Posts Tagged ‘blogging’

Widespread Instant Criticism

by Brian Casel  ·  2.22.2010  ·  Bits

I love Twitter. But sometimes the viral nature of it tends to shape opinions that may be based more on popular belief than actual personal experience.

I’m talking about instant criticism. There seems to be a growing trend that when something brand new hits the scene, the masses instantly criticize it and reject it. This criticism resonates between Twitter and the blogosphere at an extremely rapid pace. It happens so fast that it makes me question it’s legitamacy. What are these critiques based on? Actual user experience or just an amplification of someone else’s opinion?

Take the example of Google Buzz.

It’s a brand spanking new thing from Google. It kind of came along without much prior notice (that I’m aware of). On Day 1, the widespread rejection of Google Buzz was pretty overwhelming. Everyone was like, “What is Google Buzz? I didn’t ask for this, so I don’t like it.”  Really?  In less than a few hours you already made up your mind about Google Buzz?  Sure, there were some very real privacy concerns (and it’s a good thing those were made known by the masses), but is it really that bad?  It might actually be a cool new way to expand your use of Gmail and share links and pics with your contacts.  If it’s not for you, it’s not for you.  But why not give it whirl for a week or two before passing (and publishing) judgement?  See how it might fit into your social network.  How do you and your friends use it?  Wait to see the unforeseen positive or negative effects.

How about the Apple iPad…

Now this one was extremely hyped before it was actually revealed.  While some reactions seemed positive, the vast majority were clearly negative.  The iPad apparently did not deliver what the masses hoped that it would.

Really?  The fact that it’s missing a web cam (which may or may not be true) makes this thing a flop?  The fact that it’s just like an iPhone makes it useless?  Take a step back and see what this thing really is.  It’s a mobile device for consuming online content.  And based on what we’ve seen, it seems to do that pretty well, and likely a lot better than the clunky Windows netbooks currently on the market.  I mean, nobody has even held one yet, but everyone’s passing judgement.  Wait until the thing ships and you buy it (because I know all you Apple Fan boys, including myself, probably will), then pass judgement.  Only then are you able to publish a truly informed blog post or tweet.

What do I think of the iPad?  Looks pretty cool, but I don’t know much without holding it.  I do think the $499 starting price tag is a pleasant surprise.

We shall see…

New Rules For Your Blog

by Brian Casel  ·  1.25.2010  ·  Opinion

In the style of Bill Maher, I’d like to lay down some new rules.  Only these aren’t for politics or pop culture.  These are new rules for your blog.

NEW RULE: Forget everything you learned about SEO.

It’s good to be educated about SEO best practices, but don’t let these tactics run your blog. I say the best SEO comes through natural, passionate writing, which in turn attracts readers, re-tweets, and quality incoming links.

NEW RULE:  Don’t post for the sake of keeping a steady post frequency.

Yes, it’s good SEO practice. But it results in less quality, more quantity, which doesn’t satisfy audiences who are hungry for substance every time.

NEW RULE: Don’t intentionally keyword stuff your posts.

Readers will notice, and it makes for an awkward reading experience. You’re better off letting those keywords work for themselves through producing quality, thought-provoking content.

NEW RULE: Don’t regurgitate topics you find in your RSS / Twitter feed.

If it’s been said, don’t say it again. Post a quote (with a link), then write your reaction or expansion of that topic.

NEW RULE:  Forget about earning serious money from blogging alone.

Of course, there are many world famous blogs who do. Guess what:  Yours won’t. A much more realistic (and lucrative) goal for your blog is to let it support your business.  If you’re selling products or services, let your blog be your voice to prove credibility and display your natural passion for your business/subject matter.

Over to you…

Would you add or change any of these rules?

Sessions of Social Media and nothing else.

by Brian Casel  ·  1.11.2010  ·  Bits

This is the time of the year that everyone loves to make bold goals based on the calendar.  Like, publish a new blog post every week for a year (guilty), post a daily photo 365 days strait (cool idea, but not for me), etc.

