Tuvel Communications Blog: Blogging Archives

June 12, 2008

More about twitter

Here's tweets info we recently sent to a client about their own twitterstream:

Once signed-in, take a look at people that follow us and the people that we're following or our 'friends'. Here, you'll see a smattering of techies and bloggers that we follow. Again, clicking on someone's alias or name brings up their twitter stream or more info. about them. Typically, the way Twitter works is that someone will 'follow' you when they receive notice that you are 'following' them. To follow someone, click on the 'follow' button found under their photo on their Twitter page.

It might be interesting to take a look at others in the tech or IT community that are using Twitter. Google offers a makeshift Twitter search engine. I searched 'Rockville MD IT' from Google and the results were pretty interesting.

Once you get the hang of Twitter, consider posting to our account. To do this, type a message (of 140 characters or less) in the box at the top of the page that reads "What are you doing?" When you hit the 'update' button, our followers will see the message. Twitter is an interesting tool that allows you to customize a list of only those conversations and people that you want to follow. The marketing twist is of course, those followers that pass your message along to those that are following them!

Continue reading "More about twitter" »

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 03:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

March 23, 2007

Washington DC blogs

Alice Marshall has created an RSS feed of Marketing, PR, and technology blogs of the greater Washington, DC area.

You can sign your blog up by sending Alice a note.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 05:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

June 06, 2006

BeyondBlogging Webcast

The Webcast from the recent Washington, DC BeyondBlogging Roundtable is now available here. (advance registration req'd)

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 03:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 31, 2006

Questions to ask before launching your blog

We've been asked to help out with a communication plan for a clients upcoming blog launch. I thought that I'd post the checklist of questions we submitted to the client. You'll see that we bucketed this into 3 areas: design & technology, content & community, and marketing & communications.

Additions and corrections to the list are welcome!

Design & Technology

Do you want to create a byline (one liner) for the header that tells the reader what the blog is about, why it exists?
What tools are you considering to build the blog?
What features will the blog offer (trackbacks, comments, archives, search, etc.)?
Is syndication in place?
How will the blog be integrated with the rest of the Website?
Have you made it easy for visitors to get to the Website and community from the blog?
Have you ensured that the blog is easily found by bots and spiders (search engine optimization)?
Is the team trained in the use of blogging system or software?
Will e-mail subscription and services be added to the blog?
Will the blog include a recommended reading list?

Content & Community

Have you decided on posting frequency and a publishing schedule (set reader expectations early on)?
Who will monitor the conversations?
Will this be a group or individual blog?
Who will post to similar Internet discussions and blogs?
Have you chosen a voice for the blog?
Has the core community been asked to help with content creation?
Do you have an internal blogging policy?
Have the 'About Us' page and 'Contact Us' features been completed?
Has a Technorati profile been created?
Have you decided on content licensing?
Have you explored social bookmarking sites?
Is there a privacy policy in place?

Marketing & Communications

Does the blog have a name and reserved Internet address?
Will you drive traffic through paid advertising?
Will you link to the blog from the Website homepage?
Is there a (sustained) marketing plan in place?
Who will register the blog in the various blog, RSS directories, and search engines?
Has a pinging service been selected?
Are tracking tools in place? Do you know what they want to track?
Have metrics been chosen?
Has the blog URL been integrated into other marketing efforts?
Can the blog be promoted in other company communication vehicles?
Will there be a soft launch?

Continue reading "Questions to ask before launching your blog" »

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 12:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 25, 2006

BeyondBlogging interview

BeyondBlogging is continuing the conversation from last week's Roundtable on their blog. Here is an interview that I did with Chris Heuer during the event.

Here's a fuzzy photo to go along with...

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 04:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 22, 2006

BeyondBlogging

This past Friday, I attended BeyoundBlogging here in Washington, DC. The event's keynote speaker was Ed Keller, of Innfluentials book fame. I stayed for the keynote and first panel, led by Shel Holtz. Panelists included Todd Tweedy, Debbie Weil, and Pete Blackshaw.

It was good to circulate and hear where DC communicators are with respect to consumer generated media and new media in general. Shel quoted Cluetrain's famous by now markets are conversations line and it took me back to another ballroom of a similar size for a Netpreneur evening many moons ago.

Ed Keller offered a nice Top 5 List of solid communication practices that included listening!, making content sassy, and using solid research. Todd Tweedy reinforced this last point with the importance of metrics. Todd's firm has recently released: Perceptions, Practices and Ethics in Word of Mouth Marketing (fwiw disclaimer: I am listed in the report's acknowledgements). Todd also talked about how important it is to have customers involved in the creation process. These comments reminded me of early developer communities like the ones mentioned in this post.

