Rejoining the Facebook Masses

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Recently, I re-activated my Facebook account. I didn’t think I would ever go back (see my post announcing my Facebook account deletion), but my new job has more than a small presence in the community, and as Community Manager, I need to integrate myself into any community using any service.

Facebook also did something right by implementing an instant messaging service as well as the eventual profile redesign which will hopefully trim down the number of applications on people’s main profile page, one of my biggest complaints.

With Twitter having many huge issues, Facebook is looking like the brighter, more active community to be a part of. I hate to say it, but I don’t think the Twitter killer will be another Twitter-like service, but instead something stable and more captivating.

If you want to check out my Facebook profile, please head on over and add me. Make sure though that you write a custom message letting me know who you are and where you came from, or I will decline.

How many people have come back to Facebook after deciding to leave? Who among you are thinking of leaving Facebook? Let me know in the comments below.

Originally posted on June 2, 2008 @ 6:05 am

Let Ideas Simmer

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Everyone seems to be in a race to publish a story or news report first, and while there is something to be said for being the first to get information online, it isn’t always the smartest way to blog.

I have seen big blogs like TechCrunch and others publish an article before getting confirmation in hopes of getting the news out first. Sometimes the information they have is wrong, or untrue, and in my opinion, if it were any other blog, that type of publishing would damage the brand.

Sometimes the best thing you can do for your blog is to let an idea, or post simmer in your mind for a while. This also lets you build up a real article, rather than a small punchy story.

I have watched as some of the bloggers I know take a story that has had its run online, take in all the facts, add their own thoughts and opinions and publish articles that become some of the best resources about the topic they were covering.

I think that more bloggers need to take the time to make helpful, amazing, and useful resources for their readers rather than trying to be the first to publish in hopes of getting lots of social media traffic.

One of the blogs I run gets ten times the traffic from search engines just because the writer takes the time to make each article a resource in her field. It is amazing what happens when time and energy are used to create an amazing post, rather than a sensational one.

Give your ideas and thoughts their due consideration before just slapping them on the web and you will be creating something that lasts.

Originally posted on May 28, 2008 @ 9:03 pm

Paid Blogging: Make Your Own Rules

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Today, I had a great conversation with a friend of mine who was frustrated with their job a little bit. See, they had decided they wanted to make good money from blogging, but they were letting the blog owners make all of the decisions on how much their time, effort, and writing was worth, and my advice was that this person take back control over their blogging.

Blogging is a skill, not a commodity, and bloggers are not soda machines where you can insert a dollar to get what you want. Great bloggers are creative and capture attention and the imagination of their readers and blog owners have to realize that they are paying for more than just a few words that they can slap advertising around or else they aren’t worth working for.

So many blog owners that I have dealt with expect blogs to blossom overnight, going from a simple blog with little to no content into an amazing resource that everyone links to and wants to comment on, but this isn’t how it really is, and as such, expectations aren’t met and issues begin.

What about the guy that can do ‘insert crazy number here’ posts per day, and always gets a dozen comments on each post? How can I compete?

It isn’t a competition, and most of those bloggers that can outpace an experienced blogger do so only until their burn themselves out. Sure, there are faster writers, or bloggers that are able to come up with a winning formula or two that they repeat time and time again, but what usually ends up happening is that they burn out, pretty much never to be heard from again, or they have to slow down and fight the hard battle of raising their rates in a very competitive world.

When I was a full time blogger, I didn’t set my rates high enough, and I did this at my own detriment. Yes, you have to understand that blog networks can only pay so much for every post, but you shouldn’t undervalue your time. The best bloggers are artists, editors, marketers, and more, and deserve to be compensated accordingly.

When it comes to setting your per post rate, make sure you make your own rules, or you will always find yourself being controlled by one individual or another, and isn’t part of the whole problogging idea to take your destiny in your own hands, and work for yourself?

Originally posted on June 4, 2008 @ 10:23 pm

WordPress Theme: Natural Power

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Today, I have a new, great theme for WordPress that was created for me to release by Color Light Studio, a great company that does great WordPress themes.

