The winner gets a full editorial briefing from the company, followed by a weekly 250 word article written and uploaded to the winner’s blog for 52 consecutive weeks.

According to Emily Hill, Managing Director of Write My Site, the competition was designed to remove the key barrier to many brands launching and maintaining their own blogs: lack of time.

“With the guarantee of a weekly article, the winning brand never has to worry that their blog will look out of date”, she said.

The winning brand will own full copyright to the content and will be able to add their own material if they wish.

Search and digital agencies are also eligible to enter the competition. If successful they can use the prize for one of their clients, or for their own blogs.

Launched at Marketing Week Live 2011 event on 29 June, the competition is open until 31 August.

To enter, follow @writemysite and write a tweet containing the hashtag #yearblog or like the Write My Site fan page on Facebook and post an entry on the wall containing the phrase ‘yearblog’.

The winner will be announced on 6 September 2011.

We asked web trainer Steve Boneham what’s so great about it.

“It’s free, open source, powerful, customisable, expandable. It’s got millions of users and a very active community of developers working with it”, he said.

To host or not to host?

WordPress offers two ways of using it – a hosted version running from the WordPress site often referred to as the ‘dot com version’ or a self-hosted version which means users are running it themselves.

The self-hosted version is where the fun starts and Steve would like more people to get past the fear factor involved in dealing with bits of code.

The set-up process is simple and doesn’t require the knowledge or skills of a web developer, Steve told us. The famous 5-minute installation really takes 5 minutes.

“You download WordPress, you extract it, you upload it and you run a script. And that’s it. You’re running it”, he said.

You can then start tweaking it. Add plug-ins, change the layout, give the site your own look and feel. According to Steve, the extra effort is worth it.

“Making that simple switch gives you access to a whole ecosystem of extra features and functionalities”, Steve said.

“There are hundreds of thousands of plug-ins, thousands of free and commercial themes and a very big developer community that you don’t get access to on the dot com version.”

Blog or a CMS

In the blogging space, WordPress has got few rivals to worry about. There are simple blogging platforms, such as Tumblr and Posterous, but neither of those allow self-hosting.

As the platform has grown and the available functionalities increased, WordPress is actually moving closer to a fully-fledged content management system.

“People have started to say that using WordPress to blog is like using a sledgehammer to open a nut”, Steve told.

“It has a potential of being so much more than a blog. In reality many people will use it as a blog but it can be so heavily customised, unique and bespoke that each site looks like a completely different system.”

So would you describe it as revolutionary?

“I’m not sure I’d describe any software as revolutionary.”

“It’s definitely changed the face of personal publishing. It’s given anyone a tool which is simple, powerful and can be up and running very quickly but which you can then do quite serious things with. So yes, in that way, I would say it’s revolutionary.”

Find out more

Help to get started with WordPress

Steve, who works as a Consultant Trainer at the staff development organisation Netskills, is currently developing a workshop which helps people with little technical knowledge to start hosting their own WordPress sites. Read more…

One-day workshop giving real-world insights, current best practices and expert Q&A on multiplatform workflow across TV, Web, Mobile, Apps and more.

By the end of the workshop, you will have mastered:

• Each platform’s strengths and realities
• Planning creative multiplatform content
• Understanding partnership framework agreements
• Scheduling & working successfully in timeframes
• Delivery – teams and skills requirements
• The latest production and management techniques
• Post-production workflows
• Multiplatform terminology

Perfectly suited to production companies and digital interactive agencies, particularly those wanting to collaborate more closely.

About the Workshop

A-Z of mutliplatform jargon, real-world examples, numerous case studies, hands-on exercises, focus on current best practice, Q&A with workshop leaders and time to discuss your projects in a friendly and supportive atmospshere.

Bring along your Project

Working on something intersting? Kirsty and Andy will give you highly practical feedback and workgroup support to make your project a creative, commercial, producable success.

About the Workshop Leaders

Andy Bell – COO of Mint Digital, as co-founder & Creative Director at Mint Digital, the makers of cross-platform projects like Radio Pop (BBC), Orange unsignedAct for Sony Ericsson & Orange, River Island’s Style Insider, Skins Life (E4), Sexperience (C4), and Osama Loves (C4). Mint won MIPTV’s first BBC Content 360 award with Buried Alive in 2006, the first Doc/Fest Crossover prize for Museums of our Future in 2007, and a BAFTA award for Landshare (C4). He helps clients achieve innovative entertainment by fusing the excitement of TV with the interactivity of the web, and is always looking for the next runaway hit that is unique, inventive and involves mass participation.

