foolishnotions.net

i have been over my blog layout for a while now. but i’ve convinced myself not to touch it until i finish the design for the new rock web site. web design, though on my proverbial plate at the rock, is usually last morsel to be consumed on my priority list.

so, at the very least i have to keep foolishnotions up to date…. right? i updated to the latest version of wordpress. now everything is screwed up. i have funky characters everywhere. anywhere i have posted a video has become a disaster area with posts and videos scattered about the page.

so, if you dig deep enough into my site you will discover the ugly truth of this. but, i’m not touching it. so, in case you are wondering if i have fallen from geekdom…. i have to allow myself not to care. cause i really have to do this other thing.

so, ya’ll just read between the lines for a while…. k? thanks.

ok, i only installed analytics in may (i’ve had foolishnotions since ‘05.  i know - tisk, tisk).  it’s ok - not missing anything.  i’m sure 05 through last may looks pretty much the same.  so, can you tell when i really got serious about blogging?

top 10 posts for 2007:

1. a most awesome and amazing email
   not sure how i feel about the fact that my top post of 2007 was an email that i didn’t write.  thanks, don!!!!  (ok, it’s secretly one of my favorites too.)  btw - the writer of this awesome and amazing email is blogless. i think you all should go over and apply some peer pressure to his wife’s blog.  i’m telling you it will be worth the effort if you succeed.  i have read his other writings and he definitely should have a blog.
2. residents?
   evidently a lot of people have wasps in their homes.  i find this a little disturbing.
3. newsflash: wilmington gets october snow
   great pic of linds
4. so — are you ready?
   i like this one too.
   
5. i’m curious… do you comment on strangers’ blogs?
   i was so nervous to write this post.  but am sooooo glad i did.  it really made a difference about how i blog and follow other’s blogs.  i was really struggling with the comment aspect.  thank you to all who chimed in.  if you didn’t before - go leave me your 2 cents.
6. am i really going to do this?
   one of my favorite moments this year at church.  i’m soooo glad there are no pics.
   
7. ka boom!
   good times!
   
8. spreading the love - - my favorite wordpress plugins
   spammers love this one.  had to turn comments off.  good list.
9. meet they lymans… and friends
   oh, yeah.  i need to do this again.  haven’t been venturing out of the booth enough.  note to self… it’s about the people not the buttons.  got it.
10. rember?
    some of my favorite series art from 2007.  i need to post more of these too.

thanks for reading and commenting.  you guys are awesome!  for you closet readers (i know i have some - california and virginia, who are you? hmmmm…), throw me a comment !  i love it when i get to meet someone new.

let’s make 2008… great!

spam comments make me laugh sometimes. they obviously thought i cared an awful lot about six pack abs since i have so many links to abs of steel. …they’re dorks.

i follow blogs for quite a few people i have never met. mostly leaders who share a similar field of work as me. i even follow some of their twitters. i have found that after a while i develop a weird kind of familiarity. but i know they don’t know me. sometimes i want to comment, but i don’t because i think it might make them feel weird, or they might think i’m weird. or worse, that i’m just trying to get a link to my blog on their site. i have found, since blog commenting isn’t really set up to be a good two way dialog, the return silence can be deafening. i know people who get a lot of traffic can’t possibly reply to everything and still live their lives… i get that and wouldn’t expect them to. really, just want to know if people like comments from strangers - and how they prefer to be addressed.

so this (these) is (are) my question(s):

1. do you comment on strangers’ blogs?
2. do you keep it formal or casual?
3. do you comment on personal things they post, or just the general professional kind of stuff?
4. if you have a blog… how do you want strangers to interact with you on both personal and level?

of all my posts i’ve written to date - this is the one i really want feedback on the most from everyone…
- especially, if you don’t know me…
- double especially if you get comments from a lot of people you don’t know….
- triple especially if you are one of the blogs that i follow, you don’t know me & you get comments from a lot of people you don’t know.

Hey everyone! If you go to The ROCK, or you live in the Wilmington, NC area and have heard about Imagine Christmas and are excited - - and you have a blog… We could really use your help!!! We are down to the wire and we need to get the word out. I happen to know there are a ton of ROCK bloggers out there… and you guys have the potential to generate a tremendous amount of online buzz. How? Search Engines… don’t be scared- - read on.

OK — why? Imagine with me… Some family is doing a google search to find something festive to do over the weekend. They pull up google and type “christmas event wilmington nc” into the search field. If we have all done what I will suggest below… they will have LOTS of opportunities to find Imagine Christmas because the first few result pages will be littered with our blog posts about Imagine filled with great content from multiple perspectives.

Now, before I give my list of suggestions I want to say one more thing. I really get the impression that some bloggers think it’s really not important for their blogs to be “ranked” by search engines. I guess people start getting a little squirrelly when they have to start labeling everything to get ahead in placement. It goes against our grain as Christians to get ourselves to the top of any list. We feel like we are being prideful or something. But, let me tell you - - if you are at all interested in reaching people with those words God put in your heart and you painstakingly brooded over before you got up the nerve to click publish… pursuing good search engine placement is not only important - - it’s a waste of your time not to. Remember… we’re not out to reach our friends here. They already get it. We are here to be a real voice of truth and love to people who find themselves without any of their own. So yeah, what I am about to share with you is not only important for Imagine Christmas… it’s important for all your blogging.

Ok, here’s what you do… (I know some of you will read my list below and think I’m talking in some strange code language… i’ve been accused of that plenty of times before. I’ve really tried to keep it simple. It’s really not too painful. Just take your time to read carefully and do what you can understand.)

