What are you gaining from social networking?

For some, social networking is a way of life. They use it to promote themselves and keep the channels of conversation and relationship open, posting many times a day on many different networks. Some are even building their own.

For others, though, social networking is just a time waster and offers no real benefit to their business or blogging. Some have even gone as far to say that having a large network is all about ego.

So what do I think?

I think social networking is a tool – just as a blog or a website is a tool. The tool on its own is neither good nor bad. It’s how the tool is used that decides its value in your business or personal life.

You know the old saying about a knife. A knife can be used to cut the bread to feed people. Yet that same knife can be used to kill people. But is the knife bad or good? No, it’s just a knife. It’s just a tool.

Personally, I don’t think social media is a waste of time. And I’m certainly not doing it to boost my ego. I’m interested in conversation and relationships. So outside of my blog is there a better place to spend my time building relationships?

Social networking is just a tool. How are you using this tool?

Feel free to add me to your social network and I’ll reciprocate:
Facebook • StumbleUpon • Netscape • MyBlogLog • LinkedIn • Pownce • Twitter • BUMPzee

Want to know how to overcome your fear of writing, writer’s block or the obsession with getting the right words?

Well, Andrea, over a Baby Steps…To Getting Started Online Today, has a great post that might just be the best copywriting tip I’ve seen.

She says, “You allow your subconscious to do the work for you.”

Pretty simple, huh? But what does it mean?

Well, for me, it means getting out of the way of making your words perfect. When I’m writing a blog post, I’m not writing for a Pulitzer or to recreate the English language with flowing prose.

Rather, I’m looking to express my thoughts, ideas, opinions and knowledge just as I am…just as if we were having a conversation. That’s the way I approach writing – as a conversation…a conversation with you.

So, forget all the rules you learned in school (though spelling, punctuation and simple grammar are quite helpful). Forget that your 7th grade English teacher told you math was your subject not writing (yep, happened to me). And just write. Write how you speak. In other words, have a conversation with your readers.

And when you feel like you’re writing in a conversational style with your readers, then check out these resources to help you go to the ‘next level:”

• Brian Clark’s Copywriting 101
• Brian Clark’s Magnetic Headlines Series
• Okay, basically any post on Copyblogger
• Darren Rowse’s How to Be a More Creative Blogger – Methods of Creativity, How to Write Home Run Posts
• Lorelle VanFossen’s posts on ProBlogger Blogging Tips: Writing Purposeful Content, Telling Your Story With Words and Images and Blogging Is About Writing
• Leo Babauta’s The 4 Pillars of Writing Exceptional Blogs
• John Wesley’s How to Write Something Worth Reading
• Daniel Scocco’s How to Use Punctuation Correctly
• Aaron Wall’s Less Writing, Higher Quality

Really, there’s tons of great posts on copywriting in the blogosphere. These are only a few.

What are you favorite posts? When sitting down to write, what’s really worked for you? And what do you think of the ‘best copywriting tip ever?’ Is it?

So what’s the secret to blogging success?

Yesterday Muhammad at Pronet Advertising wrote the 4 steps to success. His 4 steps are clear, good advice and probably similar to what you’ve seen before:

• Step 1: Good Content
• Step 2: Unique, Hosted Domain
• Step 3: Be Social
• Step 4: Invest Time, Be Patient

The interesting thing that was said, however, came in the comment box when someone asked Muhammad, “I know that good content is the key but where I find GOOD content? Is there anything that you can recommend?”

Ralph had a good answer that, “Good content is not for sale…. supplementary content is for sale….”

This got me thinking. So, of course, I joined the conversation with:

“Good content – especially compelling, interesting content – comes from inside you. Find what you love, what you’re passionate about, and write on that topic – even if it’s different than what you’re focused on now.”

What do you think? Can we buy good content? Or is it something that’s created by each blogger themselves?

Let’s talk about it in the comment box.

In our latest one2one conversation, Liz asked me:

How important is strategy to your business? How does your strategy get built?

Great question, huh? I can’t wait to see how I answer it.

Often, I’ve heard Liz quote Steve Farber as saying, “Serve the people who love you with the services you love.” Well, that’s what I’ve been doing for more than a decade.

Loving what I do is literally the cornerstone that I’ve built my business upon. I can’t do it any other way. I have to love what I do first. Otherwise, I won’t be very effective in what I do.

What do I mean by love? Well, when I get out of bed in the morning, I’m excited to race down to my in-home office and get to work. It’s like being a kid every day all over again.

Sure there’s days that I’m not excited; days when owning my own business is a grind. What’s important is that the majority of the time, I’m excited to sit down behind my desk, flip on my computer and begin working for my clients. So I do what I do because I love what I do.

The second step is to strive to be the best in the world at what I do – which is help people utilize the web to grow their business. When I say best in the world, I’m not talking about being the best on earth – not even close. Rather, I want to be the best in your world.

In other words I want to do such an amazing job for you that you “fall in love with me“. Not in the literal sense. But that you fall in love with our work together and where it takes you and your business. And that’s what I strive for.

