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5 Simple Tips for Successful Blogging

1. Read Blog by Hugh Hewitt. An excellent book for those just getting started with blogging.

 

2. Link freely and frequently. Link in your sidebar and link in your posts. This will bring more traffic your way and help people discover you.

 

3. Have a targeted subject. Though not completely neccessary, this brings continuity to your blog and will allow you to have a loyal audience who are interested in the subject you blog about.

 

4. Update regularly. Updating your blog at least three times per week is a great minimum to shoot for. This will keep people coming back regularly since they know you post new  often.

5. Provide helpful, interesting content. If you have good content, once people find you, they will want to stick around and become regular readers.

 
Crystal Paine
Marketing Manager
The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, LLC
Visit my blog

Organization -- You Can't Survive Without It!

As the owner of a small business and also working in the marketing and ad sales department for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, in addition to being a wife and mom, I have quickly learned that being organized and efficient is the key to survival. You've heard the saying, "One minute of planning saves five minutes of execution."
I believe there was never a more true statement.

Organization is not something I am naturally gifted at; it is something I have to work very hard towards. There are often times when I feel as if I don't have time to plan and organize. But, what could be farther from the truth? I've found that if I make time to sit down and spend about 15 minutes at the beginning of the week mapping out the next week, it helps tremendously. Then, each day, I spend 2-5 minutes in the morning, planning out the tasks for the day. By having a plan in place, even if I don't always follow it perfectly, it makes me much more productive.

In order to be able to organize, I sat down and thought through what tools I would need and how I could schedule things appropriately. In my daily routine, I scheduled time blocks for what I view as four separate "areas" of my life which have projects which change from day to day:

• Personal Projects
• Biblical Womanhood work
• The Old Schoolhouse Magazine work
• Ad Sales Team work (Part of my TOS work, but in order to keep things straight, I separate it.)

In my Business Binder, I have the following pages:

Franklin Covey Simplicity Monthly Calendar Pages (This gives a brief monthly overview and where I jot down birthdays, anniversaries, trips, events, etc.)

Franklin Covey Simplicity Weekly Planning Pages (This is where I write down basic goals and projects for each day at the beginning of the week.)

Franklin Covey Simplicity Daily Planning Pages(This is where I transfer information from the calendar and weekly pages into the four columns which are for the four separate areas of my life I listed above. I've been searching for a whole year for a planning system that has a two-page spread for each day without times listed in -- I finally found it and the four columns were a huge added benefit!)

So far, this system has been working very well for me. I'm excited about having a productive and efficient year, by the grace of God!

Crystal Paine
Marketing Manager
The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, LLC

Blogads: Creative Marketing for Blogs

A few months ago, I added a new feature to my blog-- Blogads. I wasn't sure what I would think of it, but since I had a nice amount of traffic (average 400-700 visits per day) and had been asked by a few small companies if I would allow them to advertise on my blog, I thought I would give it a try. The results have been more than satisfactory.

For those of you who love to blog and would like to "justify" your time and effort by actually bringing in some extra money through your blog, I highly recommend you consider signing up. It is a nice sort of residual income with almost zero work after the set-up.

Corporate Blogs: Learning the Rules of the Road

 

As corporate blogging becomes standard operating procedure for many companies and businesses of all shapes and sizes, companies need to have some guidelines in place to keep their bloggers in between the yellow lines.

 

While honesty, transparency and passion are key components to blogging, according to Bloomberg Marketing, companies don’t want their bloggers giving away company secrets, creating a bad image or stirring up trouble for the company. 

 

Therefore, all companies should have very general rules such as:

·        Be responsible for what you write.

·        Stay within company guidelines.

·        Don’t let company secrets slip.

·        Put your best foot forward.

 

Other companies might want to have a little more control, implementing rules like:

• Discuss blogging topics with your manager if you aren’t sure of them
• Don’t just chat.  Share your knowledge and expertise.
• Don’t break any laws.
• Respect copyright.  (That should be a given for ALL bloggers.)
• Liberally link to other sources.  (Like Corporate Blogging where I found much of this info.)

 

And then there are the business decisions that each company needs to make for themselves:

• Can employees blog on company time?
• What is the purpose for blogging?  Raise company visibility?  Offer expertise and insights?  Develop relationships with peers and clients?  All of the above?
• What happens if a blogger doesn’t play by the rules (which you laid out clearly in the beginning of course)?
• What does your blogger do if someone from the media contacts them?

 

Just like eager teenagers have to spend some quality time with the good ol’ Driver's Ed handbook, a successful company will spend some time studying what works for the big dogs in corporate blogging.  Then you can invite your employees to join you for a drive through the blogosphere and show your clients all that you have to offer!

 

Here are a few links to company guideline pages:

• Thomas Nelson
• Hill & Knowlton
• Yahoo!

 ~Nancy Carter

Public Relations Assistant

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, LLC

Thursday Tidbits: Starting Fresh for 2006

We've talked a lot here about creating a business plan, setting goals for your business, preparing for tax time...now let's chat about your office space.

 

From cubicles to corner offices, a desk in the kitchen or a full room in the house, each of us has some sort of space we must make our own for our business purposes.  Whether you are the compulsive organizer or the type with the creative "piles", it's always helpful to take some time to sort out your files, trade journals, and other business-related "stuff".  Personally, I know I've let some of this pile up from time to time just for the sheer feeling of accomplishment when I do make the time to re-organize it all again.

 

Look around you for a moment, and see where you can tackle a few things.  For instance, do you have:

 

* Accessible office equipment

* Good lighting

* Safe and ergonomic seating and storage

* A filing system of some sort

* Copies of important files stored safely offsite

* Something of beauty or humor that makes you smile

 

If you are a solo-preneur or freelancer just starting out, some of these may be constrained more by budget than desire.  You may not have the newest, fanciest copier on the market...but if you can find your tax records for that appointment with the CPA next month, you're doing well.  Consider the environment in which you work.  Think about what will make it more efficient and effective for you to move around in, to work in.

 

And be sure that if you don't already have something to make you smile, you find something...fast!  That can be the most fun task when it comes to revamping your surroundings.  In my office it's pictures my daughter draws for me and a small votive candle I light on the long days.  What about yours?

 

~Melonie K. Murray

Director of Public Relations

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, LLC