Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Powerful Nonprofit Blogging via The Corporate Blogging Book

Whenever I'm diving into something new, I like to have some guidance on hand. Whether I cobble that together from several online sources (of course, I have to know which ones are reliable), a peer or workshop, or a handbook, I just need that guidance. Guidance seems to be a basic human need for most folks.

So if your nonprofit is blogging, or going to blog, (and you should be), I urge you to plunge into Debbie Weil's just-published guide to organizational blogging, The Corporate Blogging Book.

Debbie is my guru on many things online, and a truly original thinker in terms of blogging. Here's what I like about The Corporate Blogging Book:

  • Covers all core topics relevant to launching, and maintaining, an organizational blog.

So this guide, along with Getting Attention's nonprofit-specific blogging tips, is all you need to get blogging.

  • Stays accessible, and relevant to, bloggers-to-be, nonprofit leadership, and experienced bloggers alike.

I don't know how she does it but Debbie writes and organizes content so that it's universally accessible. She starts by answering the top 20 questions about corporate blogging, and digs in from there. The reader can go as deep, or stay as shallow, as she likes.

  • Addresses the oh-so-daunting fear of blogging that keeps too many nonprofits away.

Fear of blogging (takes too much time is the greatest fear) is the barrier to entry I hear from nonprofits time and time again. Debbie confronts fear straight on, acknowledging its frequency and providing clear, practical guidelines on how to avert whatever your nonprofit fears most.

Her anti-fear strategies include interviewing peer nonprofits that are blogging before you start, and drafting comprehensive organizational blogging guidelines.

  • Outlines how blogs can benefit your organization, and how you can measure their impact.

ROI, ROI, ROI. That's all I've heard for the last few years as the framework for blog impact. Now Debbie suggests that ROB (return on blog) is what you're looking for, and demonstrates what that'll do for your nonprofit.

By the way, the ROB your nonprofit should focus on is continued conversations with your target audiences. Remember, its conversing with the right audiences, not the sheer volume of traffic, that matters.

  • Guides you through blog implementation, which is a frequent stumbling point once nonprofits decide to blog.

Debbie's coverage includes:

    • Top ten blog writing tips.
    • How to find the right blogging tools and technology that are right for your nonprofit.
    • Selling your leadership on blogging.

  • Provides corporate blogging models – at both Fortune 500 and small-business level, that serve as real-life inspiration (and proof) of how blogging will benefit your nonprofit.

The Corporate Blogging Book, paired with the nonprofit-specific blogging guidance I provide in the Getting Attention blog and e-newsletter (links below), will take your nonprofit to blogging success.

Move forward. Order Weil's guidebook today:
http://tinyurl.com/hofml

About the Author:
Nancy E. Schwartz helps nonprofits succeed through effective marketing and communications.
Subscribe to her free e-newsletter "Getting Attention," at http://www.nancyschwartz.com/getting_attention.html and read her blog at http://www.gettingattention.org for more insights, ideas and great tips on attracting the attention your organization deserves.
Article Submitted On: September 16, 2006
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

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