Do blogs have rules?

I know, it's been awhile. I've probably broken the number one rule of blogging ... or are there rules?

Well, if I want people to read my blog and if I want people to keep coming back, then there are probably a few things that I should keep in mind.

Technorati, one of those blog tracking organizations, estimated in 2007 that there were about 61 million blogs and about 175,000 new blogs being created each day. So let's see, by October 2009, that means we now have how many? Answer: more than 61 million blogs.

What can I do to ensure people read my blog? That leads us to a rule - 1) Post frequently

What else can we do?
2) Keep it interesting - not only through well written and relative copy, but with eye-catching visuals and links to interesting stuff - like news items or other blogs.

Anything else? Other basic blogging principles include, keeping your blog:

3)Honest
4)Conversational
5)Open, two-way communication
6)Unselfish, and sometimes maybe even
7)Opinionated

And
8)Spelling and grammar should be strong

Can you think of others? (That's encouraging open, two-way communication)

Oh yes, and back to my first question - my last post was in June. That will keep them coming back!

Until next time, happy blogging!

Show me a sign. Traditional methods of written communication still effective

'Free'

It was a rather crude sign. A piece of cardboard, some black spray paint, framed with red insulation tape and one word - 'Free' - boldly welcoming anyone and everyone to take the pile of dirt that I had excavated from my backyard.

I posted an online ad on the Web site of the local newspaper: "Free clean fill - mountain soil, call..." (in Hamilton, mountain soil is a.k.a solid clay).

I had a couple of phone calls, but no takers. My kids, embarrassed by my "rather crude sign," denied living at our house and would pass by with their friends after school and laugh at that guy with the sign in the dirt. Slowly, but surely that sign did it's job.

The visitors included:

• the guy in the light blue mini-van who made a couple of trips to fill his blue boxes
• the two guys in the red car, a supervisor and his shovelling assistant, loading the white buckets (and respectful enough to clean up their mess before they left)
• the guy with the ice chopper who methodically, bit-by-bit, loaded dirt into the back of his van (and didn't clean up his mess)
• the guy with the briefcase, who only needed enough to fill a small plastic cup from inside the briefcase, before continuing his walk up the street
• and finally, the guy who knocked on the door after I took the sign down, only to ask if he could take our last remaining bit of dirt now that the sign was gone

A rather crude sign, but effective.

So much of our communication focus today is technology based...texting this, e-mailing that, tweeting here, and blogging there.

Let's not forget the impact of traditional methods of written communication (he says as he writes in his blog). Although seemingly simple and crude, a hand-written note, a painted sign, or a billboard can still be effective channels for communicating our messages.

Build a door - build your professional network

Milton Berle once said "If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door."

On Friday, Statistics Canada announced the national unemployment rate climbed to 8.4 per cent in May. As the number of people looking for jobs grows, so to does the importance of networking.

Traditional networking methods can not be disputed. In fact, in Career Focus Canada, Helene Martucci Lamarre and Karen McClughan suggest that 70 per cent of jobs found today are through networking. Now, through the use of social media, new opportunities to build your professional network are being created - opportunities for you to build a new door.

There are many social networking sites available that allow you to build your professional network, conduct job searches, and manage your career. I recently set-up an account on LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com). Many professionals call it the "business equivalent of Facebook." Here you can provide a complete business profile and invite others to connect with you and view your profile.

Other sites, such as Visual CV (www.visualcv.com) and Virtual Job Coach (www.virtualjobcoach.com), can allow employers to get a sense of who you are. Depending on the individual site, you can post cover letters and resumes, track interviews, or book appointments.

The idea here is not to restrict yourself to the traditional methods of a job search. In the same way that we would incorporate social media as just one tactic in larger communications plan, social media should be considered as one of many tactics in your search for employment - one of many doors that employers could knock upon.

What's in a name?

There's discussion today that Jim Balsillie will consider referring to a Hamilton based NHL franchise as Ontario or Southern Ontario, rather than Hamilton - if that day comes that a team plays out of the city. The idea is not a new one.

I assisted with the research and writing for a Hamilton application during the NHL's 1997 expansion, which welcomed Nashville into the fold. One of the key elements of the Hamilton application was to present the team as a southern Ontario or Ontario based team, not Hamilton.

At the time, the idea of positioning the team as an Ontario team, would hopefully address an NHL perception that Hamilton was not an 'A' market and as such 'Hamilton' would impact negatively on television revenue, as well as local attendance when playing in other markets.

The idea has been floated once before, without success. Will it work a second time?

Getting a handle on this social media thing

There are probably just as many social media workshops available these days as there are social media applications. I attended an excellent workshop today, hosted by the IABC Golden Horseshoe Chapter in Hamilton.

Joseph Thornley, CEO of Thornley Fallis and 76design, the Chair of the Canadian Council of Public Relations Firms and a Senior Fellow of the Society for New Communications Research was the keynote speaker. Joe helped to put the vastness of it all into some perspective.

In the spirit of Twitter, I've decided to summarize a few of the key points from Joe's discussion in 140 characters or less:

• Social media is an online connection between audience and author using social software
• Social media is used to find others who have something in common
• Television news provides one-way communication - social media provides two-way
• YOU are no-longer invisible. Read 'Groundswell' by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff
• Social media is revolutionary. We no longer need to search out reporters
• Professional communicators can create organizational messages giving organizations their own voices
• Be accountable
• Companies, organizations, governments lose by not engaging. People will talk about you, even if you're not there
• Do it right. Social media relies on a culture of generosity - trust is the currency
• Trust is earned through transparency, authority, reliability, and generosity
• Organizations should strive to transform their cultures to one of participating through persuasion

Finally, when deciding how to include social media into the communications mix, Joe recommended defining your objectives:

1. Know what you want to achieve
2. Listen - find your community. What do they care about? What do they think?
3. Interact - where your community prefers.
4. Demonstrate you understand the culture of generosity
5. Measure - to understand what is going on. No single measure for social media exists because of the different objectives. http://www.postrank.com/ can get you started.

Check out Joe's blog at http://www.propr.ca/ (that's "Pro PR," as he points out, not "Proper" as the non-communications types tend to use).

Thank-you

A simple thank-you can go a long way ... maybe even land you a job. I received a thank-you note from a graduate today. It came with good news - their first industry job. It was also interesting to learn about one of the techniques that may have ultimately secured them the job.

We spend some time in a couple of classes talking about the importance of follow-up after going for your job interview. In one assignment, students are asked to conduct an informational interview with a Public Relations or Communications professional. Part of the mark is the follow-up thank-you. In another assignment, students participate in a mock job interview with an industry professional. In this case, the interviewer is asked to critique the professional thank-you that follows the interview. I've found that some students are quick with a note, while others choose not to send a thank-you at all.

In today's e-mail, the graduate talked about the dreadful interview process and the follow-up. "It was my follow-up letter and subsequent work project that got me this job," the former student noted. "It was actually that art of persuasion that they had been looking for all along..."

Why send a thank-you letter? Today, employers expect it. Successful candidates often spend the time following up and following through. Many career specialists/coaches suggest that not only does it show good business etiquette and social manners, but a timely and well written thank-you demonstrates good follow through skills and good time management skills. It also shows that you are sincere and can indicate how you really feel about the job.

At the end of the day, a nice thank-you may be the difference between you and 'the other candidate' on the short list.

Thank-you.