Social Media Advisors

Bieber, Blogchat and Thoughts on Blogging

How To Blog, Social Media Advisors, Twitter

On of my biggest passions in the social media realm lies within blogging. I’ve traveled the country as a social media speaker teaching thousands how to get started in blogging. Honestly while it is probably the subject I have spoken on the most, it is also probably my favorite. The reason why is because I feel all social media efforts should revolve around your blog.

Why? It’s one of the few places that social interactions take place that you are in absolute control of. You get to make the rules and determine how things should look and feel. If places like Facebook & YouTube determine you are doing something they don’t like, they can simply shut you down without even providing a reason.

Each Sunday night there is a wonderful discussion that takes place on Twitter called #blogchat. Blogchat discusses various topics related to blogging. The host Mack Collier is usually accompanied by a special guest that helps moderate the chat of several hundreds of people generating many thousands of tweets at times.

This past week was an open mic night which means you can discuss any topic you wish and ask any questions you may have. I’ve highlighted a few of my favorites below thanks to Dashter:

Pam Moore – @PamMktgNut
There is only one perfect way to do blogging & #sm & that is the way that works for you & your audience! #blogchat

I agree with Pam on this. There isn’t one single mold to social media that works for every single person. You have to find what works well for your business and implement those things. For some that is using opt-in campaigns. Others have success with affiliate programs. Find what works for you and your audience and do it better than everyone else in your industry.

Ian Greenleigh – @be3d
You don’t owe anyone content. Never feel like you need to blog when you don’t have anything to say. #blogchat

Too many times we feel like we have to write a post just because an expert somewhere said that we needed to blog XX times each week. Instead of creating content of value to our consumers, we just write something that has zero value and can be more harming to our online footprint just so we can say we kept our weekly quota.

If we create junk, it breaks the trust in our readers that we are giving good stuff to them. Also, too many trash posts can put a major hit on the SEO of your site. Just like your mom taught you when you were a child, if you don’t have something good to say, don’t say anything at all.

Ian Greenleigh – @be3d
If all you care about is traffic, blog about Bieber. #blogchat

This second though from Ian I haven’t personally tested yet, but I might need to soon! Considering Bieber draws a crowd everywhere these days, it might just work. What I do know, is that if I did implement this tactic, it would at least drive a few of my friends like Mike Mueller here. As for more than just him, I don’t know.

Sandy Ellingson – @sandyellingson
Spend more time learning about & connecting w/your readers than copying & watching how others connect w/theirs! #blogchat

Sandy makes a whole lot of sense here. Too many try to be the next Chris Brogan or Gary Vee and copy what worked for them. The only problem is what works for them doesn’t always work for us.

Take your time and efforts to test your own strategies and ideas to find what works for your potential consumers. Research the age groups, things your consumers enjoy, things that would appeal to them and implement those strategies. Your results should be much greater.

Jessica Levin, CMP – @JessicaLevin
@MackCollier I’m still thinking abt what @marcymassura said: Make your blog a TV channel, not a show. That was powerful. #blogchat

This statement I probably spent the most amount of time pondering. I thought about what Jessica Re-Tweeted from Marcy and basically had two different trains of thought here.

The first was on creating variety of content to appeal to various groups of readers. If you offer a mix of content instead of just information on one single subject over & over you be able to gain more readership and traffic to your site. I try to do this on my site by sharing information about everything from blogging to video, and everything in between.

The second thought that came to mind was that we need to focus on long tail keyword topics on our site instead of just focusing on one larger item which I agree with 100%. It’s much easier to get your site ranking for a long tail keyword than a main keyword. Ranking for a bunch of long tail keywords over just one main keyword gives you an ultimately broader spectrum to drive traffic to your site via SEO.

They say that long tail keywords make up almost 80% of keyword possibilities, so if you write on your subject using various long tail keywords related to your product or service you can gain more and more eyes.

So there you have it, Justin Bieber, blogchat, & thoughts on blogging all wrapped up into one post. Make sure to try to join into a blogchat in the near future, it can really be beneficial to your business.

Photo Credit: cukuskumir creative commons 2.0

Is Your Website Mobile Optimized?

Custom WordPress Sites, Online Consulting, Social Media Advisors

According to Google, mobile traffic queries are up over 4 times those of a year ago. More and more people are surfing the web from their smart phones every day for things. There should no longer be a question of whether or not you need a mobile version of your website.

Having your website mobile optimized means that it will load quickly & easily for any mobile device. If it takes more than five seconds for the page to load, consumers are likely to leave and move on to another site. Also, the amount of data required to open a non-mobile site can turn those with limited data packages away from becoming a regular online customer of yours. If you have images inserted, they need to load properly and I shouldn’t need to pinch or zoom to view the items on a page.

Google believes that mobile sites are becoming so important that they recently launched an initiative to help people determine if their site is mobile optimized. HowToGoMo.com offers you the ability to test your site, learn more about mobile websites and even get help if needed. Here’s a quick demo on how it works:

When you finish the test you will get a brief summary and also the ability to either email or download a Full Mobile Report. Also, if your site does not do so well in the test, they have some great developers available to assist you in building a mobile optimized site for your business.

