Kimberly D. Coleman

NYC Mom - Blogger - Marketer (& So Much More!)

Success Leaves Clues: The Motherhood's "The State of the Mom Blogosphere"

When I saw the amazing group of women who were co-hosting TheMotherhood.com's live chat on "The State of the Mom Blogosphere," I knew that I had to pen it into my "To Do" list for today.  If you missed the chat, I believe that Emily and Cooper of The Motherhood will be posting the highlights later.  Also, you should be able to see a full transcript of the text at http://www.themotherhood.com/talk/show/id/62063.  

I'm a big believer in the saying "Success leaves clues" and I was not disappointed by the wisdom shared by the mom bloggers on the chat.  The co-hosts included the following:

Amie Adams, Mammaloves
Tracey Clark, TraceyClark and Shutter Sisters
Esther Brady Crawford, Faint Star Lite and ShePosts
Allison Czarnecki, Petit Elephant
Stacey Ferguson, Justice Fergie, Mamalaw and Blogalicious
Liz Gumbinner, Mom 101
Jennifer James, Jennifer James Online and Mom Bloggers Club
Isabel Kallman, Alpha Mom
Christine Koh, Boston Mamas
Laura Mayes, Blog Con Queso, Kirtsy and the Mom 2.0 Summit

I definitely encourage you to go and read the full transcripts for yourself.  Meanwhile, I wanted to share four things that I personally took away from the conversation. 

1. Most of us struggle with trying to find adequate time for all of our roles (wife/mom/blogger/trapeze artist/etc.).  There really isn't enough hours in the day to do everything.  I just need to pick what's most important to me and schedule accordingly (knowing that my schedule and priorities will constantly change at various stages of life)!

2. Jennifer & Esther's ebook, From Blog to Business, has a lot of great practical advice regarding blogging basics as well as helpful "how to know what to charge" information.  Did I mention that it's FREE? Everyone should read the ebook.  I already have, but I think that I need to go back and re-read it since it came up so much in the conversation - by other participants...not them!  I still can't believe that they gave it away for free.  Yes, I can.  I know that they're cool like that...

3. Maria Bailey, one of the original business-minded social media moms, popped in to share some jewels.  She basically encouraged mom bloggers to lead from the front/evolve with technology.  She recommended integrating video blogs, audiocasts and lexycasts (lexy.com) into the mix.  Practically, I need to keep working on my video blogs.  I'm not that great at them right now, but they are important.  I have been using onetruemedia but I will also check out Animoto.com which was recommended by a couple of people later in the chat   I'm also going to explore lexy.com when I get a free moment.  (FYI: The lexy.com site doesn't support many versions of Internet Explorer, so open it in Firefox or some other browser.)

4. Email is EVIL.  Okay, not really.  We all love email.  It's just that it is (almost) impossible to stay on top of it.  I received some great practical advice - handle things once; use gmail tools; try Google's Priority email box, etc.  Most of all, it was just helpful to have other moms who could commiserate (see Mom101's http://www.mom-101.com/2010/05/drastic-inboxes-call-for-drastic.html and Christine Koh's http://popdiscourse.com/2010/08/we-all-drive-the-bus/ ).  I just need to have a realistic expectation.  A while ago, I had read a really prominent male blogger mention that he responds to every email within 24 hours, so I had made that my goal.  It was a good intention, but bad logic.  That guy isn't the primary caregiver for 2 young kids.  He's not trying to squeeze in as much as possible between naps/after bedtimes AND in between school drop-offs and pick-ups.  In other words...he doesn't have my life (or anything remotely resembling it).  Duh!  I don't need to become a lazy bum, but I do need to cut myself a bit of slack!

All of that to say...go read the transcripts over at http://www.themotherhood.com/talk/show/id/62063.  Cooper & Emily did a great job of pulling this chat together and many eyeballs need to see it. 

If you were on the chat or read it afterwards, I would love to know what stood out to you the most...
 

Hold out for a good fit

Sw-208

 

Earlier this month, I received an email from a reputable clothing company that wanted to outfit me for BlogHer '10 since I'm both attending and speaking on a panel at the conference this year. The note came as a pleasant surprise, but I was't sure how to respond. Eventually, I politely declined the offer. The line was great...it just was not great for me. A couple of weeks later, another wonderful clothing company unexpectedly offered to provide me with outfits for BlogHer. This time, the answer was a resounding, "Yes!" Below is how I went from a "no" to a "yes"...

1. First of all, I needed to figure out what I thought about being outfitted for a blogging conference in general.

I had conflicting thoughts initially. Part of me thought. "It's always fun to shop for clothes. This is great!" The other part of me questioned whether or not it was tacky to be outfitted for a blogging conference. So, I asked other bloggers for input by sending out a tweet. Everyone who responded thought that it was a positive thing if the brand was a natural fit.

