Tag: Blogs

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Why Blogging Still Matters

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McCord Web Services is a Google Partner.

In this every changing world of the Web, it seems as if blogging has fallen out of favor with clients. But why would that be, and are customers wrong for stopping blogging.

It is important to cater to your audience in your web marketing approaches and each customer has different needs, but blogging feeds search engines. This makes blogging more than a social outreach like Facebook or Twitter, it should be an integral part of every business’ marketing push.

Here’s what blogging does for building website exposure:

1. Blogging with a WordPress blog installed on your website’s domain adds page content that Google and Bing count as if each blog post was a new page in your own website.

2. With 250 to 350 word posts you can build keyword density on one topic. Craft a title as a question and you could appear in the top ten search results for Google based on that query.

3. Blog posts will be indexed by Google and will appear separately in the search results allowing for additional ways for readers and potential prospects to self-discover your content, website, and services.

4. For people on your website already, blogging allows you to build authoritative content that keeps a reader on your site longer. If the content is helpful, well written and unique the reader may spend more time reading more than one blog post, and may even share your content back on their own blog or in social media.

I think business owners get confused thinking that blogging is social media, but it is much more than that. It is a link building tool, builds keyword density for your domain, and enhances the user experience. It is a much more productive medium than Facebook, Twitter or Google+.

Want to find out more about blogging? I invite you to check out our pricing and read sample blog posts before you sign up for our affordable blog writing services.

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Blog Writer’s Guide to Image Use – Prevent Copyright Infringement

Wow, I love this app!
Update your image use protocol.

As a quality blog writing service provider, my firm has developed some best practices over the years in regards to image use and preventing copyright infringement. I wanted to share a few with you in today’s blog post.

1. Use images in your blog posts. It used to be that just text was fine for a well-written blog post. But, in our very visual world of the web, without an image, your blog post looks dull and may not get the traction it needs to be shared. At McCord Web Services, we use only images that we have taken ourselves or images that we buy for one time use from DepositPhotos.com or iStockPhotos.com.

2. Make sure you and your staff adhere to the principle of leaving the purchased source in the image name. This way if you go to select an image to reuse from your WordPress media gallery if you see iStockPhotos or DepositPhotos in the file name, you know to buy a second license or not use it. Never, ever reuse a one time use photo thinking that just because it is in your WordPress blog media gallery you have full use rights. You do not!

3. Review your image use program with all staff. It does your firm no good if you know the image use rules, but your office staff who may do a blog post at some point in time does not!

4. Get in the habit of taking your own clip art photos. Why buy and image of a smartphone to use for your blog post when you can take a pic of your own and use it royalty free anytime you want? Typically, I will put MWS (McCord Web Services) in front of the file name of any pictures I take so that I know and my staff knows we own these image rights and can use them however and whenever we want for all our clients.

5. If you provide professional services like we do for blog clients, make sure your client knows the rules and you are indemnified from a future lawsuit from a client using one time use images that you may have purchased by putting it in your contract. We do.

If you need blog writing services make sure to check us out first.

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Blogging: Have It Your Way!

Man having an idea!
Blog writing, get it your way!

Don’t like to write your own blogs, but don’t want to pay a lot for your content either? Are freelance posting sites too hard to manage? Do you simply need better quality and a real person to talk to for a strategy?

Welcome to McCord Web Services! We have a blog writing program that allows you to build a project your way.

1. Select from four different word count ranges.

2. Choose your weekly frequency. There is no price penalty if you only want one post a week. Ask us if you need a lesser frequency.

3. Decide if you want the blog post installed for you in WordPress for $5 a post or you want to save money and get the posts for your own use as a Word document.

4. Do you want to save money and add your own blog post image? Go ahead. Or if you want turnkey service for $7 we’ll buy a one-time use image from iStockPhoto or DepositPhoto and install it for you.

You build your own program based on your needs and your budget. Find out more about this business-friendly blog writing program and read content samples today.

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Why You May Want to Consider Using Tumblr

Screen shot of my Tumblr page.
Follow me as “Just Nancy” on Tumblr.

When I drive a long distance with my high school senior kids in the car, it gives me time to ask what is trending and is hot with their friends. I’ve found that what happens with their generation is a very good indicator as to where businesses should be looking to build for the future. Temper that with a review with my older kid who is 25 and I get a great viewpoint of how businesses should be embracing certain new technologies and avoiding other ones that may be becoming passé.

In my most recent drive Tumblr came up several times with my kids, so I checked it out. You can view my own Tumblr page here at http://nancymccord.tumblr.com/. I call mine “Just Nancy” as it is a place for now for me to share just about anything.

This is what I have found using Tumblr and why you may want to consider using it.

1. It is actually incredibly simple to set up and actually fun to use.

2. It has a very nice smartphone integration that allows you to post photos, quick quotes, and just about anything on the go.

3. The desktop interface is cool, user-intuitive, and the smartphone app simple.

4. I love the ability to add multi-media and text simply.

5. It feels like there will be a more visual and different demographic on this platform and so may be a more energized platform than a blog for a business.

6. From my own initial testing to me this seems like this may be the place where you can merge all your online enterprises into one cohesive message.

It remains to be seen how I will use Tumblr for business, but for now, I am having plenty of fun checking it out.