BlogCatalog

Before we get started I would just like to point out that if you don't go read this blog you may never understand Why Women Talk To Cats.

Absurdistry is one of those rare, well written plunges into voyeurism that let us know we are still human after all. We really can't not look at a train wreck, a parade or a cute baby in a sunny little bonnet. This artistic self exposure bares the spirit and satisfies that primal drive to observe the triumphs, pains, joys and sorrows of our fellow travelers on this absurdly provincial planet at the outer edges of the galactic proper.

Randall suffers from the desire to write. This affliction, among legion others, has plagued him for most of his life. This to the chagrin of his wealthy family, has all but consumed his life. As he searches for meaning and the Great American Novel, that must surely produce itself from the far recesses of his mind, he often finds that he must contend with the mundane matters of life. And he is shocked by the deep meaning these activities seem to reveal at every turn.

We have all heard the phrase "ants in your pants", but i do not believe I have ever read a first hand account of some one actually having Ants In His Pants. And I know with certainty I've never heard of anyone having ants in their pants during a job interview by "The Board" for an unknown company that very well may have been the spear head of an alien invasion force.

If physical ailments, the curse of the desire to write and an occupation army of ants weren't enough, The Magnetic Mattress would surely have long since sent any woman not so strong as Randall's wife running to the arms of an attorney. But despite her sometimes disappointment with the way things seem to have come down, she is a humor-full woman who seems to be genuinely in love with the self admitted, six-foot-five mess that is Randall.

While the general practice of the peeping tom is to stand outside some other persons window and peep in, Randall has perfected his own technique of sitting inside his own window and peeping out.

If you find yourself, some sunny day, in the vicinity of the corner of Oak and 14th, check to see if a man in a black suit sits behind a coffee table in his driveway and if you should spot him, be sure to stop and Meet The Author.

Humanized is an interesting company. Their core philosophy and focus do not conform to a specific kind of software, but to a specific way of software. I know that sentence doesn't seem to make much sense, but it really does. Humanized makes software, unfortunately so far, not much software, that is humane in it's user interface.

I know, I promised you a Blogger's tool you'll love, and I will fulfill that promise, but I need to lay some groundwork first on why you'll love it.

Quasimodal interfaces are Humane

The thing that really sets this tool apart is the use of quasimodes, which are modes that require you to take constant action to keep open. When you hold down your shift key and type a few letters, for instance, RSS you have just utilized a quasimode, because the text would only continue to be in uppercase letters as long as you hold down the shift key.

Modal Interfaces Aren't

On the other hand a modal function is something that is "sticky" like the caps lock key. You press it and it stays in uppercase text mode until you press it again, whiCH CAN SOMETIMES MAKE THINGS COME OUT NOT QUITE RIGHT, if you know what I mean. How many times have you typed a whole sentence or even a whole paragraph, only to discover that you were in the wrong mode, and then had to retype it in the correct mode?

That sucks, right?

Two Birds With One App

Well, what if you could eliminate that problem completely and at the same time gain access to a neat little piece of software that can spell check in any window on your computer that you can type text into? What if it could count the words on any window on your computer, period? How about if it also did nearly a dozen other neat little everyday things that right now require you to switch modes from what you are currently doing, then switch back again? And if you could do those things as easily as you can hold down your shift key and type RSS?

Enso Words does just that.

Enso Words is a quasimodal, universal spell checker that also does a bunch of other nifty things like word counts, cutting, pasting, copying, changing case, solving math problems, and, with an add on, several search launches as well.

To engage Enso Words you hold down your caps lock key with your left pinky finger and type a command. Not some cryptic command either. The command for spell checking is [ [capslock] spellcheck ], though typing [ [capslock] s ] also activates it in the default configuration. You only have to type as many letters as bring the command you want up. As soon as you release the caps lock key, the commend currently selected is executed and you are returned to where you came from. if no command was selected, you simply return to where you were and it's like nothing ever happened.

