It happens to everyone about this time of year. All those shiny new New Year’s resolutions don’t look so pretty any more. Those 5:30 am spinning classes just arent’ as much fun as they were back in January and the diet…well, let’s just say that I’m still eating ice cream at night.

The key to keeping any resolution is to get over the February hump. By March, what once felt new and different in January is becoming a lifestyle change and the further and further you go, the harder it is to get back to your old routine.

With that in mind, what better way to get over the February hump then to do a quick check to both monitor progress and make needed adjustments. If your resolution involved blogging, now that you’re a month in, it’s a good time to step back and give the blog the old fitness checkup.

Here’s 10 things to do to check to be sure your blog is on the right track:

1. Forget the traffic numbers
In the beginning, we all get addicted to the traffic. Most new bloggers check in over and over throughout the day. At this point, don’t worry about it. Instead, be sure that you’re doing everything now to build the foundation that will help your blog continue to grow.

2. What has worked so far?
Here’s the one place where traffic numbers can help. Go back and see which post is getting the most action. What is it about that post that is bringing in the traffic. Determine what people like about the post and use that information to guide you in future posts.

3. Is the Blog User Friendly?
How easy is it to navigate your blog. Is it open to comments? What gets in the way of reading and commenting on the blog. You want to make your blog as open and as easy to use as possible. Anything that turns a reader away may turn them away for good.

4. Is your RSS feed working and is it easy to find
With the recent change from Feedburner to Google, it’s probably a good idea to check in to see that everything is working and links are active. Also be sure that your RSS feed is clearly marked with an RSS icon. You want to make it easy for repeat readers to keep in touch.

5. Do you share well with others?
Is it easy for users bookmark your posts or share them on Digg, Facebook or other social networking sites? If you’re using Wordpress, be sure that your Socialble or Share This plugin is working and offers the most commonly used services. Those little icons on the bottom of the post are one of the most powerful tools you can include on your blog

6. Are your URLs search  engine friendly?
Your blog headline is one of the first things a search engine will read. If you’re using Wordpress, the default URL setting uses numbers which is about worthless when it comes to SEO.

Also be sure to use search-engine friendly headlines. With Wordpress, you can easily change the URL and fill it with key terms. Keep it simple and to the point but be sure the terms are there. For example, notice the headline on this post and the address in the web browser.

7. Is your blog roll healthy and up to date?
When I’m not blogging about social media, I also blog about the Ohio State Buckeyes. My Ohio State blog is very well indexed on Google and other search engines. One reason may be the number of incoming links and the strength of the blogroll. By working with other Big Ten bloggers, I’ve been able to build a very strong blog roll and have received a number of very strong links.

I don’t know if this is what has pushed The Buckeye Blog to the top of the Google results but I bet it has something to do with it.

This is the number one mistake I am making on this blog and is the first thing on my list (when I get time). When you add a blog to your blogroll, the blogger will see it and will often return the favor. It also never hurts to send a nice letter asking for a link exchange – especially in the early days of a blog.

8. Are you using appropriate categories?
Search engines like categories. Be sure to use key word appropriate categories and categorize your posts. It also makes it easier for readers to find related information on your blog.

9. What’s on your “About Me” page?
Your About Me page doesn’t need to say much. However, people read a post and they often want to know more about the voice behind it. Sometimes, they just want to verify that the information comes from a knowledgeable source.

Be sure to also include a way for readers to contact you. If you’re worried about spam, use a contact form (there are a number of good plugins available).

10. Is your blog integrated with your other social networking activities?
If your using other social networking sites such as LinkedIn or Twitter, let the world know. Include easy to find links where readers can connect. Blog readers like to engage and talk to others. Make it easy for them.

Seeing how SocialMarketing20.com is a fairly new blog, I’m sure that you can spot a few areas I need to target. If you’re like me, it looks like I’ve got the start of a pretty good “to do” list. I’ve you’ve got any other tips or ideas, please share them in the comments below.

