Blogs and suchlike!

[Pmagowan]

As part of my website building I am creating a blog. I know this is supposed to be good for SEO but I am also keen that all the work that goes in to it is of some use. I have already went through the list of LMH members and viewed as many blogs as I could, there are some very good ones and styles vary immensely.

My questions for you;

What do you think of my work so far?
http://www.escape2tuscany.com/blog/index.html

The main work has gone into the "The story of our place under the Tuscan sun" category, so far.

Is the writing text OK?

Are the pictures OK?

My idea's for other categories are;
Recipes from a Tuscan Kitchen
Restaurant reviews
A history of art series

This is in addition to my current categories (that have had very little work done on them as yet);
Out and about in Tuscany (attractions and trips)
At Fondo (stuff to do and see at the villa)

I am really interested in all your opinions, thoughts for improvement, ideas re the concept of blogs etc. I will be looking for reviews on the whole website at some point but I am still developing it.

Thanks in advance.
Paddy

[wallypott]

I like the writing style Paddy, left me wanting to know more. I want to see some more photos of the work you must have had to do.

[Pmagowan]

Thanks Wallypott
I will be updating it as often as I can find the time and I will get some of the other categories going. I will be putting more pictures on as I go.

Do you think I should have more pictures in each post? I am trying to make the pictures reasonably keyed in to the topic being discussed, or the timeframe being discussed.

It is a lot of work, and then I need to decide how to promote it all.

I see from your blog that there have been some exciting times!! Looks very good and professional.

[Pmagowan]

Another question for anyone that has integrated a blog into their website rather than using wordpress or blogger; who do you use to host your comments? Any recommendations. Disqus seems to be easiest on a Rapidweaver blog.

[pizza-salsa]

hi Paddy, I like your blog posts and the story of how you found your "place under the Tuscan sun". I would break up the posts into shorter paragraphs, and insert more pictures. It makes it easier to read and more attractive to the eyes. Our blog is not yet integrated into our website (the website is not very good, just started, so we will make another one) so I cannot comment on the integrating bit.
The categories you suggest seem pretty good, especially the "recipe" and "restaurant" sections. Hope this helps

[Jimbo]

I am really interested in all your opinions, thoughts for improvement, ideas re the concept of blogs etc.

I've worked hard on my two blogs over the past year. I got into my stride after an uncertain start when I wasn't quite sure what to be including or not. Both blogs - one a stand-alone linked to my website and the other on the blog section of AngloInfo - use broadly similar material, but I occasionally include stories on the AI blog that aren't really appropriate on the other.

I enjoy the process of blogging: thinking up the stories, shooting the pictures and writing the copy. In fact, I'd suggest not starting a blog unless you do enjoy these things because it will quickly become a chore, rather than fun. I've seen a lot of unhappy blogs where the originator has obviously run out of steam. I also believe in a blend of rental property and local general interest stories to leaven the mix.

Does blogging work? Hmm? Like all this social networking stuff, the jury's still out for me. We always direct enquirers to our property blog and some people are very complimentary, but I couldn't put hand on heart and say the blog has clinched the deal. But perhaps it makes us seem a bit more real and human rather than anomymous owners. That - of course - may contain a sting in the tail (I'm mindful of members on here who say they'd never stay in a gite where the owner lives on site). But I've always believed in suck it and see.

AngloInfo blog: http://tinyurl.com/blyoyf2
Property blog: link below

[Nemo]

I haven't read any of your blogs, which I'm sure are great; just lack of time at present.

However, just to give a view from one very small personal experience. Last year I was searching for B&B's in Cornwall in the height of the UK summer. I have very little experience of B&B's and a slight wariness of staying in someone's home.

I came across a B&B that looked lovely, had a great website, was in the right place and had an availability calendar. The available dates weren't perfect but the trip itself had flexibility, so all was not lost at that point. There was a link to a blog which I started reading. Once I started I didn't want to stop, and loved the sound of the place and the couple concerned. I booked the last two days they had, worked my trip around those dates and proceeded to read the rest of the blog whenever I had some spare time.

It brought a new level to the holiday that meant I enjoyed that stay more than any other, as I was already immersed into the place & the area before arriving. Having a slight personal connection also meant I cared more that they should be a success; hence on being asked for feedback, I had no hesitation in writing a TA review for them - as do so many of their past guests.

They don't by any means have the best property in their area, they are one of hundreds; but their desire to stand above the crowd using whatever tools they have available, including facebook & the like, means they are rated no 1 on TA for their town and are in the top 25 in the UK for B&Bs.

[pizza-salsa]

QUOTE FROM NEMO

It brought a new level to the holiday that meant I enjoyed that stay more than any other, as I was already immersed into the place & the area before arriving. Having a slight personal connection also meant I cared more that they should be a success; hence on being asked for feedback, I had no hesitation in writing a TA review for them - as do so many of their past guests.

