Need Advice on Blog

[codyfran]

Hi all,
Finished Tim's book and haven't slept in 3 days.

Have written my rough draft for my how-to e-book on consumer advocacy, that's my passion, I've started a very simple blog on Google. I thought I could do this for weeks, months and gain some credibility before I sell the e-book.

I've never done ANYTHING like this and would appreciate you looking at my blog for honest critiques.

I'm not selling anything there, yet:) just would greatly appreciate your time looking.

www.consumersavvy.blogspot.com

Thank you,
Cody

[OneOfEm]

Great looking blog.

I sent you a PM about market research. I also did a little social tagging on your blog, so you should get a bit of traffic starting tonight or tomorrow. Unfortunately, it won't be much, but it's better than none.

[ChiTowner]

Hi codyfran

your blog certainly has a great start.

Here's my initial thoughts:

1. After skimming a couple of posts, I wanted to find out more about you. Who are you? Why are you blogging on this topic? Why I should take note of you? etc etc. I think that having a more visible, complete and personal profile would go towards establishing credibility. Or at least a way for readers to quickly get a feel for you.

2. Related to the above comment, if you feel that you'll continue blogging, you should consider coming off Blogger and migrating to your own domain/web address. To many, Blogger blogging is synonymous with the more spammy scammy side of internet marketing - you'll want to distance yourself from that.

Also, if you happen to offend Blogger in some way (go against their terms of service) they can delete your blog in short notice - taking your carefully crafted web presence with it. Ultimately, you'll want more control over your content

Just read your 'Better Business Bureau for All' post - great post. As per my first comment, can you get some of that great background info into your profile section? Where it's easier to see?

Hope that helps
Debbie

[kamakiri]

I hope this comes off as constructive advice, but I really didn't like the blog. If I wanted to read some editorials on subjects that jumped all over the board, I would buy a news paper. There was little focus and the random nature of the posts would not keep me coming back.

Especially the list of random cell phone sites. What was the point there? If I wanted the best info, I would google cell phone plans. Now if you took the sites, and added your own commentary instead of just posting links that are easy to find in the first place, we would be talking. That aside, what is the #1 topic with cellular phones this month? iphone prices.

Identity theft? Sorry there man, but I wouldn't take any advice off your blog at face value for a second. It is not that I don't trust you, it is that I DON'T TRUST YOU! Establishing credibility is the key here, not the quality of your post (which in itself was good).

That was my 2 cents worth of constructive criticism. It is not a flame, and you are welcome to ignore it.

[gobytrain]

You need to qualify the claims in "about me". That will help build your credibility. I didn't think the blog looked bad over all, but the about me looked like a throwaway, and it's really the most important part.

[toddp]

hi Cody,

I like the premise behind your blog, I think you have a good niche there. I have a muse in mind for something similar -- I have a niche blog, and would like to productize it at some point.

After reading the above comments by other readers, I've tried to find some constructive criticism for your blog. Here's my thoughts:

1) I like the unifying theme of consumer protection / advocacy. Perhaps you can write a post or two about how all these things fit into that category, sort of tying it all together. See http://problogger.net for some good blogging tips.

2) I agree with the others that the 'about me' section needs some work. Just expand on what you have, giving specific details. And try to refrain from starting every sentence with "I". Something like, "Hi, I'm Cody, host of the Consumer Savvy blog. I have X years experience in consumer advocacy. MY radio show, <radio show name> , details details... You may have seen me being interviewed on <tv show name> for ... " Try to expand what you have there into 2 or three paragraphs. Make yourself sound like the expert you are!


3) As a first time visitor to your site, I would have liked to see a category list so I can jump around to the areas that interest me. I don't know if that is possible with the blog software you have , but I'm sure you've see it on other sites.

4) another feature of many blogs is the 'blogroll'. This is a section, usually on the side, that links to a bunch of related blogs on the same or similar topics. If you do this, you can ask those sites to link to you.

that's all I have for now, keep up the good work! And let us know when you begin to convert this content to an e-book.

cheers,

-Todd

[shultice24]

I have to agree with ChiTowner and suggest getting your own hosting and dropping ".blogspot". This will certainly be worth the $ and effort.