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>> PUBLISHER'S NOTE: Part I of a WordBiz Blogging Primer
By Debbie Weil

Blogging has arrived. Heck, it's the next new thing for marketers. Stick with me while I explain... Email marketing is not dead yet. But it may lose its status as the "killer app" of online marketing. Why? spam is overwhelming inboxes; filters are blocking email delivery; privacy is a growing concern; information-saturated readers are, well, just that.

Blogging is an alternative way to deliver - in small doses - timely, relevant content to your target audience. In simplest terms, a Web log (hence blog) is a Web page to which you continuously post chunks of useful and/or interesting information.

But how does it work? How do you create a blog? How does your audience find and "subscribe" to your blog?

I'll show you! Come along with me in real time as I report LIVE from Boston where I'm attending ClickZ's Weblog Business Strategies conference (June 9 - 10, 2003).

Publisher, WordBiz Report
+1 202.333.2022 land

P.S. Look for Part II of the WordBiz Blogging Primer in the next issue (June 25th). CLICK HERE to contact me immediately if you want to advertise in this special issue. (WBR now has over 12,350 + readers.)

P.P.S. We've got two new advertisers in this issue. 10 Quick Steps to Stopping Pop-Up Ads is a nifty little e-book (and well-priced!). e-Marketer's daily e-newsletter is a quick read and always informative. Each issue includes one of their cool graphs.

If the term HTML (hypertext markup language) rolls off your tongue, you can handle any of these. And even if it doesn't.

Thanks to Derek Scruggs for helping me craft these plain-English definitions. If you want to add your two cents on how to explain these terms to the non-techie marketer, drop me a line.

Blog or Weblog

Just what it sounds like. A Web-based log or journal that is time-stamped and can be updated anytime. You can publish a blog. You can also "subscribe" to a blog and get updates each time new content is published.

Originally used as a self-publishing platform for individuals, blogs are now being used by corporations to showcase the voices of knowledgeable employees. Think of it as continuous stream marketing in a human, non-corporate voice.

Straightforward definition of a blog

Example of a business or marketing blog (3M's Everything Post-It Notes© blog)

XML

XML stands for Extensible Markup Language. Grossly simplified, it allows computers to exchange data intelligently. It's behind what people call "dynamic Web pages."

Good explanation of XML

RSS

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary (no one agrees on this). It's a code, just like HTML, that enables Web content syndication or, if this makes more sense to you, data exchange between Web pages. RSS is a subset of XML. RSS files underly every blog. RSS files are commonly called "feeds."

Help! What's this RSS Thing?


News Aggregator

A news aggregator is an application you download to your computer that enables you to subscribe to syndicated news feeds or Weblogs. These are in the form of RSS files. You can subscribe to as many as you want.

News Aggregators explained by blogging expert Dave Winer ("Weblogs are for writing; aggregators are for reading.")

NewsGator (free download) I recommend this one. It runs seamlessly with Outlook. The site has lots of screenshots that explain the concept to the uninitiated.

Derek Scruggs is a long-time expert on online marketing who's got a techie bent. He can talk knowledgeably about RSS and XML and other mysterious sounding terms that relate to blogging. I asked him to write up - in plain English, please - a short explanation of what blogs are and what they mean to marketers.

He starts off by asking you to "close your eyes" and imagine a world where visitors to your site can sign up for your e-newsletter... in one click... without giving you their email address. Intrigued? Find out more...

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Have you noticed that the mainstream press has picked up on blogging in the past few weeks and months? Here is a short list of useful articles. Look for more resources in Part II of this Special Issue on June 25th. I'll include a list of business blogs I recommend.

Recent articles about blogging (in plain English)

Adapting Blog Technologies to Corporate Newsletters [MarketingProfs May 20, 2003. You have to register to read this; it's free.]

Blogging for dollars [May 2003 issue of Inc.com]

Corporate Blogs Make Personal Connection [BtoB Magazine, April 14, 2003]

B-Blogs Cause a Stir [ClickZ, Feb. 5, 2003]

What Makes a Weblog a Weblog This article, part of a blog, is a little techier. It's written by blogging expert Dave Winer who's now a blogger in residence at Harvard Law School. How mainstream can you get? [May 23, 2003]