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Purpose

I wanted a tool that I could use to:

• Brainstorm ideas
• Capture the good ones
• Develop ideas into posts
• Set a blogging schedule
• Explore potential projects

So, I created a blogging notebook.*

It had to meet my criteria: Small, sturdy, minimal in design and attractive - I’ll be more likely to use something I like. So, I got a large, ruled Moleskine notebook. It’s slick and sturdy with a built-in bookmark, interior pocket and elastic strap. Inside is a pamphlet which describes the thing as “…the legendary notebook of Hemingway and Van Gogh.” Jeeze, fancy.

I started to carry it around and found it bulky. Too obtrusive for a back pocket and too large for a front, I actually started wearing cargo pants just to carry the thing around.

Alter my wardrobe to accommodate my notebook? Sorry, but no.

Dissatisfied, I renewed my search for the perfect pocket-sized notebook and found it in the Filed Notes Brand notebook. This isn’t “…the legendary notebook of Hemingway and Van Gogh,” it’s a blue collar appliance thats ready for work. It’s thin, small, and attractive with 48 pages of graph paper, a ruler and a listing of obscure details like this tidbit which explains the internal pages:

“480,000 pages on Boise Offset Smooth 50#T ‘White,’ with a fine, soy-based 1-color application of ‘Double Knee Duck Canvas’ light brown ink.”

Here’s the best part - I’ve got three Field Notes notebooks to give away! Details follow this post.

In Practice - Capturing ideas and brainstorms

First, I numbered the pages, but only the odd ones, since it’s the odd pages I see as I flip through. On the back of the inside flap I started a table of contents.

Starting at page 1, the odd-numbered pages are used for capturing ideas. Each entry follows this format:

First, the initials of the intended blog. Next, the appropriate category. Below that is a brief description of the idea.

Once I begin to work up an outline for an idea, I note the page number. Finally, a horizontal line separates entries.

Note that legible handwriting is optional.

Brainstorm sessions are recorded on the even-numbered pages, starting at page 2. Each is preceded with the date, and followed with a bracket to designate the end. If a worthwhile idea results, it’s recorded as a new entry on an odd-numbered page.

Prepping posts for publication

Starting in the back of the book and working towards page 2, the even-numbered pages are used for outlining posts. I don’t compose the post itself in the notebook - I just create a bulleted outline of everything I want to discuss. Outlines may fill as many pages as necessary, and a bracket designates its end. Also, I write the original publishing date at the end of each outline.

Static information - like my blogging schedule - is stored on the odd-numbered pages moving toward the front, and listed in the table of contents.

Blogging schedule

Previously, I posted ideas as they occurred to me, which caused two main problems:

1. My blog felt “scattered.” A post about GTD would follow a funny video, which followed a Twitter link and then a software review.
2. I’d exhaust all of my ideas in just a couple of days. After writing five great posts by Tuesday, I was out of ideas by Wednesday.

To combat this, I created the following schedule:

• Monday - Productivity
• Tuesday - Technology
• Wednesday - Living Simply
• Thursday - Reader links
• Friday - Fun & Recreation
• Saturday: Weekly reader (links)
• Sunday: Best of the week

Now, I’m focused on one feature-length post per day. Plus, my readers know when I’ll address their interests. Of course, this means no more videos of Britney assaulting SUV’s with an umbrella, but that’s the price we pay.

Making it work

This is all well and good, but it’s nothing if the book is unused. Here are a few tips for getting the most from your blogging notebook.

1. Love it. I chose the Filed Notes notebook because, frankly, I think they’re really cool. They look great, feel great, are durable and ready to go. Buy something you love and you’ll be motivated to use it.
2. Invest in a great pen. Even if you’re not a “pen person,” spend a few minutes at an office supply store or a craft store and find a pen you really like. Again, if its fun to write, you’ll want to.
3. Carry it with you. Make a habit of taking your book where ever you go. Toss it in your bag and consider it “essential equipment.” That way, you’ll have it when inspiration strikes.

If you haven’t created a blogging notebook, I recommend it. It’s so nice to have everything in one place: Your ideas, brainstorms, post outlines, schedule, project list…whatever you’d like to add. If it’s Saturday night and I need a productivity post for Monday, I can pick from the ideas I previously categorized as “productivity.”