As a strategy, I think both love for your work and the talent to be the best in the world are equally necessary as a business foundation.

For instance, I’m a pretty good plumber, but I don’t love doing it. Likewise, I love basketball, but no one’s lining up to sign me to an NBA contract. Neither, then, are viable businesses for me. One I don’t love and the other I’m not good enough at.

It’s important to know that about yourself. What do you love and what are you really good at? For me, these questions are more than foundational – they’re also strategic:

By loving what I do I’ll work to do my best work for my clients, which will lead to their falling in love with me which, in turn, will lead to them talking about me to their friends and colleagues which will generate more business. And the cycle repeats in ever growing concentric circles.

That’s why blogging, social media, word-of-mouth marketing and relationship business work so well for me. I’ve been doing it for years inside and outside the internet. Perhaps I can help you, too.

What’s your strategy for growing your business? How are you using your blog to execute your strategy?

Now, my question to Liz – and to you, too:

What steps do you feel are important to take in order to move from strategy (plan) into execution (action)?

By the way, you have read Liz’s answer to my last question: what do you feel is an effective strategy to promote a business? Her answer is great.

Liz Strauss asked me, Dawud, “When I go to your blog I get the feeling there’s a back room behind your blog where you work. What work do you do there?”

And so kicked off our one2one conversation.

So what am I doing behind my blog?

When I’m not rubbing the swollen feet of my pregnant wife, chasing around my two young kids, or working on our kitchen remodel, I can usually be found parked behind my Mac Pro plugging away at work.

The work…of course, I design websites – for about a decade now. But more often I coach my clients to use their websites to grow their businesses. So you could say I’m a web designer – plus.

What I do is bring together knowledge of the internet, web coding, design and usability with the skills of a business coach, marketing strategist and just, plain overall problem solver. Basically, if you’d like to solve your business problems through the internet or take the next leap in your already successful business, I’m your guy.

The past year or so, I’ve been spending more and more time coaching and consulting with people on how to use social media (blogging, social networking, social bookmarking, etc) to expand their reach, grow the conversation and build a community around their business.

Liz, as you already know, I’m all about helping people. That’s truly what makes my heart sing. Thus, the way I see my business is that I help people uncover, develop and grow their dreams. Everyday that’s what I do with every client – step-by-step.

The truth is – I really love people. And I get such joy out of seeing people who are struggling begin to touch peace, happiness, beauty and love. Yes, I’m a sap too. But it’s literally what moves my being. For a while I helped people through alternative healing. Now, I guide my clients to similar outcomes through their business.

I could go on and on because I really love what I do. But I won’t. Why? Because I’d like to leave some space to hear from you…what do you do in the back room behind your blog?

And since this is a one2one conversation…to Liz (and you too…):

What’s one, core thing that makes your heart sing? Could be anything. But something that really blows your heart wide open.

If you’re reading this, I’d love to hear your answer too.

How do you bridge two blogs in conversation?

That’s the question Liz Strauss and I kicked around together a couple of weeks ago. And what was birthed is what we’re calling a one-2-one conversation. One conversation across two blogs, in two directions between two people.

Here’s how it works…

Liz posts a question to me that I answer on my blog which I, in turn, end with a question for her which she answers on her blog. Simple enough, huh?

But there’s a twist…you know Liz and I love the conversation we have with you. So we’re not leaving you out. You and I get to talk about my answers and my questions here on my blog while she’s working on hers. AND we get to talk about her answers and her questions on hers as well. Pretty sweet, huh?

So let’s get started on Liz’s question for me:

When I go to your blog I get the feeling there’s a back room behind your blog where you work. What work do you do there?

I’m going to answer this question in my very next post – which is already up right here.

Now, let’s talk. I’d love to hear your answers on this post, the post with my answer, or back at Liz’s blog. Either way, join the conversation.

Are you blogging to build relationships? I sure am. And so are many other bloggers.

Sure, if we’re blogging, we probably like to write. We also probably enjoy playing on the internet to some degree. And for many of us, we’ve got businesses to promote. Yet the reason many of us blog is to create conversations. And those conversations lead to relationships with people from all over the world.

Just imagine how disappointing it’d be to have your posts generate conversations that lead bloggers to contact you only to have you drop the ball by not responding. This is like inviting someone to a lunch where you spend the whole time talking to someone else on your cell phone. Not the way to build a relationship.

Bloggers want to reach out. They want to get a viceral feeling for who you are. Doing so takes a little courage on their part. And not following through sends the message that you just don’t care.

