Lindsay Robertson writes a Guide to Online Publicity for Dummies. It’s full of great stuff for bloggers and PR people.

Here’s a fantastic tip:

A Monkey Can Send a Mass Email: Build Relationships and Understand What Your Real Job Is

A publicist should ask him or herself not “How can I get my news/content on a blog?” but “What news/content do I have that this blogger will want, but doesn’t even know it yet? And especially: what do I have that’s better than what this blogger has already found on his or her own?” To paraphrase the famous Dale Carnegie quote: when you go fishing, you don’t put what you want (strawberries) on the line, you dangle what the fish wants (worms). Duh to that.

[via kottke]

I talk a lot about good practices in blogging for your business. A lot of times, I talk about how it’s done wrong. But today, Jason and I were discussing one of our clients, All Star Tire. The team behind All Star Tire’s blog does everything right.

* They blog about specific products they sell: TSW Wheels, DUB Spinners, Lumarai Wheels.

* They have great newpaper-like headlines for their posts: HRE Performance Wheels and Dymag Racing announce strategic partnership.

* They talk about their customers and the work they do for them: this Maserati owner and this Dodge Viper owner.

* They tag and categorize their posts with short, descriptive tags that make sense. Their posts also are short and informative.

* They educate their customers but more importantly, by doing this through a blog, they open a dialog with those customers.

These are simple bullet points to hit when you write for your own blog. Get yourself noticed and open up your business by talking about what you do, what you sell, to whom you sell it.

37signals has another great post on writing for your website. They do a great comparison between Samsonite’s About page which contains phrases like:

By identifying trends and interpreting travelers’ needs, Samsonite continues to infuse innovation and new ideas into travel, re-igniting the sophistication and experience of the past.

And Saddleback Leather’s The Saddleback Story which tells a personal story about their goods:

It all began when I had my first bag made while living in Southern Mexico as a volunteer English teacher to kids who needed a little help. I had looked everywhere for just the right bag, but with no luck…

In my search, I walked into a little leather shop and met the fellow working leather in the back. I asked him if he could make me a bag if I were to draw it out. I told him that I wanted this bag to be made so well that my grandkids would be fighting over it while I was still warm in the grave. He said “Si” and I said “Bueno” and that’s how it all started.

37signals gets it right:

A personal story like that is something a little guy can deliver that a big corp can’t. A tiny company can bring people inside the fold this way and turn a perceived weakness (small size) into a strength.

Too often I see small companies trying to sound corporate on their websites. They use corporate-speak that is worse than being impersonal; it’s just invisible. I, and probably most web users, don’t even read About pages when they talk in buzzwords and industry terms. But give me an interesting story and I’ll stick around. You’ll probably find your users will too.

If you want a little more on the subject, read 37signals’ entire post.

Woorkup.com covers How To Write News for your Website. It’s another great read for those who need a primer in creating web content. The bit on Content is excellent:

Don’t waffle. Explain everything without using any more words than necessary. Fill the first paragraph with a succinct summary of the whole article, then expand on it further down the page. Make your news accurate and easy to understand. Journalists will avoid stories that are overcomplicated or will cut out technical jargon. Their aim will be to encourage readers to read all the article. That should be your aim too. Always give a link to a contact, contact page or phone number.

Carsonified covers 10 Things to Consider When Writing For the Web. It’s a great overview for anyone who considers their web content. My favorite tip is this:

Avoid the use of ALL UPPER CASE in your copy as it takes 57% longer to read. Also avoid starting every word with a capital letter in your headings.

And though they cover “The Right Length,” they only mention sentences. One of the most important things is to keep your actual content short. No one goes to your website to read long pages of content. Be brief and to the point.

Jason Fried of the immensely successful 37signals talks to Inc Magazine about his typical day.

I spend most of my day writing. I write everything on our website. Communicating clearly is my top priority. Web writing is terrible, and corporate sites are the worst. You don’t know what they do, who they are, or what they stand for.

and…

I spend another good portion of my day thinking about how to make things less complicated. In the software world, the first, second, and third versions of any product are really pretty good, because everyone can use them. Then companies start adding more and more stuff to keep their existing customers happy. But you end up dying with your customer base, because the software is too complicated for a newcomer. We keep our products simple. I’d rather have people grow out of our products, as long as more people are growing into them.

If you aren’t reading 37signals blog Signal Vs. Noise, you should be.

Every new president elected into office comes with the promise of change, and one of the first changes that President Obama has made is the redesign of the White House website, whitehouse.gov. The new website was launched on January 20th, at 12:01PM, moments after the Barack Obama was sworn into office as the 44th president of the United States.

“One of the first changes is the White House’s new website, which will serve as a place for the President and his administration to connect with the rest of the nation and the world,” wrote Macon Phillips, the White House director of New Media. Phillips also wrote that the new website would uphold one of President Obama’s pledges to publish all new legislation seven days before it is signed to allow the public to comment.

The newly designed website comes with all of the latest in web technology; living up to true web 2.0 standards. Aesthetically, the website is a sound example of all the best practices in graphic design: great typography, lovely usage of colors, and (thankfully) a smaller logo. In addition to all that; compared to its predecessor, the new website has a clear and concise main navigation, making the website easier to browse and more user friendly.

But even more notable than its spiffy new theme, the upgraded website boasts a blog, interactive slide shows, weekly videos and other frequently updated news on the president and administration. The new blog and media center, dubbed the “Briefing Room,” has been updated almost every day since President Obama’s inauguration, and on occasion more than once a day.

While Golden State Communications launches websites just like the new White House Website every month, it is certainly exciting to witness a presidential administration that embraces technology the way this one does.

Gallery

More great looking websites from the Barack Obama camp:
change.gov
barackobama.com

Wordpress.org has announced the official release of Wordpress 2.7 “Coltrane.” With added functionality in the back-end administration application, and enhanced AJAX features, what this means for YOU is a better overall user experience! Write entries in your blog or manage the content on your website with ease, with added features like:

• Keyboard shortcuts for comment moderation
• One-click plugin installs
• Drag and drop Dashboard customization
• Batch Post Editing
• click here for a full feature list

Watch the video to find out more!

WordPress is a state-of-the-art content management system and publishing platform with a focus on aesthetics, web standards, and usability. Golden State Communications has created sites using Wordpress, like Kaikea Entertainment, SA Recycling, Axis Project Management, and the Urban Watch & Co Blog.