Here’s some interesting weekend reading:

Webconfs.com has compiled an incredible list of SEO techniques, organized into categories and ranked with scores ranging from +3 (things you should definitely do) to -3 (things to actively avoid).

Suffering from blogger’s block?  NorthxEast has a list of Twelve Ways to Turn a Boring Post into Pure Gold.  First, however, they point out that in the end, it’s good content and good headlines that drive traffic.

The Copyblogger asks “Do You Make These Mistakes When You Write?” a continuation of his previous list of errors that can diminish a writer’s, or a blogger’s credibility.

If you’re a woman and a blogger, consider attending the Blogher.org Conference, but act quick, because it’s happening very soon - July 27-29 in Chicago.  Attendees can register through July 20th.

Used to writing for print? Here’s a beautifully concise post from O.M. Strategy on the differences between online and offline writing.

Have an excellent weekend!

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No one really likes to be on the receiving end of the hard sell - it’s awkward and annoying for everyone involved, really.  Fortunately, it is easy to avoid engaging in such off-putting activities, thanks to the many promotional tools and techniques out there on the net.

Blogging, is a particularly good way to set up a passive but constant soft sell.  Now, you might be thinking: “Of course you’re going to say that!  You write a blog about blogging!” Guilty as charged, but it doesn’t change the fact that blogging can indeed be a valuable marketing tool.  It lets potential customers find you on their own time and get to know you and your products or services at their leisure.

See, blogging is a two way street.  Instead of just broadcasting your message at a captive audience in the manner of most traditional advertising, you’re communicating with your readers instead of talking at your potential customers.  The blogosphere is a community, and for your blog to be as successful as possible, you have to participate, even if you’re blogging about your business.  Actually, especially if you are blogging about your business.

The key to using your blog as a marketing tool is not to think of it as such, at least in the traditional sense.  Besides telling your readers about your business and products, share other details about your life and link to other blogs, articles, and websites that you like.  By blogging about varied but related topics you can prevent your blog from being a one-note-wonder.  After all, would you want to read a blog that only consists of tons of remarkably similar posts harping on the same product? It’s the blogging version of the smarmy, pushy salesman who gets in your face and refuses to let you leave without making a purchase - but on the web, readers can escape the hard sell with just one click.*

Think of your blog as a mini-portal to your niche.  Let your readers start with your blog, check out your latest posts, and then continue on by clicking on your links (naturally, you should link to things that support your message and your brand).  Remember that blogging is a dialogue, it is dynamic, and it is interactive, so update often and answer comments and questions.  Also, remember that your readers are probably pretty savvy and they can tell when a blog is straight-up propaganda.  The best way to draw readers to your blog is to create interesting, useful, and compelling content, and do it regularly.   Of course, that is also the hardest way - but that’s what your blogging coach is here for.

*You may have already seen this, but the Cluetrain Manifesto is worth checking out - and getting on.

Your About page may be the most important one on your blog.  By telling readers about your purpose, your background, your expertise, and your personality, it helps you create a connection with them.  It also tends to be one of the most visited pages - after all, when you come across an interesting blog, isn’t it one of the first things you click on?  People like to know who they are reading about.

Don’t be afraid to depart from the standard bio/resume format.  After all, being too formal can make you seem boring - and we’ve already established that no one wants to work with robot.  Tell your readers about your life, share your passions, let them know what is important to you and include a few quirky details.  For instance, check out my About Page - I include some of my favorite writers, other blogs and sites I write for, and a few fun facts about me.

I also link to a “100 things about me” list that I wrote for my personal blog.  Making a similar list (it doesn’t necessarily have to be as long, but once you get started, you may find yourself on a quite a roll) can be a good starting point even if you’re blogging for your business.  It humanizes your blog and makes it memorable.  Think about the details that you’re likely to remember about someone else, and try to include those on your About page.

Of course, you do want to show off your business chops at the same time, so you should still should include the more prosaic aspects of your life (credentials and such), but even that doesn’t have to be boring.   If you’re passionate about your work, what you’ve created, and how you can help others, that will still probably come through in your writing.  On a related note, the About page is also a good spot to put links to a few of your best posts - your flagship content.

Think of your About page as a online press kit, as your own corner of the blogosphere, and as your elevator pitch to potential clients.   It is where you let readers know the key information - who you are, what you do, where you are (contact info), how you can benefit them, and why they should read your blog.