Best of all, the book’s portability allows me to use it anywhere. Stuck in the doctor’s office? Browse the notebook. Got a long train ride? Draft next week’s post. Can’t sleep? Brainstorm those nagging ideas out of your head! You’ll be glad you did.

Now for the best part. I’ve got three Field Notes notebooks to give away. To register to win one, simply leave a comment (with an email address) on this post. I’ll pick three winners on Monday, June 9th and announce them here. Good luck!

*I know what you’re thinking - blogging on paper? Dave’s cheese has slipped off his cracker. Yes, there’s a lot of software that can accomplish the same things. However, I believe that there’s nothing more useful, powerful or full of potential than a piece of paper and a pen.

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Twitter has held the attention of the web like I haven’t seen a product do in a long time. While the premise is simple — briefly answer the question, “What are you doing?” — the benefits are as individual as its users. Some share little details of their day. Others promote projects they’re working on, while others connect with far-flung friends, seek help to puzzling questions or simply “eavesdrop” on the informal thoughts of bloggers or business owners they admire.

You may use Twitter for any or all of these purposes, or even something different entirely. Today, I’ll talk about using Twitter as a search engine, and its advantages over Google.

Woah, Dave. You’re insane. Google is a search engine, through and through. Twitter is, well … Twitter. It’s ridiculous to make such a comparison.

Google is the 300lb (or maybe even 3,000 lb) gorilla in the world of internet search. But, it’s not the definitive answer to finding things on the web. I’ll give you an example.

Recently, I was working on a WordPress project and couldn’t figure out how to pull off a certain trick. So, I opened a new browser window, navigated to google.com, entered the best keywords I could think of and executed the search.

Instantly, I was presented with thousands of results. The first four or five were helpful, but didn’t offer the answer I was looking for. Those results suggested others, and soon enough fifteen minutes passed and I wasn’t much closer to finishing my project. In fact, it had been sitting idle that whole time.

So, I posed the question to my Twitter followers; “How do I do this in WordPress?” Then it happened — I was offered exactly the answer I was looking for in less than sixty seconds. In that case, Twitter beat Google hands down. Here are what I’ve discovered to be the advantages of Twitter over Google.

1. It doesn’t interrupt my workflow

When I execute a search on Google — and weed through the results — I do so at the cost of productivity on my project. I must stop what I’m doing, open a new window and start digging. Often I find what I want in a minute or two. Sometimes I don’t. However, I’ve stopped progress on my project in both situations. Even time spent on brief searches adds up.

When I “execute a search” via Twitter, there’s almost no interruption in my workflow. The time it takes me to bring Twitterrific to the foreground, type my question (more on that later) and hit the return key is about ten seconds. After that, I can return to my project and continue working.

2. High quality results

Meanwhile, the “Twitter Elves” (my followers) read my query and those who have the answer reply. The “weeding through” that is such a time-consuming part of using Google takes care of itself. Not EVERYONE replies, nor do those who think they kind-of, maybe have an idea. No, only those who are absolutely confident in their answer click that reply button. I get the right answer (or darn close to it) only.

3. I can pose a question in real English

The old joke about using the Yellow Pages was, “First I’ve got to guess what they’ve decided to call this.” Will I find the number for a house painter under “Painter,” “House,” “Contractors,” “General Contractors” or what?

Setting up a Google search is the same sort of guessing game. The first step is to imagine what the right magical words will be that will produce the results you’re after. Often it takes several attempts.

Twitter eliminates this bit of sorcery. Instead of typing, “WordPress, pages, hidden, menu bar, side bar” and crossing my fingers, I simply ask, “Does anyone know an easy way to hide certain pages from a WordPress sidebar?” That’s plain old English, folks, and it elicited exactly the result I was after.

4. Results based on knowledge, not SEO skills

One’s ability to optimize a web page for search engines has nothing to do with his or her ability to put useful content on that page. Anyone can tag, keyword and otherwise tweak a page so that a search engine will notice it readily. The content on that page may be crap, but Google sees it!

Twitter-generated results come from the knowledge and experience of the hundreds of people who follow me. I can tap into their minds in real time, which is a benefit over the static pages that Google serves.

The folks at Mahalo kind of get this. Human beings generate their search result pages, but even then I’m viewing what the author of that page thought should appear. I can’t speak to him directly and get an answer as quickly as he can type.

Before you flame me, know that I understand the difference between Google and Twitter. Then try it. You’ll be surprised with what happens.

