As part of our Love Your Blog Series, where we interview blogging and marketing experts, we asked Ally Piper, owner of Marketing in Bloom, to share with us some effective marketing tips.

In this exclusive guest post, Ally (seen in the image to the left) shares with us an easy-to-follow list of action steps to putting your marketing on autopilot this summer.

See below for the guest post:

Ah summer! It doesn’t matter how old you are, the last thing anyone wants to be doing in the summer is working. And as a small business owner, the last thing you should be doing this time of year is worrying about your marketing.

Don’t be like the 50% of sales workers who, according to CNN, check in with work while on vacation. Take advantage of the slower pace this time of year to recharge so you are ready to go once September arrives.

Thanks to a killer combination of strategic planning, streamlined marketing, and automation, I’ll be growing my business this summer while relaxing during three weeks of vacation in addition to taking every Friday off.

You can do the same with your business, too, by following these four simple steps:

Plan: Do you know when you should be sending your next email to your clients? How about the topic for your next blog post? In the process of building a detailed marketing plan for your business, you are forced to answer these and more questions so your marketing is no longer haphazard, but well thought out and strategic.

To create your plan, begin by listing all the marketing tools you’re using to promote your business. Now ask yourself, how often will I use this tool? Next, schedule each of these items on your calendar. Not only include the deadline on the calendar, but the date you need to begin working on the project so it is completed on time. I find it extremely helpful to create lists outlining all the steps necessary to complete the project and check them off as I get things done.

Now that you know what you’re doing and when, take out a blank piece of paper and start brainstorming topics, titles, and headlines for the various tools you’ll be using. For example, if you blog you should be creating a list of topics that you can blog about over the summer. Once the topics are selected, assign each one to a date where that tool is already scheduled in your calendar. Now you don’t have to question what you’re writing about next time you blog for business.

Streamline: With your detailed marketing plan and calendar in place, it is time to look for ways you can be more productive and get your marketing done efficiently. The key is to get ahead of yourself so you aren’t running around completing your marketing at the last minute. Combining similar tasks into blocks is my favorite way to do this. This means each week I set aside time to write X number (typically 5) of blog or social media posts.

You could also pay attention to repetitive tasks you’re doing on a regular basis and create a system on how to handle it in the future. Stop reinventing the wheel! Having systems in place makes it easier to delegate to your team allowing you to only focus on what you do best.

Automate: There are many tools available to automate your marketing, but it is impossible to really take advantage of them without a marketing plan in place. Your plan establishes the marketing tools and schedule, making it much easier to identify ways your business could benefit most from automation. After I write a certain number of blog posts ahead of time, I then schedule them in WordPress so I know my blog is publishing while I’m working on other things or on vacation. The same can be done with emails to your list or social media posts. Check out social media dashboards like Hootsuite or Social Oomph that allow you to pre-schedule Tweets and Facebook posts.

Enjoy Autopilot: Set a goal of how far ahead you want to be and start taking action, putting your streamlined, automated marketing plan in place. I recommend trying to be at least two weeks ahead, but a month is even better. And once you get there, keep up the pace because not only does it make your life easier, but it means you’ll be spending more time enjoying the summer and less time worrying about your marketing.

About Ally Piper:

Known as the 6-Figure Marketing Director, Ally Piper works with small business owners to turn napkin notes into marketing plans and bring big picture marketing into focus with achievable steps and results. Learn more about how you can build a powerful marketing plan and grow your business while working less at www.marketinginbloom.com.

For more valuable tips from Ally Piper, Like Marketing in Bloom on Facebook. Or click here to follow Ally on Twitter.

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If you missed Part I of our interview with Mir Kamin, professional blogger, please click here to view the post.

For Part II of this exclusive interview, see below:

4. How can a company utilize their social media platforms and blog hand in hand to increase exposure and express an accurate brand message?

