This week, I finalized my plans to join the Blogworld hullaballoo in Las Vegas, which is where I’ll be winning my fortune at the blackjack tables, or possibly losing my house, or possibly not even playing blackjack at all. Blackjack is the game where you hit the ball on the rope until you wrap it around the pole, right?
Now, I try to be understanding, but you wouldn’t believe how hard it is to get Copyblogger to buy you round-trip first class airfare and a $3000 per night Sky Loft suite at the MGM Grand. The negotiations were intense. “But I write the wrapup,” I argued. “Who are you and why are you hiding in my closet?” Brian retorted.
And so it goes.
I decided in the end to be a team player anyway. Be sure to look for me by the pool, wearing my homemade shirt that says, “Forget sex. Teaching Sells.”
Here’s what happened this week on Copyblogger:
Monday:
Why Being Too Diligent About Your Facts Can Hurt Your Content
Hooray! We don’t have to obsess over tons of contradictory facts anymore since any one of them could be wrong, incomplete, or tainted. Definitely check out Sean D’Souza’s alternate “moderate research” approach. Thanks, Sean! I’m off to write those posts about spontaneous generation and heliocentricity I’ve been holding back on.
Tuesday:
Discover Your Strengths and Supercharge Your Business
Notice how the news never tells you about all the people who didn’t get killed? And notice how you tend to obsess on the negative things, comments, and criticism surrounding your blog? Sonia says to focus on what you do best and do it better if you want to get more mileage. Sounds more appealing, anyway.
Wednesday:
7 Ways the iPad Can Bring Back Your Writing Mojo
I don’t totally understand the iPad. It’s like Apple took the iPhone and made it bigger. What’s next? Are ghetto blasters coming back? Still, Shane says they’re cool and would know better than me, so he’s got a list of 7 awesome apps to get you inspired and writing — maybe while cleaning your new, fashionable, gigantic satellite dish.
Thursday:
The Responsible Blogger’s Guide to Dealing with Big Brother
Another good title for this post would have been, “The internet is forever, so watch out or that video of you rollerskating in your underwear will leak out and go viral.” How you deal with comments left on your blog, stuff you’ve said casually, attribution, and libel could all come back to haunt you, so ignore it at your own risk. (Alternative way to deal with Big Brother: change the channel.)
Friday:
Follow Your MAP to Greater Writing Productivity
I have to agree with the sentiment in the first paragraphs of this one, which is, “Wow, outlining a writing project makes me want to barf.” But I have to admit that Chris Birk makes a good argument for why you might want to do it anyway — in a simplified, more purposeful manner that will make your writing sparkle. But hopefully won’t make you barf.
This week’s cool links:
- The Power of Not Giving Up – One Blogger’s Story: Here’s a side of IttyBiz’s Naomi Dunford you don’t normally see — the person who was freaked out and scared, a nobody and looking to Darren Rowse as a mentor. But she didn’t give up.
- B2B Online Marketing Trifecta: Content, Social Media & SEO: Makes sense that there’s more to it than Twitter, right? Lopsided B2B strategies online get you part of the puzzle but not the whole enchilada. (Mmm… enchilada…)
- Occam’s Razor: 16 obvious ways to connect with consumers: I love it when people state obvious truths, because then people can say “That’s so obvious,” but then look dumb if they’re not doing it. And also I like list posts. And Occam.
- The “From” Name: Perhaps Your Most Important Email Marketing Decision: That would suck if you had a great subject line and great content, but recipients tossed it because they didn’t know who you were or why they should care. Here’s how to fix that.
- 4 Principles of Information Architecture: Easily the most analytical post on web content I’ve seen this week, and one from a perspective creative types don’t normally see but should. (Engineers – you’ll like this one.)
About the Author: Johnny B. Truant writes and sets up cheap* blogs and websites at JohnnyBTruant.com. (That’s “cheap” as in “inexpensive,” not as in “tawdry.”)
Reader Comments (13)
hahaha Johnny you are a CLASSIC!!
While your checking out Brian’s closet, see if you can get tickets for me too.
Don’t worry. If you lose all your money in Vegas, you can win it back at pubcon. Thanks for the recap!
Thank you for the reminder. I will be reading the 4 principles of information architecture. It is a very inviting headline.
The internet is scary in some ways. The content will out there forever, short of global natural or man made disaster. The concern is privacy, the net going “sky net” on us, and big brother, ie government using it as a tool to control us. I like the Naomi Dunford story. Excellent!
Why does it feel wrong to admit that my favorite part of copyblogger are the posts that make fun of copyblogger?? The satellite dish was the cherry on top of this one for me!
The real question here is: What will Copyblogger do when they run out of “wrap” photos to go with these? Ten bucks says next week’s has a photo of Flava Flav.
aw, now you wrecked the surprise.
Dammit Johnny… seriously, I was going to do the Flav pic as the final in the rotating series (but I have a few other wrap references first).
I don’t know whether to be bummed or excited that someone else thinks like me. Actually, I’m scared that someone else thinks like me.
Scared is most appropriate. And maybe you should just delete this comment? Then you’ll still surprise most people. Few people read my inane comments.
Gosh, I started a weekly wrap up in my first week and after two I got three weeks behind. This IS SO important. Thanks for getting my head out my… Oh and shaking jme up. Hehe “D
“Why Being Too Diligent About Your Facts…” is a really good one! Thanks for putting this list together.
Great List. Was an exciting week.
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