Here are a couple of PDFs that would be good to download.

The first is a free guide called Writing for the Web - In Technicolor, published by BusinessLogs.com. It is a primer for blog writing.

The other is a Corporate Blogging Primer that covers the following:

• Corporate Blog - A Definition
• The Nature of Blogs
• Reasons for Corporate Blogging
• Six Types of Corporate Blogs
• 14 Steps to Your Business Blog
• What Corporate Bloggers Say

It's published by Fredrik Wackå, of the Corporate Blogging blog.

Both resources are free and well-worth your time.

When it all comes down to it, from a technical standpoint a blog is really just an easy-to-use content management system. There are certainly other options on that front, though most not as robust as a blog in terms of the features it offers, such as archiving by date and category, or reverse chronology posting that is timestamped.

However, there is another aspect to blogging that really makes it the unique marvel it has become. This has to do with style, the way blogs are written. And that's really what I want to talk about in this post.

Blogging from a technical standpoint could be used for any kind of information updates, whether it be press releases, product updates, news, or more personal commentary. I mean, let's face it, the application doesn't care what kind of content is put into its form fields. It's going to do what it does regardless.

In my estimation the thing that differentiates a blog from any other form of content publishing is the style in which a blog post is written. Blogs beg to be written in an informal, punchy, and shall we say "authentic" voice, what Doc Searls calls an email to everyone. Blogs need to reflect the passions, bias, thoughts and judgments of the writer. They need to have heart as well as substance.

But, even that does not fully convey the power of blogs. We have to go back to the technology side to complete the picture. Blogging technology provides an ability to do something no other content management medium does -- stimulate conversation.

Comment and trackback components available on most blogging platforms enable others to respond to the post and link to it from their blogs in such a way that the link is referenced on your site. One can literally track the progression of a thought (a meme) from its source across the web. Add to that the ability to syndicate content through RSS, and you have an all-in-one tool to promote your business.

If you simply need a content management system to keep your website updated, I recommend blog technology. It does a great job! However, if you really want to tap into the "power of the blog" begin to talk about your passions as related to your business. See it's potential as a marketing and PR tool that can engage customers and prospects in a way no other online format can.

There is a reason blogging is taking the online world by storm. Maybe you should investigate its potential to help your small business grow.

Be sure and attend BlogWrite, a teleseminar on how to write a business blog, featuring Debbie Weil and Don K. Crowther.

The date is Wednesday, Oct. 20, from 1 - 2:15 PM EST.

If you've stayed awake at night wondering who should write your business blog, what you should write about, and how often, wonder no more! You can put the "counting sheep" out to pasture! You're questions will be answered!

Here are the key points to be covered:

- do you need to write your blog yourself?

- should it be edited?

- what writing style or voice is appropriate?

- what topics will most engage your audience?

- how will you measure the return on your blogging efforts?

- how does a blog fit in with an e-newsletter?

And, in the event, they don't cover a question you have, there will be time for participants' questions.

The cost for the teleseminar ranges from $79 to $89 depending on how much stuff you want to get with it (MP3 audio, CD, transcript, etc.).

Recently, I bought a 1991 Mazda Miata convertible. It's red too. While some have accused me of having a mid-life crisis, the real reason I got it was because my old car was wearing out (falling apart if the truth be told) and I needed something to replace it. A co-worker had this one for sale, sooooo I bought it and got a good deal!

I'm having a lot of fun with it. I can dart in and out of traffic, park in ridiculously small parking spaces, get good gas milage in spite of how I drive, and travel at speeds that guarantee a traffic ticket if I'm ever caught! The car reminds me of a fighter plane -- quick, agile, and very manuverable.

Blogs are like that!

Click to read more ...

Amy Gahran has done a series of posts on what she sees as seven basic formats for blog postings. Each serves a different purpose for bloggers and their readers. Amy says, "The format of a blog posting, if chosen consciously and carefully, enhances communication."

I guess this post qualifies as the "link-blurb" type. :)

This post should fall under the category of "Advice I Need to Take." It's from a post by Paul Boutin, writer for Slate, Wired, The New York Times, Reader's Digest, Condé Nast, and more. He says. . .

"[A]lways think about what headline would make a reader click on an entry as opposed to passing it by. Usually it's a matter of making clear what the entry is about, and what the relevant new info or commentary in the post is."

It's that "think" part that always gets me! :-) Couple Mr. Boutin's idea with a focus on what keywords can be included in the headline that would attract search engines.

Here's the second in my TUP (Totally Utilitarian Post) series. . .

Writing for the web is different than writing for print. People don't read online, they scan. Here's a very practical article from Affiliate-Net.net to help you get the hang of it.

Mark Twain said it best. "If I would have had more time, I would have written you a shorter letter." So says an excellent article on the subject of writing effective Google Adwords ads. To get it right those tiny ads have to be tightly focused and contain the appropriate keywords. Oh, and because I'm in a generous mood, here's an article by Michael Wong that speaks equally well to the subject.

As a avid blogger, I pondered the notion of whether ghostwriting for business or corporate blogs could be a career path. I posed the question to two people: MarketingSherpa's Anne Holland, and About.com's weblog guide Shai Coggins. Here's some of the feedback I got from them. . .

Anne: I think there may be a career in ghosting blogs for C-level execs (and others) just as there is a flourishing ghostwriting industry for books and columns now. However, you'll never get a byline out of it. :-)

Shai: [I]t can happen. And, I believe that there are two ways you can become a professional blogger:

1) Wait for advertised blogging jobs (such as those listed at Biz Stone's web log). The problem with this? You'll most likely get plenty of competition. With this in mind, there's suggestion #2.

2) Prepare to pitch a company or organization on why they should start a blog. Then, get them to hire you as a blogger. Or at least, a blogging consultant. It may be a long shot. But, hey, who knows what can happen if you try, right?

Read the rest of Shai's comments in a post she did on the subject.

Blogger and author Biz Stone even has a blog listing blog writing jobs. Let's put it this way, it ain't Monster.com yet! Speaking of Monster.com, a job search on the keywords weblog and blog returned three results. The same keywords on CareerBuilder.com returned no results.

Suffice it to say, blogging as a career path is still on the horizon. But, as the medium matures and becomes more mainstream, expect to see a variety of blogging jobs come available, including ghostwriting.

If you're like me, you too might have missed school the day they taught spelling. That's why I'm greatful grateful for an indispensable resource, the Dictionary.com Toolbar. When you're "waxing eloquent" and come up with a word that you're not exactly sure how to spell, Dictionary.com will even suggest words for you. (I'm sure there is some techie term for that kind of intelligence, but I don't know what it is.)

So, make room on your already overcrowed browser for one more toolbar. Oh, and it comes with an onboard thesaurus as well. (By the way, I used it in preparing this post, for the word "indispensable.")