As someone who uses WordPress and also builds Custom WordPress Sites, I install a plugin called WPTouch onto all the sites I build that helps turn them into a mobile optimized version for when your site is viewed on a smartphone. It is super simple to set up and can be done in less than three minutes. It will make your site look fairly similar to the way mine did in the video demo above.

So, go try HowToGoMo.com and see how your site ranks in their results. If you need help turning your WordPress Site into a mobile optimized version, just ask!

Creating Better Videos- Audio

Social Media Advisors, Video

This is part three in my series on creating better videos. In our first segment we covered indoor shots and how to keep the light balanced. Then, we discussed why using a tripod is crucial to the quality of your video. For today’s segment, we are going to discuss audio.

Good videos are made up of two main components. The images on the screen and the sound that accompanies it. If one of these parts is lacking or missing, the quality of your video goes down. While you may think you need to spend several hundreds of dollars on a good microphone setup, you will be surprised what you can get for under $40.

Before I show an example, let’s first discuss the different types of microphones that exist. There are three main types that you may want to use:

Shotgun Microphones- These microphones are highly directional and pick mainly the audio that is just in front of them. It is used many times on movie sets with a boom stand that hangs it overhead those speaking. They can get a little more expensive, but can be effective in situations where you cannot have a microphone 6 inches from your subject. They can pick up sounds usually within 10 feet. Unfortunately though, if you are trying to interview someone in a noisy room, it can be difficult to distinguish their voice and the noise of others speaking in the room.
Handheld Microphones- Handheld microphones are like those used by news reporters. They can be wired or wireless. They provide a good sound of those close to the microphone. If you want the ambient noise of others in the room, this may not be the best option. Also, if the person using the microphone has weak arms and the microphone moves away, you may lose some of what they are speaking.
Lapel Microphones- Lapel microphones provide very good quality audio that will remain consistent as you clip it onto the persons shirt or jacket. These microphones pick up only the person wearing it so if you are trying to interview someone else, this is not the option for you. Unless of course you use an audio mixer and two of them. In the example below, I use a simple $25 Audio Technica ATR 3350 wired version. (aff link)

Here’s a demo:

As you can see, adding just a simple $25 microphone changes the quality of your video immensely. No longer do you hear the wind blowing and my voice faintly. Instead my voice now is coming through crystal clear. So, if your camera allows for the use of an external microphone, then put the additional investment into your videos and see the major difference. If your camera doesn’t have the option for an external microphone, have no fear! I will have a guest post coming soon that will show you how you can accomplish the same type of audio quality.

To learn more on how to create better videos, check out this presentation that I have shared as a social media speaker on Video Basics.

photo credit: Mike Mueller Areweconnected.com

Creating Better Video- Steadying Your Shot

Social Media Advisors, Social Media Speaker, Video

Yesterday I started a series of posts on creating better videos. The series came from some recent presentations I have given as a social media speaker on using video more effectively in your online marketing strategy. The first post dealt with picking the right angles for your indoor shots. Today we are going to tackle another one of the issues I see in too many videos. The fact that you feel like you are riding a roller coaster throughout the entire video due to the shakiness. If you wonder what I am talking about, here’s an example from one of my golf outings.

So how do we go about fixing this problem? Well, absolute easiest is to just use a tripod. It steadies your camera and removes all the shake. You can purchase one for anywhere from $20 for an inexpensive one to some that can cost you several thousands. Personally, I use a tripod/monopod combo from Sunpak that is around $85. (aff link) This tripod is a little taller than some of the others out there which comes in handy if you are taller or interviewing someone who is taller than 5’7″.

In addition to this tripod, I also use a smaller lightweight one, but that can can be hard to use since it is so lightweight it causes some vibration when you try to do pan shots. The third tripod I carry in my bag always is a small desktop tripod. This one might get more use than any other tripod I own as it is with me all the time. It doesn’t always work the best with the DSLR camera due to the cameras weight, but with the pocket cameras it is perfect.

Here is a quick demonstration video showing the importance of steadying your camera:

So what if you want to shoot a video and do not have a tripod handy? What should you do? Well, obviously you wouldn’t want to just give up on shooting the video. Instead, lets think of some other ways to imitate the tripod. Here are just a few things I have done in the past when I don’t have a tripod nearby to steady my video camera:

Find a steady flat surface to sit/prop the camera. I’ve used everything from sidewalks, desks, railings, you name it to steady the camera. I’ve even used my wallet before to prop a camera up & get that perfect shot.
Put your camera strap on & pull the camera tight against your neck. This will help to steady the camera more than just using your arms.
Find something to lean on. If you can find something to lean your elbows against you can use your arms as a tripod fairly well.

These are just a few ideas, there are plenty more crazy things I’ve done in the past to try & get the right shot. Have you ever used any of the things I mentioned in the past? Or maybe you have another idea. If you do, please share!