Well, I’ve got one for myself…

Weekly social media sessions

Here’s what I mean:  Simply dedicate one entire morning or afternoon per week (4-5 hours) to engaging in social media and nothing else.

During these social media sessions, I will do any of the following:

  • Write blog posts for my sites
  • Write and submit guest articles for other sites
  • Read and comment on blogs
  • Tweet it up
  • Write and respond to forum threads
  • Engage on facebook

I will not:

  • Design or code websites
  • Take client phone calls or meetings
  • Respond to client emails
  • Do any project related work (client or personal)
  • Hunt for new business leads

OK, so what’s the point?

Most people engage in social media when the mood strikes.  Maybe that’s once or twice per week, maybe it’s several times throughout each day.  I probably fall into the latter, but often lack consistency.  Some days I’ll engage in 20 different ways throughout the day, other days I go “dark” and don’t engage at all.

This… experiment, if you will, is to see what, if any impact a weekly dedicated social media session might have.  What type of impact am I looking for?

More quality traffic to my three sites/businesses.  That is, folks who have gotten to know me on the web, follow my updates and share interest in the things I put out there.  I’m not looking for spiking traffic numbers, but I am looking for more interaction in the form of comments, tweets, RTs, and eventually sales and new clients.

A boost in my own personal brand, behind my business brands that I’m working to build.  As I’m preparing to launch ThemeJam, I want to avoid creating a faceless brand without some type of personality.  And I’m not going to contrive a brand persona that’s not genuine.  So my own social media presence will be the driving force behind that aspect of promoting the ThemeJam brand.

I’ll become more informed about this chaotic web industry we’re in.  I already have my finger on the pulse through my jam-packed Google Reader and Twitter feeds, but this will help me dig deeper.  Especially through engaging in the forums, which is often where more real ideas are shared and lack the self-censorship that often comes with blog posts (mine included).

And finally, the X factor.  Something I’m not taking into account or anticipating as a result of dedicated social media engagement.  This might prove to be the most interesting impact of this project.

Don’t worry…

(Not that you would, I just want to say…) I won’t be slacking on any project work by keeping it off my plate during these sessions.  Customer service remains a top priority for me, and that will be attended to during other parts of the day / week.

This is simply a way to create some structure, boundries, and guidelines for this project.

Another guideline might be that I should conduct these sessions away from my home computer.  I’m currently sitting in a Starbucks typing away on my netbook.  It’s the perfect combination of caffeine, and only enough computing power for web surfing and typing.  This could become the routine…

So there you have it.  My official calendar-based goal for 2010.  Let’s see how it pans out.

It’s on in 2010

by Brian Casel  ·  1.4.2010  ·  Bits

Last week I posted about my non-work goals for 2010.  Now it’s time to cover 3 work-related goals for this year.

Launch my first product-based business

I’ve been hard at work preparing for the launch of ThemeJam, my first product-based business.  It’s something I’m extremely excited about and anxious to get off the ground in early 2010.  Aside from the enormous amount of (rewarding) work involved in designing and building WordPress themes, running a new startup selling digital products will be a huge learning experience for me.

I’ll be building and marketing a new brand from the ground up, which will likely involve quite a bit of experimentation and learning on the job.  And while I’ve developed E-Commerce sites for clients, this will be the first time I’m personally involved in tracking conversions, building a customer-base, and providing customer support (for products).  I’m very much looking forward to tackling these challenges.

Seek higher quality clients

On the CasJam Media front (my client business), I’d like to continue to grow my network of client referrals.  However, the overarching goal for 2010 is seek a higher quality client than in the past.  Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been lucky to work with some fantastic clients over the course of my young freelance career.  But unfortunately I’ve had some who I regret taking on (which was the focus of my recent post, turning down client work).  In 2010, I’m not only seeking clients with bigger budgets, but those who truly understand the process and appreciate the benefits of good design.