In response to a question I asked about leveraging passionate customers into a marketing or PR force, Pete mentioned giving them early access to information. In other words, growing the relationship and offering value that best customers can't find elsewhere. Pete also touched on the important area of negative word-of-mouth. He also mentioned how much he, and other brand managers have learned about consumer generated media from his babies blog.

Shel finished up the Q & A with a good point about Risk Benefit Analysis. When trying to convince management about the importance of blogging and other new media tools, ask what you are risking vs the benefits you will derive.

It's interesting to get outside of the Web 2.0 bubble and consumer generated media explosion to find that many communicators are learning for the first time about engagement vs broadcast mentalities and some of the other ways the communications medium is changing.

I put together a quick Top 5 list of my own for a Podcast that I did during the events intermission. I anticipated being asked about Washington's word-of-mouth scene:

Integrating your campaign is as important as ever (Shel repeated the often quoted stat that 80% of decisions are made offline. Ed Keller upped this number to 90%)

It's easier for non-profits with a mission, than say companies, to get a message out

Organizations and companies are increasingly interested in what's being said about them and validating who is saying it

It's still about building relationships, offering value, and doing things the right way (on the Internet, it's tough to beg forgiveness)

As I learned from Mario Morino a long time ago, it's always about the people and not the technology!

Continue reading "BeyondBlogging" »

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 11:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 03, 2006

YouTube Is a Star

Five Months After Its Debut, YouTube Is a Star (The Washington Post)

Fast Internet connections and digital video cameras are giving average people a new avenue to fame. With other homegrown phenomena such as Web logs, or blogs, and radio-style podcasts, the Internet is changing people's relationships to the media and putting more power into the hands of consumers.

It used to be novel to hear old media talk about new media in glowing terms. It used to be radical to talk about putting more power into the hands of consumers. All good signs that mainstream media sees the future of engaging people and not only broadcasting messages. Either that or they see the advertising possibilities :)

Continue reading "YouTube Is a Star" »

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 12:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

March 20, 2006

Andy Beal's Marketing Pilgrim: Online Reputation Monitoring Beginners Guide

Diva Marketing points to a super post by Andy Beal on research and consumer generated marketing.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 08:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

February 08, 2006

The Top Ten Lies of Blogging Consultants

ALLIED by Jeneane Sessum: The Top Ten Lies of Blogging Consultants

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 10:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

January 19, 2006

Do you want to know a secret?

PostSecret

Well, look at this. A blog where people send in their secrets on the front of a postcard. This is very clever.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 08:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

November 07, 2005

New Media: High Impact Blogs, Wikis and Podcasts.

I was recently invited to address a Washington, DC based PR firm on the topic of New Media: High Impact Blogs, Wikis and Podcasts.

Following are my notes from the session. I'll proubably organize these but wanted to throw them up 'as is'.

I INTRO
Definitions.
Online tools and how our firm is using them.
Examples, how they're being used.

II A CONVERSATION
The changing world of communications.
How New Media impacting traditional print and broadcast?
What are some of the pitfalls for PR agencies as New Media takes hold?

III TRENDS, BEST PRACTICES
Strategies & Trends to stay tuned for.
Best practices, lessons learned.

IV CONCLUSION
How can Strategic Help its Customers Get their message into the Marketplace?

I INTRO
Definitions

Wikis- Website that allows a gp of like minded people to build, edit and modify content in WSWIG environment.

Podcasts- a prog recorded into MP3 file that is posted online. You can listen to it online or download and take it with you. Self-published syndicated radio show.

RSS- Really Simple Syndication, also known as RSS or newsfeeds, is technology that allows internet users to easily subscribe to website content.

Tagging- A tag assigns keywords or categories to your information that others can then share.

Online tools and how our firm is using them

Blog- for relationship building, market research, lead gen, (client) to speak directly to customers (vs through analysts)

Podcasting- add to client website to spread the word and become more of an industry resource.

Wikis- going to use to build a blog

Online PR- fundraising, to get the message out, create awareness around an individual or product, find customers (ecm)

Examples, how they're being used

Podcasts- IBM- IR, CSCO- News, NASA: science & tech, Whirlpool- focuses on lifestyle instead of product

Wikis- Nokia and Disney for CMS & internal planning, collaboration, project mgmt. LA Times. Best known wiki is wikipedia, an online encyclopedia w/1 million articles, three times that of the online Encyclopedia Britannica.

