Tag: Blogs

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When You Should Not Hire a Blogger

Although we provide professional blogging services, there are sometimes when you really should not hire a blogger and should blog yourself. Here are several examples where you are a more effective blogger than a paid blogger.

  • If your industry is niche specific and highly technical. An example would be an accountant who serves government agencies and wants blogs on government accounting procedures and changes in federal acquisition.
  • If the topics that you blogs done for are more like case studies of actual customers you have worked with on projects. An example would be an Internet security consultant who wants blog posts on procedures and strategies that they have used for a specific client to solve a problem.

Sometimes a professional blogger cannot replace you and the information you have learned and mastered over years of working in your industry. No blogger can get inside your brain and write from an expected level of authority on niche specific, business specific, or customer specific needs.

For cases such as these and others where really you need more “meat” for potential readers, we recommend that our blogger write on general news topics two days a week and that you the “industry expert” write one day a week. This allows for a volume of keywords on-topic posts to be created for you, but provides some in-depth insight that your readers and subscribers will value.

There are still some areas in which we personally as professional bloggers cannot provide services for, or will pass on writing for, but with your participation on your own blog, you can provide real value on difficult to write for topics.

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Blog Posts Should Never Be Website Content

We’ve been hit with a real flurry of activity of website owners pretending that they want blog writing done, but we have to supply the content as Word documents and they have no online blogsite and a website that is under construction. I have to say that this smells to me like a client trying to get website content at a blog post price.

Yes, I know that some people like to do things on the “cheap” and it seems like a good idea, fool a quality blogger to write for you at a super cheap price when website content costs a whole lot more. But, I would like to explain why you should never use blog posts to build your website content.

1. Blogs are derivative works.  When we write a blog post, we find an article online on a news site, we read it and then put our own unique spin on it. Sometimes using our own point of view for the piece or a conglomeration of thoughts from other web news articles compiled into our own unique content. The content is unique but really not what I would consider suitable for website content.

2. Blogs being a more conversation medium than web pages. Blogs are also written in a different style and tone. Blogs are written in a more casual tone. Website content just sounds different when you read it aloud.

3. Blog writers, due to the market, are paid by far less money than web content writers. You will get what you pay for in this area. Although the content will be just fine and really even great for your blog, I would not recommend that a blog piece be passed off as authoritative website content or for that matter even as informational content on your website. Blog posts should stay as blog posts.

4. Website content is typically optimized for specific keywords and is written with a call to action and marketing language. This type of writing would be very boring for a reader to read on a blog, but is appropriate for search engines and a more sanitized selling message that is typically used on a corporate website.

5. Blog content needs to be timely to cater to readers and encourage interaction. Website content on the other hand should have more staying power and not speak to events that have passed or ask the client for input as there aren’t comment links on web pages as there are on blog posts.

Additionally, blog posts should not be used as Link Bait articles for similar reasons.

We are not fooled by clients who try to contract for our blog services and really want inexpensive website content. If you need website content don’t ask for blog posts. Get what you should have for your specific need. In the long run the extra money you pay for website content, that is created for this special need, will serve your site better in the long run winning you customers and communicating confidence in your products and services.

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Our Blog Writers Are So Good – Our Blog Posts Make It Into Books

We have some excellent blog writers – real quality people and outstanding creative writers. In fact some of our writers are so good that clients ask if they can include our blog pieces in their books. In fact we’ve had two incidents lately where this has happened.

I have to say it is flattering when this happens but is troubling to me as well. We pay our writers typical blog writing rates for blog posts. I have to say it can be good money for a prolific blogger but is certainly not a way to get rich by being a writer. Web content and book writing is typically paid at a significantly higher rate normally $75 to $125 per hour including research time or even $1 per word. It rubs me the wrong way when we have a client take blog posts and pass them off as their own writing in a book and then make a large profit on the book without looking back.

It seems incredibly unfair to the writer and in fact simply does not square with me when this happens. I work hard to help our writers be productive, learn great technique, and make money blogging. If I get more money, I share with them. Their hard work is our success story and we create a partnership with each writer to help them be all they can be and to receive fair compensation for what they do for us in a great work environment.

Based on this new query of book  use, I will be putting a clause in our letter of agreement that blog posts may not be used for books. Our writers simply must receive more compensation when a written piece is used in a professional arena such as a book or professional magazine.

One other big issue to consider for clients to just take blog posts and compile a book from them (one actually told us) is that we reserve the right to use the content we create for marketing and promotional purposes, as we see fit on our website. If a client takes blog post content and passes it off as their writing in a book, it is highly possible that on a Google search the same content will turn up on our website stating that we are the writer in our sample content section. For a high profile book this could be potentially embarrassing for an author.

It is by far better to be upfront with us,  negotiate fair payment for what you will using content for. This way you will not be hurting yourself or your reputation in the future if you are suddenly outed with not having written your own content for your own book. Just my thought for the day. you may agree or may not.

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Blogging on Toilets? Really?

Okay did you think you would ever read a blog on toilets or dual flushing kits? Well all types of businesses want and need blogs. With a great blog writer, you can take a difficult topic or product and create interesting content that will funnel readers into your website to find out more about your products.

Here’s a great example from another of our blog writers who has done just that – taken a dry or difficult topic and had some fun with it and made the blog interesting reading. You can view the blog at Dual Flush by SelectAFlush.

This writer has taken a perspective that the client’s product is something that every water conscious customer should install at home in their toilet. She has blogged on a variety of topics such as:

  1. Celebs’ Climb to Focus Attention on Water Crisis
  2. Where Does Your Trash Go?
  3. Water Woes Batter South Florida
  4. How Easy Is It to Install SelectAFlush Toilet Retrofit Kits?

Although this blog may not be one that is up on your watch daily list, it is an excellent example of how business of all types and sorts are using blogging to drive traffic to their website with unique, interesting, and well written content. If your business is like SelectAFlush, now may be the time for you to contact me to check this writer availability to write for your topic too.  With eight blog writers writing for McCord Web Services clients, we are sure to have a writer who is a good match for your needs too!