Posted by: David Spinks - 26 August 2010 / 16:39
Tim Stiffler-Dean was kind enough to invite me to do an interview for his sweet site twintrview.
We discussed a lot of basic community concepts. You should check out the full interview here.
Here are some of the things we discussed related to Scribnia and our community:
Q: What is the importance of being so vocal on the@Scribnia blog and social media accounts? Should other companies follow that lead?
As a start up, it can be really tough to gain traction in a space… especially one as noisy as the blogosphere. Being active on the blog, on twitter and on other platforms is a way for you to gain loyal users early, and to establish yourself. We also use the @Scribnia blog for community efforts. In the “Behind the Blogs” series, we interview interesting bloggers from the community. It’s just a nice way to promote the bloggers in our community, while creating interesting content.
As I mentioned before, the ability and willingness to help is really important when interacting in online communities. Social media platforms like twitter, like blogging forums, etc… have been a great method for finding people who need help, and helping them.
Should other companies follow that lead? Hard to say on such a broad scale. Chances are, there are potential customers or users interacting online, and seeking information. Creating useful content and being active on SM is the best way to reach them.
Q: What are some tools that a company or person getting into professional blogging can use to be successful (like Scribnia)?
Depending on the resources they have, there are a few options.
The simplest tool would be a tumblr or posterous. They’re built for simplicity so you’re limited on what you can do but many companies have used these tools effectively. The next option is wordpress.com. It’s a bit more professional but it’s still free… which means you’re limited on options.
Most sites are using wordpress.org for their professional blogs these days. You’ll have to pay for hosting, but you have a lot more freedom in how you’d like the blog to look, features you can use, etc….
As far as getting your blog going with readers and comments, you should be using social media tools. Using twitter and facebook to share your content is fine as long as you’re not just sharing your own shit. Also check out tools like @commentluv and @disqus that will enhance the reader’s comment experience.
In the end, starting a successful blog is less about the tools, and more about the content/ how you’re getting it out there.
Q: What are some things that we can expect in the future from @Scribnia? (And how can we keep in touch to find out more).
Glad you asked. We have a lot in store for Scribnia. In the next few months we plan on really improving the overall site design and user experience. We will simplify the site a great deal, to make it really easy for users to get started, and start getting recommendations.
As I said, our goal is to enhance your online reading experience, and we’re working on a number of things to do that. We’ll also be launching a new product in October, that will be free for bloggers. It will provide them with quality story leads and professional opportunities to work with businesses.
You can stay updated on everything we’re working on by following @Scribnia, , subscribing to the blog or just signing up.
Tags: blogging, Community, David, dean, future, Interview, media, Scribnia, social, Spinks, stiffler, timothy, twintrview