The team there also created Pro Profile, which I released a little while back now, and have outdone themselves with Natural Power.

This is not a sponsored theme, and doesn’t include any links, except back to here, which you are free to remove as I am releasing this theme under GPL.

Natural Power is a two column theme, widget ready, that comes with four different coloured header graphics that can easily be changed in the options panel included with the theme.

Also, the header text can easily be changed through the options page as well. You won’t find a crazy, unholy options page, but instead just two options relating to the colour and text for the header. Simple is always better in my opinion.

If you would like to see what Natural Power looks like, please check out the test theme install I have set up, and if you enjoy it, please download Natural Power today.

If you are interested in past themes I have released, check out Crystal and Pro Profile.

Originally posted on June 9, 2008 @ 6:59 pm

Zombies and MMO Bloggers

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A Zombie post on a mainstream blog? It’s Friday so let’s have a little fun.

Zombies have become quite popular in our society as of late, almost fashionable. You know they’re popular when Hollywood starts pumping out Zombie movie sequels. Titles like “Resident Evil,” “Dawn of the Dead” and “28 Days Later” have brought Zombies from the B Movie genre to mainstream America.

A Zombie, for those of you who don’t know, is created by a virus that reanimates the dead body of it’s host. The result is an “undead” being in a mindless state with no other choice than to follow basic instincts.

Most zombies tend to act very similar to the other zombies, showing no apparent thought process of their own.

This zombie is the same as that zombie who is the same as the other zombie. After being involved in the MMO blogging niche for a while now, I think I see some resemblances, let’s see if you agree.

Make Money Online Bloggers

If you read my own blog then you know I have a bit of healthy disdain for the MMO blogging niche in general. Too many of these blogs are simply the same blog over and over and over just with a different theme.

They regurgitate the same posts, the same thoughts and pump the same tired array of products that everyone else is pushing. In my mind they almost look like they are going through the motions, alive but not really alive.

Kind of like a zombie. Would it be out of the question to compare your typical MMO blogger to a Zombie? Let’s try it.

MMO Bloggers and Zombies

  • Zombies have little direction, they just kind of wander around looking for a victim. MMO bloggers have no direction and they too wander around and look for victims.
  • Zombies feed on living flesh in order to survive. MMO bloggers feed on the desperation of their readers in order to survive.
  • Zombies are gullible. They’ll fall for almost anything. MMO bloggers are gullible as hell and usually end up spending more than they earn trying to make money online.
  • Zombies make no sense and communicate by grunting. MMO bloggers would usually make MORE sense if all they did was grunt.
  • Zombies are so desperate they would even eat their own parents. MMO bloggers would sign their own mother up for a recurring paypal subscription if they could make a buck.
  • Zombies tend to follow the herd and go with the flow. MMO bloggers would follow John Chow over a cliff if he told them they could make money doing it.
  • Zombies multiply by turning their victims into Zombies. MMO bloggers seem to multiply by turning their victims into MMO bloggers.
  • A Zombie is never going to have an original thought go through his head again. MMO bloggers check with John Chow first to find out what their original thought is for the day.

Disclaimer

Ok so maybe some of these are a bit harsh but they are meant tongue in cheek. Like anything of this nature there is a bit of reality in each combined with a healthy dose of sarcastic humor. Before you send me hate mail, I AM a MMO Blogger.

The point of the article is that you don’t need to follow the herd in order to be successful. If you looked at a raging horde of zombies coming down the street, you probably couldn’t pick one from the other.

The same can be true for most MMO blogs. If you ever truly expect to make any money then you need to find a way to stand out from the crowd. Separate yourself from the norm and find a niche of your own that you can thrive in.

You need to find a way to be purple.

So before I go, I am sure I missed a few clever analogies, anyone have any more?

This Friday Featured post was written by Bill so if you enjoyed reading it then check out my own blog at The Blog Entrepreneur where I write on a variety of MMO topics but particularly niche site creation. Sign up for my FREE Niche Site Creation Newsletter.

Originally posted on May 30, 2008 @ 7:16 am