RSS- Media Newsrooms, press releases- CSCO, MSM: WashPost, CNN, Yahoo

Blogs- IBM, HP, Sun

II A CONVERSATION

The changing world of communications. How New Media is impacting the market and changing the way that companies communicate.

- communications business is changing- cos are beginning to create a dialog by listening to the customers. Getting a voice and giving customers a voice. From that conversation, cos are leveraging best custs that act as a mktg & pr force (Southwest, krispy kreame, Firefox, iPod)

- customers and prospects are getting brand & product info away from your company. You have to be aware and potentially offer input when necessary.

- the changing landscape. PR now includes GRM, SEO- getting the story out, getting the word out

How is New Media impacting traditional print and broadcast?

Credibility- MSM woes vs bloggers that talk about transparency

Audience- TV vs New Media that continues to grow and segment the pie

Financial models- recent announcements by NYXs and Google

Communication models- MSM continues to broadcast while New Media engages customers and prospects and build relationships

Distribution- WashPost print vs newsletters, RSS, post.com, blogs

- New Media is targeting key audiences- through SEO, by sending messages to those that might be receptive, by asking for feedback, getting customers involved and if they like it- to pass the word along.

- Accountability- ROI for search, lead gen campaigns, customer service functions- offline- control the message. jeff jarvis dell sucks campaign/BW.

What are some of the pitfalls for PR agencies as New Media takes hold?

- we have to potentially learn a new way to communicate with nw media publishers like bloggers (pitching the press is different)

- crisis communications takes on a new urgency- cos are scrutinized for HOW they react to a situation. Kryptonite bicycle lock could be undone with a Bic pen (Ingersoll-Rand)

- there's more work to be done!
- (PR News article on market research, competitive intelligence, brand protection) (site tracking tools, social bookmarketing, RSS directories, aggregators, news search engines)
- still early which means client learning curves, evangelizing and that means time!

- can't take a message back once you put it out there. People will say disparaging things about your company.

- customers (or at least the bloggers tell us) want companies to discard corporate brochures and get a voice, to get away from the buttoned-up controlled corporate speak.

- bloggers aren't accountable, the same rules don't apply. -you don't know who these publishers are and what their reach is.

III TRENDS, BEST PRACTICES
Strategies & Trends to stay tuned for.

- Web 2.0- the next generation of Web social networking, collaboration, technologies like Ajax.

- the way that people get their news is changing

- syndication ("stickiness-> syndication")

- disruptive technologies like blogging will continue to flourish

- companies are starting to watch what people are saying about them, beginning to understand the value of being aware if not engaged in the conversation.

- Citizen media will continue to grow- natural disasters, products

- cos will continue to build relationships directly with customers and get better at it!

- websites are being built with blog like features that encourage interaction

- everything old in new again- RSS are newsreaders, push vs pull, community building, does anyone remember the bubble?

Best practices, lessons learned (strategies, messaging, executing or getting your message out)

- Be transparent- let people know if there's an agenda.

- Own up to mistakes and react quickly

- Take a conversational tone in your messaging- consider it a dialog not necessarily a broadcast
- Don't try to completely control the message

- Listen to & leverage passionate customers

- target your messaging to specific audiences

- make it easy for customers to do business with your clients company (to pass the word along: download pages used in WOM campaigns, don't set up barriers through IA, navigation, usability

- remember- it's not about the technology but the people!

- it's all about value, I call the 'what's in it for me syndrome'

IV CONCL

How can Strategic Help its Customers Get their message into the Marketplace?

- by helping clients listen and participate in the conversation. Participation builds brand recognition

- by helping clients become a resource for different issues & topics. by helping them stay abreast of their industry through market research.

- by executing WOMM Campaigns that create excitement and ID passionate customers

- by building relationships now with bloggers and other publishers so that when you have a story, they know who and where you are

Continue reading " New Media: High Impact Blogs, Wikis and Podcasts." »

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 08:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

September 29, 2005

Pinging with a Twist

I read over on Business Blog Consulting about new pinging service FeedShot. Actually, FeedShot not only pings but registers your feed with blog engines as well. This answers my question about whether I need to register blogs with each service separately if I'm going to ping them anyway.

Looks like I'll continue to use Robin Good's RSSTop55 list as I register with individual services and directories.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 09:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

September 19, 2005

Lite blogging ahead: upgrade

I'm finally upgrading from TypePad to Movable Type! This means that we'll be out of commission for 48 hrs. or so. See you on the other side.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 04:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

September 16, 2005

Washington DC Mayor Keeps on Blogging

Tony Williams, Washington, D.C.'s Mayor has been blogging for a month now.

