Companies that Blog

Are you judging my blog right now?

Posted Thursday, August 21, 2008 by Megan Glover

Seth Godin has a great blog post today: Who's telling you the truth about your online personal marketing?

His post makes a great point about the the trend in marketing these days which I relate to transparency. He writes that, "people are judging you", and isn't that the truth.

Blogs, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instant Message, etc... have all opened the door fainting the line between personal/professional life. So how does a marketer ensure the judgments of his or her employees don't hurt the reputation of the entire company?

Why not embrace and incorporate those mediums into your own marketing? You know your employees, particularly your Gen X'ers, are all tapped in and participating... why not embrace it and make your presence known too!

It's actually one of the reasons Compendium Blogware was founded. Chris (our CoFounder/CEO) noticed while at ExactTarget that many of his employees were blogging. And, blogging about the company - but Chris had was unable to leverage the blog content they were cracking out.

That's why Compendium is built for multiple bloggers and has an administrative layer which allows you manage the blogger's message as you see fit. So, companies and organizations can give their employees platforms to blog on and yet reap the marketing benefits such as SEO. Not only that, but you're providing a real-life voice to speak out on behalf of your organization which ultimately... humanizes your marketing.

The Worst Thing I Heard At Blog Indiana

Posted Wednesday, August 20, 2008 by Chris Baggott

So I was privileged to teach a session on Advanced Business Blogging at the recent Blog Indiana event in Indianapolis. I learned a lot and there were some really smart people with some really good ideas and advice for Blogging in general and Corporate Blogging specifically.

But there was a LOT of Bull S--- too. I'm not normally one to go negative but some of this stuff makes me so mad that smoke comes out of my ears.

Blog Indiana Bad Business Blogging Advice, Comment Monitoring

The experience has given me an idea for a whitepaper: "Top Ten Lies about Business Blogging" (once I calm down, I'll probably change the word Lies to Myths)

This person (who's name escapes me) was doing a session on Business Blogging as well. A woman asked about comments and explained that her CEO wouldn't let them start a company blog unless he could review and reject comments he didn't like.

The advice?? Basically, it's better not to do a blog at all if you are going to actively manage comments!

I was incredulous.   Of course a corporation has to monitor not only comments, but blog posts as well. There is a lot of responsibility and liability for anything that appears on your site...including your blogs.

If Blog Benefits = 100%   Comments in general represent < 10% of that benefit.

The reality is that most business blogs never get that many comments anyway. Comments should never be used as a primary gage of success.   Think about Traffic, Search Engine Optimization and Conversions. Those are the real metrics of blogging best practices.

So my surprise was this idea that if you are not 100% you shouldn't do anything at all was just bad advice.

Stay tuned...I've got another 9 to go :-)

Don't think "website in" think "search engine out".

Posted Tuesday, August 19, 2008 by Lindsey Young

In our CEO Chris Baggott's latest white paper, he quotes William Flaiz of Search Engine Watch:

"“People don't go to Web sites anymore. Web sites come to them. This is, perhaps, the best way to explain the impact of search on the online experience.”

I was experiencing how very true this is, just last night. You see my fiance and I are huge Purdue football fans. (I went to Ball State, but I've been adopted in) I was searching for some new gear for us this season, namely some hooded sweatshirts, jersey's, etc. as we go to all home games. What did I do? I Google'd it. I didn't know any of those companies, or their website url's. But by searching for what I wanted, I sure did find plenty of people wanting to help me find my Purdue gear!

This is exactly why so many people are coming to Compendium for help with their business blogging. They want to be found, and we get them found! If you haven't already read this white paper, I'd highly recommend it to any potential bloggers. Go to our website and check it out! Blog for your business!

Official Blogging Tournament Rules

Posted Tuesday, August 19, 2008 by Chantelle Flannery

The tournament began on August 11th and we are now moving into round two. Customers will compete to advance in a Compendium organized blogging tournament based on number of posts written by the client, week-by-week. The Blogging Tournament is designed to create some spirited competition amongst our customers in a battle of the ultimate team game—business blogging. You will be pitted randomly against another Compendium customer in the ultimate blogging championship.

Tournament Rules

You need do nothing to enter the tournament. To participate write blog posts as you normally would, or with a great deal more frequency to more effectively compete.
Winners in the tournament will advance from a field of over 100 on a weekly basis based on the amount of posts generated by each team.
If there is an equal number of posts between the two teams over the course of the week the previous week’s posts will be used to determine who will advance. We will review as many of the previous weeks as necessary in order to break the tie.
A week's worth of posts start on Monday and end on Sunday.
In order for a post to count it must be considered legitimate blog posts. This means that the post must be at least 5 sentences long and contain at least two keywords.
Remember that you’re writing on a corporate blog so talk about appropriate topics that relate to your industry and company.
Please note that sticky posts don’t count.