Imagine, you'll never tyPE A CRAZY ALL CAPS SENTENCE AGAIN. And you can count words and check their spelling anywhere you can read or type them. That's a useful little tool for a Blogger!

Try it out, it's free. Drop a comment and let me know what you think when you've given it a try. I love it over here.

Must fashion and style be completely sacrificed when one becomes a mother? According to Sarah-Jean Ballard, Editor-in-Chief of The Fashionable Housewife, the answer is a firm no.

"I became a mother a little over two years ago and while I absolutely love my daughter and try to give her everything she needs in life, I also make sure I take time for me," explained Sarah-Jean. "In order to be the best mother you can be to your children, you have to take a little time for yourself," she finished.

At The Fashionable Housewife, readers get their dose of tips and suggestions for staying comfortable while remaining fashionable. So, even non-moms who find the need to combine comfort along with good style will find this blog useful and entertaining.

"Gone are the days when comfortable shoes meant granny shoes. With brands like Sofft, Born, and Clarks on the cutting edge of fashion while focusing on comfort, there is no reason to settle for ugly shoes just because they are comfortable, ever again!" Sarah-Jean exclaimed.

This is good news for all fashionistas. Being beautiful doesn't have to be painful. "In this day and age, there is no reason to compromise style just to be comfortable," advised the editor, herself a fashionable housewife. Sarah-Jean recommended women re-think the concept of being comfortable. She questioned, "Do you really think you are comfortable going out in public in your sweats? Your butt might feel comfy, but your dignity sure doesn't."

Sarah-Jean offered great comfort fashion advice. She suggested moms buy jeans with a bit of stretch like NYDJ Cashmere Denim and pair them with a gorgeous, yet super comfy structure shirt like XCVI Happy House Voile top.  Throw on a pair of Softspots Paxton Wedge with a cute scarf and the transformation to becoming a fashionable housewife is now complete.

With two best girlfriends who have just had their first child, I see how challenging it can be to spend one's days as a new mom. Surely it's too difficult to be stylish and a good mom? Right? Sarah-Jean said otherwise: "The most important thing to remember when it comes to staying stylish is not to feel guilty about taking time out for yourself. Sometimes it can be hard to even get in a decent shower! Make sure you have some help and take a few minutes in the morning to fix your hair, throw on a little mascara and lipgloss, and put on some decent clothes you didn't pull out of the laundry pile. You'd be amazed at how much of a difference it can make in your day. Staying stylish can actually help you be the best mom you can possibly be!"

Inspiring, insightful and encouraging -- readers will find all this and more at The Fashionable Housewife. Being that Sarah-Jean is quite the fashion diva, I just had to find out what she's shopping for right now. "I'm still on the search for the perfect pair of Over The Knee Boots for under $100.  I'm also in the market for a motorcycle jacket, skinny ankle jeans with zippers, and something in hounds tooth," she answered. Coincidently, those are also my personal favorite fall trends, too. I guess great minds think alike. If you find you can't rock over-the-knee boots, Sarah-Jean offered an alternative, "Opt for another tall boot like the Born Nenna that will work for absolutely everyone."

Sarah-Jean Ballard
Editor-in-Chief of The Fashionable Housewife

Where did the jobs go?

Ever since the banker's shell game came apart and the economy tanked out across much of the world, many people have been forced to seek new employment. Jobs are gone and as some politicians have pointed out some of them just aren't coming back.

Some people, too, get crazy ideas about dumping their day jobs and working for themselves even when the signs of the times would seem to indicate that this might not be the most reasonable course of action.

Enter the Digital Worker

Amazon's Mechanical Turk website calls them "Artificial artificial intelligence". Most other people call them freelancers. I've always been peripherally aware of these denizens of the digital workforce, but they were never right there in front of me until just recently.

After spending some time looking for a new job, I realized that it would probably be more fruitful to just create my own job and changed course to that goal. That's when I discovered that there is a huge economy out there for freelance workers.

