I’ve been thinking a lot about blogging lately.
True, it’s not the most cutting-edge social media tool anymore, or even the hottest – twitter and Facebook probably fit that bill right now.
But it’s very possible that your arts organization still hasn’t taken advantage of blogging as a part of your arts marketing strategy -- as a tool to connect with the people that are craziest about what you do.
Is that even the tiniest bit accurate?
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I took part in a panel on nonprofit blogging for Philly Net Tuesday back in January. I was surprised to see that we had the highest turnout thus far for that meeting – the place was packed. People were standing in a balcony overlooking the main room. And over and over we heard the same stories from the nonprofit staffers in the audience:
“Well, we have a blog, but we’re not really doing anything with it …”
“We really want to start a blog, but we have no idea where to start …”
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You probably already know that a blog could be helpful in reaching your patrons – you don’t need to be sold on that idea. Your executive director probably doesn’t need to be sold on that idea, at this point.
Or, maybe you’ve already gone to the trouble of launching a blog, but now what?
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I recently held a free question-and-answer session on blogging for my newsletter subscribers (newsletter subscribers get these kind of perks, by the way). Before the session, I checked out the organizations represented by the people who signed up. And I was a little taken aback to find that none of their organizations seemed to have a blog up and running yet (that I could tell).
In the works? Yes.
But up? No.
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So here’s what I've done.
I’ve put together a class that will ease you into the process of launching (or resuscitating!) your arts blog.
It's called:
Intro to Arts Blogging
(Clever, huh?)
What you’ll learn:
- You’ll learn what goes into the planning, and yes, a blog starts with planning, not with building a site! When you need a marketing campaign for an exhibition or performance, you don’t just wing it, do you? Same thing here. You’ll learn how decisions made early in the process can ensure your blog’s success.
- You’ll get juicy tips on attracting readers. The whole build-it-and-they-will-come thing just doesn’t work anymore. You’ll hear about proven methods to find visitors who care about the fantastic things you do.
- You’ll hear success stories – arts organizations that have integrated blogging into their marketing mix in a way that helps them reach their real fans.
- You’ll hear about common barriers and pitfalls, and how to overcome them. Sometimes it’s about countering internal organizational fears and assumptions. Sometimes it’s about thinking ahead. Sometimes it’s about fixing what’s broken. You’ll learn about solutions that get you past these obstacles.
What you’ll get:
- One hour live teleclass* on Intro to Arts Blogging
- Your blogging questions answered live during the Q&A
- Bonus: An mp3 recording of the class to listen to any time, on your computer or mp3 player
When:
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
2 - 3 PM Eastern Time (11 AM – 12 noon Pacific Time)
Don’t worry if you’re running late – you can join the call at any time without disrupting the class – no one will know.
Is your office noisy? Class participants will be muted until they’re ready to ask questions, so no one will hear the rehearsal going on in the background where you work.
Are you worried you'll disturb your office mates? You don't have to say a word in the class unless you want to -- you're welcome to just listen.
If your schedule’s too packed for the live class, no worries. Sign up anyway for the recording, and listen at your leisure, on your commute, or at the gym. And you’ll always have the recording for reference.
*What’s a teleclass? It’s like a conference call. I’ll be teaching the class live, on the phone, to a group of callers like you. After you sign up for the class, I’ll send you a phone number and an access code. At the time the call is scheduled, you’ll call the number and follow the recorded directions to enter the access code. That’s it!
Cost: $42
For a stress-free entry into the world of blogging, your burning
blogging questions answered, plus the recording to listen to any time.
That's about a third of what it costs to work with me one-on-one. This
is a deal.
(If you're viewing this post in a reader like Google Reader or Bloglines, or reading it via email, please click here to register for the class.)
And if you take the class and feel like it wasn't all that, I'll refund your money right away. Promise.
Please note: registration closes on Monday, May 4, 2009 at midnight Eastern Time.