What I've Learned from 100 Posts

I didn't launch into a grand set of goals for this blog. I wanted to get a bit more recognized in the industry, make a few more contacts and test the waters for my approach to search engine marketing. I've received much more than that in one hundred posts. My reluctance to blog since the last three posts has been about getting as much industry traffic as possible and not diluting it with recycled clip material for a milestone blog post. How fitting, that on my 100th post day it is also my Twitterversary - the line drawn marking how engaged I wanted to be in this community and my enthusiasm to contribute.

To ignore that blogging is a bit of an ego boost is, well, egotistical. I enjoy writing. I enjoy getting feedback - who doesn't? I kind of expected comments to be pouring through after I started the blog, and that hasn't exactly been the case.

100th Post Learning #1 - If you want engagement, be prepared to over-engage elsewhere. Acknowledge a lag time in getting the ball rolling, in getting your name out there.

I've spoken at two industry conferences since starting this blog. I'm a big believer in community, both on and offline, and try my hardest to continue to engage with those movers and shakers in North America we all admire. While I do believe geographical challenges exist (I live in the United Kingdom, which is a bit of a trek to the majority of search conferences and post-conference themed drink-ups), a lot of networking and schmoozing has taken place online.

100th Post Learning #2: The stigma of online no longer exists. Engage, engage, engage with people you've never met in person, and build relationships, trust and influence with respect and humor.

I've had two relatively high traffic events. The first was a questionable tip-off from an old colleague about some rather questionable marketing tactics by an Irish betting giant - negative traffic, small niche-carving traffic. The second was borne from a rather opportune peek at what my husband was searching for on his laptop - Google started displaying favicons in AdWords, I saw some amazing traffic levels and got some love from above on Sphinn and MediaPost, and Search Engine Land. Good traffic, profile-boosting traffic.

100th Post Learning #3: The site gets sticker with positive, informative news. Negative, sensational stories get a burst of traffic but no incremental increases in steady readership. Choose your news posts carefully, while I don't necessarily regret calling that company out on their questionable marketing, the niche that you carve can be tough to climb out of.

I got pretty worked up a couple of times when things I had posted were either taken out of context or not taken at all. In a social media age with access to some pretty spectacular industry leaders, it's easy to feel slighted by lack of response, attribution or acknowledgement.

100th Post Learning #4: Be gracious. If you are retweeted, respond. If you are linked to, thank them. Don't get your knickers in a bunch if someone doesn't respond to you right away. Reach out to the community you want to be a part of. Engage positively - ranting and raving can earn you a quick reputation but it's not necessarily the reputation that you want to cultivate with the same people you're trying to impress.

I've learned a lot, shared a lot, and hopefully improved the way I'm perceived in the search industry. It has been a heckuva fun 100 posts. 

100th Post Learning #5: Have fun. Enjoy. It's not worth it unless you're getting something positive out of the ride.