How to do this?  It starts with continuously delivering great work.  Nothing is a better sales tool for a web designer than an outstanding portfolio.  Beyond that, there are few things I can do to step up my game:

  • Attend more conferences, meetups, and increase my offline professional networking.
  • Write more guest articles on larger blogs, establishing myself as an expert (I have a few scheduled to publish soon).
  • Market my services to businesses that are already doing well, but could use someone like me to bring their online presence to the next level.

Improve my personal branding

This will largely happen through this blog as I plan to continue posting about my behind-the-scenes thoughts on freelancing, business, and the web.  I signed on to project52, and I plan to live up to that challenge (at least one post per week for a year).

I hope to establish trust with a larger readership through providing real and valuable advice, pointers, inspiration, and/or ideas to the community.  Those of you who reached out to me via Twitter or elsewhere, know that I truly enjoy talking shop or exchanging ideas and I hope this shines through in my online persona.

Over to you…

Can you narrow your 2010 work-related goals to 2 or three big ones?  Do share in the comments (or pass along a link to your blog).

Multiple Blogs, Multiple Voices

by Brian Casel  ·  6.29.2009  ·  Business

Over the past year, as the explosion of the blogging culture occurred, I fully embraced web writing and integrated it into every area of my life as a web professional.

I’m now running three blogs, and I have found that each new blog launch brings a bit of an unexpected challenge.  That challenge is the new writing style, or persona I must develop on each site.

My three blogs each fill a specific role in my life, and each have a different target audience.  I’m writing from three different areas of my “expertise” and I try to put forth different parts of my personality through my three websites.

The blog for my business

With my newly re-launched CasJam Media site, I expanded it to include a blog.  I market my web design services to small business owners, so I use this blog to speak directly to that target audience.

The characteristics that might describe the target readers of the CasJam blog are (for now I say “target” readers.  The traffic numbers don’t justify calling them “actual” readers):

  • Entrepreneurs or small business owners.
  • Not technologically / web savvy.
  • Appreciates great design, but unfamiliar with the design process.
  • Interested in tapping their business into the web, but unsure how to do it.
  • In the market for web design services, and evaluating the expertise I provide.

As I was putting together the first blog post on the CasJam blog, I immediately found it challenging to find my “voice” in the context of this target audience.  I need to strike a balance between various aspects of my online persona.  On the one hand, I’m trying to provide real online marketing advice, which can sometimes be technical in nature.  But I’m also speaking directly to prospects and existing clients, which requires me to keep things concise, helpful, and offer a positive representation of myself and my business.

The blog for my peers

That would be this one.  I consider my briancasel.com blog to be geared towards folks who are like me:

  • Web and tech savvy.
  • Working in or have an interest in the web design industry.
  • Fellow freelancers or small business owners.
  • Interested in marketing and sharing ideas with fellow web workers.
  • Understands and appreciates the role of design on the web.

While I’m still adjusting to writing with a more personal approach here, I find it to be a much more laid back and natural task.  It’s a place to talk shop with those who work in my industry.  It’s a place to share the never-ending learning experience that is freelancing and designing for the web.  This personal blog fills that space nicely.  Now, if I could only find some readers!

Keeping the music alive

Serve The Song is the longest running of my three active blogs.  As a long time musician and songwriter, this has been a great way for me to stay in touch with that side of my life.  I have a lot of knowledge and ideas to share in the areas of writing music, recording and producing (that audio recording degree has to be good for something!), and I found blogging to be the perfect medium to do that.

While I may inject some personal opinions in some of the posts, the content is not personal in nature, and it’s not meant to promote any of my own music.  It’s more of a resource for fellow songwriters and home-recordists.  I provide tips, tutorials, ideas on online music promotion, and related topics.

It’s been great to connect with creatives across the spectrum of the music world through the Serve The Song blog.  In recent months it has developed into more of a community blog as most of the posts come from guest writers.  It’s truly awesome to incorporate so many unique voices all in one place and I hope this trend continues.

Your thoughts?

Thanks for reading through the longest post yet on this blog : )  I promise to go back to the short and sweet method on future installments.

Do you keep multiple blogs?  How have you transitioned between them?  How do you find your own “voice” through blogging?

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