Posting comments include negative, positive and off-topic feedback. Kudos to the Mayor, or his staff, for leaving some of these comments in place-- including the one below... The volume of comments has dropped off dramatically AS the number of posts followed suit.

September 01, 2005 Stand Up and Do What?

Posted by the Mayor:
On August 18th, I graciously received a check from Kaiser Permanente to allow us to extend the use of pools to promote health in the city. District of Columbia: Mayor's Office: Mayor's Blog.

Posted by constituent:
Posted by willy_question at 3:47:40 PM on September 02, 2005 Mr. Mayor, I'm still surprised that you're not blogging about your thoughts on the recent hurricane and its victims - many which resemble a majority of Washington DC's poorest residents. Surely you must have some thoughts on this tradegy that cross your mind as you're writing your blog each day since the disaster. Also, is there something the US Council of Mayors can do to have each of its member cities volunteer to house some of the refugees? There are 1,183 member cities, and if each city took in 50 victims, this would be over 59,000 folks that coould be housed. Seems like a no-brainer. C'mon Mr. Mayor, is there something DC can do to help? Thank you for your consideration. Posted by haroldkerr at 8:26:12 AM on September 02, 2005

The good news for politicians is that Internet discussions offer an unfiltered dialog with constituents. The bad news for politicians is that Internet discussions offer an unfiltered dialog with constituents.

Kidding aside, the following comment seems to sum up the difference between blogs and everything else:

um, is there an rss feed around here anywhere? I don't see it and bloglines isn't discovering it.
BTW- great blog -- it's great to see your personality and not just more press release talk.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 05:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

September 13, 2005

Top Ten Things You Can Do To Get Blogged

TechCrunch has an interesting list of Top Ten Things Your Company Can Do To Get Blogged. The #1 way to get blogged? Build a kick ass company, of course. Looks like alot of other people like TechCrunch too. (heard about it on Business Blog Consulting).

The rest of the list:

Approach Bloggers Directly.
Be Persistent. We are all busy.
Start a Blog.
Be humble.
Be confident.
Be descriptive.
Tell a Story.
Don’t hide information.
Don’t be a Jerk.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 01:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

August 25, 2005

Blogging from the beach

Who says blogging hasn't turned mainstream? We're enjoying the sunshine in Virginia Beach for a few days. Met a fellow by the pool and the conversation turned to the usual- where you from, what do you do, how did you hear about this hotel... Turns out that my new friend found out about our hotel through bloggers comments...

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 07:11 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

August 24, 2005

Gone fishing: lite blogging ahead

Blogging will be lite as I cut over to Movable Type and head to the beach (finally) for a few days of R&R.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 12:00 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

August 09, 2005

Blog Tutorial- redesign time

I'm redesigning the blog (who isn't?). problogger points to a really good Blog Tutorial - Blog Templates PhotoshopSupport.com. In addition to the redesign tips, Jennifer Apple offers a resource list and information on creating a blogging icon.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 06:57 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

August 07, 2005

The Living to 100 Healthspan Calculator

This comes from Time magazine's list of Top 50 Bloggers/Websites (Steve Rubel)

The Healthspan Calculator actually calculates how long you'll live while making suggestions for improvement. I took the survey and my life expectancy is 88 yrs. old.

You can take the The Living to 100 Life Expectancy survey here.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 03:02 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

July 28, 2005

Jolie in NYC

Another blogger fired, this one in the beauty industry and in NYC. The predictable part of this story is that good things (sometimes) happen to risk takers like Nadine Haobsh (Jolie).

I decided to check in on Ellen Simonetti, our favorite fired blogger. From the looks of referring web pages, it looks like Queen of the Sky is doing better than her former employer.

More on Jolie in NYC (from Poynteronline)

It's been a tough couple of days, mostly because I let down a lot of people who I care about and respect. To all you would-be bloggers out there: even if you truly are "just being funny" or "don't really mean it", think before you write. And definitely don't write about your industry: things will absolutely be taken out of context or interpreted incorrectly, and that's just not fun for anybody.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 07:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 19, 2005

RSSTop55 - Best Robin Good' Sharewood Tidings Blog Directory And RSS Submission Sites

Although I've mentioned Robin Good's most excellent RSS Submission Site list before, it is worth repeating. Robin's list continues to grow, there are currently 125 ways to publicize your blog. In Washington, DC it is a hot summer. I've got my work cut out for me but am committed to getting involved with as many of these as possible...

