Five tips on blogging for journalism job hunters | IJNet

Five tips on blogging for journalism job hunters | IJNet.

If you think blogging is just an extracurricular activity for journalists, think again.

“It’s so common in the industry that to not have [a blog] would nearly exclude me from some jobs,” says foreign correspondent Julia May, who recently took part in an online expert panel on blogging for job hunters organized by The Guardian career section.

Here are IJNet’s main takeaways from the webchat.

Have a clear objective

“Be clear within yourself about a) who you’re talking to, b) why you’re doing it, and c) how much you’re willing to commit to it. Because it is a big commitment,” says Julia May, currently the London correspondent for the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age (Melbourne) and co-creator of website The Bulb.

“Knowing your audience (and that you actually have one – that you can cut through the competition and that you aren’t merely repeating what’s already out there) is very important and has been a learning process all the way through for us,” May says. “For example, initially, because we are all women, we thought we were speaking to mostly women. But our content seems to appeal equally to men – so we are adjusting it accordingly.”

Make your blog stand out

“Include your blog in any relevant directories – for instance, my blog is for people in the beauty industry so I got it listed within directories for this sector. In the same vein, create a brief overview of your blog and what it is about and send it to relevant news websites/newsletters for potential publication to their readers,” says Jenni Retourne, director of communications consultancy Style with Substance who blogs at Your Beauty Industry.

Bring your journalism skills to the table

“In terms of standing out from the fray, our observation has been that most blogs just look pretty amateur, so simply by being professional you put yourself ahead,” says May. “I like to think of it as an online way of standing up and delivering a speech to a bunch of people I want to impress. I wouldn’t stand up in my pajamas, slur my speech and not have something prepared. Neither would I put something on The Bulb that isn’t written (and edited) properly, with interesting visuals,” says May.

Persistence, consistence

“If people see you’ve been blogging and producing quality content for a while on the same kind of subjects, when they can see through comments and your various social media activities that you’re well connected within your field, it inspires trust and establishes you as a de facto expert on that subject — someone they’ll feel confident about hiring to write or advise on whatever it is they need,” says Clotilde Dusoulier, author of award-winning food blog Chocolate & Zucchini who credits her entire food writing career to the blog.

Remember it’s not a solo show. Here are tips from Hristina Hristova, global social media manager for cloud computing company Acronis, on reader engagement.

Ask for opinions

For example, if you have written a post on why you think Nikons are the best cameras out there, finish the post with a question for your readers: “What do YOU think the best camera out there is?” This gives readers the chance to interact with you and share their own thoughts.


Provide the platform

Remind readers of your G+ and Twitter accounts, give them the chance to connect and share with you.


Promote your blog on other blogs

Collaborate with other bloggers and actively promote your channel. Find similar bloggers and start reading and commenting on their blogs – chances are, they will do the same back!


Don’t stick to one platform

Create relationships on Facebook, Twitter and G+ – engage with as many people as possible, sooner or later you will see the results.

Four social media rules journalists should break | IJNet

 

Four social media rules journalists should break | IJNet.

Social media best practices change faster than you can tweet or “like” whatever people agreed on last week.

The idea for this piece came about while prepping IJNet’s internal social media guidelines. Our number of Twitter followers is on the rise and so many people “like” us now on Facebook we blush, but across our seven languages no editor had the same strategy. Actually, our best practices often contradicted one other. (“Don’t schedule.” “Use scheduling.” “Avoid cross posting.” “Cross post, it’s a lifesaver.”). You get the idea.

Here are some social media “rules” worth breaking. Your mileage may vary. But if you’re a journalist just getting started or struggling with social media time suck, try them out. Experimenting can’t hurt and we’re pretty sure at least they won’t get you fired.

• Don’t cross post on social networks.

If you, like Liz Heron, the social media editor for the New York Times, have more than 100,000 followers on your Facebook page – versus about 11,000 on your personal Twitter account, writing something especially for a group of readers equal to the population of Cambridge, Massachusetts makes sense.

If you have a more modest following, try cross posting. Not all your followers will be checking your updates on that investigative story or the best local pizza across all channels at the same time. Use a desktop client like HootSuite or a free program like IFTTT (If This, Then That) to cross post over Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, etc. IFTTT is a multitasker’s dream: there are more than 25 “triggers” you can set up including WordPress, Instagram, Facebook, Craigslist, Tumblr and Posterous. So, for example, a new post on your blog, a Google Plus update or an uploaded Instagram photo can trigger a tweet and/or a Facebook status update.

• Don’t schedule social media posts.

Social media is immediate, fresh, of the moment, so you should rush in there as it happens – a good recipe for never getting any actual journalism done. Consider scheduling some updates once daily, as you go through your morning news. Scheduling is also a nice way to post more personal or off-topic updates in off-peak times so you won’t annoy followers. Try Hootsuite or free apps Buffer or Timely, which times tweets for maximum effectiveness based on when most people retweet or respond.

• Follow/friend/subscribe to everyone who follows you.

Not following people back seems like bad manners. But like sending handwritten thank you notes for every invitation you receive, it’s overkill and keeping up will drive you crazy. Instead of mass-following, use Twitter lists to keep up with people or subjects, on a desktop client set up streams with hashtags or keywords. On Facebook, divide friends and readers into lists or set up a Journalist Page; in Google Plus, add readers to a circle.

• Don’t repeat yourself.

Sensible advice if you don’t want to be a colossal bore at a cocktail party, but inadvisable if you’re using social media for reporting. News flash: people who follow you are not awaiting your shoutout for interviews with local business owners affected by a recent flood. Try Tweko, which allows you to selectively repeat tweets in the time span you set up, as many times (or as few) as you’d like. You can set an interval to repeat your tweets, ranging from 3-100 hours and the number of repetitions. It will repeat any tweet you add the hashtag #tweko to at that setting. This is a real lifesaver if you work across time zones or internationally, you’ll reach another set of people.

What social media rules would you break?