Tournament Prizes
The winner of the Championship earns a handsome trophy denoting blogging superiority and a bottle of Champaign. There will also be a $50 gas card for the account Administrator and a $50 gas card for the top blogger on the team. The other three final teams will receive a $50 gas card.

Tournament Contact Information
Please have fun with the tournament - use this as a tool internally to mobilize around content development. Keep an eye on Chantelle Flannery’s blog and the tournament bracket for updates.

Write content. Get found in search. Convert traffic. Demonstrate ROI. Crush the competition in business blogging, tournament style!

Ready, Set, Go!

Posted Friday, August 15, 2008 by Sarah Sedberry

Our implementation manager here at Compendium, Abby, has done an excellent job of graduating several clients this week and we are very excited to see what they can do.

Check out the newest Corporate blogs to Compendium's platform:

Data Recovery Specialists: A company that focuses on data recovery and computer forensics. Their success rate for data recovery is one of the highest in the industry and they offer extremely competitive rates for their services.

MediaTile:MediaTile is one of the very few companies in the world that provides a comprehensive, all-in-one digital signage platform that integrates an LCD HD display, media player, network access, and a web-based control system.

Roberts Distributors: Roberts focus is on Photo, Video, Electronics, and Imaging. They offer comprehensive classes as well as all the equipment needed to make you a pro!

We look forward to great content and although they were not able to get into this month's Blogging Tournament - Content for the Crown, I'm sure they will give the next round of competition a run for their money!

Search Engine Optimization spending increases

Posted Friday, August 15, 2008 by Eric Romer

A new survey from the Search Engine Marketing Professionals Organization (SEMPO) shows that both advertisers and agencies are ramping up their spending in Search Marketing, particularly organic SEO. This shouldn't be shocking news, as Search Marketing has steadily grown, and will continue to grow as less and less people use destination websites.

It's not rocket science. If I am looking for a particular brand of jeans, or a specific tea pot my mom was talking about, I search. I Google "cast iron asian tea pot", and start my research.

As the survey shows, advertisers are increasing their organic SEO by 28%, and agencies by 73% (the highest increase of all the categories!). So what does this mean? It means companies are trying to optimize a traditional website to be found on many different keywords. The only problem is a website will only be able to capture a handful of keywords. There are hundreds, thousands of different ways I can search for that tea pot. As a business who sells that product, I need to cast a wide net and be found on as many of those terms as possible.

Don't believe me? If you have 5 minutes, check out this Whitepaper that discusses how traditional SEO efforts pale in comparison to a corporate blogging solution when it comes to organic search.

But...how will I find the time?!

Posted Thursday, August 14, 2008 by Lindsey Young

Time is money. This statement just becomes more and more literal as families, businesses, and life get more demanding. Between juggling day to day duties of our positions within our companies, employers and employees alike are hesitate to add one more responsibility to the mix, such as blogging. A common misconception within the group of people I speak with is that investing in a corporate blog is going to eat up too much of their time. Erroneous! I like to negate this idea with the following information: the beauty of our compended blogs is that the responsibility is spread out among several people, the time needed to create a post is minimal...and here is the point I really want to stress to potential clients with the time constraint objection:

Each user should post 2-3 times per week
Approximately 250 word blog posts
Conversational in tone
10-15 minutes MAX to create

If you did the math there, that's about 30 minutes a week! Blogs shouldn't be rocket science, just engage your reader enough to take the next step. Finding relevant information through your company blog will point them in the right direction to becoming your client, customer, or consumer.

Your Biggest Problem Solved

Posted Thursday, August 14, 2008 by Ali Sales

I've been trying to find a new briefcase for work. My intent was to purchase a really nice one -- like Tumi quality because I keep buying cheapos that look nice and then fall apart in a few months. Except I didn't want a Tumi because...well, I just don't like their styles all that much.

So what did I do, given that I knew exactly what I wanted, just didn't know who to buy it from?

I searched. I typed in "best women's black leather briefcase." Talk about being a dream prospect. I used a lot of descriptive keywords to indicate exactly what I was looking for.

Okay, so of course you're wondering what my briefcase dilemma has to do with you.

Well, as a marketer, I'm guessing this is the biggest problem on your hands.

You want people to find you. You want people to find you online. And you want people who don't know a bit about your company or brand to be able to find you online.

