Blogging
What’s a blog?
• This is a regularly updated website or web
page, typically one run by an individual or
small group that is written in an informal or
conversational style.
What is the format?
There isn’t one – it’s an informal communication
medium. However, there are common factors:
- Date
- Heading
- Text in paragraphs
Quick investigation
• Let’s look at a few blogs to see if we
can find other features to make blogs
look more authentic and
professional.
Deloitte Digital
Topics
Code Conference 2015
All (109)
July 8th, 2015 by Hadi Michael, Andrew Plummer &
Around the Office (6)
June Chuang
Awards (3)
Centre for the Edge (15)
Code is one of the most exciting technical events of the Design (20)
year, bringing together world-leading JavaScript and
QA and Engineering (8)
web professionals. The event is produced by Web
Strategy (49)
Directions and curated by John Allsopp. This year’s
People (49)
event covered a range of hot topics which explored the Research (51)
current and future state of the web as a platform.
Social (39)
Mobile (23)
Read more
User Experience (14)
Web (32)
Formatting ideas
Credit the writer / writers
Underline key words and links
Use a “Read More” tag
Use columns
Include a topic list
Body of the text
Code is one of the most exciting technical events of the year, bringing together worldleading JavaScript and web professionals. The event is produced by Web Directions
and curated by John Allsopp. This year’s event covered a range of hot topics which
explored the current and future state of the web as a platform.
Talks examined topics such as Web Animations, Front End Ops, Service Workers,
Streams API, HTTP/2, ES2015 and much more. This post covers some of our favourite
talks from the conference.
Hadi Michael on HTTP/2
[ > identifies the writer]
Mark Nottingham is currently Chair of the IETF HTTP Working Group and has been
closely involved in the development of HTTP/2. His talk not only introduced the
protocol, but also conveyed some best practices that will fundamentally challenge the
way we build web applications today.
In summary, HTTP/2 offers a fully multiplex binary protocol, with header compression
and server push. This means that we will see improved network utilisation, as only one
connection will be established per origin and browsers need to do less work to figure
out when/where to send requests. It also enables servers to put responses in the
browser’s cache, before the browser knows it requires that resource.
Pictures can be effective
Sarah Mitchell
Sarah Mitchell
Head of Content Strategy at Lush Digital Media
Follow
Referencing?
Normal referencing rules still apply
A blog can be informal but the writer still needs to
acknowledge her sources.
Bona fide thought leader
In a business universe where many people call themselves mavens and
gurus, Nguyen is a bona fide game changer, always ready to provide
well-considered views and lead debate on trends and issues relating to
the social media and marketing landscape. His work on virtual
leadership has changed the game for many, especially his novel views
on global conferencing (Nguyen 2012).
How informal is informal?
• If you want to be taken seriously as a business
blogger, don’t make your diction too informal –
“Hey, wassup dudes? D’ya dig the bizness world,
bros and sisters? I dig it too, mos’ def, so here’s
the deal – listen up, you money chasing freako!”
This style won’t impress many business people and
it isn’t going to get you marks in your assignments.
So what can you say?
Blog style
You can use “I” a fair deal because your viewpoint is an integral
part of a blog. (In essays, the word “I” seldom appears.)
You can use casual speech like, “I reckon”, “That’s fine”, “It’s a
fantastic perspective”, “That argument’s a bit off-beam”, “What
she argues is OK”
Colloquial language (“OK”), emotive language (“fantastic”) and
contractions (“that’s”) may be acceptable, even in an academic
context.
Remember, though, that your blog assignments are “pretend”
ones, not real ones, so it might be better if you keep things semiformal and do not overplay the informal approach.
Finally …
As always, answer the question that you have
been given. Keep that question in view the
whole way through and address it constantly.
If you make a genuine and solid attempt to
answer the question, and you keep to the
format, you will always pass.
Some reputedly good Aussie blogs
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1. Global Copywriting
Sarah Mitchell’s blog was originally set up as a way to support her company, but Global Copywriting has
transformed into something much more valuable. Regular updates on the nature of copywriting and how to
improve your own marketing efforts make it worth visiting often. The occasional guest contributor helps keep the
content fresh.
2. CP Communications
Public relations and social media is an area where a lot of entrepreneurs tend to drop the ball. CP
Communications’ blog, run by managing director Catriona Pollard, gives advice on how to manage your public and
social presence. The topics are broad, too, covering information on how to draft press releases to understanding
Google tools.
3. Paul Wallbank
Paul Wallbank is one of the country’s leading technology experts and analysts, appearing in a number of
publications, (including SmartCompany). The strength of Wallbank’s posts come from their variety, with recent
examples including a post on the Dell buyout, the past 15 years of radio and technology, and debating whether
kids in school should be using laptops.
4. Switched On Media
Digital marketing group Switched On Media runs one of the most comprehensive and informative blogs in the
country, writing posts from practical lessons on how to utilise certain social media platforms to broader entries on
key industry trends. A focus on the Asia-Pacific region, and a watchful eye on current events, makes this a blog
worth reading.
5. Jim Stewart
SEO is an area where frequent updates can do your head in. Jim Stewart’s blog – a lot of which is available
on SmartCompany – gives regular explanations on the latest Google changes. A weekly video is the highlight,
where Stewart explains in clear language what the latest changes are and why you need to know about them.
Practice task
• Imagine that you are one of Australia’s most
successful business leaders. Write a short blog
of about 300 words titled, ‘The secrets which
made me successful.’ Share these secrets with
your thousands of admiring fans who wish
they could be like you. Strive to sound
friendly, confident, encouraging and
empathetic. Adopt the persona of a leader
with wisdom to share.