Is anyone else in Maryland/Washington, DC having trouble with Comcast Internet access?

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 08:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 16, 2005

Are you using the right blogging tool?

Susannah Gardner has written a good overview of blogging providers. A great comparison chart is also included.

Several comments take Gardner to task though for forgetting to mention CMS systems Scoop and Drupal. Several also thought that the list and article was not advanced enough. Guess I'm still a newbie but I found the overview helpful.

All of this comes from LexBlog that got it from problogger.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 10:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

July 13, 2005

Dell Rules?

Boy oh boy is Dell taking a beating from Jeff Jarvis and other bloggers. Maybe they're not to concerned though with planned announcements like this? More from Jason Calacanis' Weblog here.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 06:40 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

June 18, 2005

How company websites promote blogs

Debbie Weil is Moderating IABC blog panel on June 27, 2005. The panel looks good. As more of us help companies leverage the interactive nature of Internet, the question of promotion keeps popping up.

The Air Conditioning Contractors of America have a nice blog. You can't find it though on the association website. Locating this blog is actually tougher because it's named ACCAbuzz.

ACCA isn't alone in this regard. Many companies (and organizations) that we speak with forget that the website drives traffic to the company blog. Other organizations though make it easier to find their blogs. On the other hand, there might be companies that don't want to drive general blog traffic...

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 11:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 17, 2005

Alice Marshall on How to Use a Blog to Get Clients

BL Ochman has a ~~nice~~ good interview with Alice Marshall. Alice is an AdMarketer, blogs and runs her own PR shop.

Alice makes the following point in terms of spreading the word. She also talks about knowing who your audience is and catering to them.

Pointer Number Three: A link from a specialized blog can be worth more than a link from an A-list blogger

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 04:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 12, 2005

The business of blogging

The San Francisco Chronicle had an interesting article on the business of blogging. A great quote from Paul Chaney of The Radiant Marketing Group:

It's not so much about controlling the message as engaging in a conversation. It lets people see the inside of your business and who you are. It builds a relationship on the blog and off the blog. I don't know of any other medium that allows that kind of communication.

I think that Paul is right. It's all about engaging people vs broadcasting a message.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 09:50 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

May 04, 2005

Irrational Blogguberance?

Pete Blackshaw, of BlogPulse, says that Successful blogging rests on devoted principles of interactivity, informality, real-time listening, rapid legal review, and the ability to process feedback in a timely manner. Most companies and brands just aren't there yet. And...he's right.

More: Irrational Blogguberance?

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 01:57 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

April 25, 2005

Blogs Will Change Your Business

Look past the yakkers, hobbyists, and political mobs. Your customers and rivals are figuring blogs out. Our advice: Catch up...or catch you later

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 08:02 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

April 13, 2005

Dissent is not a dirty word

I am doing some research on corporate blogging for a new client and came across the following very good article from Amy Gahran. Amy makes many fine points- some more obvious than others.

I am discovering that it takes a special organization to lower their guard, enforce transparency and understand that the Internet is an interactive (vs broadcast) medium.

Among the tips that Amy offers up:

Don’t overlook the “obvious”
Tell stories
Keep track of internal discussions
Don’t just write about your organization
Be open to suggestions from anyone

More: Finding Content Pearls within Your Organization

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 03:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

April 12, 2005

How To Measure A Blogger's Popularity And Reach

Steve Rubel points to a great post by Robin Good. Robin offers ways to determine how much of an influencer a blogger, or anyone else online for that matter, is. Robins list suggests that you check sources such as Technorati and Alexa.

I would add a few ideas to the list:

In addition to Alexa, see who else links to them through Google or another search engine.

Check their advertising potential. If the blog has ads then they may have sizable traffic.

Check out their valuation on BlogShares.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 06:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

April 11, 2005

Cuban Tries to Score Online

The WashPost's Howard Kurtz has an interesting column on tech entrepreneur Mark Cuban. I've always ~~admired~~ liked the design of Cuban's blog. He also disproves conventional wisdom that blogging has to be done in short bursts.

Cuban Tries to Score Online

Billionaires can be bloggers, too. And if you're Mark Cuban, high-tech entrepreneur and basketball team owner, blogging enables you to communicate directly with the fans -- and slap some sportswriters with such labels as "the new moron in town."

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 08:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Flogging flogs

Shel Holtz pointed to FakeBlogsWiki, the wiki for fake blogs. One issue this brings up is that of best practices. The landscape is still a bit confusing with ghost writing and outsourcing blog functions but... experienced community builders can probably figure out the difference between right and wrong pretty quickly.

