When I started this blog several months ago — almost a year, actually — I had no idea where I was going with it. I didn’t know I’d meet some really funny, smart, interesting Gen Y bloggers, or that I’d go to South by Southwest, or that I’d end up moving to DC and working in social media. Like most things in life, I didn’t know what I was doing but decided to jump in anyways and figure it out as I went along — why not, when that approach has never failed me before?

So it was going great, until I started realizing where my professional interests were: politics, technology, and media. And I wasn’t as motivated to write about the same things I was writing about before (a.k.a my life, careers, “gen y” topics). I became more fascinated by the intersection of politics and technology, and I wanted to read and write about that. So my blog had a mini identity-crisis while I figured out what I should be blogging about and while I moved across the country and started a new job and all of that.

I know I’m not the only one who’s experienced that — I’ve watched several bloggers whom I really respect shift the focus of their blogs or start entirely new blogs devoted to their professional interests — like Monica O’Brien, Meg Roberts, or Jaclyn Schiff, or Holly Hoffman.

So now that I’ve had some time to figure out what I want to do with this thing, I’ve decided rather than start a new blog, I’m keeping this one, but I’ll be mostly focusing on writing about the intersection of politics and new media/technology.

I realize this means I’m losing some readers, since not everyone cares about the same (really nerdy) things I do. And I get that. But I hope some of the readership I’ve built over the past few months will stay even as I shift gears here!  I hope to be blogging a lot more often than I have in the past couple months.

Nisha Chittal is a writer and journalist who currently serves as Associate Editor of CitizenJanePolitics.com and is a political columnist for UniversityChic.com. Her personal blog is Politicoholic, where she offers commentary on a range of topics, including but not limited to politics, technology, and the changing role of women and Generation Y in politics today.

With being green all the rage, here are 3 top blogs that deal with leading environmental issues:

For people who want to live a more ‘green’ lifestyle, but don’t know where to start,  check out the lazy environmentalist.com

Looking for the latest in environmental law, have a look at Environmental Law Prof Blog.

If you’d like to be a more ‘green’ aware parent read the teensygreen blog.

I received a call on Monday from a reporter at NH Public Radio. She wanted my opinion about the newly proposed Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations for online product reviews by parents.

The reporter complimented me on being well versed on the subject. Honestly, I knew nothing about it when I received her call. I Googled the subject and absorbed everything I could about the topic before calling her back. I am confident I gave her some good sound bytes.

If this is a topic you are not familiar with, don’t wait until the media calls before you learn more about it. This is something that every parent blogger should be aware of since it will affect how product reviews are handled in the future.

My opinion is that if you are an honest blogger and you remain transparent and candid with what you write then you have nothing to worry about.

Here are a few articles you should read:

Okay, a disclaimer before someone gets offended by this post: I like Gen Y blogs. Duh. I subscribe to about 100 of them. It started when I found Employee Evolution 2 years ago and obsessively checked it everyday for new posts. Since then I’ve only continued to read more and more Gen Y blogs on a daily basis.

But as more “gen y” blogs keep cropping up, I’ve noticed an interesting trend. Sure, we like to blog. But mostly, we seem to blog about…ourselves.

We blog about our lives, our successes and failures and triumphs and upsets. We blog about our careers and how we want to advance them. Some blog about their sex lives, their crazy parents, their relationships, their bad days, their hangovers, their marriages. For many, blogging is a release, a way to work out problems and feel better. And it’s true, the act of writing can have that effect.

Bloggers have at their disposal an interesting platform: as Monica points out, someone with a good voice can build a huge audience of people who want to hear what they have to say. It’s like having a microphone with which we can spread our ideas to hundreds, maybe thousands, of people.

So with that ability, shouldn’t we do something … more? Could we, instead of using blogging as a way to simply discuss our lives and our futures, affect real social change? Around the world? Can we use our platform to give voices to those who don’t have any, yet who desperately need to be heard? Can we tell their stories and make them heard, like this Congolese woman? Her story is one of millions, and so easy to forget. But could we instead do something about it?

Can we, from right here in the comfort of our own homes, create social change that impacts the world?