Kirsty Hunter – Head of Interactive at Lion TV, is a leading digital media executive and multi-award winning producer working across television and interactive projects. Her recent credits include the International Digital Emmy-winning Britain

from Above (BBC) and Horrible Histories (BBC), Rough Guide (five), History Detectives (PBS), Time Commanders (BBC) and Britain’s Best (UKTV). Kirsty also a member of Pact’s Interactive Media Policy Group, and a past mentor to the American Film Institute’s Digital Content Lab.

Important: save up to 80% of course costs, and get help with accommodation and travel if you need it, through the Skillset Multiplatform bursary. Ask for details.

Free capuccino and cake if you mention chinwag when attending!

Organiser:
Indie Training Fund

Contact:
020 3487 0354

Website:
http://www.indietrainingfund.com/

via Chinwag – the UK’s leading community media company for the new media industry.

Profile

Mario Armando Lavandeira, Jr. is a Cuban-American blogger, TV personality and the man behind the famous celebrity blog Perezhilton.com.

Born in Miami, Florida on 23 March 1978, Lavandeira studied at New York University graduating in 2000 with a BFA in Drama.

Before his blogging career, Lavandeira tried a career as an actor. He also worked as a receptionist, freelance journalist, media relations assistant and was briefly the managing editor of gay magazine Instinct.

Currently living in Hollywood, Lavandeira has said he started blogging as a hobby because “it seemed easy”. Since launching in 2004, Perezhilton.com has become one of the most visited blogs in the world, attracting millions of readers a month.

After trying to control what was said on its own social media pages, the company turned to blogging for help.

They hired two reporters to provide ‘editorial updates’ on the crisis – counting perhaps on journalistic objectivity to help rebuild its damaged reputation.

While there have been doubts about the impartiality of these employed bloggers (and the blogs don’t seem to be existing online anymore), the move demonstrates the sensitivity of multinational companies to the potential of social media in managing their brand image.

Another incident where a global company has responded to negative PR using social media is the infamous Domino’s Pizza case in North Carolina, USA.

Two staff members filmed themselves abusing food that was to be served to customers and posted the video on YouTube.

The company’s response came swiftly. Both employees were sacked the next day when Domino’s was alerted to the video and the company expanded its own online presence by creating its own Twitter account and posting an apology video on YouTube.

Feature article

People accessing information more readily through Facebook and Twitter is one the biggest reasons behind the new stress on Online Reputation Management (ORM). Read more…

Forget SEO, Online Reputation Management is what makes a brand on the web

There are an estimated 100 million blogs online, including thousands of corporate blogs, all aiming to create an open, two-way communication channel between brands and their customers or partners. Behind the rhetoric though, most corporate blogs struggle to be heard. Why is this? What’s the secret of successful corporate blogging? And how do professional bloggers do it?

Join Luke Brynley-Jones and Murray Newlands, for an intensive half-day master-class on corporate blogging. Luke and Murray will explain how to attract readers, gain coverage and reap the benefits from your corporate blog.

Topics covered include:

* Who Blogs Wins: Why Blogging Matters
* The Top 10 Techniques of Highly Effective Bloggers
* SEO for Blogging: Optimisation & Link-Building
* Blogger Outreach (in 5 Easy Steps)
* Brand & Reputation Management

Refreshments will be provided throughout the afternoon and there will be networking drinks at the end of the day.

Speakers include: Jack Hubbard, Rob Shepherd, Murray Newlands and Luke Brynley-Jones

Organiser
Influence People

Contact:
+447971406371

Website:
http://InfluencePeople.com

via Corporate Blogging Masterclass | Chinwag – the UK’s leading community media company for the new media industry.

A Guardian News Feed plug-in, released on 2 July, enables WordPress users to search and browse for Guardian articles and publish them on their own blog with added commentary.

Bloggers are allowed to publish the articles in full with images with only a few restrictions. No changes to the text are allowed and additional commentary will have to be clearly separated from the original article.

The move will further strengthen The Guardian’s position as one of UK’s leading news websites. It will increase the visibility of the website itself as well as the online presence of its advertisers. Naturally, the ads come with the articles.

To read more and install the plug-in go to:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/open-platform/news-feed-wordpress-plugin

Description

Social Media Marketing 2010 will bring together leading brands and marketing experts to explore the viral power of social networks.

With the rise of social networks a new marketing medium has emerged: one that requires trust, rewards value and thrives on word-of-mouth. From blogging to video-sharing, Flickr to Twitter, social media marketing is delivering impressive returns. The question is: are you making the most of it?