This is one of the reasons why we started our blog. We thought it would bring another element to our adventure as a self-catering business, if people could read our story, see what we've been through, how much we love the area and our home. Only time will tell whether we are right, but for the time being we just enjoy blogging, have been doing it for about 2 years, and the blog evolves over time.

[Pmagowan]

Thanks Guys. Looking at your blogs I still have quite a way to go. My sister is thinking of doing a series on Italian language. I also thought a series on walks, wild things, architecture and little differences might be good.

Is the font OK?

I will try and put more pictures in each post but I am writing this from home with my photo archive rather than photo's I have taken with blogging in mind. Don't really want too many with us in them etc.

Do you guys do anything to promote your blogs or does that just happen naturally?

[pizza-salsa]

Paddy
I have listed my blog in various ex-pats blogs listings, like
http://www.expatsblog.com/
http://www.expat-blog.com/
http://www.expatica.com/

I also promote it in WordPress, amongst other bloggers (ie reading and exchanging comments in the blogging community, I have about 180 followers so far) - although this takes time.
Plus we have a FaceBook page for the Blog, which I update every time something is posted in the Blog.

hope this helps you with ideas.

[katz]

Hi Paddy

I've had a look at your latest post. I am by no means an expert but I would say whilst I like your style like others do, you must use paragraphs to break up the text. Of everything that I have read about blogging the is the key point that I have found. People switch off when confronted with a huge block of text.

I like the photos, just want more of them.

My blog is part of my website. I promote it via my business FB page, Twitter and Google +.

Hope that helps!

Maria

[Pmagowan]

Great, thanks alot guys. I think the last post didn't get updated with paragraphs etc. The others have been split better so no big blocks of text. I will see what I can do re pictures tonight. Like I said I am working from an archive so it will be a matter of selecting the best of what I have.

I have just joined expatblogs. And I have tweeted and facebooked some of the posts. I have virtually no followers or likes on either of these but I am being cautious as we are not yet open for bookings (likely opening for summer 2014 in Dec 2013).

I hope I am ahead of schedule with the blog etc but I know there is a lot of work to do. I am splitting the work between family and getting everyone to write their own series. I will then edit and post them. Hopefully when we go 'live', so to speak, we will be able to promote it better.

Thanks again, and keep the thoughts coming in. I am prepared to change anything and am really interested in your opinions.

[French Cricket]

Paddy, I think the period before you open to guests is a really great time to start blogging. I did exactly that and blogged about all sorts of things for three years before we opened; I didn't do much to promote it but found that people arrived in all sorts of strange ways! I had a 'join our mailing list' signup on it and gathered quite a lot of interested people that way too.

Two of those people were amongst our very first bookings last year, when we opened; both of them, interestingly, have rebooked for this year. Since then I've taken bookings from other people who've found us via the blog first. It's a little strange though having long-standing blog readers as guests because you forget they know so much about you before they arrive, and your conversations tend immediately to be those of old friends!

I still blog, but less often and with a different emphasis - then it was about us as we got used to living here, and about the renovation process, as well as about the area, food etc etc, and I used Blogger; now I've moved the blog to be a part of my own website and focus more on posting recipes, restaurant reviews, local producers, walks and such like.

It does all take a lot of time and ongoing commitment though, Jimbo's dead right

[Pmagowan]

Thanks FC. I know what you mean about the time as it has taken ages to get the website to where it is today and I am still far from happy with it. I am slightly concerned about attracting too much attention prior to being available. I don't want to 'peak too soon'! This may be a wrong way of thinking.

I have used people's initials in the blog rather than names, for privacy. I don't know if this is neccessary or wise. Perhaps this looks strange.

I am coming up with loads of ideas for 'articles' I just need to make sure that they are not interesting only to me.

[pizza-salsa]

hello Paddy
totally agree with FC's comments above. We did the same and started the blog 2 years ago, this summer our first couple of bookings/guests come from the Blog!!

And agree that it all takes time and dedication, to find the time to write, make it interesting, interact with the blogging community or anybody else who gets in touch via the blog.

It should not become a chore otherwise I think the readers will notice it, and it won't be fun to read. Try and stick to a routine. One post a week, one every two weeks, one a month, whatever suits you, just to keep consistency.

We also don't use our names in our Blog, for privacy reasons. This may change in future when our rental business is in full swing, we shall see. A lot of people in blogs don't use their names, unless their name is obvious from a connected business.

If you find something interesting or unusual to tell when you travel to Italy or Tuscany, your readers will also find it interesting to read. Especially to other expats or visitors who don't know the country well.

just keep blogging so that you will gather more articles and material in your blog. Hope this helps