This site is a clearing house for information about 'flogs', or fake weblogs created by corporate marketing departments as lame marketing exercises.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 08:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

April 01, 2005

Firefox Thrives Among Bloggers

Firefox Thrives Among Bloggers (this comes from Steve Rubel)

Increasingly, users of blogs and tech-oriented sites are using Firefox. They're embracing Firefox at a far faster pace than Internet users more broadly.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 03:42 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

March 31, 2005

The Bad Blogger Manifesto

The Trend Junkie reminds us how good Sean Carton really is by passing along his Bad Blogger Manifesto. Sean makes the very good point that much of what you read today on blogs in insular (bloggers linking to bloggers that tell the same story).

Bloggers would probably say that repeating the story is a way for mainstream media/MSM to take notice. Linking is also a nifty marketing tool. Sean's post reminds me of Michael Gilbert's Email Manifesto. At the time (2001), Gilbert's assertion that "Email is more important than my web site!"was radical.

Anyway, The Bad Blogger Manifesto:

1. I will post what I want, when I want, for whom I want.
2. I will not take ads. Nothing against ads, but the hassle with dealing with them and the ugliness they bring isn't worth the effort.
3. I will not be an outlet for press releases. If you want me to flack for you, pay me.
4. I will not put my life on hold to keep this up. I already have a job. I don't need another that doesn't pay.
5. I will listen to nuts. I like nuts.
6. I will not argue my points. Go ahead and comment, but you ain't changing my mind.
7. I will not worry too much about punctuation, spelling, or grammar. If you don't like it, read something else. You gotta pay me to worry about stuff like that.
8. I will not look at my stats. Ever. If I wanted to worry about circulation, I'd start a real publication.
9. I will not worry about what my employer thinks. I happen to like my employer, but this is MY blog, damnit!
10. I will not not worry about being boring. Or interesting. I'm not writing this to entertain anyone.
11. I will not worry about "trackbacks" or "blogrolls" or "permalinks" or any of that other stuff. I've got enough details in my life.
12. I will not hide the fact that I'm a geek. Or can be really uncool. Or might be interested in stuff you don't think is cool. It's not worth the energy.
13. I will be honest and will not edit myself to make anyone happy. When I write for pay, I'll worry about editing.
14. Trendiness is for people who lack imagination. If it's been covered somewhere else ad nauseum, I'm not going to waste electrons.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 06:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

March 25, 2005

Podcasts Serve Up Uneven Audio Buffet

And, yet another article about John Edwards Podcast

Podcasts Serve Up Uneven Audio Buffet (WashPost- free reg req'd)

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 05:41 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Many Advertisers Find Blogging Frontier Is Still Too Wild

Cindy Webb points to a (free for 7 days) WSJ piece on blog advertsing and citizen journalism:

Many Advertisers Find Blogging Frontier Is Still Too Wild

Blogs' reader commentary can take unpredictable turns -- which is why it takes a thick-skinned company to experiment in this medium. On Weblogs' Autoblog and Engadget blogs, some ads are followed by a link that says, "Comment on this automobile," or "Comment on this product/service." On Engadget, 24 readers did just that, offering praise, suggestions and criticism about the ad and the products for Griffin Technology, a Nashville, Tenn., maker of Apple accessories.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 04:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

March 21, 2005

Awards Salute Best in Blogging

More blogging news from The Post: Awards Salute Best in Blogging

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 08:29 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

March 19, 2005

More PR Than No-Holds-Barred On Bosses' Corporate Blogs

The Washington Post says that company blogs have a long way to go. The Post also says that most CEO's 'don't get it' and try to use the blog as a repositioned press release. It sounds like corporate PR depts. also have a long way to go on the education curve...

The issue is still control with Corporate America~~, sometimes with good reason,~~ unwilling to give it up.

More PR Than No-Holds-Barred On Bosses' Corporate Blogs (free reg req'd)

Web logs -- or blogs -- started as a way to talk about new technologies, vent about life and interact in a no-holds-barred forum. Since blogs became the next big thing, an increasing number of companies have come to see them as the next great public relations vehicle -- a way for executives to demonstrate their casual, interactive side.

But, of course, the executives do nothing of the sort. Their attempts at hip, guerrilla-style blogging are often pained -- and painful.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 06:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

March 12, 2005

Ten Reasons Why Blogging is Good For Your Career

Tim Bray, of Sun Microsystems, has an interesting list of Ten Reasons Why Blogging is Good For Your Career. His blog also carries an interesting disclaimer (read it on lexBlog):

I work at Sun Microsystems. The opinions expressed here are my own, and neither Sun nor any other party necessarily agrees with them.

