By now, most bloggers have read about the new FTC rules that apply to reviewing products. In case you aren’t a blogger or haven’t been following the story, here’s the basic idea:
If you’re given a free items (or service) to review, or if you are paid by a company to write a review, you have to disclose this to readers.
Bloggers are dealing with this in a number of ways. Some are ignoring the new rule outright, saying that it is unfair or that the FTC has no way of policing all the blogs on the web. Some are adding a …read more

If bloggers are a part of your marketing plan, you need to know about the recently released FTC guidelines for endorsements and testimonial ads. You could be liable for false claims and get hit with unspecified fines if you are found violating the guidelines.
So what do you need to know? If you offer free products to bloggers in return for reviews, or if you pay for reviews, you should review the revised guidelines (PDF). Any positive reviews could be influenced by a free product or payment — and the FTC wants that disclosed to the consumer.
While it has been noted …read more

For more than a decade, newspapers around the United States have offered their content for free online. Due to profits elsewhere, newspapers didn’t worry about giving away their content. But times are changing.
Nowadays, there aren’t profits elsewhere. As a result, newspapers are starting to rethink their strategy regarding giving away their content for free. In fact, plans are in the works to create a pay-per-view type system for online newspaper content.
However, there is one problem — bloggers and their blogs. Most bloggers are happy to keep their content free. As a result, if readers don’t want to pay to read …read more

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is planning to release guidelines for compensated reviews. Since it’s been talked about for most of the summer, you probably already know that. Do you ask bloggers to write about your company, products or services? Do you offer them freebies, coupons, gift certificates or compensation in any way? If you do, then you need to pay close attention when the regs do come out.

Because if the blogger doesn’t properly disclose their compensation, the FTC could come after them — and you. And that creates an interesting quandary. How do you try to get an honest …read more

In July, we covered a lot of information about procrastination, inspiration, and writer’s block, so I started doing “procrastinate for these posts” link lists of my five favorite writing posts for the week from other bloggers. I missed promoting great writers who are posting valuable information and I’ve gotten a few emails asking me if I’ll be doing them again, so I’m bring back these link lists!
If you have to procrastinate, at least spend your time surfin’ on sites that can help you be a better writer. Here are the five best posts for writers from the past week that …read more

Allow me to be frank for a moment, though I’ll try not to rant.
When it comes to people who blog about blogging, writing, SEO, and other kinds of content, there are really two categories – the ones who every know and the ones who few people know. There are “celebrities” in the world of blogging about writing, and while these people come in all temperaments, I’m calling them celebrities for a reason.
Like Hollywood personalities, these bloggers are either loved or hated. They may be respected, but they aren’t always good at giving advice without being condescending. Sometimes, they rely on …read more

There have been a lot of allegations of bad behavior and “shame on you” posts after the blogging conference I attended. There are always different expectations for this type of conference: some bloggers view it as a networking and professional development opportunity, while others treat it as more of a party or vacation. I suppose it’s natural that those two styles would clash.
But a lot of the backlash has been aimed at “mommybloggers” and I think it’s undeserved. Yes, there were a lot of moms there. But there were many women in attendance who don’t have kids, too. Allegations of …read more

Blogging and social media are such new areas that they are continually changing and growing. Conferences associated with such are also trying to find a comfort zone. And there are so many different types of people using social media: to market, to network, as an outlet, just for fun. The same goes for blogging. And that’s why it’s easy to discount the conferences associated with them, when so many people use the tools as a hobby rather than a profession.
But if you want to grow your business, your reputation, and your contacts, you must treat conferences seriously and act accordingly. …read more

When you attend a conference with the goal of marketing your business, you need to know your audience. Who are the attendees? What are their occupations? Their interests? Their income level? You must know who you are talking to before you step out.
As I mentioned, I was at a blogging conference over the weekend. There were about 1400 attendees, most of them women who blog. A large number of them are moms. But there were single women, married women, foodies, crafters, and even a handful of men. And a lot of the marketing was aimed at moms.
Moms are a hot …read more

If you attend a conference as a professional, you are probably marketing either yourself, your company, or your product. As you probably know, there are many ways to go about said marketing. Talking to attendees, handing out business cards, paying for a booth, or maybe even sponsoring a portion of the event. All of these can be appropriate in the right context.
What you don’t want to do is interject yourself where you don’t belong. For instance, if you introduce yourself to a group of people, do you wait to see what the conversation is about and add to things when …read more