What you may not realize is that starting a business blogging program can help you solve this problem. Taking it a step further, a blogging solution like Compendium Blogware will help you target hundreds or even thousands of terms that have something to do with your company.

Believe it or not, people are going online and looking for the products and services you provide every day. They aren't necessarily looking for your company, your website, or your company blogs, but they are asking for something you can help them with.

Yet how satisfied and happy would they be if they did their search, found a result titled exactly what they were looking for, and clicked through to find a blog featuring friendly, educational content generated by several people within your company, and a way to act upon exactly what they are looking for, whether if be making the purchase directly from the blog or just requesting more info?

I'll end this with 2 things:

1. A really relevant quote from William Flatz of Avenue A/Razorfish

“People don't go to Web sites anymore. Web sites come to them. This is, perhaps, the best way to explain the impact of search on the online experience.”

2. My briefcase outcome. After picking through countless websites for places like LeatherTree.com, I decided that I'd had enough and went straight to Target, where I spent $30 on a new briefcase. Sigh. Briefcase retailers, are you out there? It's time to start blogging.

The New Age of Recruiting

Posted Wednesday, August 13, 2008 by meghan peters

Many organizations are used to posting open positions or internships on their website, compiling submitted resumes and then weeding out for interviews. But what if this process was changed and all the work was done by the student and all the company had to do was show up for an interview? This may seem like a strange idea, but it's not so strange for those ambitious and creative college students. With hard times in the economy and job market, many college students are trying to find another way to land their first big position or internship.

This introduces you to the idea of informational interviews. Informational interviews are basically when a soon-to-be college grad does some research on a company they find interesting then contact a specific department to see if they can conduct an informational interview to get to know the company and positions they offer, and to sneak in some advice from someone who has been in the business for a while.

Now you are probably wondering how this pertains to blogs? In a recent blog post on MarketingSherpa by Anne Holland she found that the blogosphere is a great place for college grads to do some research on potential future employers. Not only does blogging boost your SEO but it also puts a human voice to your company, which helps students identify with your company a bit easier.

There are a lot of students that graduate from college every summer and companies want to be sure they get someone who is going to bring something to the table. So why not attract some bright stars? I'm sure you already have plenty of great reasons to implement Corporate Blogging, but I think you can add this to your list!

Blogging Tournament!

Posted Wednesday, August 13, 2008 by Sarah Sedberry

It is Tournament time here at Compendium Blogware. The quest "Content for the Crown" has officially begun!!

Content for the Crown

To see who you are up against, check out the tournament bracket.

Let your competitive spirit out and make sure you post! Click here to login and start writing content for your corporate blog now.

Also, we encourage healthy competition and banter. Feel free to post comments, as trash talking is allowed. Please do keep in mind that unsportsmanlike conduct is not condoned and could result in disqualification from the Tournament.

When it comes to witting content for the Blogging Tournament - One thing to remember is that content will be reviewed and all posts must be considered legitimate blog posts. This means that the post must be at least 5 sentences long and contain at least two keywords. Remember that your writing on a corporate blog so talk about appropriate topics that relate to your industry and company. (Please note that sticky posts don’t count.)

You can follow the blog tournament progress on Chantelle's blog.

Finding Time to Blog

Posted Wednesday, August 13, 2008 by Jim Hyslop

So I know that I have already blogged about this issue but it seems to come up a lot. In fact I just read a post by Shel Holtz where he also addresses the issue that I hear all the time, "my staff is already maxed...we just don't have time to blog" and it got me thinking again.

The truth is by saying you don't have time to blog you are really saying I don't have time to communicate. I know I would never hear the same answer in regard to email or phone calls. The idea of not communicating by phone would be unheard of! We need to re-tune our minds to look at the blog in this exact way....as another form of corporate communication with our clients and business prospects on a human level. The beauty of the blog is now our method of communication is serving multiple purposes. Engaging our prospects, optimizing your company in the search rankings, and turning visitors into customers by your ability to do both of the first two things. But to do so you need the tools that allow you to do this.You need to incorporate methods of advanced business blogging.

The real time issue with managing a corporate blog does not come from communicating...it comes from managing the blog for ROI. There is a lot of lifting that happens to leverage that communication for your maximum benefit. At the end of the day if your company uses the right blogging tools to do this for you, you will inevitably secure the many benefits of blogging you deserve while at the same time never allowing your clients and potential customers to rank below the number one spot on your lists of priorities.

Driving business comes from the ability to acquire new customers by communicating to them you have exactly what they need. So by saying you don't have time to blog you are really saying I don't have time to obtain new forms of revenue. From a business perspective that just doesn't make sense. Blog for SEO. Blog for engagement. Blog for ROI!!!!

