It’s been a little while since I’ve done any WordPress webinars or in-person classes. But I finally got around to setting up a few. Just to clarify, webinars take place online only whereas classes are conducted in small groups in the Los Angeles area. Those sexy folks that are on my email list always get the first opportunity to sign-up and they always get a coupon code for discounts.
If you’re blogging you want readers to be able to keep up with what you’re writing, right? Here’s an overview of some of your options for enabling readers to subscribe, along with pros and cons of both.
RSS forms the basis of most updating systems. Every blog has an RSS feed (simply the output of your blog) which automatically updates when you publish new posts. For WordPress blogs, the feed is usually located at: yourdomain.com/feed. Visitors can use a tool like Google Reader to subscribe to many different blog RSS feeds and receive all the updates in one place. Here’s a shot of my overflowing Reader with a few of the sites I subscribe to:
As a publisher you can use Google’s Feedburner service to manage your RSS feed.
Pros – Feedburner is pretty easy to configure and you can implement it with the help of a plugin. Feedburner also provides copy/paste code to place icons on your site to advertise your feed. Feedburner formats your feed cleanly so that it displays nicely in browsers (try looking at a raw RSS feed in Chrome….it’s unreadable) & feed readers and the subscribe options are clearly presented. You’ll also be able to get stats on the number of subscribers you have and the click activity on your feed.
I find that many people have heard that they ‘should’ have a blog, but worry that they are just not the blogging type, or don’t think they will have anything to say.
Is there still hope without a blog?
I would say ‘yes’. After all, a blog only works if you actually post to it and actively promote it. It’s no silver bullet and it does take time and commitment, and honestly, it’s not for everybody.
One of the main benefits to having a blog is that with well-written and targeted content it can attract search engine traffic quite easily. This is the main benefit you will miss out on by not having a typical, text-based blog. But search engines are not the only source of traffic. So while there are many benefits to having a blog, let’s consider some alternatives.
1) Re-think what a ‘blog’ means
The typical idea of a blog is a text-based site that you update at least once per week and ideally more frequently, with posts of several hundred words. But here are some variations on what a blog can be:
This past weekend I gave a presentation at OC Wordcamp, discussing using a WordPress site for marketing your business, service or product. As promised, here are the some of the key points, along with links and tools that were mentioned. If anything is missing, leave a comment!
When developing a strategy for your site, the first and most important question to ask is:
Who do you want to come to your site? Who is your target audience?
Thou shall not answer “everybody”!
Get specific since the answer will provide the basis for all aspects of your online marketing strategy.
For more on this topic, also read:
Recharge and Refine Your Marketing Strategy
What Is An Online Marketing Strategy?
What is an online marketing strategy?
Sometimes people’s eyes just glaze over when I talk about online marketing strategy. Perhaps they’re thinking ‘I have a website and I’m on Twitter, what else is there?’ Or perhaps it’s just one of those big fuzzy terms about which people have a vague concept but no real clarity.
Well here’s what I’m talking about when I say ‘online marketing strategy’. It’s essentially a roadmap for how you market your business. It’s not just about being on Twitter or Facebook, those tools are just a couple possible pieces of the puzzle. Your strategy is a long-term plan for your online marketing that utilizes the relevant tools for your specific business and most importantly – all the parts work together to achieve your business goals.
WHY you need an online marketing strategy:
1) To help you identify where you should be spending your time and efforts
2) To help you stay on track with your business development
3) To establish benchmarks to measure your effectiveness
4) A well laid out plan will keep you from feeling overwhelmed by the task of online marketing
5) Likewise your plan can provide inspiration when you’re not sure what to do next.
6) If you have a staff, everyone needs to be on the same page – laying out a clear strategy will help.
7) Consistency in your efforts and messaging is key and having a roadmap will help you achieve this instead of blindly fumbling along.
