A Wild Hare

For the last two days I’ve been experimenting with adding advertising to my blog. Yeah, I know. I’m not sure two days can be called actual experimentation. It’s more like a wild hare, a knot in my stomach, cold feet and a lightbulb moment. (Please excuse the quadruple mixed metaphor.)

Some of you may know that the annual Blogher conference came and went not too long ago. It’s an event that’s become pretty significant in the blogosphere, focusing on women bloggers in all their many genres. Some of the bloggers I regularly read were, of course, in attendance, and some were even party hosts, lecture givers and round table participants. I didn’t attend the conference. I suppose the possibility never really occurred to me. I have 3 gifts at home that I simply can’t bear to leave for even one night, and I guess, in actuality, I don’t really consider that writing EyeJunkie warrants all that hooplah. Then, there’s my other jobs I have to consider.

Since the conference ended, I’ve seen several recap and response posts around my cyber reading list as well as a few hundred (or so) tweet references about it. The women’s b-sphere is all abuzz with “what I learned,” “what swag I got (or didn’t),” “what I liked (or didn’t),” “who I met (or wished I had)” and the like. I’ve been absorbing and thinking and wondering “can I write a Blogher post without attending?”

Tonight along about cold feet in the process, I realized I could. You see, I had a wild hare–a rabbit I just had to chase down. I’ve been seeing words in those Blogher posts like “monetize,” “analytics,” “tribe” and “personal brand” tossed around quite frequently. They’re the buzz words of blogging these days, and they can be quite enamoring. The idea of tribes of followers hanging on your every written word could be appealing. The lure of advertising dollars related to my blog sounds good. The goal of creating a readily recognized personal online persona certainly buffs the feathers a bit. In my own “analytics” I’ve seen a steady increase in my meager readers and page views, so on a wild hare I said to myself “What the hay, why not?” And, I up and added some advertising to my blog — ignoring the other voice that said, “Haven’t you always said ‘I’m not going to put advertising on my personal blog. I’ll save that for freelance work.’?”

I’ve had my eye on a unique advertising conduit called Project Wonderful — which I would probably recommend had my advertising “experiment” lasted more than two days, and incidentally during the two days it worked exactly as they claimed it would, but that’s beside the point. The point is: I jumped off into the world of blog advertising with (count ‘em) one Project Wonderful ad. Then, in a moment of what I can only claim as sheer insanity, I took a flying leap into the incomprehensible world of Google AdSense with (count ‘em) one ad block.

That’s the point when the knot in my stomach appeared. That “other voice” I mentioned started nagging away. I spent the day playing with kids at home on a holiday, doing laundry, chasing down various toy cars and trucks — and incessantly checking Project Wonderful and Google AdSense to discover the $0.0005 and $0.00 respectively I earned today from my blog advertising. What? Plus, I found my obsessive design-minded eyes continually drawn to the spot just below the “recent posts” where I had placed the ugly ads with the knot growing bigger.

Here’s where the cold feet set in. Is this the blogging life for me? Do I really want to spend my spare time (giggle) deciphering cost per impression ratios and pouring over uniques and referring sites? It’s interesting, maybe, but is that how I want to invest my creativity? Do I really want to be confronted daily with the realization that I would probably have to blog for decades before I reached the minimum payout required for withdrawing advertising revenue?

Right about there was where the lightbulb moment stepped in. I am not a “big name blogger.” I’m me, and I’m ok with that. I started EyeJunkie as a creative outlet, an inspiration and encouragement to write, an opportunity to share my thoughts and maybe make a few connections. I don’t want to key word and topic channel the creativity right out of it. I’m thankful for the beloved few loyal readers, subscribers, Network Blog followers and random Twitter clickers and Google searchers that make their way through these parts. Would I like more? Sure. Do I want to hinge it on 6/1000 of a cent and a chance for “removing unwanted wrinkles”? Not so much. There you have it.

So, yeah, I chased a wild hare today.  But, in Miss Belle the Beagle fashion, I was only too happy to chase that sucker right back to the little hole where it came from and howl like it’s nobody’s business.

Day Job: Launching a New Company Logo

The classic marketing conundrum:  My logo is outdated and inaccurate, but people know it well.  How can I introduce a new, snazzy look without alienating my current clients or staff?  It’s a question I get a lot in my day job.  

The answer:  plan, plan, plan.  The marketplace is completely familiar with the concept of upgrading, and they’ll come along with you on your journey to revamp your image.  But, they don’t like surprises.  Involve your clients and staff in the process, and you’ll come out not only looking, but smelling like a marketing genius. 

Here’s my eHow article with some tips.  Click and comment!

How to Introduce A New Logo to Your Customer Base

Day Job: Determining Website Navigation

In my day job, I advise website development clients extensively about site content navigation.  The way a website’s information is organized and labeled is crucial in ensuring it’s success.  I’ve observed two main perspective shifts that can help clients achieve a more effective linking structure.

1.  Shift:  Internal perspective to User perspective
Many clients organize their content based on how their company or sales process is organized.  But, because web visitors don’t necessarily understand how a client’s organization works, a linking structure based on that perspective can make finding information difficult.  A good content structure starts with stepping into the user’s perspective.

2.  Shift:  Linear approach to Scavenging approach 
In short, good navigation much relinquish control over the user’s experience.  Unlike a user’s experience of a brochure which has a limited flow of options, websites have a multitude of paths for experiencing the information.  Through the realities of search engines, this includes the possibility of users entering the experience from virtually any page on the site.  Content structure must accommodate the scavenging nature of  online users who click from point to point based on their need for information, which may have little or no relation to how a client would logically organize content.

These shifts can put clients in the right mindset to establish a working navigation structure that will serve the needs of a variety of users.  My article for eHow on determining navigational structure offers more helpful hints.  Click and comment!

How to Determine a Website’s Navigation Structure

Day Job: SEO

The infamous Search Engine Optimization — a continual elusive pursuit for some!  Here’s my eHow article with tips for preliminary do-it-yourself SEO.  Click and comment!

How to Add SEO Techniques to Your Website