Last week, I attended Delcor’s Progress U. Blogger Summit here in Arlington, Virginia. Progress U. is an event where blogging and social media enthusiasts inside associations and non-profits can learn more and talk about blogging. The agenda was packed with presentations by association bloggers I admire (Shelly Alcorn, Jeff De Cagna, Maddie Grant, Maggie McGary, Jamie Notter, etc.) so there’s a lot to report, but for now, I wanted to focus on what was the very first presentation of the day.In “Planning and Managing the Association Blog of Associations: Acronym Blog,” Lisa Junker and Joe Rominiecki talked about how ASAE plans for and manages an association blog and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.
Here are some of the tips I jotted down from Lisa and Joe’s presentation:
- Your blog should have a defined purpose. Knowing what you want your blog to be helps determine what content is right for you.
- You don’t always need to push your message. Is your association’s blog about your association or your industry?
- Guest bloggers are a great help. You may want to establish a relationship with them to do a handful of posts across several months. Don’t forget about diversity. Conferences are a great opportunity for guest bloggers. You may also think about theme months.
- Generally speaking, try to limit your posts to 500 words, write in the first person, respond to comments, tell personal stories, and use social media to broaden the conversation.
Now to see it all done right, head on over to the Acronym Blog.