Jim Lodico is a freelance copywriter and social media consultant. Contact Jim to find out how he can give your business a boost at jalodico@bizwritings.com

I started my first blog three years ago blogging about my favorite sports team The Ohio State Buckeyes. As an alumni and fan, it was a great way to learn the world of blogging, follow my team and create a platform to talk Buckeyes with whoever would join in. From the beginning, I approached it as a journalist and while I may not have had the same access or resources as a traditional journalist, I soon found an audience for my rather opinionated sports talk.

Three years, nearly 400 posts and a few tough bowl losses later, I’ve received a number of p.r. pitches both good and bad. Below is a list of 10 things I’ve learned about pitching to the blogs:

1. Don’t fear the blogs

Yes, there still are a number p.r. professionals who don’t approach bloggers because they are afraid of what they will say. No, most blogs don’t have the editorial structure of traditional media outlets and yes some tend to speak more…how shall we say…”freely” than others. Hopefully, you’ve actually read the blog before pitching. If the blog regularly attacks or makes you nervous, leave them off your list.

2. Treat bloggers like you would any other journalist

Successful blogs don’t just happen. Building a blog takes a great deal of time, talent and effort and unlike traditional media the entire operation often consists of one or two people. If the blogger has built an audience you want to reach, do everything you can to make their job easier and the publicity will come.

3. Offer Access

Often, more than anything else, bloggers need access. Without the weight of a traditional media conglomerate behind them, press passes and media access can be hard to come by. At the same time, access to one big event or one big interview can launch a blog into the prime time.

The political parties caught onto this some time ago but others are slow to come around. The New York Islanders recently offered press credentials to bloggers. In order to accommodate the media elites who may not approve, the Islanders set up a fan friendly “blogger’s box” which could handle all the cheering and nacho eating that goes with the typical watching of a hockey game. From a sports marketing perspective, this makes perfect sense. Who is going to be more passionate about a team then the fan who takes the time to build and regularly contribute to their blog.

In the end, it is truly a win/win situation. The blogger gets much needed access along with links on the team’s website which will drive traffic. Not only do the Islanders get the publicity generated by the bloggers, by being open and reaching out to bloggers, they presenting team management in a very positive light.

(By the way, if anyone at the Ohio State athletic office is reading this, I can be reached at annapolisbuckeye@thebuckeyeforum.com – hey, I’ve got to try.)

4. Offer Contest Prizes

One of the most powerful ways to grow a blog is to give something away. Offer bloggers product samples to give away as contest prizes (be sure to include one for the blogger.) This is a great way to generate buzz about a new product and provides an excellent opportunity for the blogger. Don’t worry about the details of the contest, let the blogger determine what will work best for the blog and the blogger’s audience.

5. Make the blogger feel important

This is similar to #3 above. As a blogger, I love it when I’m considered in the same vein as top journalists. For example, this summer, ESPN invited me to sit in on a conference call with Erin Andrews and a number of other ESPN personalities. They were promoting their “Title Town USA” competition and to be honest, I didn’t really care what they were promoting. The fact that I was getting recognized by one of the biggest sports media outlets in the world was enough for me. It was exciting, it didn’t cost them anything to include me and they got a post.

6. Offer Valuable Content – Without Copyright Limitations

Just like journalists, bloggers love content they can use. Without the resources and access of traditional media content which fits the topic of the blog can go a long way.

This fall I was approached by a p.r. rep from the NFL. He told me that the NFL was making video “available” to bloggers and offered a video clip with an excellent analysis that fit my blog perfectly. I was writing the post when I realized that there wasn’t a code to embed the video on my site. I wrote to the p.r. rep asking for the code and he was very quick to tell me that I due to copyright limitations, I could not place the video on my site.

Considering that the initial contact “offered” the video, I had assumed I could use it on my site, complete with NFL client advertisement, NFL logos and link to NFL site. Without the video, my post didn’t just didn’t seem to work and the p.r. “pitch” failed (at least on my blog).

7. Make personal contact

You’ve heard it before, blogs are about the “conversation.” Reach out and talk to the blogger. Honest, open and personal contact from a p.r. rep is usually acceptable. Rarely have I used a traditional press release but on a number of occasions, I did use information provided by p.r. reps after a personal contact. The fact that the p.r. rep took the time to reach out and talk to me personally shows that they see some value in my blog. At the very least, I’ll give them a look.

