BusinessBlogAngel

Email delivery issues - hey ho!

UPDATE: OK - looks like the issues mentioned below are now sorted. BUT, please do re-send if you've emailed me at my business blog angel address in the last month or so. 

Quick post to let you know that despite everything looking fine at my end, people are reporting that emails sent to claire@ "businessblogangel.com" are being rejected. I knew this was an issue a few weeks back, but thought it was now fully resolved. I thought wrong!

I am on the case, but in the meantime, if you have emailed me within the last month or so, and not had a response, please can I ask you to resend it to hello@claireraikes.com. A bit of a pain I know, but the only way forward right now.

Thanks for your patience. :o)

Personally speaking... getting back in the blogging saddle (again!)

Regular readers will know that I can be erratic with my 'posting frequency'. It's usually because I'm so busy with other peoples' blogs, but sometimes its because I'm in a fug of some kind. It always passes - eventually - and I've learnt over my 3 4+ years providing business blogging help and advice that the best way to get back in the blogging saddle is to 'just do it'.

Having said that, I often feel the need to explain myself. This isn't an entirely self-indulgent or cathartic need, it's also because when I blog, I aim to address each and every reader as an individual or a friend - rather than a group - and so there's a sense of 'owing' you an explanation out of respect. So, here goes...

Since my last post I have been through some major upheavals. I've moved house, ended my relationship of 2 years and given up 'custody' of my gorgeous canine 'son' Tallis. Oh - and launched a new venture Universal Growth - a kind of alternative to Alternatives in Cardiff!

As Denis Campbell of @UKProgressive commented,

"Other than that Mrs. Kennedy how was your trip to Dallas?"

BusinessBlogAngel says Hello S.Africa, Mexico, Paraguay, Brazil & China!

I just spotted some new green spots on my Feedjit Live Traffic Map in areas where I've been wishing there were green spots, so I clicked through and guess what? BusinessBlogAngel just had its first visitors from South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Paraguay and China! Yay!

Welcome! Bienvenidos! Bem-Vindo! Huan Ying!
Thanks for dropping by. You've made me very happy. :o)

WillMeOn.com - will you will on Will Maybanks to London 2012?

Before I go 'short and sweet', I have to tell you about one of the projects that's been keeping me busy over the last month or so - www.WillMeOn.com. 

William Maybanks is a talented, British table tennis player with an Olympian goal; to compete for his country at London 2012. Table tennis has had it's funding for 2012 drastically reduced, so if Will is to realise his dream and compete on the world stage at London 2012, he will have to raise the necessary £300k himself. Given the current economic climate, securing a large sponsorship deal from any one business or individual is no longer a realistic proposition... and so the idea for WillMeOn was born! 

I know nothing about Table Tennis, but my 'entrepreneurial spirit', thirst for all things 'personal development' and professional obsession with social media and personal branding meant that from the minute Chris Ogle told me about Will Maybanks and the WIllMeOn idea he was hatching, I was on board.

Are YOU using Social Media to grow your business or brand?

I'm so excited! Last night, I emailed all my clients and mailing list subscribers announcing the new BusinessBlogAngel's Social Media Inner Circle. I wanted to give them a bit of head start before I blogged about it here, but since the Qualifying Calls start tomorrow, I can't wait any longer!  Whether you're already using social media or not, this Social Media Marketing Intensive will deliver tangible results, slash your marketing budget and achieve an unparalleled 'ROI' to boot. Click on the image for the full lowdown.

Qualifying calls Friday 5th, Saturday 6th and Tuesday 9th December.
Click Now for details.

Writing with confidence - project confident writing (reprise)

In my last post, I mentioned that I'd been thinking about Joanna Young... Coincidentally, I had an email that same morning from Karen Swim of Words For Hire with a secret mission all to do with that same amazing lady...