Blogging is uniquely suited for search engine optimization, because the search engines definitely favor websites that have lots of relevant, easily updated content.  However, there are ways you can maximize your blog’s promotional abilities - SEO techniques you can use to “blogcast your brand”.

Here’s a rundown of my SEO for Bloggers series:

Part 1: Getting Started with SEO.  Start here to learn exactly what SEO is and the basics of how to use it to promote your message, including choosing your keywords properly.  If you only read one of these posts, read this one (but you really should bookmark them all!).

Part 2: Link Building and Link Popularity.  This post covers a key component of any blogger’s SEO strategy: getting tons of incoming links.  Search engines love websites that lots of people are linking too - after all, popular blogs are popular for a reason, and that reason is simple: people like ‘em.

Part 3: Link Baiting for Fun and Profit.   Link baiting is the art of getting other bloggers and webmasters to link to your site by creating interesting posts that benefit your readers in some way, shape, or form.  After all, people link to content they find compelling.

Part 4: Building Your Cornerstone.  Strong flagship posts are the pillars of blog - they are your most compelling content, they bring in the links, and they naturally have an ultra high keyword density.

Part 5: Off-Site SEO and the Social Media.   This post describes how to use the social media networks and the user-driven aspects of Web 2.0 to enhance and promote your blog.   There are a whole lot of amazing tools and communities out there, so use them to your advantage.

There’s one more point to remember about SEO, and that point is that the results generally don’t happen over night.  Yes, content can go viral, but building a popular blog with lots of readers takes time - you have to develop your keyword-dense cornerstone content, to build link popularity and generate incoming traffic, and to make a name for yourself in your niche.

So we’ve established the search engines love sites with tons of incoming links, and we’ve talked about a few different ways to earn them. However, I have yet to mention a major source of traffic - the social media sites. Granted, using the social media networks as a source of links isn’t typically considered part of SEO, but they can be very useful when used properly.

How to Play the Social Media Game:

Social media can be defined as the online technologies and practices people use to share opinions, insights, experiences, and perspectives (thanks wikipedia!).  Although social media is generally used as an umbrella term that encompasses everything from YouTube to Second Life, bloggers can utilize content-sharing sites like Digg, Del.icio.us, Reddit, and Stumble Upon and social networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace, and Linked In.*

First of all, syndicate your blog content on all the social media networks that you have profiles on, as well as any directories that index content related to your niche. You don’t have to reprint entire posts, rather, just copy the first few sentences - use it like a teaser or preview, and then be sure to link to it with “read more” or “continue”. After all, if someone is comes across your profile on any social media site, they’d probably be interested in your blog too. Be sure to get some of your keywords in the in the “teaser” part, however, so you’re playing to the search engines as well as the readers.

Second, become an active participant in social content sites like Digg, along with popular forums in your niche. You have to give some to get some, after all, and by reading and interacting on these, you’ll learn what kind of content is well received. Over all, however, it pays to be bold, to show off your passions, and to create content that has value for your users. This is where link baiting (in the altruistic “creating compelling content” sense) can really pay off.

Note: when you’re submitting posts to the social media networks, aim for “scannable” content - easily digestible article with bulleted or numbered lists, headings and subheadings, and charts and graphs. Reading on the web is not the same as reading a book - most people tend to just scan over things and pick up the main ideas.

Viral Ideas and Blogging

Viral marketing and viral content are major buzzwords these days, and for good reason. An idea, a post, a website, or an application can go viral and get thousands of links and millions of hits in a matter of hours. Of course, these can be shallow hits and non-targeted traffic, but the viral marketers do have a point - people spread ideas and share content that’s easily understandable, benefits the user in some way (even if it’s only to make them smile - look at how quickly things like lolcats get around), and neatly packaged (perhaps in the form of a concise, well-written blog post).

*This is by no means an exhaustive list, and it may take some research and trial and error to figure what communities are best suited to your purposes.

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Cornerstone Content is Essential

A good blog rests on a solid foundation of cornerstone, or flagship content.  This is the content you build your blog around - it is indispensable, it is essential, it is what people absolutely must know in order to understand your brand and do business with you.  It should also be some of your most compelling content - it’s the ace up your sleeve, it’s what readers come to your blog for, and it’s your best stuff.