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“…Know why the top bloggers are the top bloggers? They took the time to learn about blogging. They researched the best ways to bring in traffic, to bring in revenue, and to cultivate a community. They didn’t just open up a Blogger account, throw on some Adsense and say, OK, I’m now a blogger.’”

It’s a great article. You can read the rest here.

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Finally, Ipsos News found that nearly one-third (30%) of executives read blogs and a small number (4%) contribute to blogs.

[Via Marketing Charts]

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Otherwise, you’re in the right place.

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Last week, I wrote a post entitled “Five ways to improve your blog right now,” which described simple things you can do in fifteen minutes to make your blog significantly better. It’s my post popular post to date, and elicited this comment from Zowoco:

“I think your advice here leads us back to the six million dollar question: ‘what exactly am I trying achieve through this blog?‘

And that is worth asking every day. Because your focus shifts, and the reason your blog exists now is most likely quite different to your reason a year ago.

What are you hoping to provide your reader? And what do you want them to do? I blog therefore I am.”

That’s an excellent question; one that every blogger must consider (and re-consider at regular intervals). In this post, I’ll describe exactly why — and how — you should define your blog’s purpose and goals.

Personal or professional?

Before we get into that, you’ve got to answer the most fundamental question: Is my blog personal or professional? Am I blogging for fun or for some other goal? The answer to this question, more than anything, will affect the content of your blog.

Here’s an example. I maintain a personal blog in addition to this one. That’s where I write about the funny thing my kids did, the TV shows I like and what I’m having for dinner. The “why” is, honestly, to entertain myself. If others find the content amusing, that’s fine. The tone is conversational and personal.

However, the purpose of the blog you’re reading now is completely different. The “why” of davecaolo.com is to share my knowledge and love of blogging and, ultimately, sign new clients. The tone is still conversational, but the content is strictly business.

In other words, business blogs are personable, but not personal.

My personal blog exists for self-serving purposes. The posts I put there are intended to amuse me and my close friends.

My business blog — the one you’re reading right now — is for the customer. It’s true that my ultimate goal is to generate clients for myself, but the blog posts are offering something (here’s a bit of my knowledge that you can use right now), not requesting something (will you be my client, pretty please?). If I have a clear picture of the ideal reader (or customer) I want to attract, crafting my content becomes much easier. Which leads me to the “how.”

Clearly define your ideal reader

Who is the person you want to read your blog? Are you after members of the American educational system, perhaps principals or superintendents? Perhaps small business owners or women in their 40’s are you aim. The more clearly you define the readers you want to attract, the more successfully you’ll attract those readers with appropriate content.

It’s a good idea to re-evaluate your blog’s purpose and goals at regular intervals, as they may change, necessitating a change in your writing style or content. If you maintain your blog with a razor-sharp focus on who you want to attract, the catch phrase from that famous movie will ring true:

“If you build (blog) it, they will come.”

f you liked this article and really want to get the most out of your business blog, hire me as your one-on-one blog coach. There are several packages to choose from. I look forward to working with you!

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It’s Saturday! Take a break from posting and complete a hands-on project that will improve your blog. This week’s project is pimp your RSS feed.

RSS stands for “really simple syndication” (or “real simple syndication,” depending on who you ask). Think of it like your newspaper subscription. Every day, the paper boy brings the newspaper, with all of its articles, to your door. You needn’t request the paper, it shows up because you have a subscription.

Similarly, your blog’s RSS feed (the paper boy) delivers your posts (the newspaper articles) to the readers who have subscribed to your feed.

When I was a paper boy, I loved Tuesdays because the papers were thin and light. However, Sundays were a different story, as the papers were crammed with all sorts of extras. More work for me, sure, but added value to the readers who enjoyed the coupons, flyers, weekend magazines, etc.

A plain vanilla RSS feed is fine, but with a minimum of effort you can add value that your readers will appreciate and encourage them to click through to your site. Best of all , the “paper boy” doesn’t care how “heavy” your feed is, he won’t toss it onto the roof and the rain won’t render it useless pulp.

Put on your tool belt, get out the slide rule and roll up your sleeves. It’s time to pimp your feed.

Feedburner

Feedburner is a free and effective way to maximize your RSS feed. Let’s get signed up.

Visit http://feedburner.com and type your blog’s address into the field on the front page and click “Next.”

Give your feed a name, note the address and click “Activate feed.”