And they have their own blogosphere too.

As I got into looking at this opportunity I began seeking information about it. Not the information provided by the freelance job sites, though there is some good information there. What I really wanted was the information provided by these workers themselves.

Can you think of anyplace better to find this kind of information than in the BlogCatalog Blog Search Tool? No? me either, so of course, that's where I went. And I telly you I was not disappointed in the least.

There are many good of blogs in the catalog that offer up information on freelance working from a number of perspectives. I'm going to focus here on those that are written by people who actually do freelance work and blog about that work. They offer tips on finding jobs, productivity advice, writing ideas and much more. The Freelance blogs in the catalog are essentially a decentralized academy of the freelance arts.

I have become their devoted student.

Ariana R. Cherry blogs about her recent entry into freelancing at her blog, The Rural Freelance Writer. She's just started working as a freelancer, and still maintains a day job that she hopes to reduce to part time and then eventually eliminate. She's working her way into freelancing slowly. I hope she meets great success and I hope she continues blogging here experiences along the way.

Allison blogs about her freelance career at her blog, My Online Freelance Writing Career (BC Listing). She offers great advice about finding and maximizing online freelance jobs. With articles on how to find the jobs, how to get the best pay from the jobs and how to organize your job search. She also just completed the grueling 100 articles in 100 days challenge at ezinearticles.com. Talk about padding your portfolio. She detailed the process and posted regular updates about her progress though the challenge.

Katie blogs about working as a freelancer at her blog, Real Freelance Life (BC Listing). She offers up hard nosed, practical advice on how to get the job done as a freelancer that you can read, digest and immediately put to work in your own freelance efforts. Great stuff in there.

Jon Phillips and a crew of three other bloggers blog about everything to do with being a successful freelancer at his blog, Freelance Folder (BC Listing). This team of seasoned freelancers write well researched, informative articles designed to help any freelancer, novice and pro alike learn and develop a freelance career. They are currently looking for writers to join the team, and in the interest of full disclosure, I applied to write for them.

That's just four of the blogs in the catalog that write about freelancing. There are many many more there too. So if you've been left out in the cold by the old economy, or if you've just been tempted by the new economy, all I can say is, hit the freelance blogs in the BC Catalog and start reading. There seems to be a big, bold, bright future for the digital workforce. One thing any of the bloggers I introduced to you today will tell you that the number one thing to do is take action. Find jobs and put your name out there as a writer. Go seize your own career today.

It took me a while to find it, but today's Spotlight is a long standing blogger. In fact, his blogging career started on November 20th, 2005. That was the day when Chris MacDonald, who teaches Philosophy and Business Ethics at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, Canada, started The Business Ethics Blog. The reason was simple enough, he hadn't found a good business ethics blog yet, so he decided he had to make one himself. Isn't that how many great bloggers start in the first place? And for sure,  Chris has now become one of those great bloggers.

It’s Halloween again and most communities are split between those thrilled by the ghostly fear that chills the skin and those who battle hard against the dark, filling the night with the glow of candlelight, sweet treats and happy times.

The BlogCatalog community is no different. While many of us are sitting at our cozy keyboards,  like Amanda at Change.Org, writing 101 Things to Be for Halloween Other than a Pimp, or like the Crunchy Domestic Goddess, penning  10 Simple Ways to Green your Halloween, others are busy scaring the tightie whities off of everyone they can. The Horror Club’s 31 Days of Horror is creepy at its best. On the other hand, the Cupcake Project’s Anti-Vampire Garlic Cupcake recipe might just be the scariest thing on BlogCatalog.

You know what’s funny about being scared though? It can be tons more fun when it happens to someone else. I’m fairly sure that’s what MadMadMargo at the Screaming Me-Me thinks after Getting Punked (which means of course that she got her hair scared white). How? Well, it involved a shower and a stranger in her bathroom...  Even so, Margo knows what's really important -- what Halloween is all about. Is it about being scared incontinent? Of course not. Her sober reflections point us to the Truth that Halloween is all about, you guessed it… CANDY. (My waistline thanks you.)