Business growth = Good Stuff..........Happy Blogging!

What do Rafting and Blogging Have in Common?

Posted Friday, August 8, 2008 by Ali Sales

A lot if you're an employee at Compendium Blogware. A few weeks ago we took the entire company on a whitewater rafting trip to Pennsylvania. The event was planned by our very own Kaila Woodside, who was a whitewater rafting guide for several years in Ohiopyle. Not only is she a fantastic part of our sales organization, Kaila can steer you through a drop the size of Niagra Falls.

Okay, maybe it wasn't that bad, but as someone who's never rafted below, that's just about what it felt like for me.

What did the company get out of our whitewater rafting event? Of course we got team building, bonding, and all sorts of great stories (and pictures), but we also got a lot of great blogging content. And that content helps visitors that show up at our business blogs understand that yes, we are a company that provides blogging software, but we're also an organization full of smart, fun, and hard working individuals who aren't afraid to roll up our sleeves, dig in, and kick some butt.

A big part of any company blogging program -- regardless what industry you're in -- is showing your human side. That's why I'll leave you with this great picture of me and my raft mates on the Yougheny River!

Compendium Welcomes the Eugene Chamber of Commerce

Posted Friday, August 8, 2008 by Kristen Hanschu

Compendium Blogware is happy to announce that our newest client, Eugene Chamber of Commerce, is blogging. Not only are the blogging, but they are already seeing results! In just one month of posting content they have seen all but one of their keywords ranking in Google.

How have they accomplished this in such a short time? The answer is, and will always be, content. The way to get better rankings in the search engines is by adding updated and relevant content on a regular business.

Blogging for SEO is a growing business trend that companies are continuing to see the benefit of. Our blogging platform is easy to use and makes blogging fun. The Client Success Team at Compendium will help you get your blogs off the ground and provide you with continuing support for the life of your blog. We are here for questions, consulting, and getting your company the results that you are trying to achieve. What other blog software can say that? Well, none to be exact.

If you would like to view Eugene Chamber's Blog click here. Leave them a comment while you are at it!

Writing Content for the Blogging Tournament

Posted Friday, August 8, 2008 by Chantelle Flannery

The first round of the competition begins on Monday August 11th and ends on Sunday August 17th. Now is the time to begin motivating bloggers and planning out content for next week. For some great content development tips check out probloggers post on”24 things to do when stuck for a topic to blog about”.

Personally when I am stuck the when writing a blog post the first thing I do is start reading industry newsletters. I probably receive at least 10 new industry emails a day and subscribe to at least 20 RSS feeds that I read on a regular basis. When you're stuck what do you do?

When it comes to witting content for the Blogging Tournament -
One thing to remember is that content will be reviewed and all posts must be considered legitimate blog posts. This means that the post must be at least 5 sentences long and contain at least two keywords. Remember that your writing on a corporate blog so talk about appropriate topics that relate to your industry and company. Please note that sticky posts don’t count.

Start adding posts to your corporate blog today!

Content for the Crown Announcement

Posted Friday, August 8, 2008 by Chantelle Flannery

A field of over 100 companies will be participating in this falls Blogging Tournament – Content for the Crown. The companies will face off in a single elimination bracket over the course of the next 7 weeks. At the end of each week the total number of posts for each company will be compared and the team with the most posts will advance to the next round. Tie breaks will be broken by comparing the previous weeks post totals - going back as far a necessary in order to break the tie.

To find out whom you have to compete with check out the tournament bracket.

The first round of the tournament begins on Monday August 11th and lasts through the 17th of August.

Corporate Team Building

Posted Thursday, August 7, 2008 by Kaila Woodside

A few weeks back Compendium took a weekend to do a little team building - via white water rafting. The trip was amazing and everyone came back with a new energy and feeling of real camaraderie. Wilderness Voyaguers, my rafting company of choice in Ohiopyle is actually one of Compendium's clients. So as opposed to blogging immediately after our trip on our blog - I made a guest post on the WV blog. You can check it out here.

Wilderness Voyaguers has taken to blogging for search and they keep their blog updated with fun happenings in Ohiopyle as well as infromation on the trips they offer. Following blogging best practices with the help of their Client Success Manager, Sarah Sedberry- they will surely be one of our next top corporate bloggers.

Google ramping up YouTube ads

Posted Thursday, August 7, 2008 by Eric Romer

I came across an blog post from Saul Hansell in the New York Times' Bits blog that highlights what most of us regular YouTube users have noticed lately: an increase in ad-supported videos.

