blogs

Transcript: Blogs In Plain English

leelefever — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 03:14:48 -0500

You’ve seen the word, you've seen the web sites and you may even have one. But have you ever wondered: What's the big deal about blogs?

This is blogs in plain English.

To make sense of blogs, you have to think about news and who makes it. We'll look at news in the 20th vs. the 21st century to make our point.

In the 20th century, the news was produced professionally. When news happened, reporters wrote the stories and a tiny group of people decided what appeared in a newspaper or broadcast. Professional news was mainstream: general and limited.

The 21st century marked the point where news became both professional and personal. A new kind of web site called a weblog or blog came onto the scene that let anyone be a reporter and publisher - often for free.

As blogs became popular, they created millions of news sources and gave everyone an audience for their own version of news.

Of course, we're using the word "news" loosely. But really - isn't everything news to someone? With a blog...

A business owner can share news about his business
A mother can share news about her family
A sport star can share news with fans
These people are all "bloggers"

How did this happen?
Well, blogs made sharing news on the web easy. Anyone with an idea can start a new blog with the click of a button and share news minutes later. Here's how blogs work.

Blogs are websites that are organized by blog posts - these are individual news stories, like articles in the paper. Bloggers simply fill out a form like this to post a new story. With the click of a button, the blog post appears at the top of the web page, just above yesterday's news. Over time, the blog becomes a collection of these posts, all archived for easy reference.

Also, Each blog post can become a discussion through comments left by readers. Blogs make the news a two way street.

But really, the fuss is not about how blogs work - it's what people like you do with them that matters.

Let's say you have a blog about green living and outdoor photography. It reflects your unique perspective. This helps you build relationships with your readers and other bloggers with similar interests.

Speaking of relationships, bloggers often work together. In addition to comments,You'll read each other's blogs, quote each other and link your blogs together. This creates communities of bloggers that inspire and motivate each other.

Whether it's their ease of use or the opportunities they enable, blogs have been adopted in a very big way.

Since 2003, there have been over 70 million blogs created, each with it's own version of news. So, the big deal about blogs is that they gave people like you the power of the media and created a personal kind of news that appeals to a high number of small audiences.

So, it's up to you - what will you do with this new power? There is likely a group of people out there who want to hear what you have to say.

You can search for blogs at:

blogsearch.google.com
technorati.com

Or start your own blog for free at:

Blogger.com
Wordpress.com

I'm Lee LeFever and this has been Blogs in Plain English on the Common Craft Show.

Blogs-n-Dogs Day One

leelefever — Mon, 5 Dec 2005 18:05:03 -0500

I'm struck by how big the subject of blogs has become. A blog itself is one thing, but the world of products, tools and services that accompany blogs is very nearly overwhelming. Subscribing to a tag on flickr with RSS is not something that tanslates easily to people new to blogging.

There has been a great mix of cool tools and practical points today. Here are some highlights in list form...

Darren Barefoot and Susie Gardner related these points about blog writing...

It's not about the most traffic, but the best traffic.
Blogging is all about telling stories.
Personality must be revealed for a blog to be successful- give of yourself and be honest
People will (or should) feel that they know you through your blog
Show real knowledge- about what? it doesn't matter as long as there is passion and real information.
It helps to be a good writer who can write quickly.
Humor is helpful if well-placed
Be conversational, warm, truthful, honest
Darren criticizes only people in the public domain
Linking is good for your blog, your readers. Remember to link appropriately.
Write often and be consistent in your frequency
Use good, clear, titles. Clever is good, but not for search engines.

Along with myself and Will Pate, Kris Krug did a rapid-fire review of sites like:

Will finished up our section with a review of how he's turned his site into a "digital lifestyle aggregator" or "DLA" if you want to be Web 2.0 buzzword/acronym compliant. Basically, this means that his site is now made up of posts from on a number of other sites.

6 Trends in eMarketing from Robert Scales

Blogs will continue and gain more momentum
Web 2.0 tools will proliferate
Accessiblility thanks to US section 5.8 www.webaim.org
Open Culture - increased access to open platforms
Meta Data - folksonomies and tags
Podcasting - Media powered by individuals

Susie Gardner - Marketing and PR in the Blogosphere

Consumers don't trust traditional advertising methods
Consumers don't believe that all businesses are run by liars
The idea that a consumer can actually talk to people within a business is refreshing
Blogs open new opportunties to communicate with the market

10 Strategic Benefits of Blogging

Search Engine Optimization
Direct Communication
Brand Building
Competitive Differentiation
Relational Marketing
Exploit Niches
Public Relations
Reputation Management
Position as Expert Status
Build Trust

Good stuff. The first day is just about over and I'm venturing out into the weather right now. It's supposed to get to -13(f) tonight. Surely the coldest weather I've felt...