Also be careful how you use the comments. Bloggers don’t react well to advertisements in their comment section. If you have something to contribute to the discussion, fine. If you have something to pitch, use email.

8. Pitch to the blogger’s audience. If it doesn’t fit blog’s niche, don’t pitch.

Most blogs have a very specific niche. Don’t pitch products or information that don’t fit that niche. At the same time, when you find the blogs with the perfect audience for your pitch, don’t be afraid to reach out to them. Bloggers want to provide value to their audience and if your product or service truly helps their audience, they will usually respond.

9. Don’t forget the smaller blogs

While it’s great to get those placements in the Technorati top 100, don’t forget the smaller blogs. Often these smaller blogs hit a very specific niche and although the number of impressions may be smaller, you’re much more likely to hit your target market.

These smaller blogs are usually the one person operations and are more likely to be more responsive to many of the tips above.

When looking for these smaller blogs, search for blogs that are well indexed. Search key words that match your pitch along with the word “blog” and see what comes up. The first page on Google should be worth pitching. While they may not always have high volume traffic, If you found them, so will others.

10. Offer an Affiliate Relationship

Most bloggers are looking for ways to monetize their site without turning away readers. If your product or service is a good match and is of value to the audience, give the blogger a cut. With an affiliate relationship you only pay for the advertising that works. Affiliate relationships can result in both banner advertising and blog posts on your product or service.

Jim Lodico is an independent public relations consultant and freelance copywriter. For help with your public relations efforts, contact Jim at jalodico@bizwritings.com or visit www.jalcommunications.com.

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Who are the New Influencers?

As we create public relations and media plans for the new year, my clients are increasingly looking for ways to reach out to and communicate with bloggers and other online influencers. It’s not just about the traditional media anymore. It hasn’t been for a while, but many businesses are just now catching up.

But with more than 112 million blogs out there, how do you find the ones you need to connect with?

In its recent study, the Society for New Communications Research asked social media power users in a number of industries to share how they evaluate the relevance of bloggers, podcasters and other online influencers.

Here’s what they had to say:

The number-one criteria is the quality of their content.

A close second is the relevance of the content to your business, brand or industry, followed by the influencer’s web site search engine rankings. Power users also cited a number of other factors to check out, such as name recognition, blog search engine rankings and overall traffic.

Less important, but still relevant was whether the influencers are affiliated with a traditional media outlet or have been quoted extensively within the traditional media.

Least important? Surprisingly, typical measures of audience engagement, such as active commenting on blog posts, content syndication and distribution methods, and the longevity of the blog, were ranked last.

Looking to target new media influencers in your PR efforts? Start with blog searches on your industry or business (try Google and Technorati for starters). Sort what you find with the criteria above. Then go ahead and start a conversation.

Sally Anne Giedrys is the founder of artisan communications, an independent copywriting and communications consultancy that works with businesses and nonprofit organizations to craft compelling marketing and PR messages. For more than 15 years, Sally has been making businesses “sound good” in print and online through a potent combination of great writing, savvy strategy and high integrity communications. Learn more about artisan’s services at www.artisancopy.com. Or reach Sally directly at sally@artisancopy.com.

Blogging evangelists will tell you that every business-large, small or solo- should have a blog. I disagree.

Sure, blogging is a great way to increase visibility, build your brand and interact with customers and clients. It’s a gatekeeper-free platform for putting your message out into the world. And there are many examples of blogs that have completely changed the way companies communicate with their customers and clients. (Check out this Washington Post article for a few.)

But a blog isn’t an automatic add into your marketing toolkit. In fact, for many companies, starting a blog is simply a bad idea.

Here’s when not to start a company blog:

When you have nothing to say. It sounds silly, but think about this for a minute. Do you know what your blog is about? Can you give it a tagline that sums that up? Do you know who is going to write it? What is the point of view? How will your brand messages be communicated? Who would be interested in reading that and are they really your target market? What exactly will you be writing? Is there an editorial calendar? Ask questions first, blog later.