Maybe we could. Although some definitely say maybe we can’t. Maybe social media doesn’t really change anything. Maybe, as one wise man once said, electronic communities really build nothing. Perhaps it’s all just empty narcissism.

But I think they’re wrong; even Vonnegut. I think there are plenty of ways we can use the range of new technology available to us to create real change and raise awareness. Some people have already set examples — like here, and here, and here.

The question is: do we care enough? Just because we can do something, and we have the resources to do it, doesn’t mean we will choose action over talk. We get wrapped up in our job hunts and travel plans and five midterm exams and crappy bosses and unemployment and achieving our dreams and microfame and finding the one and everything else. And then we blog all about ourselves and our lives again because it’s what we’re thinking about at any given moment.

And so, sometimes we forget that blogging is bigger than just ourselves; it’s a platform. One from which we can educate, inform, discuss, spread ideas, and create change. If you write well about things that matter, people will listen.

Why not help others be heard?

Next time: a follow-up with thoughts on ways you can use a blog to create real change.

Nisha Chittal is a writer and journalist who currently serves as Associate Editor of CitizenJanePolitics.com and is a political columnist for UniversityChic.com. Her personal blog is Politicoholic, where she offers commentary on a range of topics, including but not limited to politics, technology, and the changing role of women and Generation Y in politics today.

All Things Workplace says you should work on being likeable to be successful. I thought this was interesting. Recently I had a conversation with Jessica Lawlor from PRowl Public Relations about negative blog comments, which obviously mean there are a few people who don’t like you.

According to All Things Workplace, “your like-ability impacts your credibility and your credibility impacts how influential you become.”

I think this is interesting. I don’t work too hard at trying to make people like me. I think you learn in elementary school that you can’t be everyone’s best friend. I’ve been very focused on being driven, credible and ambitious. I am always willing to help people out, so I thought that made me likeable enough.

But, I’ve found that some people find it strange that I spend so much time blogging. Some have even reacted negatively.

In a reply to a Twitter post by Penelope Trunk, I said, “I’ve found that people think I’m not normal because I have a blog…I tell them that I’m just ‘driven’ and ‘ambitious’“

A PR professional I follow replied, saying “That’s ridiculous…“

It is. But this is how I replied: “If they only knew the doors my blog has opened for me in my career…they would be starting one too!“

And it’s true. This blog has opened countless doors and windows. I’m pretty sure the roof is about to blow off.

I’ve met a lot of great PR students and professionals through this blog. I’ve also attracted the attention of those who are offering internships. I’ve been blogging for almost a year now. It has helped me develop my own style in writing, has improved my skills overall and has taught me a lot about PR and social media. It also has given me confidence-I would never have written such a personal post six months ago.

Maybe these people are just jealous (link from Guy Kawasaki). But they could have a blog too. It’s not very hard to start one. Maybe they simply don’t understand.

How do people outside of the blogosphere react to your blog?

Rachel M. Esterline works as an account executive for Central Michigan Life, the nationally award-winning school newspaper at Central Michigan University. She is as an account executive for PR Central, CMU’s student-run public relations firm and as a public relations executive with the Student Government Association. Additionally, Rachel serves on the executive board of the Public Relations Student Society of America at CMU and has completed a seven-month internship with her university’s public relations and marketing department. Rachel will graduate in May 2010 with a degree in public relations with minors in journalism and communication.

Blogging is easy. Blogging does not generate traffic easily. You need effort for that. If you want people to view your blog, you will have to work to establish attention. I have put together some tips about generating traffic to your blog. So, let’s explore some tips on promoting your blog.

Link your blog to all your profiles on the web. Add your link to your website, your signature line, forums, and any correspondence you may have. You also want to add this link to your profile pages on SUN, Stumble, Ryze, MySpace, LinkedIn, Facebook, AIM, Twitter, Facebook, Squido and anywhere else you have a profile established. If you have profiles on Classmates or on an alumni directory, add a link to your profile on these sites. Blogging is all about linking. Don’t miss an opportunity to promote your blog.