The author points out that the ads are more reminiscent of "the gaudiness of MySpace than the sterility of Google," and describes how the Kings of Search are trying to get a return on their $1.65 billion investment when they purchased YouTube last year.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of behavioral targeting when done properly, and not intrusively like Facebook's Beacon nightmare. For example, the image above has a text ad in the top right corner for Obama's book, which is probably relevant to a person watching a video about the man. But, like Saul said, it's a little harder to justify "enhancing user experience" with a Nissan ad that pops up on the bottom.

As online video grows (which it will), I'm sure this model will be tweaked and improved. However, right now, it's very much a "shouting" method of marketing. The first time an ad has no relevance to me, I stop paying attention. This only needs to happen once or twice (Myspace is a prime example), and then I tune out.

For businesses trying to reach their target audience, corporate blogging software allows you to create very relevant, personal content for those in the market to buy. The best "behavioral targeting" is to deliver highly relevant, recent information to those seeking it. As the digital shift continues, every organization will have a company blog in the next 3-5 years.

Startup Weekend - Indianapolis Sept 12-14

Posted Tuesday, August 5, 2008 by Eric Romer

Through an interaction with a potential client today, I was introduced to an intriguing event: Startup Weekend. The basic premise is a group of highly motivated developers, marketers, entrepreneurs, and business-minded people gather for a weekend to pump out ideas for companies and projects - and they actually develop them from start to finish. Wow.

This immediately made me think about the 48 Hour Film Project which was recently in Indianapolis. I've had a couple of friends who've participated in the past years, and I always thought, "what a cool concept!" You have a set period of time to start from scratch, and end up with a finished film project. Well, now there's something similar for those with entrepreneurial minds (by the way, I just spelled entrepreneurial without the red-underlined AutoCorrect feature popping up - I was very proud of that)

So, this is event is coming to Indianapolis September 12-14, and I'm planning to participate. It's been an incredible experience transitioning from a global corporation with thousands of employees to working for a small startup software company of 25 people. And I love it. The startup atmosphere is contagious, and our blogging software company in Indianapolis is no exception. Being on the front lines of an ever-evolving and rapidly growing company is like nothing I've experienced before.

I encourage you to check out the event if you have an interest in this type of thing. If it sounds boring, check out GiggleSeed, one of the companies born from Startup Weekend Columbus.

Monon Coffee Company

Posted Tuesday, August 5, 2008 by Sarah Sedberry

On a day to day basis here at Compendium Blogware, I spend a lot of time with clients, working with them on template creation, content development for their individual blogs, question and answer periods, going over blogging metrics, etc.

Last week I had the pleasure of meeting with one of our original clients, Monon Coffee Company.

The Monon Coffee Company is located in Broad Ripple, IN, right off of Westfield Blvd. They are the ideal (non-commercial) coffee shop, offering a relaxing, inviting, and warm atmosphere. The barista's greet you when you walk in the door, there is ample comfortable seating - including stools right at the counter so that you can interact with the employees. They also feature artists often so stop by frequently to see whats new on display. For the technology obsessed, like myself, they do offer free wifi.

I was impressed with William Powell, who is the owner, as well as, the author of their company blog. He greeted every customer and took the time to chat with them. He remembered every one of them, along with what was going on in their lives. If you are looking for your modern day "Cheers" look no further. Monon Coffee Company is the place you need to go.

While I was there, it was a hard choice to decide on what to have. They offer everything from snacks, to treats, to smoothies, to (of course) coffee. I was persuaded by John to try the daily special - The Zebra Mint Mocha. A blend of crushed peppermint, white and dark mocha flavoring, milk, and coffee. I had mine iced and it was just the right accent to go with the sunny afternoon.

When you get a chance, stop by and say hello to William and the gang. Let them know if you've checked out their company blog, which you can do so here.

Welcome aboard Bauer 360!

Posted Monday, August 4, 2008 by Sarah Sedberry

Our latest client to graduate from Implementation and Training with Abby is Bauer 360.

Bauer 360 specializes in Consulting, Training and Research pertaining to Internet Marketing and Web Production needs of a company. They offer a wide range of services including Web Development, E-Mail Marketing, E-Newsletters, Cell Phone Marketing, Digital Video Production, Search Engine Optimization, Social Networking, Pay Per Click and Banner Ads. They will work with your business to build an E-plan, so that you are prepared and ready for success.

Compendium Blogware and Bauer 360 have similar goals in mind as we are both committed to listen to your desires, educating our clients on processes and metrics, creating and incorporate your goals in order for the customers to see increased productivity, drive down costs, and see improved results on ROI.

I look forward to working with Ross and the gang at Bauer 360. Check them out here, as they are already on the ball and are up and posting!

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