Speaking of candy, LiteralDan, in a blatant and shallow attempt to lure a few more costumed candy magnets to his side, personally invites you to a little pre-2008-election-flashback of sorts. (I think he just wants to show off his cute kids in costume.)  And LesleyMo at MyTurntoTalk has hilarious costume ideas for parents who want to imagine their babies’ future filled with quiet desperation. (To ward off our need for Prozac, she follows up with some easy, more creative costume ideas.)

Whew.  Thank goodness.

You know, most parents think their kids are the cutest ones on the block… that is, until their costumes make them the most ferocious kids on the block. Mom2my9 at 11th Heaven’s Homemaking Haven (say that ten times fast!) has written a cautionary news report about a Halloween scare her husband had last year. Her message: Be afraid! Be VERY afraid!

And what is Halloween without a little nostalgia? Especially when it involves fiberfill and a home-sewn costume that makes its wearer feel “like a python's dinner being slowly digested.” But lest you think she's all giggle and no ghoulishness, Jenn (aka ThriftshopRomantic) at Cabbages-N-Kings can also creep you right out. She weaves a hair-raising tale of a neighborhood house from her youth – a house with a thousand lifeless eyes staring at would-be trick-or-treaters. It left me feeling that, had I lived in her neighborhood, I may well have died of fright at a very young age.  And also... dolls are truly creepy.

If you’re anything like me, you’ll need a giggle after a shiver-fest like that. Which is why you need TexasHolly at June Cleaver Nirvana. Her Tale of Two Pumpkin Patches, a story told with markers, will restore you. (That is, if you, like me, get giddy at the shameless ways of modern pumpkin patch capitalism.)

This is the thing, though... once you get home from the pumpkin patch, arms straining under the load of spherical squash, what do you do with them?

You go grab some inspiration from Dirt Simple, of course. Deborah Silver is a professional decorator who creates gorgeous Halloween looks with pumpkins, ghosts, and gourds and shows off broomcorn decorations to die for, perfect Jack-o-lanterns, scarecrows and just enough spiders to keep things spooky. Truly, I wish I had her talent. But I always come away from her blog with terrific ideas.

As a mom of young children, I straddle the divide between yearning for comfort and creepiness this time of year.  There is a part of me that loves to have my boots scared off. (All you need to do is check my top movies on Netflix this week to figure that out!) But Halloween movies can be tricky. It can be tough to choose ones that will be approachable for the younger set. So I’m grateful to ElizabethE at MomReviews.net and her Halloween family movie reviews. After reading them, I might be able show a few while my kids are still awake!

That's what I like about pets.  Dogs and cats aren't phased by a spook movie or two.  They won't wake up with scary dreams or be permanently scarred by the fact that they watched SAW XXVI in their puppyhood.  In fact, they'll cuddle up to you at the scary parts as they think, "Hey, I wonder how that guy in the mask smells?".  I appreciate the simplicity of that.  I have a feeling PetLvr does too.

As a matter of fact, PetLvr appreciates pets so much that he's even created a Pet Halloween Costume Contest on Petlvr.com. My kids and I looked at the entries he’s received so far and had a giggle or two. They looked so cute.  Our favorites were the Pomeranian dressed as Wonder Woman, the Pug Bumblebee, Farmer McHarley, and Stunner the Jet Dog.  (Seriously, there's nothing like dressed up pets.)

You still have time to enter your own pet, you know, but the contest ends soon! (Can you believe there’s only one cat? And no lizards, either… hmm.)  You pet owners had better get crackin'.

Which reminds me, I've got loads to do!  There are treat bags to stuff and a caveman costume to finish (and chocolate to sneak...)

