Headlines are not an afterthought ...

"The Editor's Weblog" touches on territory that will be familiar to any frequent reader of this blog: Writing for online is not the same as writing for print.

Here's the link, but the part that really jumps out for me is right here:

Feed writing: this relates to headline writing and search engine optimization, but is even more specific. Journalists must learn how to write headlines that will make readers click through an RSS feed or email, or even better, a headline that will make readers forward the link to others. (Emphasis added -- MT.)

The sad fact is that for many of us, the headlines of our blog entries are either A.) Utter afterthoughts or B.) Puns/turns of phrase that entertain us, but don't do much to convey what a post is about.

The entry delves into Search Engine Optimization issues — which, while important, are probably a bit wonky for us here.

But let's just leave it at this: Put real thought into your headlines. Odds are that's the only chance you're going to get to pull someone in. It's a shame to waste it.

• Learn to write for online: headlines, blogs, forums, speed

Fixing the Rock's New Blog

This was sent to me last week and I've just found time to write about it. It's a piece on Poynter.org about how they could go about improving Rocky Mountain News' newly-launched lege blog.

It makes for good reading if you're feeling insecure about your own place in the Blogosphere, but the one part I wanted to emphasize was the third suggestion:

3. Links! Links! Links! I haven't yet seen a hyperlink in any post to this blog. Regardless of the cause of this oversight, it makes it look like the Rocky (or at least these bloggers) either don't understand or don't care about the value of connecting to sources, Rocky stories, other blogs, forums, and other sites. How about at least linking to the bills being discussed, or to the Web sites of the legislators named? Without links, a blog looks naked and dull.

Man, this one is right on target. The fastest way to build your traffic, to plug into your community, is by providing links. And not just links to AP stories, or major news sites, or your own stuff.

Look for bloggers that cover your field. Check out message boards dedicated to these topics. Then link to them and engage these people in conversations.

A blog is not just a place to post stories. It's a place to build a site dedicated to the things you cover and care about.

• The Rocky's New Capitol Blog: 6 Easy Fixes
• How to ... Hot link to something

The Cloud Test

I leave it to the reader to determine how much value there is to it, but I've been playing with TagCrowd.com the last few days.

What is it? It takes a block of text that you copy and paste OR loads a Web page and groups all the most frequently-used words into a tag cloud.

The words used most often are largest. The ones used least are smallest (or not displayed at all).

So what's the point? For our context, it might help you gauge how effectively you're on target. In other words, if I have a blog about manually churning butter, then you'd expect "cream," "milk," and "curd" to be really large, right? If those words turn out to be playing second fiddle to words like "Bigfoot," "Starsky" and "Hutch," maybe I'm doing something wrong.

As an example, I ran Ramiro Burr's Latin Notes Now through the site:



Seems relevant and appropriate.

Likewise, The Dog Blog:



I love how "Dog" just stands right out there.

Put your own blog through the Cloud Test, and see what you think.

It's not a pass/fail situation, of course, just food for thought.

• tagcrowd.com

No more training?

Yoinks.

Actually, the part of the post by Paul Conley (from his blog about business-to-business journalism) that really grabbed my shirt collar was a recap of a posting he made two years ago:

at this point, you can't blame the boss for not teaching these things. The difficult truth is that people who can't insert a hyperlink, who won't read a blog, who don't know how to work with Photoshop and can't upload a video file just aren't worth having around anymore.

He decries the fact some journalists don't seem eager to explore the Web on their own, and that if you're not eager enough to learn on your own, you don't belong anymore.

And, in a manner of speaking, I can't argue with him. Teenagers (and tweens) learn this stuff on their own in bedrooms around America. Who are we to complain that — because we don't have a formal training room established complete with a syllabus and someone to hold our hand — we can't figure things out?

Now, even he concedes that training is helpful, but what really comes across in his sense of urgency. I don't think he's panicking.

Far from it.

• Fighting Hole Tactics: Part One -- No More Training

• Teaching Online Journalism: No room for Web newbies?


(UPDATE: Steve Yelvington weighs in)

Publishing Photos ... in Presentation Format

This is a pretty basic primer on how to handle and upload photos. Some of the stuff above might be a little small and hard to read on the screen here. A larger version can be found at the address below:

• Working with Photos: A Step By Step Guide

Also:

• shrinkpictures.com
• How to ... Upload photos and PDFs
• GIMP (a free picture editor ... a trifle more complex)

This is belated, but ...

This was posted on numerous sites, so there's a chance you've seen it already, but I really like the spirit behind this list, posted on howardowens.com, that aims to jolt your more traditional print journalists into the digital age.

Since y'all are reading this here, I'm presuming you've already taken care of item No. 1, but the rest of the list is pretty awesome, too.

(I'd especially pay attention to Nos. 6 and 7 ... social bookmarking and RSS readers are going to be a big part of what comes next, and the sooner you start understanding these things, the better.)

• 2008 objectives for today’s non-wired journalist

Happy New Year ...

To start you off right, here's a piece from USA Today predicting what'll happen in Social Media in the coming 12 months or so. Consider this prediction:

The Web may well have put the world at our fingertips, but many of us are feeling as if it's getting a wee bit crowded out there. In 2008, those companies that can help us navigate that sea of information and misinformation will become trusted friends, says Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst with Port Washington, N.Y.-based market research giant The NPD Group.

"This new year will be all about simplification," Cohen says. "We'll be looking for help in eliminating clutter in our lives, and that means looking for names and brands that we trust. In a way, it's like going back in time."

And ...

Cohen also suspects that blogging and other amateur online efforts will wane. "The average person may well be shouting 'I want a say,' but that's created an absence of legitimacy on the Web," Cohen says.

What consumers will value most isn't innovation but expertise. "We'll listen to those we deem worth listening to, because we're tired of all the noise out there," he says. "Maybe it'll be Oprah, or maybe it's Consumer Reports, but we're going to stick with those brands that offer reliable information. In that sense, bigger will be better."

Sound like someone you know? It better ...

• Get real: People will want to connect in 2008