“Welcome” messages get best open rates
Useful article in MarketingSherpa about how to get the most out of the “Welcome” letter that your e-newsletter mailing service generates (or should be generating). Yes, it’s true. Your “Welcome” email to your new subscribers will most likely get the highest open rate of any message you ever send.…
read moreNew Morgan Stanley report gives thumbs up to blogs & RSS
Thanks to Dee Rambeau for a pointer to a 21-page PDF report from Morgan Stanley’s Mary Meeker and Brian Pitz on why “next generation content” (as they call it) will “gain usage / revenue traction in 2005.” Ahh, the business case for blogs. It’s coming, I’m confident. It…
read moreCorporate America can’t write
I love it when The New York Times says it for me: What Corporate America Can’t Build: A Sentence. Article on front page of today’s paper bemoans astounding lack of basic writing skills among corporate employees. Reporter Sam Dillon cites a study commissioned by the
Blog is Word of the Year
You’re not surprised, are you? Blog (er, “blawg”) was the most frequently looked-up word in 2004, according to Merriam-Webster Online. Followed by (you guessed it) incumbent, electoral… and peleton at #7. DMNews editor-in-chief Tad Clarke notes “it’s too bad” we have to wait…
read more“Blog” is Word of the Year
Not a surprise really. “Blog” was the most frequently looked-up word in 2004, according to Merriam Webster Online. Followed by (you guessed it) “incumbent” and “electoral.” Thanks to Tom Parish for pointing me to the BBC link.
read moreBob Bly is bored with blogging…
Yup. After only one week. Bob Bly (he’s a highly respected B2B copywriter) emailed me this morning: “Deb, A full week in the blogosphere … already bored with the whole thing … tell me again why you like this? How much time per week do you spend…
read moreBob Bly is bored with blogging…
Yup. After only one week. He emailed me this morning: “Deb, A full week in the blogosphere … already bored with the whole thing … tell me again why you like this? How much time per week do you spend writing your blog, checking your blog, and going…
read moreThe three P’s of blogging
Dave Pankhurst wisely points out one of the secrets of blogging software… it has a draft function. Here’s how to use it: any time you have a “bloggy moment” open up your blogging app, jot down your observation and save it as a draft. Be sure to include the…
read moreTop 5 holiday publishing tips for your e-newsletter… or blog
These 5 tips are in this week’s issue of WordBiz Report. I wrote them with e-newsletters in mind. And they originally appeared in my column for Crain’s BtoB E-mail Marketer Insight. But they apply just as well to “what to blog about” this time of year. David Pankhurst…
read moreHow often is often enough?
After the question, “Er, what is a blog?” the 2nd most-oft asked question I get is, “I barely have time as it is to a) publish an e-newsletter or ezine b) maintain my Web site c) write anything coherent… how in heck will I find time to blog and often…
read moreFeatured in “Blogger’s Block” article in Entrepreneur Magazine
Much as I advocate using a blog to “circumvent” traditional media for publicity, thought leadership, etc., it sure is nice to get written up in a national magazine. Entrepreneur called me back in August and interviewed me on the topic of “Blogger’s Block” – their idea, not mine. And…
read moreHave you got “blogger’s block”?
This wasn’t my topic. But it makes a good headline. And it’s nice to be featured in the December 2004 issue of Entrepreneur Magazine. Get the scoop on Blogger’s Block.
Don’t blog like this
PRWeb is a nifty service for distributing your press releases online. But the good folks behind it need a blogging lesson. I’m going to hold up their latest post (it’s old too… nothing new since Nov. 4, 2004) as an example of how & what not to write…
read moreBob Bly is blogging!
Take a look at B2B copywriter Bob Bly’s new blog. It went up today. Yes, this is the same Bob Bly who said blogging as a marketing tactic is a bunch of hooey in his DMNews column that was published exactly three weeks ago today. It raised a…
read moreBob Bly is blogging!
Take a look at B2B copywriter Bob Bly’s new blog. It went up today. Yes, this is the same Bob Bly who said blogging as a marketing tactic is a bunch of hooey in his DMNews column that was published exactly three weeks ago today. It raised…
read moreDon’t want to write your own blog? Not a problem…
reBlog is a new service that I’ve been hearing about. I haven’t tried it yet but it sounds cool. In a nutshell, it enables you to re-publish snippets of content from other blogs you find interesting and useful. Check out the just-released reBlog v. 1.0. It works…
read moreGood numbers + good words = impact
… even if you’re a small company. Take a look at this cool graphic on Dana VanDen Heuvel’s blog about Internet marketing & sales.
read moreFind out what OTHER blogs are saying about your company
Jupiter Analyst Michael Gartenberg makes a good point in his Nov. 15 article in Computerworld about the “double edge” of business blogs. In addition to posting interesting content to your own corporate blog… you’ve gotta worry about what folks are saying about you and your company on OTHER…
read moreSeth Godin on CEO Blogs
Seth Godin has this to say about CEO blogs:
“Beware… It’s apparently the newest thing. I just got off the phone with one CEO who’s itching to start,…
It’s free, it’s viral, it’s Seth Godin’s The Bootstrapper’s Bible
Free download from Seth Godin’s intriguing Change This site, a repository of sorts for free manifestos on engaging topics. Go grab it (it’s free through Dec. 1, 2004). But be sure you’ve got enough ink in your printer. The…