Whew!  The work of a mom is never done, I tell you.

I’ll get right to it...

… after I have a look at a few more BC Halloween blogs, of course.

Have a Happy (Spooky) Halloween!

- Midwest Mom

The style-educated fashionista knows the importance of incorporating vintage fashion into her wardrobe. Vintage fashion evokes the romance or excitement of another era while keeping your personal style fresh and unique.

Today, American teens are scouring thrift stores and their parents’ closets for 1980s leotards, acid wash denim and concert t-shirts. Meanwhile fans of the hit television show “Mad Men” are searching for the sleek, sexy styles of the early 1960s. Let’s face it. Vintage fashion is in demand.

But, there’s something else we must face – vintage shopping is totally intimidating. Sure, you would love to dress like Don Draper, but what if you end up looking like Fredo Corleone instead? Before you go on the hunt for vintage fashion, you’ll need a bit of education. Your resource? The Past Perfect Vintage blog.

PastPerfectVintage.Blogspot.com is the blog for the vintage shop of the same name. Holly Jenkins-Evans owns Past Perfect Vintage and writes for the blog. At Past Perfect Vintage, Holly features quality vintage fashion from the Victorian and Edwardian eras to the 1970s, including selected designer clothing. A founding member of the Vintage Fashion Guild, Holly has supplied fashions to theatres, design houses and museums in US and Europe. A costume designer and draper by training, her theatrical credits include both design and production for approximately 200 productions around the US. So, let’s just say Holly knows her vintage.

“As a general rule, I do not recommend wearing pieces that are pre-1930s, as most vintage of that age is simply too fragile,” advised Holly. She suggested that beginning vintage shoppers should start small. “Learn about what you buy before you invest serious sums,” said Holly, “For those who are shopping for wardrobe needs, I suggest mixing vintage and modern fashions. This avoids the 'dress up' look.” As for care, Holly said fashionistas should start with washable cotton or sturdy wool. “They are the easiest to care for,” she explained. Interested in becoming a collector? Read “Preserving Textiles: A Guide for the Nonspecialist” by Harold Mailand.

Holly also suggested that vintage shoppers do a bit of research and familiarize themselves with the fashion periods so they can tell what they like and what they’re buying. Two great resources are the Vintage Fashion Guild and a new book just released, titled “The Little Guide to Vintage Shopping” by Melody Fortier. Holly contributed a section to this hot-selling book.

If vintage designer clothing is what appeals to your shopping sense, Holly claimed that studying your favoritedesigners’ history is crucial. “If the buyer knows their working dates, labels and their style, he/she will be ahead of the curve,” she said.

You may be tempted to attend estate sales and auctions on your own, searching for great vintage attire, but Holly warned that these adventures are often time-consuming and unsuccessful. In addition, most of these types of sales are ‘as is’ or do not allow returns. “As a vintage dealer, I search out great pieces, then clean, repair them appropriately, research, date, measure and provide a condition report for all items I sell. My customers can take their time and consider what they want and ask as many questions as they wish. And rest assured they will get a garment in the best possible condition,” Holly clarified.

Another thing vintage shoppers should keep in mind is that the sizing from “way back then” differs from modern sizes. Holly cautioned that shoppers must be prepared to go up several sizes. “A 1950s size 8 and a 2009 size 8 simply do not relate,” Holly said. Whether shopping online or in person, vintage shoppers should keep with them their exact measurements, including shoulders, arm length, bust/chest, waistline, hips and inseam. Shopping for vintage hats? Definitely measure the circumference of your head.

As for eras, know that each had its own unique styles and silhouettes. Holly explained that the 1920s look is for the straight-figured woman, while the 1930s is ideal for the shapely, but toned figure. The 1940s silhouettes are nicely shaped and allow for bust, waist and hips, but also provide fullness to hide figure flaws. The 1950s are perfect for the curvy fashionista and the 1960s are best for boho-chic ladies with a thin figure. “Having said that, I find that although I can't wear 20s and 30s clothing well, I can wear the shoes, shawls, hats and jewelry of those periods just fine! So you can find something from any period,” said Holly.