Blogs'n'Dogs: A Workshop in Banff, Alberta, Canada

leelefever — Thu, 20 Oct 2005 14:14:38 -0400

Rain City Studios and the Banff New Media Institute (BNMI) have put together a very, very cool event. It’s called Blogs-n-Dogs and it’s a four day event in Banff, Alberta, Canada that includes workshops and information sessions on topics like:

Managing your public life online
Blogging and the arts: Web 2.0 independent music publishing, photographers and artists
Personal blogs and portals
Blog writing style
How to make money with your blog
Building your community and traffic, connecting with your tribe in the blogosphere
Traditional PR, marketing and the "blogosphere"
Social networking tools, blogging tools, aggregation and technology: RSS, XML, podcasting and video blogging

If you're not familiar with Banff, it is one of the most beautiful settings on the planet, tucked into the Canadian Rockies. See these Flickr photos.

I’m honored to be a part of the august faculty that includes:

Alexandra Samuel, Social Signal
Darren Barefoot, Head Geek, Capulet
Eric Rice, Audioblog.com
Kris Krug, Event Blogger, Sales Director, Bryght
Lee LeFever, Principle, Common Craft
Robert Scales, Managing Director, Raincity Studios
Roland Tanglao, Chief Blogging Officer, Bryght
Will Pate, Sales and Marketing Director, Raincity Studios

So why is it called "Blogs'n'Dogs" ?

You can join us for an optional dog sledding excursion in the world famous Canadian Rockies on December 6. We will be enjoying the wilderness and scenery with some friendly huskies. Come out and take part in a two hour tour of the breathtaking Canadian mountain landscape. Be sure to bring all your winter gear. This will be an opportunity to get to know the faculty and have some fun!

The event will be December 4-8th and registration is now open. It's gonna be fun! Tune into the Blogs'n'Dogs web site for more information.

Blogs'n'Dogs: A Workshop in Banff, Alberta, Canada

leelefever — Thu, 20 Oct 2005 14:14:38 -0400

Managing your public life online
Blogging and the arts: Web 2.0 independent music publishing, photographers and artists
Personal blogs and portals
Blog writing style
How to make money with your blog
Building your community and traffic, connecting with your tribe in the blogosphere
Traditional PR, marketing and the "blogosphere"
Social networking tools, blogging tools, aggregation and technology: RSS, XML, podcasting and video blogging

If you're not familiar with Banff, it is one of the most beautiful settings on the planet, tucked into the Canadian Rockies. See these Flickr photos.

I’m honored to be a part of the august faculty that includes:

So why is it called "Blogs'n'Dogs" ?

The event will be December 4-8th and registration is now open. It's gonna be fun! Tune into the Blogs'n'Dogs web site for more information.

Blogs'n'Dogs: A Workshop in Banff, Alberta, Canada

leelefever — Thu, 20 Oct 2005 14:14:38 -0400

Managing your public life online
Blogging and the arts: Web 2.0 independent music publishing, photographers and artists
Personal blogs and portals
Blog writing style
How to make money with your blog
Building your community and traffic, connecting with your tribe in the blogosphere
Traditional PR, marketing and the "blogosphere"
Social networking tools, blogging tools, aggregation and technology: RSS, XML, podcasting and video blogging

If you're not familiar with Banff, it is one of the most beautiful settings on the planet, tucked into the Canadian Rockies. See these Flickr photos.

I’m honored to be a part of the august faculty that includes:

So why is it called "Blogs'n'Dogs" ?

The event will be December 4-8th and registration is now open. It's gonna be fun! Tune into the Blogs'n'Dogs web site for more information.

Blogs'n'Dogs: A Workshop in Banff, Alberta, Canada

leelefever — Thu, 20 Oct 2005 14:14:38 -0400

Managing your public life online
Blogging and the arts: Web 2.0 independent music publishing, photographers and artists
Personal blogs and portals
Blog writing style
How to make money with your blog
Building your community and traffic, connecting with your tribe in the blogosphere
Traditional PR, marketing and the "blogosphere"
Social networking tools, blogging tools, aggregation and technology: RSS, XML, podcasting and video blogging

If you're not familiar with Banff, it is one of the most beautiful settings on the planet, tucked into the Canadian Rockies. See these Flickr photos.

I’m honored to be a part of the august faculty that includes:

So why is it called "Blogs'n'Dogs" ?

The event will be December 4-8th and registration is now open. It's gonna be fun! Tune into the Blogs'n'Dogs web site for more information.

