Top 10 Things Learned at Blah, Blah, Blog

Yesterday, at the Web Managers Roundtable, I was treated to a panel of experienced bloggers and got several pages of notes about better blogging. Here's the Top 10:

• Dana Blankenhorn observes that blogging is an intimate relationship with your readers – let them be your guide
• Carol Covin told of finding a void & filling it with a blog to tell rich stories for others – she noticed at book signings that people would share their stories but didn't write them down to share with a broader audience
• Randy Rieland integrates multiple forms of media to present the blog – this evolved and grew by doing
• Dick Davies is consistent about publishing twice per week and that for him an ideal blog is 5 paragraphs, 10 sentences
• Do not waste people's time – cut to the chase and make your point – short can be better
• Blogging is not a hobby – when thinking about writing a blog, make a business case for it: Who are your writing for; What topic/subject area are you writing about; Why are you writing to these people and about these issue?
• Write in your voice – be you in your writing – do not try to write in the voice of the organization
• Looking for content and ideas for topics for the organization's blog? Talk with the person in the Big Chair – they like to talk about what they do – but don't forget to jot down interesting ideas, topics, issues when you come across them...every event has potential for a great blog
• Blogging requires discipline – take your passion and vision and put it on a plan – declare how often you will post and do it, the readers will come to expect your posts on a cycle – they will not stay around for erratic publishing
• Share your stories, ask questions, set scenes, but do not try to solve problems when writing – regardless what you think you are writing about, the reader interprets the post in terms of what is on their mind.

And number 11 is – don't just talk about blogging – do it and make each one better than the one before.

Check out BlogLab, coming August 16 for a roll-up-the-sleeves view of blogging.