Optimism aside, Holly did convey one firm vintage shopping rule: “If you were alive during a time period, it's best not to try to wear it again. For example, I look silly trying to wear the 1960s again. It looks like reliving the past instead of re-discovering the past!”

Re-discover the past with Holly and the Past Perfect Vintage blog. Gain advice and obtain tips on becoming a knowledgeable vintage shopper. One of Holly’s most educational blog post is a three-part article called Buyer Beware, in which she addresses labels, dates, secret alterations, reproductions and so much more. She also reports to her readers of vintage shops she discovers while traveling, the newest additions to her own vintage store and “neat examples” from other sellers she knows and trusts.

Winner of an Amazon Kindle: Mike Magdaleno
Mike has been solving problems and studying human performance for over 25 years.  He has a Bachelor of Science degree (with honors) from the University of Redlands.  He has also been a student of Far Eastern philosophies and holds a second degree black belt in Korean Hapkido.  He brings a special talent to my coaching in that I have seen many of the problems people have and tested what works and seen what does not.

Winner of Bose on-ear headpones: Jay Ehret
Jay Ehret is Chief Officer of Awesomeness of The Marketing Spot in Waco, Texas. He is a small business marketing coach, consultant, speaker and writer. Jay started blogging about small business marketing in March 2007 and joined BlogCatalog in July. He blog specifically about marketing issues as the apply to specifically to entrepreneurs and small businesses. He give practical advice on topics such as branding, the customer experience, word of mouth, social media, advertising and promotion.
www.TheMarketingSpotBlog.com

Winner of a $100 Apple Gift Card: Robert Richardson
Robert has been involved in online marketing for about 10 years now. Currently he is the online Marketing Manager for a large bank. He also runs a number of websites including http://networkinvegas.com, http://offgridsurvival.com, and
http://richardsongraphics.com.

(posted by Jason Teitelman, Written by Deb Schroeder)

Have No Fear and Let Your Passion Lead You to the Next Level
The Opening Keynote at Blog World with Laura Fitton was very inspirational and a great way to begin the conference. Laura Fitton is referred to by many as the Queen of Twitter, wrote Twitter for Dummies, and founded Oneforty.com. Oneforty.com has reviews and information of all of the best twitter apps.

Laura recommends that you should just be who you are when twittering and don’t just post links, but ask questions and make connections.  She believes that in order for you to be “Awesome on Twitter,” you need to listen, learn, care, and serve.

Laura Fitton emphasized that you should not have fear or hesitance with blogging, twittering, and the use of social media.  We should always try new things since we all have something to offer.

If we hold ourselves back and don’t try, then we will be cheating everyone else out of something that only you can offer.  Discover your passion and let it lead you.

Internet Marketing for Smart People

The panel for Internet Marketing for Smart People consisted of Darren Rowse, Sonia Simone, Brian Clark, and Chris Brogan.   The hour long session had too many great points to jot down, so you can watch the entire session at JohnChow.com.  Below are some quick notes from the session.

• Posting: Keep a post rhythm with your blog so that your readers know what to expect.  If you post once or 5 times a week, be consistent with that rhythm.
• Content: Deliver valuable content to your readers.  Ask yourself “Is my content itself a reward for reading it?”  Does the content add value to your readers?
• Email Newsletter Marketing: Email marketing is still very important and email newsletters are the way to go.  RSS isn’t turning out the way they once thought it was.  More traffic is through email readers than RSS.  Some found that ads clicked doubled with email as opposed to RSS.  One way to get readers to subscribe by email would be a free e-book incentive.
• Community: Create a community among your readers so that they feel like it is “our community” not “your community.”
• What do you have to sell? Find something worth selling to your readers that provides value to them.  Build the audience first and create trust before trying to sell to your audience.  Get to know your readers and pay attention to them so that you know what they need and what is important to them.