Drop comments. Post comments to other blogs as early as you can. People always see the first 5 posts. Sometimes they do not stick around to view post 152. Post often to get your name out there and into view. If people keep reading informative responses, they will click on your link because you’ve gotten them curious. Leave comments on other blogs in your target market or interest areas. It’s always good for networking and for marketing your own blog and business. Other bloggers and viewers will then click onto your link to view your blog. This is what you want.

Check your blog stats and see who is visiting your blog. Google Alerts is just one program you can use to receive updates on when your business is mentioned online.

Submit your blogs. Submit them to such venues as a Blog Carnival. This is a great resource that many people forget or just don’t know about. There are many and the subjects are varied.

Get your blog onto a directory. Technorati springs to mind. It seems that everyone knows about their company directory right now. However, there are more companies out there. Here are a few to consider: BlogHub, BlogHer, and BlogCatalog.

Again, these are just a few tips that I’ve come across. There are many ways to promote your blog. You just need to remember that you need to work to gain the traffic. You cannot just write a blog without promoting it.

So, how do you promote your blog? Did I miss anything? Let CMJ Office know.

Colleen Degnan Johnson
CMJ Office

Today it is generally agreed that a business is not serious if it does not have a website. People look to websites to find out more about businesses, see how the company presents itself, and what are the services that company provides. People also want to be assured that the business has other, satisfied customers by viewing client lists and testimonials.

However, that type of web presence is quickly becoming outdated…it’s so 1999. The typical corporate website has become irrelevant, and today it’s all about creating a “web presence.” A web presence means that you have a home base, i.e. a website and/or blog, but your brand can also be found in other places on the web, like social networks.

People are spending so much time on social networks, that they expect to find you and your business there:

“a recent Universal McCann report stat[es] that content consumption outside of websites has increased 153% in the last 9 months. Overall, 53% of online users are consuming content outside of a publisher’s site – through the use of widgets, RSS readers, social networks and mobile devices.” (from ReadWriteWeb)

Four steps to a successful social media strategy

I often meet people who understand that they need to expand and diversify their web presence, but don’t know how. Some people feel lost, while others are sure that the way to being part of the social web is to…create a facebook group.

I created a facebook group. So why am I all alone?

Creating a facebook group, or even writing a blog or microblogging on twitter, are not strategies; they are tools for implementing strategeis. They may be the right tools for some businesses or organizations, but they also be the wrong place to invest time and energy for others. Choosing the tools or technologies that you will use to implement your social media strategy is actually the LAST step in the process.

Here’s an outline of the general steps needed to create a successful web presence:

1. Identify your goals: what do we want to achieve? Who are we trying to target?
   Part of this stage is benchmarking: analyzing current statistics; identifying what you hope will be different as a result of your social media efforts; defining parameters that you want to change most and least.
2. Next, work out the strategy: how are we going to achieve these goals? Where do we need to be to reach our target audience, i.e. based on their demographics, where are they hanging out on the web? What type of content will they like? What manpower considerations do we need to be aware of (i.e. the need to hire a Community Manager, etc.)? Do we have legal considerations?
3. Once all of that has been prepared, then and only then can you choose tools and technologies. A facebook group may not be the best strategy for your goals, or it may be appropriate, but maybe it won’t work on its own. Tools and technologies are just the medium, not the message (sorry McLuhan). For example, in the world of print marketing, you know a rollup is exactly what you need to get your message across at the upcoming trade show, but you’d look mighty strange schlepping it to pitch a new client at their office.
4. Implementation. Now you get to have fun with your shiny tools, because they’re the right ones.

I need to build a house. I hear these tools are good so I think I’ll use them.

Forrester has laid out a similar approach to creating an effective social media strategy by putting technology last, which they coined as POST: People, Objectives, Strategy, Technology. (Here’s a link to the original blog post, but it looks like Forrester is trying to wipe out any memory of Charlene Li since she left, so you can only access the cached version on Google.)

Like most things in life and business, you need to know what you want to achieve before you decide how you are going to achieve them. And that is why a facebook group is most definitely not a strategy.

Lonely girl image from willgame on flickr