Blogging for Business: Recent Episodes
Linda Dessau
Ideas and inspiration for writing blog posts and social media content that will connect you with your prospective customers. Brought to you by business blogging expert Linda Dessau of Barrie, Ontario.
Even though blogging seems like a passive activity, it’s an ideal way for introverts and other shy networkers to engage prospective clients and grow your business.
Content curation is the practice of finding and sharing relevant links with your networks. It is an excellent way to extend your reach on social media, but posting the wrong links in the wrong way can actually detract from your social media activity. In this episode of the Blogging for Business podcast, I reveal five questions that will help ensure you're building your reputation and not damaging it.
Have you ever met someone at a networking event who would be an ideal client for you? Yet you struggle with how to follow up without seeming "sales-y" or putting any pressure on the person?
The other day, I met with a woman who happened to be an ex-journalism student. While we were chatting about how she might make the transition to online writing and blogging, I commented that she had a great starting point by already being a writer. To which she exclaimed, "Oh, I can write, but I'm not a writer!"
We have so many preconceived notions of what makes someone a writer. Is it only someone who's published (and if so, does self-published count)? Is it only someone who writes every day (or week or month)?
Do you feel like a fraud when you call yourself an expert? Many of us do. It's called the imposter syndrome and I've written some tips to help you deal with it. (Actually, it's nice to read that original post from 2007 and notice that I don't necessarily have an "imposter thought" daily anymore.)
"Imagine someone hiring you after falling in love with your writing style, only to find you entirely different in person!" - from Write Your Way to More Clients Online (Part One: Plan Mindfully)
On Thursday's call with choice, the magazine of professional coaching, Publisher Garry Schleifer was doing triple duty - he was my gracious host on the call, he was listening for writing tips for his own content marketing efforts, and he was managing the Facebook fan page where listeners were posting questions.
Some coaches wonder whether there's any point to blogging or if it's worth their time. Their bottom line question: Am I going to get more clients? And the real bottom line question: Am I going to make more money?
For more information about these three different types of online content, please see the Content Marketing à la Carte series.
While I commented briefly at the end of the series that one type of content isn't better than the other (it's a matter of personal preference and the suitability of your message), I wanted to talk more about how your choice of content will help you build relationships online.
When it's time to write your online bio, you may be relieved to think, "Finally, it's all about me!" But is it?
If you're a coach or other service-based business owner, you may not think writing instructions is very important - after all, you're not selling technical gadgets or furniture with some assembly required. The truth is that your clients, prospective clients,...
When you first emerge from a productive brainstorming session, it may seem like there will never be enough time to develop all your ideas. There's a sense of glee and excitement about sharing your topics, and maybe even a little...
In a recent chat with trust marketing expert Kristen Beireis, we discussed how blogging is such a good tool for people who provide a service. Here are the top five reasons to be blogging (and more often):
Thought leadership posts (or "thought pieces," as I've called them before on this blog) are an important part of a balanced blog. They play a key role in establishing and deepening your relationship with your readers.
If you're not sure where you'll find the time to create a weekly newsletter, never fear! Once you're writing weekly blog posts, there are ways to automate the task.
Whether you're a new blogger, a lapsed blogger or a blossoming blogger-to-be, you may struggle with the very concept of how to write a blog post.
I suggest you start with the "how to" post. It may be the quickest route to building a connection with the prospective clients who need you.
It takes courage to put yourself out there, whether you're singing on a stage, speaking in front of a group or posting your thoughts, suggestions and opinions on a blog.
When you have dyslexia and/or dysgraphia (written dyslexia), writing online content is an enormous challenge. This really hit home for me recently, when some of my colleagues and clients revealed that they struggle with these issues.