Sponsored Conversations and the new FTC Regulations

Panelists were Ted Murphy, Jeremiah Owyang and Wendy Piersall

One of the common discussions at the 2009 Blog World Expo was the new Federal Trade Commission’s regulations for online advertising and sponsored conversations.  The new FTC regulations go into effect on December 1, 2009 and there was much debate about the topic.

What can be considered sponsored conversations?  Tweets, posts, and comments can all be considered sponsored conversations if the blogger receives payment, gifts or any other item for certain content.  It doesn’t matter if the blogger would have included the content with or without receiving payment.  Bottom line-- if the blogger receives a gift or payment, then it must be disclosed.

It is important to create transparency within your blog and having a disclosure policy encourages trust among your readers.  The disclosure policy should be up at the top of your site and clear to your readers.  The new regulations lack clarity, but from the discussions at Blog World, it seems that individual posts that can be considered “sponsored” would need a disclosure statement as well.

An online site created and funded by IZEA allows you to create a Free Disclosure Policy from DisclosurePolicy.org in which you answer a series of questions.  After answering questions pertaining to your blog, a disclosure policy is created for you to copy and paste into your site.

Blogging Super Panel Gave Live Feedback on Site Reviews

The Super Panel with live feedback on site reviews consisted of top money making bloggers Zac Johnson, John Chow, and Darren Rowse.  Below are some tips offered to the various sites reviewed that can be applied to most blogs:

• If you have a new blog, focus on content and getting readers rather than trying to focus on monetization.  Most bloggers shouldn’t expect to be making large amounts of money until they have been blogging consistently and gaining readership for about 2 years.
• Your signup box for email and RSS updates should be large and easy to find.  Many put the signup box in the top right corner.  It is good to end posts with an offer to signup to subscribe in addition to having the signup box.
• Newsletter updates are important and you should attract more readers with this. Offer incentives for them to signup, such as a free e-book or newsletters with free samples, discounts, or some educational material in your niche. You can use your newsletter to help monetize your blog by offering valuable products for purchase, ads, etc.
• Do not ask for the first and last names of your readers when asking them to signup for updates or to subscribe to the blog.  Make the process easy and seamless for them.
• A general estimation given was that if your site is getting about 1 million page views a month, then you should be earning about $10,000 a month if monetized correctly.
• As you grow, you can consider offering membership sites, educational material or e-books as a way to monetize your blog.
• View your site in multiple browsers to correct errors that others may be seeing.
• Don’t have a super-large header and make sure that your header design lets the reader know what your blog is about.

Drive Traffic and Build Readership Using Niche Communities

Kevin Palmer discussed the many ways to use niche communities to drive traffic and build readership.  Kevin runs his own consulting company, Social Media Answers, LLCwhich has an abundant of free resources for those interested in growing with social media.

1. Evaluate Your Audience: Who are they?  What describes them?  How are they using the internet?  What content would they be interested in?
2. Examine Other Bloggers: Look at other bloggers in your niche and find out what social media sites they are using to connect with readers.  Look at their sidebars and examine the social media buttons they display.  Do a search with their twitter name to see what they are doing and how they are using twitter.  You can useCompete.com to analyze the traffic that other sites in your niche are getting.
3. Join Niche Social Networking Sites:  You can find over 400 Niche Social Networking Sites with reviews at Kevin Palmer’s website. Use social networking sites to gain potential readers.  Social networking sites are smaller Ease your way into the community, engage within the rules and listen to the readers. Don’t just join and broadcast your message, but become an active participant to create trust.  Look at the message boards and join in the active discussion.  Completely fill out your profile and include a profile picture.

While the amount of mind-blowing, awe-inspiring new tools to play around with in the exhibit hall at BlogWorld Expo this year was a little lacking, I found a few tools that I think will be pretty helpful to bloggers.