Joanna has just moved house to the west coast of Scotland. As a result, she's been offline for some time. As Karen pointed out, for a prolific blogger like Joanna, a week or so offline must feel like an eternity - and Brad Shorr along with Karen and fellow blogging/Twitter friends Robert Hruzek and Daniel Smith came up with a lovely idea: to welcome Joanna back to the blogosphere with a collection of posts on her various friends' blogs featuring our favourite posts from her Confident Writing blog. I've raved about Joanna on this blog several times and clearly I'm not alone in recognising her greatness. It speaks volumes that virtual friends want to do this for her.

Anyway, I've had a good rummage around her blog and, continuing the 'confident writing' theme, have opted to highlight a 'round up' post she did earlier this month which features a whopping 8 posts from the archives all about what to write when you're feeling stuck. So...

"Welcome back Joanna - we've missed you - we love you - you are the mutt's nuts!"

8 From The Archives To Help You Free Your Words by Joanna Young  at Confident Writing

Liz Strauss' 25 Words of Work/Life Wisdom Writing Project

There is no doubt that Twitter is a seriously powerful weapon in your social media marketing arsenal. Over the last couple of days, I've seen some great examples of how people are using Twitter to not only network, promote their business activities and attract traffic, but also drive more sales.  In the last hour, as a direct response to a couple of Tweets that caught my eye, I've bought a product I didn't know I needed(!) and been inspired by Robert Hruzek to take up Liz Strauss' 25 Words of Work/Life Wisdom Writing Project challenge.   

I'll write again about Twitter, but in the meantime, here's my attempt at those 25 words:

Oh The Shame...

"Do as I say, not as I do";
these words float shamefully around my brain
as I fail
to Twitter, Stumble, blog and podcast
consistently.

Given that I'd not posted for ages - and this is my second today - I'm inspired to do another...

Recent Business Bloggers' Blogs

I can barely believe it's been over a month since our last post! I see I've started a few posts along the way, but they're still languishing unpublished in my Typepad account.  To break the silence, I'm simply going to plug just a couple of business blogs which have recently had the Business Blog Angel treatment. Please drop in on them and leave your comments and encouragement - I know the owners will be chuffed to bits if you do. 

SueTrinder.com

Sue Trinder & Associates

Transforming communication at work.

Click image to enlarge.

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Diary of a Property Investor

The PropertyMadeSimple Blog by Peter Stanley

Everything you ever wanted to know about property investing.

Click image to enlarge.

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Are you business blogging yet?  Click here to discover why you should be...

Holiday Greetings from Business Blog Angel

Hi there... yes, it's me, Claire... Since Joanna joined the team a couple of months back, I've been pretty elusive here on the blog... well, she does such a brilliant job, doesn't she?... but it's that time again, so I've dropped in to say a huge, big Happy Holidays to all you wonderful readers, clients, followers and friends of Business Blog Angel. Your support is much appreciated and we look forward to working, networking, Facebooking, linking, blogging with you some more in 2008 :o) 

By way of a thank you, I've donned stripey tights and a silly hat and elfed myself - turn on your speakers and click on the image below to watch my elfin animated message! (Takes a little while to load, but I hope you'll think it's worth it!)

So... I'm spending today tying up loose ends on client projects and then it's 'feet up' until January 2nd. But just in case you find yourself with some spare time over the festive break and want to spruce up your blog ahead of the New Year, Joanna's compiled a really useful 'Best of 2007' post list from the BizBlogAngel archives: 

The top 10 things you should know before you [business] blog
Blogphobias - what worries you about business blogging
Business blogging - what and when to blog
Practical tips for business bloggers
Business blogging and SEO
How to create a blogroll - tips for when you're tearing your hair out
What do you do when you can't think what to blog about?

See you next year!

Warmest wishes,
Claire x

Online identity management: joining the Blog Angel Team

I had to smile when I saw that Claire was going to be offering help with online identity management – because I figure I could do with some of that myself just now as I establish my new identity as part of the Blog Angel Team.

Once Claire and I had agreed the fundamentals of the way we’d work together, with me doing some blogging here to help keep things up to date plus some surfing and researching to find out what you’re up to and the kind of things that it would be useful to share – well that immediately threw up some questions about how to establish my new identity – and some practicalities that I’m still working out how to crack.