Topics we will cover during the day include:

- Insights into the Latest High Profile Viral Marketing Campaigns
- The Psychology of Persuasion: Next Generation Marketing
- How to use Social Networking Theory to Tune your Campaigns
- Innovations in Location-Based Marketing (Foursquare & beyond)
- Tweets that Travel: The Essential Skill of Viral Writing
- Using B2B Social Media to Connect with C-level Execs
- Creating a Bespoke Community vs Starting a Group

The conference will be fully interactive with presentations, case studies, Q&A sessions and panel discussions (including panellists picked from the audience). There will also be an Exhibition Area showcasing social media marketing tools and services. The ticket price includes breakfast, lunch, refreshments and a handbook for the day. There will be networking drinks at the end of the day.

Chris Brogan, Mat Morrison, Andrew Walker, Charlie Osmond and Richard Sedley

Organiser:
Influence People

Contact:
0845 4631465

Website:
http://www.socialmediamarketing.co.uk/

via Social Media Marketing 2010 | Chinwag – the UK’s leading community media company for the new media industry.

Blogs were first published in the mid 1990s, but it was the introduction of simple blogging tools a few years later that really triggered the masses to join in.

According to BlogPulse, there are currently over 126 million blogs in the world. Some of these have gone from humble roots to being fully fledged, authoritative news websites. Blogs like Tech Crunch, Huffington Post and Perezhilton can all be found in the top 10 of the Guardian’s listing of the 50 most powerful blogs in the world.

That’s all great, but what really interests us is the grass-roots level. Why do ordinary people and small companies start blogging? Where does the time come from to update them and is it worth all the trouble?

Real value from the community

Steve Boneham, a Consultant Trainer at staff development organisation Netskills, teaches about the social aspects of the web – and does what he teaches.

Steve updates his blog regularly but blogging is something he sees as a personal reflection and a clarification of ideas – writing is something that forces you to format your thoughts.

He said: ”The blog is a key part of my online presence – a place where I can aggregate and curate content, both my own and from around the web, for discussion with people in my network or community.”

According to Steve, the community is also the thing that generated the value of the blog.

He said: “It’s certainly nice to see stats that show people are visiting, but real value comes from those who contribute to the conversations through their comments.”

Online presence is something Steve sees as vitally important. However, a fully fledged blog can be a big commitment, especially on top of a number of other social media activities.

But there are ways to tackle this, Steve reminds us. Aggregation services such as Flavors.me,  FriendFeed and Tumblr help in creating a website from personal content across the web.

Full control of content

Jason Falls, US social media expert points to a key difference between blogs and other social media outputs.

He writes: “You can control your blog completely. Focusing that content on winning search results is easier to execute than on Facebook or Twitter.”

Controlling your online reputation is something that makes social engagements less attractive for companies. However, Falls also points out, that blogs can be a hub for connecting with customers and therefore they are an opportunity not to be missed.

He writes: “The more search traffic you can drive, coupled with the social media traffic you move from your outposts, the more your efforts are optimized.”

Case Study:

The Huffington Post – Blogging turned into a (multimillion!) business

What started as a project for a few enthusiastic writers is today a social hub with, according to the co-founder Ariana Huffington, an active community of over 20 million web users. Read more…

Many marketers now comfortable with social media and the power of online product reviews have also started to lose their timidity about approaching bloggers.

In fact, some women bloggers report marketers may be becoming overeager.

Ketchum, conducting a survey of registrants for July’s annual BlogHer conference—billed as the largest gathering of female bloggers in North America—found that nearly one-half of respondents were contacted by PR professionals weekly. A further 30% got such messages on a daily basis.

Some of that contact, however, appears to be unwanted. Respondents to the Ketchum study indicated that marketers were not doing the necessary research when looking to stir up online word-of-mouth about their products.

One tip: Women would like marketers to read and understand their blogs before making contact, to make sure they are a good fit with the product or service being marketed. Some bloggers reported hearing about offers that were not even available in their location.

Also, despite the “mommy blogger” buzz, not all female bloggers fit that category.

ShesConnected found that more than one-half of US female social network users polled in spring 2009 had started their own blog.

eMarketer stats

“The incidence of starting a blog was exceedingly high, likely a reflection of the education level and social media involvement of these core users,” according to the report.

March 2009 data from BlogHer, iVillage and Compass Partners indicated that 8 million women in the US publish a blog.

eMrketer stats

The same study also found that 31% of women who read or posted to blogs did so to “provide advice and recommendations.”

Women bloggers are more than willing to help marketers out—when it makes sense to do so. About 40% of Ketchum respondents said they had provided marketers with information collected on their blogs, and 53% said they would consider doing so if asked.

“Our research at Ketchum shows that women want marketers to understand them, and the female blogger audience is saying the same thing, loud and clear,” said Kelley Skoloda of Ketchum in a statement. As with all social media, it is crucial for marketers’ blog outreach efforts to be a good fit for everyone involved: the brand, the blogger and the audience.

Cross posted from www.emarketer.com