When you want to sell, sell, sell. Do your eyes (or those of your sales folks) light up at the opportunity to send a constant stream of sales messages into cyberspace via your blog? Being the gatekeeper doesn’t give you license to bombard your audience with sales messages for your products and services. In the right context, blogs can be great sales tools. But information is the key here. If the content you’re providing isn’t interesting, no one is going to read it. And I don’t know anyone who searches Google in hopes of finding daily sales messages.

When you know you’ll never maintain it. I’ve seen this happen a number of times: a company leader gets it into his or her head that a company blog is a fantastic idea. Not just a company blog, but one he or she will write personally. All goes well for a few weeks. But no one’s commenting. The blogger loses interest. If this sounds like you, stop. If it’s your boss, head them off at the pass. Before launching any blog in the name of your brand, be sure you have a firm commitment and schedule for posting on a regular basis, or hire someone to do that. Understand that it might take time to build readership and commit to the process.

When you need to control the conversation. You know who you are. If your business operates rigidly from the top down and every single line of copy you write must be run through legal counsel at least twice, then blogging is not for you. Blogging is all about interaction. You can’t necessarily control where your content goes after you post it, or whether people will comment on that content elsewhere in a way that you’d rather they didn’t. So if a need for control is deeply ingrained in the business culture, save yourself a lot of time and headache. Pick something else.

Don’t get me wrong. Done right, a blog can be an effective marketing tool. But as with anything else in your marketing communications toolkit, having a solid game plan makes all the difference.

Sally Anne Giedrys is the founder of artisan communications, an independent copywriting and communications consultancy that works with businesses and nonprofit organizations to craft compelling marketing and PR messages. For more than 15 years, Sally has been making businesses “sound good” in print and online through a potent combination of great writing, savvy strategy and high integrity communications. Learn more about artisan’s services at www.artisancopy.com. Or reach Sally directly at sally@artisancopy.com.

Although I exclaimed in a earlier post that you don’t need a blog, a recent study by BuzzLogic shows that blogs have a more powerful influence in customers’ purchase decisions then social media networks. The report states that with the exploding growth of blog readers, blogs are playing an ever increasing role in leading customers to the point of purchase.

Another interesting point in the study is that blog readers are using blog links to find new information and content as opposed to traditional search engines. According to the study, 38 percent of the blog readers surveyed said that blog links are their primary method for finding new blog content as compared to 34 percent using search engines. At the same time, most blog readers said that they rarely use blog search engines such as Technorati.

It’s all about trust

When a reader clicks a blog link or is influenced to make a purchase (or not) based on a blog, it is because they have established a certain level of trust with the blogger. The blogger has created a relationship with the reader on some level and the reader is responding to that relationship. The personal style of most blogs create the ever important conversation and the blog style, combined with compelling content can form the basis of an online community.

A blog in and of itself also carries a certain level of authority. The fact that the blogger has taken the time to establish the blog, post on a regular basis and manage all of the aspects that go into a blog in and of itself creates a level of authority. Blogs are a very effective means of establishing oneself as an expert in a particular niche.

Who Controls the Conversation?

The biggest difference between the blog and the social networking site is who controls the conversation. A blogger sets the topic, creates the discussion and the discussion revolves around the post of the moment. On a social networking site or forum, the community creates the discussion.

When using forums for marketing, it is possible to provide a much more customized response to your potential clients needs. The potential client has a question, you provide a valuable answer. No Google, no search engines, a quick and easy process.

Likewise, a well developed question draws potential clients into the conversation and builds relationships with those clients.

So, do you need a blog?

So, the question becomes, do you need a blog?. It depends. It comes down to your objectives. Yes, positive recommendation on a premier blog can have a huge impact. At the same time, a negative post on a premier blog can also be devestating.

Keep in mind however that blogging is not for everyone. To put it simply, it takes a fair amount of work. At the same time, it can be a very valuable tool to bring in customers.

The most important thing to take from the BuzzLogic study is the power of the third-party recommendation.