1. Blog about your observations about what is going on for Imagine Christmas. Content is key here… make it interesting - from your point of view. If you have volunteered or are a cast member, tell about what you’ve been up to.
2. Everytime you mention Imagine Christmas or The ROCK make it a link. Even if you mention it 5 times… link every one to therockchristmas.com or the rockwilmington.com.
3. Use images from therockchristmas.com… anything you want. Or take your own behind the scenes shots and use them in your posts (don’t give away anything too juicy though- just tease a little ). Don’t forget to link your images too.
4. Fill out the “description” field for your links and your images with descriptive key words like, “Imagine Christmas event at The ROCK church Wilmington, NC”. It doesn’t have to be that exactly… just use words that are pertinent to your links and images, and are also keywords that you would use if you were to google to find a Christmas Event to Attend in Wilmington, NC.
5. Other good keywords to use throughout your posts… event, production, christmas, wilmington, nc, cape fear, performance, dance, live music, theater, drama, church, program…. you get the idea. And as many of them as you can in the very first paragraph is best. The farther up on the content of your page the keywords occur - the better. If you have access to your meta keywords and descriptions these will help you. (if you have no idea what the word “meta” means…. just disregard this part and do the rest… )
6. Refer your readers to therockchristmas.com for behind the scenes updates, photos and directions.
7. The Invite a Friend feature is up and running on therockchristmas.com. Tell everyone you know. Include a link to the Invite a Friend page in your posts so your readers can invite their friends too.
8. Give your posts a good title - using key words in your post title is good for search engine placement.
9. Post often. It doesn’t have to be long. Just interesting. Use pictures, good keywords and don’t forget to link everytime.
10. Be sincere. Where I am suggesting we pay attention to the key words we include in our content and our linking… I am not suggesting we fill our posts with hype. Just write as you normally would and pay close attention that you are getting the most out of every word. It’s easy - - promise.

P.S… if you have your own wordpress domain - - not a free one - - and you have not installed the SEO Plugin. I HIGHLY recommend you do it. I have found it to be golden for search engine placement. If you don’t have your own domain yet and are serious about your blogging I highly recommend you upgrade and install SEO.

P.S.S… i have intentionally broken my own rules with this post because the sheer number of keywords and links would cause it to probably come up number one… and I don’t know that I really want this post to be the number one thing they see about Imagine Christmas. So I have intentionally broken my own rules here… in case you were thinking i didn’t notice.

For all you who have hosted domains running Wordpress… here are my favorite WP-Plugins. For all of you running the free wordpress blog… you should be warned - - - you will really want to get your own domain after reading about all these fun goodies (not to mention themes - - glorious themes). For all of you running blogger [[sigh]]…. i really don’t know how you can stand it, but we’re thrilled to have you around all the same. Here they are… my fav’s…

1. Plugin Installer
   This is the first plugin I install for all wordpress blogs. Installs and uninstalls plugins from plugin admin interface. Must have.
2. Page Link Manager
   Lets you select which pages show up in your page navigation. Very handy!
   
3. Commentluv
   I love, love, love this one! Just found it. It posts a link underneath each comment to commenter’s last blog post - - thus spreading a little comment luv…. you’re welcome :-D. I know, I know… you love me too. Unfortunately it doesn’t back-track. So let the comment luv commence!
4. All in One SEO Pack
   A must have. Because you are all optimizing your blogs - - - RIGHT???? Man, that post has been sitting in my drafts for waaaaay too long now. Soon… I’ll post it soon.
   
5. Brian’s Threaded Comments
   This is smooth. Allows you to respond to specific comments instead of the usual “in order” way. Makes communication with your commenters a little more personal. I’m hoping someday they will make it so it will send an email to the person you are responding to so they will know without having to subscribe to comments (which noone does). That would make it almost the perfect WP plugin.
6. Dofollow
   Yet a little more love for your commenters. Tells spiders and bots - “YES!!! DO follow my commenter’s links… i LOVE my commenters”. Again, you’re welcome.
7. Kill Preview 2
   This is a good one too. Makes that pesky “preview” (which really does no such thing) at the bottom of your “write” panel - - go away. Benefit? You don’t have to wait for it to load e v e r y t i m e !!!
8. iWPhone
   This one makes iPhone users happy. Reconfigures your posts so that they can read and navigate (and comment) easily.
9. Podpress
   This is the only way to podcast (mostly because it’s the only one I could figure out ;-). But really, it’s perfect for getting listed on iTunes and others. Very robust and comprehensive interface. Great for just everyday multimedia posts too.
10. Popularity Contest
    This is also a new one for me. Shows up underneath all your posts as a popularity percentage calculated by counting links, comments, clicks, etc. You can also put a widget in your sidebar showing your most popular posts. Lots of potential with this one. Lets readers find your best content quickly.
11. WP-DBManager
    Gotta have it. Backs up your blog and emails it to you however often you tell it to and has database tools to help keep your blog healthy and speedy.
12. WP-Sticky
    Haven’t used this often - but nice to have when I want it. Make a post “stick” in the top position of your blog.
13. WP-Email
    Word of mouth! Email this post to a friend (or, invite a friend, as I am getting ready to use it on the Imagine Christmas Site).
14. Link Harvest
    I kind of like this. It compiles a list of all the things you have ever linked to and orders them from most frequent to least frequent. Makes a cool snapshot for your readers of where you link.
15. Google Sitemaps
    You may think you don’t need a site map, but those spiders and bots love them. Just install it - you don’t ever have to look at it again or show the whole world. Just let it work it’s magic behind the scenes… it updates automatically.

There you go… have fun! (don’t forget to comment so you can see your link go up in all it’s glory!).

NOTE: due to an inordinate amount of spam being directed at this post i have disabled comments for it.  spammers remain - forever - - - dorks.