1. wetoku: A tool from Zentium, Inc.that brings the talking head experience to your blog, wetoku makes it super-duper simple to record an interview online, save it and embed it on your blog.

What is required to record an interview? Well, at least one participant must have a wetoku account and both participants must have a webcam. To get a wetoku account just go to wetoku and sign up. To get a webcam...well, if you really don't know how to get a webcam contact me personally because you probably require more assistance than I can provide through this blog post ;)

Once you are signed up for a wetoku account, recording an interview just requires you to log in and click the Start Interview button. Then--unless you want to mess with the advanced settings--just title your interview, name both participants and click next. You will be provided with a invitation URL to send to your interviewee. All the interviewee needs to do is go to that URL and they will appear along with you on the weotku screen. Once you are both there, just click the red record button under the interviewer's screen and after a 3, 2, 1 countdown the recording will begin.

After the recording is finished, you will be sent to a new screen where your completed video can be viewed and the embed code for the interview is provided. Simply grab that code, pop it on your site and just like that you have a nice clean interview up on your blog. Like I said, it's super-duper simple! Here's a quick interview I did with Austin about the new BC dance we're developing Disclaimer: The dance is still pretty rough and we're both crappy dancers, so bear with us:

The only issues we had with recording the interview was the echo from the audio and a slight delay in the video. The echo is the same kind of echo I have experienced with some online seminars and conferences, and I'm not sure what can be done. I assume using headphones would solve this problem if you don't mind how they look. The video delay problem was minimized by bumping down the video quality and may have had more to do with the spotty internet connection in our building than the site itself. I'll have to try some interviews from other locations and see if that changes. Overall, still a good user experience despite the minor issues.

2. Lijit: "Using the power of people, their content, and their connections, Lijit enhances the way your readers search for and discover information on the internet. You serve as a filter for all of the results your readers could possibly receive, ensuring they only receive the most relevant results from the source they trust…YOU." -Lijit.com

Lijit provides a search function similar to what our own BC 360 Search widget does. When someone uses the tool to do a search, it will pull all the relevant content from your blog, your other networks, your bookmarks and trusted sources and display them for your reader. The driving idea here is that since you are a trusted source for your readers and they are interested in what you have to say, the results you return will be trustworthy and relevant. This is a fairly simple explanation of what Lijit provides; to see a list of all of the features and to see a sample search page, check out their site.

3.Jing: Another easy-to-use tool from TechSmith that let's you create a screenshot or a recorded screencast of your screen and easily share it with your readers. A great tool for technical bloggers, Jing allows you to record step-by-step videos as you install software, make changes to your blog's code or complete any process that can be made simpler with a supplementary video.

Installing Jing is quite easy and I was able to make my first screencast without reading the instructions or watching the instructional video. Of course, if I had watched it, figuring out how to share my video would have been simpler. Still, after realizing the screencast I had saved to my hard drive was too big to share and that I had to go to screencast.com to get URL links and embed code, I was able to login and proceed without any trouble. After that, adding the screencast to my blog was pretty simple.

To get the URL or the embed code for your screencast video, simply login at screencast.com using the email and password you registered with when installing Jing. Once in, click the My Library link at the top left. My screencast was in a folder titled Jing. I just opened the folder and saw my video there. When you hover over the video's icon, smaller icons apprear beneath it that allow you to view, edit, share or delete the video. Clicking share opens a window that provides a URL link, an embed link and an embed code for your video.

Here's the quick screencast of my iTunes screen I made using Jing (I shrank it down a lot to fit on the blog. Just in case you were wondering, the original was about 1100 pixels by 900 pixels). It takes a few seconds to load and play:

Obviously there are many, many  more tools out there that bloggers love to use. If you have any tools you use and love, please leave a comment and let us know about them. You can also add your favorite tools to the BC Tools page where you can discover, review, and rate the best tools for bloggers.