The list: # 9 Reason Why Blogging is Good For Your Career:

If you’re in marketing, you’ll need to understand how its rules are changing as a result of the current whirlwind, which nobody does, but bloggers are at least somewhat less baffled.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 06:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

March 10, 2005

Bloggers, Meet the Pod People

Steve Rubel beat me to the punch by pointing out Leslie Walker's Washington Post colum n on podcasting and bloggers. Interesting article, more interesting podcasts found here and here.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 08:51 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

March 08, 2005

Blogs Draw a Blank, Mostly

It's been the year (or so) of the blog, which is funny because most Americans say they are not familiar with the online sites.

That's the conclusion of a new CNN-USA Today-Gallup poll, which found that nearly three-quarters of the public -- 74 percent -- is "not too" or "not at all" familiar with the sites.

this quote is actually part of a larger Washington Post story on the new DemsTV.com: Democrats to Launch An Online Talk Show (thanks to AMERICAblog for the pointer)

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 02:49 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

March 02, 2005

Blogs Keep Internet Customers Coming Back

BL Ochman points out an interesting WSJ article on... blogging. The writing's been on the wall for some time now. The smart marketers know that the business of marketing and communications has changed. Value is in, in-your-face marketing is out.

Blogs Keep Internet Customers Coming Back

It's a new way of communicating, rather than marketing," says Charlene Lee, an analyst at Forrester Research. Like other forms of publishing, blogs attract the largest audiences when they avoid overt commercialism and deliver compelling and credible content, Ms. Lee says.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 10:40 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

February 15, 2005

2005 Business Blogging Awards Best Group Blog

Jackie Huba and Ben McConnell, of Creating Customer Evangelists, are up for the 2005 Business Blogging Awards Best Group Blog. Ben says: Deadline for voting is noon PST tomorrow (Feb 16). As they say here in Chicago, vote early and vote often.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 03:48 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

February 11, 2005

Bloggers, bloggers everywhere

There are 2 articles in today's Washington Post on blogging. One details yet another person to get fired for blogging and the other article talks about the current controversy surrounding Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley.

(free reg req'd or go to bugmenot.com)

Free Expression Can Be Costly When Bloggers Bad-Mouth Jobs

I really hate my place of employment. Seriously. Okay, first off. They have these stupid little awards that are supposed to boost company morale. So you go and do something 'spectacular' (most likely, you're doing your JOB) and then someone says 'Why golly, that was spectacular.' then they sign your name on some paper, they bring you chocolate and some balloons.

Uproar Brings Focus on Role Of Bloggers

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 12:51 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

February 09, 2005

Gee, that's a surprise

GoDaddy Gets Millions in Publicity From "Banned" SuperBowl Ad (from whatsnextonline.com)

Whether or not GoDaddy's banned Super Bowl ad was good or bad (I thought it was offensive)is beside the point. GoDaddy CEO Bob Parsons is being talked about everywhere from the New York Times to adrants.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 09:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

February 04, 2005

Who Owns Your Business Blog Content?

There is increasing talk of content ownership when it comes to blogging. I'm starting to take notice of Knowledge Management/K M blogs for a potential client and have been following Bill Ives Portals and KM for some time.

Bill points to the recent Information Week article: Who Owns Your Business Blog Content?

The Weblog Question: People are starting Weblogs in growing numbers, but the owner of the content isn't always clear.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 07:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

February 03, 2005

Sign of the times?

Penn Media Coverts E-zines to Blogs

Penn Media recharacterized its 50 e-zine publications as blogs in hopes of attracting more advertising. Contracting with Pheedo to provide RSS and blog advertising services, Penn Media is moving from a push-only advertising model to incorporating "pull" content, such as syndicated feeds. The firm claims seven million subscribers.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 10:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

February 01, 2005

Folksonomies Tap People Power

Wired has a good & easy read on tagging (saw this on Micro Persuasion)

Wired News: Folksonomies Tap People Power

These days, a growing number of sites whose content is user-created rely on tagging systems, also known as folksonomies, for the added value Butterfield is talking about. Flickr and the social-bookmarking site Delicious, along with Furl, are generally considered folksonomy trailblazers, but now sites like MetaFilter and the blog index Technorati have jumped on board, and more are expected to follow.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 12:50 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

