Summary: Consider these three tips for better blogger relations before getting your company caught up in a negative blog storm (or missing out altogether). Is your company reaching out to bloggers to spread the word or take part in larger conversations on the Web? If so, how are your blogger relations efforts going? Chances are that there’s room for improvement. Here are three simple things you [...]

Summary: Do you struggle when trying to come up with the perfect blog post headlines? These blog headline templates (originally published at Jentrepreneur.com) will set you in the right direction. The headline of a blog post is often the most important part of that blog post for a few reasons: 1. A catchy headline can entice people to click and read. 2. A good blog headline can incite discussion. 3. [...]

Summary: Are you the type of blogger who likes to “play it safe,” or do you jump into the fray when hot topics come up in your industry? This post, originally published at Jentrepreneur.com, explores why I love controversial blog posts, and think blogs would be sad little places without them. Some bloggers shy away from controversy, while others fully embrace it. I tend to be one to embrace [...]

Summary: When you start a new website or blog, should you write articles solely for search engines, or should readers be your number one concern? Find out how why your starting content strategy can make or break your website. A lot of webmasters really have a pretty lousy content strategy in place. Here’s an example (based on a question I recently saw asked on a webmaster forum): Someone wanted [...]

Summary: Do you take your online business seriously, or are you setting yourself up for failure? Find out why you need to treat your online business as a real business venture and not a casual hobby (such as blogging for profit) if you want to reap the most rewards and keep it all legal. I know there are plenty of “serious” online ventures. At the same time I think there are infinitely [...]

Is Twitter marketing just another marketing fad, or is marketing via microblogs here to stay? Find out how people are marketing through services like Twitter, and what benefits or damages they may see because of it. Whether you’re a fan of microblogging platforms like Twitter or not (I’m not), you can’t deny that there is marketing potential there. There’s actually a lot of [...]

Summary: Is it really possible to make money online blogging? How realistic is it to think you can earn a real blogging income? How can you beat the odds? Find out how to make money blogging with these tips and resources. Blogging has been a hot business concept for a few years now, but most bloggers blogging for income are still baffled about how to make serious money. “Is it even possible [...]

After you’ve chosen a niche for your new blog, the next steps in setting up a blog are choosing a blog name, domain name, and Web hosting company. Start by reading Choosing a Business Name and Domain Name for Your Online Business.

Summary: Learn how to find a niche for a new blog, from choosing general niche market ideas to doing keyword research and evaluating the competition in a potentially profitable niche market. This post is a part of the “Start a Blog in 7 Days” series, designed to help new bloggers launch their first blogs, from choosing a niche to launch marketing. When you want to set up a new blog, the [...]

In this seven-part / seven-day series, I’ll be walking you through the steps of launching a new blog. This is set up in a seven day set for those who can’t devote a lot of time up front. Others will be able to complete all of these steps in a matter of hours (something I actually do myself periodically). The seven day series on launching a new blog will generally target newer bloggers [...]