So, here are five quick-and-easy ways to be sure you don’t make the biggest mistake in your blogging relationships:

1. Reply Immediately by Email
   Sending a two sentence email right away that thanks them for contact you is can send more of a positive message than a well crafted longer message two days later. The immediate response makes the other person feel like they’re important to you.
2. Send an Instant Message
   If they publish their IM Screen Name, use it to contact them as soon as you can. Sometimes this can lead to a brief virtual conversation that can be picked up later.
3. Set an Appointment
   Even if you’re busy, take a few moments and respond to their message by inviting a time to talk later. Scheduling an appointment time for a brief (or lenghthy) conversation can be an effective way to meet them without stopping your current work flow.
4. Call Them Out of the Blue
   If you have the time, respond with a phone call instead of an email. This can create quite the impression. I once had a well-known blogger send me an email saying that she was going to phone me at ’1 pm today.’ She did and we had a great talk.
5. Be Honest About How Busy You Are
   If you’re really busy and can’t get a bit of time away, let them know. People understand. A polite message letting them know that you’d love to meet them soon, but you’re currently under a deadline crunch can easily get the point across without seeming like a blow-off.

If you’re blogging to build relationships be sure to respond to people who contact you. Not doing so will send the wrong message.

Have you made the biggest mistake in your blogging relationships? How have you made up for it? What do you do to not make the biggest mistake?

There are, of course, plenty of other mistakes you can make with your blog. Here’s a few other posts where people have offered up the wisdom of their own experiences…

• The Top Ten Blogging Mistakes I Made In My First Year – eMomsatHome
• Missed Opportunities Are Worse Then Making Mistakes – ProBlogger
  
• 10 Blog Mistakes / Why Your Blog Struggles – Seach-This
  
• 3 Blog Mistakes You Can Avoid – Lee Odden
• 10 Mistakes That Will Kill A Forum…or A Blog – ProBlogger
• 10 Common Blog Writing Mistakes and How To Fix Them – Rich Minx
• Top 5 Mistakes Made When Naming Your Website Or Company – Chitika’s Blog
• 10 Blogging Mistakes I’ve Made – Webomatica
• Top 10 SEO Mistakes – PhoenixRealm
• Twenty Usability Tips For Your Blog – Condensed From Dozens of Bloggers’ Experiences – I’d Rather Be Writing

Some of the best advice I’ve ever heard has come in unassuming moments in casual conversation. Moments when I was relaxed and just open to something new.

I can recall many moments like that with my grandfather. My grandfather loved birds. He used to sit for hours watching finches fly in and out of the five story bird house he built. The bird house was on the end of a pole about 30 feet above the ground. We’d lay back in lawn chairs and just watch the birds.

Every fall I’d help my grandfather take down the bird house for cleaning, repair and storage. It was huge and so high up that he’d developed a rather elaborate pulley system to bring it down.
[ continue reading & share your thoughts → ]

Many bloggers, like Preston, have asked this question of whether they should fake comments on their blogs to begin the conversation. Darren Rowse had some great advice. As did Jason Kaneshiro from Webomatica and Dee of Blogozine.

They each had some great suggestions of writing more conversationally and more often, asking direct questions of your readers, and having realistic expectations. Also, consider creating a comment policy, and removing no-follow. All these are really great suggestions.

But I was thinking…what do we want from our blogs? If we want comments we probably want conversation. And if we want conversation, we likely want to create relationships. And through relationships, there’s even the chance we could create community.

So if we want conversation, relationship and, eventually, community through our blogs, why not just jump right in?

How? Find other new or newish bloggers whose content you enjoy. Sure, leave some comments on their blogs. You know they’ll come a visit. If they jive with your content, they’ll likely leave a comment or two also. If so, email them and start a dialogue.

That parts all pretty straight-forward, huh? You’ve probably heard that before.

But let’s go one step further…create an agreement where you comment on each other’s posts. That way the conversation can get started on both your blogs. And there’s no need to fake comments.

The beautiful thing is that your agreement has the potential of developing into a relationship that could help you both grow your blogs – and perhaps your business. And if nothing else, you’ll make more friends in the blogosphere.

So, have you tried this? If so, what have been the results?

You probably want more comments on your blog, right? I know I do. I guess I’m just greedy. Or maybe I love having these conversations so much with you that I want to see them ever growing.

So what do I do when the comment box goes dormant? Is there anything I can do to kick off the conversation?

Questions like these were asked yesterday at Problogger by a new blogger named Preston. Preston blogs on street magic and after 40 or so posts, he hasn’t gotten very many comments. His question to Darren, “Should I add fake comments to my blog?”

First, thanks Preston for your honesty in asking the question. You could have just faked a bunch of comments and been none the wiser.

Darren’s answer, of course, was don’t use fake comments to get the conversation started. And Darren’s speaking from experience having saying, “…on my first blog I did do a few fake comments in the very very early days. …however I can say from my experience of them that they didn’t work very well for me.”

Most of Darren’s commenters gave the same advice…don’t fake comments. Instead, Darren recommends using the time you’d fake comments to:

• write an extra post a week
• email another blogger in an attempt to get to know them
• email a friend or family member to ask their opinion of a post you’ve written
• leave a comment on someone else’s blog
• think of a question to ask your readers

For me, I thought about this once early on. But it didn’t seem right to me. It seemed like I’d be beginning my blog with a dark streak across it. And I never really considered if anyone would find out. It was more that I’d know about it.

So what’s your opinion…can fake comments start the conversation? Would you fake comments if you were certain noone would ever know?