On the next screen, click “Clickthroughs.” This will keep track of the number of people who click a link in your feed to visit your blog. You’re all set! Wasn’t that easy?

Now, let’s integrate your new Feedburner-powered feed and your blog.

Tell the world

There are several ways to integrate your Feedburner feed and your blog, depending on which blogging platform you use. If you’re using Blogger, Typepad, MySpace, or WordPress.com, the process is very simple. You’ll find the instructions for each listed after you complete the steps above.

For this project, I’m going to focus on a self-hosted WordPress blog. We’ll use the FeedSmith plugin, which redirects subscribers to your FeedBurner feed automatically.

First, get the plugin here. Upzip it, and upload it to your WordPress plugin directory. Next, login to your WordPress control panel, and navigate to Plugins. Find the FeedSmith plugin and select “Activate.” Done!

You’re doing extremely well. Go and get a soda. Stand up and walk around a bit. I’ll wait.

Are you back? Great, let’s continue.

Give your feed some flare

Feedburner’s FeedFlare makes it easy for your readers to share your content with others. Features you typically see on a blog, like links to social services like Digg, StumbleUpon and Newsvine, can appear right in your feed. Adding each is very simple.

First, click the “Optimize” tab, then click “FeedFlare.” You’ll see a list of available options. Just select the ones you want to appear in your feed, click “Activate” and you’re done! You can even re-arrange the listing of these items to your liking.

Email subscriptions

We’ll conclude this weekend’s project by giving your readers an option to sign up for email notifications of updates to your blog.

While logged into Feedburner, click the “Publicize” tab, then click “Email Subscriptions.” The good news here is that you can keep the default settings as they are!

Once you click “Activate,” you’ll get a bit of HTML code that you can paste where ever you’d like the subscription box to appear on your blog.

Of course, there’s much more exploration you can do on Feedburner, but we covered enough for this project. However, I will leave you with three aditional ways to make your RSS feed even better.

1. Give blog posts clear, concise headlines. It’s fun to give your posts witty titles, but much more beneficial to write a headline that clearly identifies what your post is about. Many readers only scan the titles of posts in their feed readers, and “Deer, meet headlights” will get less attention than “How to excel at public speaking.” The former is an unknown quantity, the latter is clearly useful.
2. Make subscribing easy. Not only do you want a conspicuous feed icon on your blog, but a “Subscribe” link should follow each post on your blog and in your feed itself (you can add this via FeedFlare).
3. Show off your collection of subscribers. Everyone wants to be “in the club.” Feedburner will let you add a tiny graphic to your site which lists the number of subscribers you’ve got. If you’re not afraid of a little code, you can install the Feed Count plugin for WordPress and tweak the CSS to your liking.

If you liked this article and really want to get the most out of your business blog, hire me as your one-on-one blog coach. There are several packages to choose from. I look forward to working with you!

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Bloggers love comments. I know I sure do. A steady stream of comments suggests that your words are being read and, more importantly, affecting your readers.

Unfortunately, not every post will generate the reaction you’d like. In fact, it has been demonstrated that 90% of people who use online communities do so without contributing, 9% of users contribute a little, and 1% of users account for almost all the action.

That means that only 1% of your readers are consistently leaving comments. Let’s coax those lurkers out of the woodwork. Here are five simple ways you can increase the number of comments your blog receives.

1. Ask for comments!

This one may seem silly or too obvious, but it works if done correctly. First, I’ll explain the wrong way.

“Today is ‘Official De-lurker Day!’ If you read my blog but never speak up, here’s your chance! Leave a comment now!”

I’ve seen many bloggers do this and it makes me cringe. First, is reeks of desperation, and makes the blogger sound needy.

Also, many people resent being told what to do. Saying, “Leave a comment now!” or something similar will almost certainly have the opposite effect. Instead of berating your readers into commenting, start a conversation.

A good open-ended question is just as effective online as it is in person. Finish a thoughtful post with, “What do you think?”, “What’s your opinion?” or “Have you had any experience with this?” Most people love to talk about themselves and their opinions. And once they do ….

2. Participate in the conversation

Remember those 1% of your readers who leave most of the comments on your blog? Those people are your fans. Yes, fans. They visit daily to read your latest posts and share their thoughts.

I still remember the first time I received a response from a blogger I truly admired. I was so excited! Responding to reader comments demonstrates that you are interested in what your readers (or customers) have to say, and recognizing you most vocal readers will give them a thrill, especially if you ….