Microsoft is Serious About Blogging

leelefever — Thu, 29 Sep 2005 13:10:50 -0400

Over the last few weeks I’ve been working with the folks at Microsoft, like Bill Reid, Korby Parnell and Jonathan Grudin, to learn more about blogging at Microsoft for a related project at the company. Here are some of my broad observations:

Microsoft is serious about blogging. They have support from the very top and the biggest reason for the support is the increasing value of transparency and putting a human face on Microsoft. See this video of Steve Ballmer.
The demand comes from individuals. More than a couple of times, I’ve heard quotes from employees saying “I’m tired of Microsoft being called an evil empire”. Employees see blogging as a way to show Microsoft is a different and more human company.
External blogs outnumber internal blogs 3-1, which is vastly different than other large companies that are blogging like Sun, IBM and Intel. Why? See point #2 above.
Blogging at Microsoft is very hands off. The biggest policy is “Don’t be Stupid” and the PR and Legal teams have adopted a very open and supportive approach to blogging.
There are people within the company like Betsy Aoki and Korby Parnell who are driving the blog strategy and working every day to educate and inspire people to understand blogging.
Two Microsoft blogs that represent the most popular forms of blogging are the personal bloggers, like Raymond Chen and the Team blogs like the IE Team Blog. A number of teams are looking to follow in the footsteps of the IE team.
Microsoft Research has been studying blogs and how and why they are used within the company. See Lilia's posts about her internship at Microsoft Research.
It’s working. The company is seeing the blogs play a positive role in public relations and communications with the market at large. This is adding to the executive support.
There are very few, or perhaps zero fake bloggers or blogs.
You can see for yourself. The majority of external Microsoft blogs are found at MSDN and TechNet

Despite what some may think about Microsoft, I see the blogs as a demonstration that the company is trying to change. Blogging is becoming a part of the way they do business and if you ask me, they are doing it the right way through organic growth and openness.

Global PR Blog Week 2.0 and Our Paper

leelefever — Tue, 20 Sep 2005 23:53:39 -0400

Nancy White and I have been continuing our work on the March of Dimes "Share" online community. We're about to finish a second phase of updates- the last for a while. What a great project.

We have been writing our story of helping to build the Share community over the last few weeks and were honored to have the paper invited to the Global PR Blog Week 2.0, going on this week. The paper is called: Surprising Partners: Adding Blogs to an Existing Non-Profit Community. You can read it, along with many other interesting papers on the site. Enjoy!

About: Global PR Blog Week:

The Global PR Blog Week 2.0 is an online event focused on how new communications technologies are changing public relations and business communication.

And no, this isn't the big announcement I've been hinting about. :)

Tags: marchofdimes, prblogweek, shareyourstory

Dell and The Business Experiment

leelefever — Tue, 12 Jul 2005 21:36:41 -0400

I got an email today from Robert May of Business Pundit. He is creating a new site that is called TheBusinessExperiment.com. As you might expect, it is an experiment. Here’s how he describes it:

The Business Experiment is a site meant to explore three concepts: wisdom of crowds, open-source business, and the distributed nature of work. The goal is to have the registered users of this site collectively start and run a real business.

Interesting huh? Now for something a little different…

Jeff Jarvis has been talking about the cluelessness of Dell for a while now. Here’s a link to all his related posts. Others like Christopher Carfi, Steve Broback and many others followed with more negative info. Dell is being publicly vilified among people with real power to influence buying decisions and doing nothing about it.

I pointed to these two examples because of the dichotomy. Robert is experimenting with building a business based on the decisions of many disparate people who have a passion (and the power) to contribute meaningfully. Not only is he enabling listening, but empowering people to make business decisions as a group.

Meanwhile, Dell is resistant react-to or recognize the input from groups of people who are publicly begging for their attention. These people want to help improve Dell and want to he heard. Yet, it won’t happen.

I find this interesting because it’s another example of disruption. It is an example of what’s coming for many businesses. In the future, companies will come to recognize the value of the customers voice, even to help guide business decisions.

It may be too late for Dell to be that kind of company, but someday their biggest competition may be a company built using the power of many customer voices to influence the business, perhaps even something from The Business Experiment.

Audio from "Blog Conversation" with Andy Wibbels

leelefever — Wed, 22 Jun 2005 12:49:00 -0400

Andy Wibbels at Easy Bake Weblogs invited me to participate in one of his regularly scheduled "Blog Conversations" calls. The audio and call notes are here. I had a great time and got to wax philosophic on some of the things I'm most passionate about. Thanks for the opportunity Andy!