BusinessBlogAngel

How to create a blogroll: tips for when you're tearing your hair out

You know the scenario.  You've seen the way other people do things on their blogs.  Things like a blog roll on your sidebar, a list of other blogs that you follow, a list that allows you to:

• reveal a bit more about your interests
• make connections with other bloggers
• signal where you fit within blogging networks and communities
• showcase your clients' work (like the one Claire has here)
• provide some valuable links to your readers

But what if you just couldn't figure out how to set one up?  To the point where you where tearing your hair out with frustration?

Well, you wouldn't be alone.

Are you watching your widgets? Blogging lessons from Blogrush

"The fastest and easiest way to instantly drive a flood of targeted visitors to your blog... absolutely free". That was the promise from Blogrush when they launched their new service a month ago and a lot of bloggers beat an early path to their door - partly I guess because of the hype that's created when the pro bloggers talk about what's new, and partly because Blogrush works on a pyramid system.  (The more people you refer the more credits you build up - so the earlier you signed up the better it was going to be for you.)

I have to confess I wasn't one of those quick-off-the-mark people.  So when Claire asked me to do an early post on Blogrush I felt more than a little unsure of my ground.  1. I'm not using the service 2. It's still 'in beta' and the jury still seems to be out on how it's working 3. I'm not qualified to offer an expert opinion on its strengths (or otherwise) in driving a flood of targeted visitors to your blog.

So I shifted my focus to what I do know about Blogrush, what I've learned from the opposite end of the lens: the perspective of a blog reader.  How this widget looks, how it feels, and what it says to me about you - and your brand.

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.

The business of blogging just keeps growing: news from BusinessBlogAngel

You know what it’s like when you don’t blog for ages – there’s always so much to say it can be hard to know where to start.  Especially when there a lot of big changes at Business Blog Angel that I’m just itching to tell you about…

So, where to start?  Well, I’ll start with the client blogroll that I’ve finally added to the sidebar here.  Maybe you’ve been noticing some traffic come through to your site from it already?  I hope so – that’s certainly the intention. 

Pulling the blog roll together was a great way to look back on all the client work I’ve been doing over the last year or so – there’s over 50 blogs out there already – and a lot more in the pipeline.  But keeping up with that level of demand for new blogs means making some big changes in the way that I run the business – like getting the right support systems in place, for you (and for me!)