Bright Ideas Blogzine - May 2010
Publisher: Laura Christianson
http://www.bloggingbistro.com
mailto:laura@bloggingbistro.com

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    IN THIS ISSUE
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1.  FEATURE:
    My blog was my ticket to stardom... yours can be, too

2.  YOUR ASSIGNMENT:
    Re-purpose your favorite blog post

3.  Sales Pitch - One-to-one blog coaching

4.  Makeover Mondays - New Feature on my blog!

5.  Submit a Guest Column to Blogging Bistro

6.  Upcoming Speaking Engagements

7.  At the Barista's blog...

8.  My Hangouts

9.  Share Bright Ideas

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1.  FEATURE:
    My blog was my ticket to stardom... yours can be, too
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Writing guest articles for others' blogs is a great way to get
incoming links to your Website or blog.

I decided to take link-building one step further. My goal: land a
column-writing gig for my local business journal.

Small businesses are my ideal target audience, and there are close
to 16,000 of them in my county alone. I suspected that a monthly
column would not only result in new incoming links, but would also
result in new clients.

Step 1: Re-visit blog archives

As a long-time reader of the Snohomish County Business Journal
(Washington state), I knew the monthly magazine didn't have a
social media columnist on board.  So I went through my blog's
archives and listed several dozen topics I'd written about that I
could re-package into a "relationship marketing" column.

Step 2: Prepare the pitch

Next, I created a "story ideas" document that briefly introduced
the topics I thought would most appeal to their audience. I
included a one page bio (which displayed a thumbnail version of my
business portrait) and saved the file as a PDF.

Finally, I crafted a four-sentence query letter to the editor and
e-mailed him the whole ball of wax.

Less than a week later, the editor offered me the job.

Step 3: Become "famous"

Four months into my stint as a columnist, I received an e-mail from
the SCBJ editor, John Wolcott, informing me he'd be retiring at the
end of April, but that he planned to write the cover story for the
May issue.
 
He wrote: "I've chosen my cover story: you."

After reviewing that sentence several times to make sure I wasn't
hallucinating, I continued reading:

"I've been curious about the long-term "life" of this social
media chapter of our high-tech world history and would like to
explore that with you. It looks like it will hang on much longer
than an 'overnight phenomenon," as so many tech things become,
because it's actually helping people growing their businesses,
which makes it a prime story for the journal's audience."

John interviewed me at his office, snapped a couple of pictures of
me sitting in front of his computer, and voilà, I became a cover
girl.

It's not Glamour or Vogue, but it is a magazine cover!
 
Here's a link to the cover story: "Think blogging, Facebook,
LinkedIn, online socializing can't help your business? Think again!"
http://tinyurl.com/2674lwo

Surprising things can happen when you blog

While it's unlikely your blog will bring you instant fame, it can
serve as an effective reputation-building tool.
 
Try this exercise:

Browse your blog's archives.

Make a list of your "wow" blog posts - ones that generate lots of
comments, follow-up questions, or sharing.

Also list your top 5-10 informational posts - ones that detail how
to do something, how to overcome an obstacle, or how to improve
your life.

How can you re-purpose those posts?

Rather than letting those great posts lounge around in your blog's
archives, brainstorm ways you can put them back to work.
 
Here are some possibilities:

Create a themed e-book. Give away a downloadable blook (blog book)
to everyone who signs up for your mailing list or e-newsletter. If
you have a brick-and-mortar store, print your blook professionally
and give it to customers as a thank-you gift.

Upload your content to Slideshare ( http://www.slideshare.net/),
add audio, and create a Webinar.

Break your best posts into bite-sized chunks and share them on
Facebook or Twitter. See my Social Media Tip of the Day on my
Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/bloggingbistro) as one
example of how to do this.

Give your posts a makeover and "sell" them to a new audience. I
freshened up a post I'd written about "What's In It For Me" content
and sold it to a trade magazine for hot tub retailers.
 
I incorporated the same material into a workshop on how to write
social media content (I'll be teaching that workshop this Saturday,
in fact, at the Northwest Christian Writers Conference 
http://www.nwchristianwriters.org/events.html).  
 
Who knows... maybe I'll create an Internet radio broadcast next and
call my station "WII-FM."

Think waaaay outside the box. Visit your local library's magazine
section. How can you re-work your blog post for a knitting
magazine? A collegiate sports magazine? A bridal magazine? A
children's magazine?

While you're at the library, investigate local/regional community
groups, trade shows, and volunteer organizations. How can you adapt
your topic into a presentation or service for these groups? Perhaps
these groups have a publication or a radio/TV show and are seeking
fresh content - your article might be a perfect fit.
 
____________________________________________________________________
2.  YOUR ASSIGNMENT:
    Re-purpose your favorite blog post
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Choose ONE suggestion from the above list and run with it. Let me
know the results: laura@bloggingbistro.com. 

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3.  Sales Pitch
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Need personal coaching to help you strategize how to re-purpose
your blog posts? Visit BloggingBistro.com to learn more about our
services and fees.

http://www.bloggingbistro.com/contact/

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4.  Makeover Mondays - New Blog Feature!
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Is your blog in desperate need of a makeover? Submit it to our
Monday Makeover Challenge. Every Monday, we review a different
blog. It's free and it's fun. What do you have to lose? Click here
for details on how to submit your blog for review:
http://tinyurl.com/2f9tryd

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5.  Submit a Guest Column to Blogging Bistro
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Would you like to share what you're learning about blogging,
Twitter, or Facebook? Submit a guest column to Blogging Bistro.
Here are our guest post submission guidelines:
http://www.bloggingbistro.com/submit-a-guest-column-to-blogging-bistro/

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6.  Upcoming Speaking Engagements
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May 7-8
Northwest Christian Writers Renewal
Bothell, WA
Co-teaching 4 social media workshops with The Miller Brothers
http://www.nwchristianwriters.org/events.html
 
Wed, May 12
Snohomish, WA Business Networking Event
Facilitating discussion about social media
Details TBA
 
Saturday, May 15
Authors Review
Centennial Middle School, Snohomish, WA
One-on-one reviews of 7th and 8th grade student writing -- our
future authors!
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7.  At the Barista's blog...
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Insider secrets for the perfect business portrait
http://tinyurl.com/2dxafk4

How to write a roundup post (and a sample roundup with some great
links)
http://www.bloggingbistro.com/how-to-write-a-roundup-blog-post/

Over 1 million books published in 2009 - statistical breakdown of
the top genres
http://tinyurl.com/2b2o5xk

Adding Curb Appeal to your blog - BEFORE and AFTER screenshots of
two blogs
Weekly Life Clip - 
http://tinyurl.com/2dyysh2

The Spiritual Mom - 
http://tinyurl.com/287zmat

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8.  My Hangouts
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Twitter:
http://twitter.com/BloggingBistro

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/bloggingbistro

LinkedIn
http://www.linkedin.com/in/laurachristianson

Friendfeed: 
http://friendfeed.com/bloggingbistro

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9.  Share Bright Ideas
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I invite you to reprint any of the articles from this blogzine in
your own e-zine or on your Web site/blog, as long as you include
the following blurb and a link to BloggingBistro.com:
 
    Laura Christianson founded BloggingBistro.com, a company that
    serves made-to-order social media solutions for individuals and
    businesses.
 
Please forward Bright Ideas Blogzine to others who want to maximize
their social media marketing.
 
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