2. Secondly, I just needed to be honest with the first company.

Although I turn down way more things than I accept over at my Mom in the City blog, it was hard to say "no" to the first clothing company. That is simply because they were the first company to initiate this particular type of relationship (dressing me for a particular event). Although the idea was cool, I had to remember one of my favorite sayings,"Just because you can doesn't mean you should." Bottom-line the first brand was just not my style. I would not have written about them on my site, because they are not my core readers' style either. Everything is not for everyone...and that's alright.

3. In the end, things worked out the way that they should have.

I am so glad that I said, "no thanks" to the brand that was not a fit. I have several "BlogHer-worthy" clothes hanging up in my closet anyway, so I simply forgot about it. I must admit that before I forgot about it, I did think for a few moments about the places that I shop at/that would have been natural fits - the Gap, Banana Republic, Ann Taylor Loft, White House Black Market, etc. I would not have reached out to them and asked them to outfit me though. That would have been tacky (in my eyes anyway). To finish the story, one of my "natural fits" companies ended up contacting me so I'll be wearing a few new things to BlogHer after all. Yay!

All of that to say:

-Bloggers, don't just say "yes" because an offer is on the table.  I'm with Oprah on this one: "Doubt means don't." Hold out for the good fits. You (and your readers) are worth it!

-Marketers, don't just try to match yourself with a blogger simply because he or she might be "out front" in some capacity. Hold out for the good fits. You don't want to align yourself with someone who will just take your "stuff" and not be enthusiastic about it/share about it to others. That defeats the purpose of your marketing.

That's my opinion.

What do you think? Should bloggers and marketers just take what they can get and be happy or should both sides wait for good partnership fits? 

Click-Through: Jennifer James and Chris Brogan

P1050363
Every week (or so), I will share a few posts that I have been reading that are focused on blogging and social media.  I know that there are a gazillion posts a week, but these will be the ones that I especially think are worth a "click-through" in order to read the entire post.  I will start off with a couple of posts that I read this week from two of my favorite bloggers - Jennifer James and Chris Brogan.
 
This post is a "must-read" for all of the mom bloggers who constantly ask, "but HOW do I make money off my blog?"  Jennifer, who has become a dear friend, does an excellent job of providing practical advice on a variety of ways to earn money from blogging.  There is a little something for everyone.  (Although the focus is mom bloggers, the tips really do apply to any type of blogger.)  Jennifer also provides examples of mom bloggers who are successful examples for each money-making method that she highlights. FYI: #4, #5 and the options mentioned in her "one final note" closing paragraph are my favorite ways to earn money from Mom in the City. Which are yours?
 

Make the Ask (Chris Brogan)

Chris Brogan is another one of my social media favorites.  If you are not subscribed to his blog feed, you are missing out.  He is constantly sharing pearls of wisdom.  This particular post provides some practicals regarding asking for sales and encouragement to move past the fear of asking for what you want in the social media realm.   It reminded me of one of my former roommates who loved to say, "You do not have, because you do not ask." I always joked that would never be her problem...she was definitely an "asker"!  She was right though.  Other people can't read our minds, so it is important to be clear regarding what we want and/or need. (I see this very clearly in my relationship with my husband and kids.  It would be nice if they did anticipate what I want, but I would be silly to count on that!)  For some reason though, it took a while for me to embrace this simple truth when it came to the blogging world. Perhaps that is because Mom in the City started out as a fun little hobby five years ago and just kind of snowballed into this "brand" over time.  In any event, I'm clear now, so I ask for what I want.  Sometimes I get it.  Sometimes I don't.  Such is life. It's amazing what happens when you clearly lay out your expectations though.  For instance, I wrote a post called "Show Me The Money!..." last month.  In it, I shared the types of marketing things that I get paid to perform.  Within a couple of weeks of publishing that post, I received six related paid opportunities.  How cool is that?! (One is still "under wraps" for a bit longer, but I'm excited to share about that soon.)
 
On a related Chris Brogan note, I tweeted about another one of his posts (http://www.chrisbrogan.com/50-power-twitter-tips/) earlier this week.  Almost 20 people re-tweeted my tweet about it, so I would say that it is also another "must-read". Don't be thrown off by the "power" word in the title. The tips are practical and easy to apply.  (I don't know.  Maybe it's just me, but the words "power", "influential", "expert", etc. are just used so much in social media, that they no longer make an impact on me.) Anyway, I especially liked #8, #9 (twitter is addictive!) and #50.  Which of the 50 stood out to you?
 
Has there been anything exceptional on your "click-through" list this past week?  If so, let me know!