3. Send personal emails

This is especially useful for first-time commenters. It needn’t be anything fancy, but a simple, “Thanks for leaving your thoughts on my blog today. I always enjoy hearing from new readers….” fosters a sense of community, sets you up as approachable and reinforces the act of commenting.

Just be sure not to spam the recipient of your email with a pitch about your latest and greatest post; that’s off-putting. This is a kind of virtual thank-you card.

4. Reward comments

There are many ways to do this, but my favorite is the “best of comments” post. One a week, write a post that highlights four or five comments that caught your attention of the preceding seven days. Perhaps someone said something particularly insightful for funny; sparked a debate among your readers or really nailed a point you were trying to make.

List each comment, identifying the commenter by name, as well as a brief reasoning for your selections. If s/he has a website, link it in your post. Again, this will reward people who leave comments and inspire others to “make it” to your list.

Save this post for a Saturday or Sunday when you might not have much else to write about.

5. Write from your heart

People can smell “link bait,” or a post designed to simply elicit comments, a mile away. Your readers (or customers) want to know there’s a human being on the other side of that computer screen, not a marketing device.

If you want interaction from human beings, act like a human. Write about your passion passionately. Share your weaknesses and victories. If you write about your beliefs honestly, others who feel the same way (and those whose feelings are the polar opposite!) will find you and let you know.

My challenge to you

Here’s my challenge to you. Put these tips into practice for seven days, then come back here and tell me if it didn’t work. I’m certain you’ll see an increase in the number of comments you receive. I look forward to your reports.

Blogging isn’t difficult or or dependent on a secret “formula.” It’s simple. You can do it. Write with passion, engage your readers, express gratitude to those who follow you and start real conversations. Your readers will reward you for it. I promise.

If you liked this article and really want to get the most out of your business blog, hire me as your one-on-one blog coach. There are several packages to choose from. I look forward to working with you!

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Just then, someone walks in and issues a request. Then the phone rings, and you’ve been summoned to another office (or building).

As you walk to your impromptu appointment, you’re asked to remember a dozen additional requests. It’s easy to feel like you’ll never make any progress on The Big Project.

However, it’s possible to capture these requests, reassure the people who need you and focus on what you’re doing. Here are three things I do to manage these interruptions without getting derailed from the task at hand.

1. Capture and continue.

I keep a stack of white, 3×5 index cards in a drawer and a manila envelope on my desk. When someone enters my office or calls to make a request, I put any papers related to what I’m doing into the envelope and push it aside. Next, I grab an index card and write down the new request, as well as the date and time.

The card then goes into my plastic inbox, the papers are taken out of the envelope and I resume what I was doing. That way, I’ve captured the request, so I needn’t burden my mind with the task of remembering it, and I can pick up where I left off. When I process my inbox at the end of the day, I’ll see the request and act on it.

2. The “But I need it now” guy.

You know this guy. His request is so urgent that you must drop what you’re doing attend to it. He’s usually trying to do something very important, like buy a fish tank off of Craigslist. You could succumb to his whining and fix the issue — resentfully — or try this.

I say, “I understand that this is important, and I want to get it right. I’m busy right now, so why don’t we schedule 10 minutes later in the day when we can talk about it?” It works like a charm; I get to continue what I was doing, and Captain Patience is assured that I’ll give his concern my full attention.

3. Close your door and keep it closed.

This one might seem harsh, but it’s certainly the most effective.

Recently, I was working on a big project in Filemaker Pro. I had to create lots of complicated scripts from scratch, and that required maximum brain power. In short, I couldn’t afford to be derailed by anything short of an emergency. So, I took to closing my door.

This certainly sends a signal: Don’t bother me. It’s not anti-social behavior, but a request to your co-workers that says, “I need to work in solitude right now.” Most of them will respect your wishes.

Some will not, thinking, “Oh, he won’t mind if it’s me.” To this person I say, “Thanks for telling me about this, but I must concentrate on what I’m doing right now. Please leave a note in my box or send me and email, and I’ll take a look later in the day.”

Again, I get to continue my work, my co-worker is reassured and I’ve demonstrated that I “mean what I say.” When the door is closed, I’m unavailable.

I hope you found this useful. Now, go and be productive! And tell Captain Patience no, you will not drive him to pick up his fish tank.

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