Flagship Content and SEO

Flagship content is naturally keyword rich.  As a central component of your blog, it should focus on your main message and therefore contain tons of your keywords. When writing your cornerstone content, you should focus on creating value for your readers - after all, compiling a useful resource is one of the ways to generate incoming links.  One of the things that your flagship posts should accomplish is to answer the most relevant questions that people searching for your content are asking.  Ask yourself “what kind of content would ensure that my readers get the most out of my blog?”

When you place flagship content with a high keyword density in a prominent position on your blog and reference it in future posts, it helps to promote the post in search engines and makes it more liked to be linked to by others.  Amazing flagship content has the potential to go viral, because a useful flagship post or series of posts gives people something to link to, recommend, and remember.

How to Create Cornerstone Content

Okay, so you know that you need to write some compelling flagship posts that benefit and hook readers.  Now what do you write about?  Here’s a few ideas:

1.  A glossary of terms related to your business.  This is a especially useful if your in an industry with lots of specialized jargon that can be intimidating to outsiders (note: coming soon on Create Compelling Content: a “Blogger’s Glossary”).  It’s also beneficial in the SEO sense, because you can use tons of keywords in this post.

2.  A series of tips for newcomers to your industry or niche; for instance, “Ten Things I Wish I Knew Before I Started….”.  Fill in the blank with your expertise.

3.  How-tos.  A clearly-written how-to post or series is an excellent way to provide value for your readers, and it lets you show off your chops at the same time.  Bonus points if you can make it uplifting and inspirational, i.e. “anyone can attain this goal if they put their mind to it, here’s how”.  Inspire someone and they will not only remember you, they’ll recommend you and link to your blog.

4.  A powerful vision.  Do you have a particular vision or amazing, innovative idea for your niche?  Can you write about it in an eloquent way? Go for it.

5. Organized databases of product reviews or other resources for your niche.  You can even include outside links as long as they add value and support your overall brand somehow (just be sure that these outgoing links don’t directly contradict your message).

6. FAQs about your business and industry are simple but very useful, and they are very easy to create and fill with keywords.

7. All of the above - videos and podcasts of any of the previous options are another great flagship, and they allow for your readers to access your content in their preferred format (some people like to read information, others learn best by watching or listening).  Use the many different methods of web-publishing to your advantage and create a video or podcast of your cornerstone content.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it’s a good jumping off point.  Feel free to share your own cornerstone content in the comments!

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Link baiting is a term that comes up a lot in SEO discussions, and it can be a very powerful component of your SEO strategy.  Link bait is used to describe any sort of linkable content - a blog post, an image, a special feature - within a site that’s meant to catch attention and invite others to link to it.   At the most basic level, link bait is something bloggers and webmasters deem interesting enough to share with their own readers.  Successful link baiting can be an extremely potent form of viral marketing.

Despite the fact that link baiting is sometimes referred to in a negative manner (i.e. you’re “tricking” people into linking to you and coming to your site), it’s really about establishing yourself in your niche, creating useful and compelling content, and getting your ideas out there by reaching people who might be able to use them.

There are six basic types of link bait, or hooks

1. Breaking News - Be the first to break a major story or to share a unique piece of news, or just write up it in the clearest, most compelling manner.

2. Humour - People like to laugh, plain and simple.  If you can make them smile, they’ll reward you in the form of links and clicks.

3. Inspiration - Uplifting quotes, stories, and personal triumphs can all inspire people to link to your site.

4. Controversy and Attacks - Stand out from the crowd by being contrary or negative, by being the only one in your niche to dislike something, or by straight up slamming someone or something.  This is difficult to do well without reflecting poorly upon you and your brand, so it’s probably best left to the non-business or anonymous bloggers.

5. Flattery - Will get you everywhere. Write positive and genuine posts praising other bloggers, new products, and services, and anything else you really like.  Be sure to link to whatever it is you are writing about, and they’ll probably return the favor.  You can also create a comprehensive list of websites, blogs, and other online resources for your niche (this technique combines #5 and #6).

6. Resources and How-tos - Teach your readers how to do something, give them something valuable, make your blog benefit them in some way, shape, or form. This is probably the best form of link bait for a business blog to employ - you’ll get to show off your expertise to a whole bunch of potential new clients and customers.

Remember, the more incoming links you have, the higher your blog will rank in the search engine listings, so be sure to include a little link baiting in your overall SEO plan.