January 27, 2005

Blog Business Summit

commoncraft has a nice round-up of posts from the recent Blog Business Summit. You can also check out Techorati for flickr pics and more.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 11:24 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

January 24, 2005

Google preventing comment spam

Google Blog

Tuesday, January 18, 2005 Preventing comment spam

If you're a blogger (or a blog reader), you're painfully familiar with people who try to raise their own websites' search engine rankings by submitting linked blog comments like "Visit my discount pharmaceuticals site." This is called comment spam, we don't like it either, and we've been testing a new tag that blocks it. From now on, when Google sees the attribute (rel="nofollow") on hyperlinks, those links won't get any credit when we rank websites in our search results. This isn't a negative vote for the site where the comment was posted; it's just a way to make sure that spammers get no benefit from abusing public areas like blog comments, trackbacks, and referrer lists.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 09:16 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

January 23, 2005

Microsoft Cites IP Defense in Blogger Crackdown

On the heels of Apple Computer's attempt to crack down on journalists for allegedly misappropriating trade secrets,

some free-speech advocates are worried that Microsoft has launched a similar campaign.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 04:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

January 22, 2005

Subject lines matter!

Well, here's a surprise-- in RSS feeds, Subject lines matter. Like with email, if you want to get it opened, make sure you tell people what's inside. More:

Poynter Online - E-Media Tidbits

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

January 20, 2005

How to Write Killer Blog Posts and More Compelling Comments

B.L. Ochman, former moderator of i-pr, has a short read on blog writing (TechnoFlak)

B.L. Ochman's weblog - How to Write Killer Blog Posts and More Compelling Comments.

o Write less
Omit all unnecessary words. The best advice I ever got about writing was from my first boss, the late "press agent" Leo Miller, who taught me a game to play with sentences. He'd keep taking out words until removing one more word destroyed the meaning of the sentence. For example: He'd take out words until removing another destroyed the sentence meaning.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 12:28 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

December 27, 2004

If you fudge or lie on a blog, you are biting the karmic weenie

Now that we're in a 'news' mode, the following comes from FORTUNE magazine. In addition to being a current snapshot of blogging, it's filled with stories from blogging wasteland-- failed attempts by companies to trick real people. Anyway, a good read.

This comes compliments of BuzzMachine/Jeff Jarvis. The article: Why There's No Escaping the Blog.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 06:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 21, 2004

Report: AMA blogging workshop in Seattle

Robert Scobleizer, aka the Scobleizer, points to Toby Bloomberg's roundup of the recent AMA blogging workshop in Seattle.

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 10:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 18, 2004

Business Blog Case Study: Stonyfield Farm

Several bolggers have already pointed to Rick Bruner's case study on Stonyfield Farm's blogs. It's a good b2b read though.

~~I think that~~ The 1st time I saw Rick, he introduced the conference to Nick Usborne's Forkinthehead.com. But, I digress...

Business Blog Case Study: Stonyfield Farm

2) What was the thinking behind launching the blogs in the first place?

Our company has experienced phenomenal growth, and we have a certain "personality" in the world--we care about the environment; about healthy food; about supporting family farms. With growth, we fear losing touch with what is a very loyal and committed customer base, and so our CEO, Gary Hirshberg, saw the blogs as a way to continue to personalize our relationship with our customers. He wants to "be real" and saw the blogs as a way to do that--inspired in part by the success of blogs within the Howard Dean presidential bid of early 2004.

3) What is the business rationale? What are you trying to accomplish from a marketing perspective (or otherwise)?

See the above. Again, we want to maintain a close relationship with our customers. As organics grows to be mainstream, we want to show how our brand is in fact different, and invite our readers/customers in to help us do that and participate with us in our struggles and triumphs, to the extent possible. Our blogs "continue the conversation" we've had with our readers/customers since the beginning in 1987, when we had 7 cows and a great yogurt recipe. Today we produce 18 million cups of yogurt a month!

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 10:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 15, 2004

Queen of the Sky

Steve Rubel, of Micro Persuasion, points to the saga of Ellen Simonetti, aka: Queen of Sky (Diary of a Fired Flight Attendant). In short, Delta Air Lines says that the Queen was fired for 'inapproiate pictures' on the web. Ellen claims that she was fired, as an employee blogger.

c/net also has a short piece on this. Ellen says that she started blogging as a form of therapy after she lost her mom... It seems like others are also interested in Ellen's story.

Want more proof that the world of communications (and how people get the word out) is changing?

UPDATES: Internet Daily: Grounded blogger campaigns for rights

Technorati Tags:

Posted by Mitch at 02:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)