Blogging on Fire!

12. Blogging on Fire!
Setting up Plugins/Tools
- Basic
- Setting up WordPress (Theme, Akismet, User Mgmt)
- Blog Roll
- Dedicated Email Address (GMail, etc.)
- Photo Sharing Service (Flickr, Picasa, etc.)
- Commenting Platform (Stick with WP/Akismet or consider Disqus, et al)
- Analytics
- Google Analytics
- Social Media
- Twitter Tools
- AddThis

13. Blogging on Fire!

14. Blogging on Fire!
Creating a Content Strategy
- Who’s writing?
- Double check, triple check
- Split up the responsibilities (by expertise, by availability, etc.)
- Outsource?
- Style/Voice
- Design your blog to match your overall branding.
- Create styling/copywriting templates for bloggers to follow.
- Aside from guest posts, stick with same voice for the posts.

15. Blogging on Fire!
CEO/Owner
Product Manager
Provide overall company vision as well
Write about new product updates,
as personal thoughts.
upcoming features, ask for feedback.
Marketing Manager
Sales Manager Announce new initiatives. Promote
Announce new customers, interviews team members. Write about press
with existing customers mentions. Follow overall marketing
strategy
Dedicated Blogger
Fill in the gaps, develop new series. Prod team
members for blog ideas

16. Blogging on Fire!
Creating a Publishing Schedule
- Create regular series:
- Customer Profiles
- Influencer guest posts and interviews
- Product highlights
- News (mentions, product/service changes)
- Lists!
- Highlight trends in your space:
- Respond/Republish relevant stories
- News:
- Mentions in the media
- Product/service changes

17. Blogging on Fire!
Creating a Content Strategy - Outsource
- Influential blogger in the field
- Content marketing services (Contently)
- Go cheaper? Is it really worth it?

18. Perfect Post
• One page of text
• Simple language
(SEO)

19. Perfect Post
• One page of text
• Simple language (SEO)
• At least one image

20. Perfect Post
• One page of text
• Simple language (SEO)
• At least one image
• Links to
explanations

21. Perfect Post
• One page of text
• Simple language (SEO)
• At least one image
• Links to explanations
• Further reading
(internal &
external)

22. Perfect Post
• One page of text
• Simple language (SEO)
• At least one image
• Links to explanations
• Further reading (internal
& external)
• Easy to share

23. Perfect Post
• One page of text
• Simple language (SEO)
• At least one image
• Links to explanations
• Further reading (internal
& external)
• Easy to share
• Call to Action!

24. Blogging on Fire!
Examples of Posts - Influencer Interviews
- Create a set list of questions that you can reuse
- Allow for flexibility
- Best is in person > skype > phone > email
- Record the interview for use as video as well
- Take into account resources to transcribe and edit the interview

25. Blogging on Fire!

26. Blogging on Fire!
Examples of Posts - Industry Trends
- Quotes from relevant recent media coverage
- Links to blogs by influencers in your space
- Your organization’s stand on these trends

27. Blogging on Fire!

28. Blogging on Fire!
Examples of Posts - Customer Profile
- Highlight your best customers
- Show how they are using your organization’s services or
products (ideally with a video)
- Use direct quotes from the customer
- Allow them to write their own post in their own words
- Can be reused as case studies or can reuse existing
material

29. Blogging on Fire!

30. Blogging on Fire!
Examples of Posts - Lists
- Quick links to 10-15 stories of note

31. Blogging on Fire!

32. Blogging on Fire!
Engaging Your Audience
SLOW DOWN!
- Potential Audience
- Look at your competition
- Find users on Twitter and Facebook
- Take advantage of resources like Technorati to ID
audience and influencers
- Influencer Outreach
- Link to stories by influencers
- Reach out to them to let them know of the link
- Comment on the original post

33. Blogging on Fire!
Engaging Your Audience - Encourage Comments
- Challenge Them
- Finish off with a concrete question
Make sure you have the resources to react to comments
when they come in! No crickets, please!
- Embed a poll

34. Blogging on Fire!
Engaging Your Audience - Embedding Polls

35. Blogging on Fire!
What if no one is reading?
Consider Distribution Services, such as Outbrain, BlogGlue and....
Zemanta.

36. Blogging on Fire!
Measurement
- Post Retweets/Likes/+1 (total reach)
- Comments (holy grail of engagement)
- Facebook Likes
- General Social Media Sentiment
- Social Media Measurement Tools - Crowdbooster, Klout,
HootSuite Reporting
- Visits/Visitors
- Time spent on blog
- Traffic coming from known sources (own web site, social
media, partners, mentions, influencers)
- Organic traffic

37. Blogging on Fire!
x t
t e
Measurement
n
- Post Retweets/Likes/+1 (total reach)
o
- Comments (holy grail of engagement)
- Facebook Likes
C
- General Social Media Sentiment
- Social Media Measurement Tools - Crowdbooster, Klout, HootSuite
d
Reporting
e e
- Visits/Visitors
- Time spent on blog
N
- Traffic coming from known sources (own web site, social media,
partners, mentions, influencers)
- Organic traffic

38. Blogging on Fire!
Measurement
- Brand Sentiment
- Sales?
- Conversation?
- More Educated Customers?
- Drop in Support Requests?

39. Resources
• Zemanta Business • SEO Myths & WP
Blogging Series Magic - Casie Gillette
• HubSpot - Tremendous • 15 Must Have Tools for
resource for online Better Blogging -
marketing Contently
• Content Marketing • Ultimate Guide to
Institute Corporate Blogging-
OpenView Partners

40. Get in Touch!
SlideShare:
slideshare.com/zemanta
Twitter
@zemanta | @tdizdarevic
Email/Web
tin@zemanta.com |zemanta.com