Content workshop

transcript

Institute for Shipboard Education – Content Workshop

“Today I am convinced that the only thing that saved those 1,268 people in my hotel was words. Not the liquor, not money, not the UN. Just ordinary words directed against the darkness.” - Paul Rusesabagina, An Ordinary Man

What’s A Blog?(And does the world need another one?)

“A regularly updated website wherein texts or articles of one or more authors are shown in a reverse-chronological order, meaning the first one is the latest one. Authors reserve the right to post works they consider pertinent.”

- MasterBase, Delivering eMarketing Results

Yes. The (Study Abroad) World Needs This Blog.

•So we can demonstrate our expertise in the field

•So we can demonstrate our expertise in the field•So people can find answers when they are looking

How Much Do Blogs Affect Your Purchase Decisions?

Research by Dan Zarrella of Hubspot, Inc.

5%They Don’t

20%Very Little

60%Somewhat

15%Very Much

75%Influenced by blogs

We’re writing to them.

16,465 Facebook fans

A Little Social Math

3,230 Twitter followers

16,465 Facebook fans•Average person has 130 friends on Facebook

3,230 Twitter followers•Average person has 126 followers

16,465 Facebook fans•Average person has 130 friends on Facebook•Potential for 1,870,700 impressions

3,230 Twitter followers•Average person has 126 followers•Potential for 332,640 impressions

• 2,550,430 potential impressions per post

• 75% = 1,912,823

• 75% = 1,912,823• That would fill the

ship a few times

But Why Are We Here Today?

“When we plan for the time to do content right, we can actually produce quality content that’s meaningful to our audiences. For any organization, that would be an immediate online competitive advantage.”

- Kristina Halvorson, Content Strategy for the Web

What makes for a good blog?

What makes for a good blog?•You remember what you read for more than five minutes

What makes for a good blog?•You remember what you read for more than 5 minutes•It makes a lasting impression

What makes for a good blog?•You remember what you read for more than five minutes•It makes a lasting impression•It engages your imagination or emotions

What makes for a good blog?•You remember what you read for more than five minutes•It makes a lasting impression•It engages your imagination or emotions•Information wrapped in stories

“How do we do that?”

By giving them what they want

“Web content is worthless unless it supports a key business objective or a customer in completing a task.”- Kristina Halvorson, Content Strategy for the Web

So how do we know what they want?

• Facebook fans ask a lot of questions

• Facebook fans ask a lot of questions• People ask Google a lot of questions

Make their choices easy

Make their choices easy•People looking for answers, not our blog

Make their choices easy•People looking for answers, not our blog•Use keywords in headlines

Make their choices easy•People looking for answers, not our blog•Use keywords in headlines•Use descriptive text in a post

Use Words That Smell Good

Information Scent TheoryPeople hunt for words like hounds seek foxes and bees seek pollen.

Keyword Time

Write “Visually”

How To Write Visually

How To Write Visually•Shorter sentences & paragraphs

How To Write Visually•Shorter sentences & paragraphs•Show don’t tell

How To Write Visually•Shorter sentences & paragraphs•Show don’t tell•Emphasis on grammar & spelling

How To Write Visually•Shorter sentences & paragraphs•Show don’t tell•Emphasis on grammar & spelling•Use headings & subheadings

How To Write Visually•Shorter sentences & paragraphs•Show don’t tell•Emphasis on grammar & spelling•Use headings & subheadings•Use icons or pictures relevant to subject

How To Write Visually•Shorter sentences & paragraphs•Show don’t tell•Emphasis on grammar & spelling•Use headings & subheadings•Use icons or pictures relevant to subject•Use lists; not paragraphs hiding lists

The Center for K-12 Education develops and delivers post-service programs for teachers and school administrators. Working closely with the Curry School of Education, TEMPO Reading Outreach, Mathematics Outreach, and the Virginia Department of Educaiton, the center provides a broad range of programming offered through our regional academic centers or on-site at school divisions around Virginia. These include courses, conferences, degree programs, endorsements, licensure programs, and workshops.

How To Write Visually•Shorter sentences & paragraphs•Show don’t tell•Emphasis on grammar & spelling•Use headings & subheadings•Use icons or pictures relevant to subject•Use lists; not paragraphs hiding lists

The Center for K-12 Education develops and delivers post-service programs for teachers and school administrators.

Education Partners include:•The Curry School of Education•TEMPO Reading Outreach•Mathematics Outreach•Virginia Department of Education

The center provides a broad range of programming at regional academic centers or on-site school divisions.

Programming includes:•Courses•Conferences•Degree programs•Endorsements•Licensure programs•Workshops.

Be Memorable

Have A Different Perspective

Use Stories To Explain Scenarios

Be Conversational

Your Chance to Win!

We say it all the time:•EVERYONE here is critical to the successful operation of the Institute

•Remember this, it’s going to be very important in about 2 seconds

The ISE Voyages Blog Launch Contest•May 2-6, 2011

•Teams divided up by department, so everyone’s efforts matter

How the contest works:

How the contest works:•EVERYONE writes 5 complete* blog posts about your role here at ISE & submits them to me by 1PM each day

•EVERYONE promotes your department’s posts each day using the links & updates I’ll provide (all you’ll have to do is cut & paste)

•The department with the highest percentage of participation for the week wins

•If one or more departments tie – the winner will be determined by the amount of traffic you drive to the blog

*A COMPLETE BLOG POST

Image: (feel free to snap your own or search creative commons on flickr)

Title: Body:

Description: (a couple of relevant sentences with keywords that describe your post) Keywords/Tags: (list the keywords/phrases that someone might be searching for that would return your post on Google)

Tips on starting. And finishing.

What do I write about?:•That list of keywords you jotted down should provide a bunch of jump off points

How long do these have to be?:•Not long. No more than 500 words, but don’t feel like they all even have to be that long. Just complete a thought.•If you go longer than 500 words, you’ve probably got 2 posts. Lucky you!

Start now:•Write them all at once. But don’t send them to me all at once. On Friday. At 4:30.•Don’t worry about your writing (maybe just a little), just write. Revise before you send.

You better make this worth my while, Perks!

Your Reward

Your Reward•The winning department gets lunch together at the Boars Head

Content workshop

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