The most common thing I hear about blogging, Twitter, and Facebook from companies is, “We already have [a blog, Twitter, or Facebook] so we don’t need [a blog, Twitter, or Facebook], too!” The beauty of social media is that it all works together. Some of the people who follow you on Twitter don’t read blogs. Some of your blog readers don’t use Facebook. Some of the folks on Facebook have never heard of Twitter.

Each platform is allowing you to reach people you might not otherwise. And the synergy between these platforms can create more dialog, too, when you have users who interact with you in multiple places. For example, say you post a new entry to the blog, then link to it from Facebook and tweet the link. What you’ll start seeing is that some people comment on the blog, but others start a discussion on Facebook, and still others are talking to you on Twitter. What you’re doing is making yourself more accessible; you’re reaching everyone and giving them the option to talk back on the channel that they like best.

Take it one step further. Now you have the opportunity to engage more often, in ways best-suited to those different channels. You have something fairly meaty to say, you blog it. Want to offer loyal customers a special bonus? You put something on Facebook. Have a quick thought that amuses you or read an article that really resonated? That’s a tweet. (And when someone tweets about your company, being able to respond quickly is a great way to demonstrate commitment to your base, too.) As long as it’s all about what matters to you and your customers, suddenly you’re engaging in all these different ways, but the message is always the same: We want to talk to you. Customers love knowing a company cares about what they think.

5. What three tidbits of advice would you offer to small business owners who are new to blogging?

• Get help if you need it. I promise that it can be most costly to recover from a social media misstep than to get some seasoned guidance right out of the gate. There’s no shame in saying “We’re not sure what to do and we want to do it right.” Even a few hours of consulting can mean the difference between a focused marketing push and wasted time.
• Pretend it’s a cocktail party. What do you do at a party if you want to be a good guest? You talk about things that interest you, and you listen to what other people have to say, too. You ask questions to draw people out. You don’t touch on controversial topics (until you know someone better, at least), and you don’t deliver a monologue. You try to get to know people and discover your shared interests. And that’s what your blog should be like, too.
• You don’t blog to sell more, you blog to solidify your company’s image. I’m not saying that blogging won’t lead to an increase in sales, because if you do it right, it probably will. But what you need to be thinking of to make it worthwhile is that this is a project to introduce yourself to the community, to expand who knows you and who you know, and to boost your good karma. Companies that start blogging in the hopes of immediate revenue results are disappointed and give up. This is a long-term commitment that will pay off, but you have to know you’re in it for reasons beyond sales. It’s about engagement. There is no more powerful marketing tool than being able to show your customers, “We care about the same things.” That’s what blogging (and other social media involvement) gives you.

About Mir:

Mir Kamin has been blogging professionally for over half-a-dozen years, managing both her own award-winning blogs (personal blog wouldashoulda.com and shopping blog wantnot.net) and providing various freelance support to clients big and small. She takes on single article assignments, from-the-ground-up blog content creation and audience building, and everything in-between.

Mir is known for her conversational style, ability to infuse any topic with wit, and reliable production of engaging content.

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The time has finally come for the How to Increase Profits and Exposure with a Business Blog webinar and launch of the Love Your Blog product!

For those of you who haven’t heard (i.e. live under a rock), I am hosting a one-hour webinar TODAY, Wednesday, June 15, 2011, at 1 p.m. ET,where I’ll reveal the tools you need to continuously attract well-paying clients, media exposure, and influential bloggers to your company blog.

If you’re a small business owner, entrepreneur, or soloentrepreneur who is sick and tired of putting your heart and soul into your business blog with no results, then this webinar is for you.

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If you’re ready to toss in the towel and say adios to your blog, then this webinar is for you.

During this extraordinary, 100% free webinar, you’ll discover . . .

• How blogging spreads your marketing message virally and plays a major role in your overall marketing strategy.
• Why and how a blog literally pulls prospects, media, and key influencers to you and your website.
• Which hidden secrets help you create blog content that presells and preeducatesideal clients who happily pay you what you’re worth.
• How to use the Magic of the Blog to establish yourself as the go-to expert in your field and make money flow to you.

And one of the best parts about this webinar is that you’ll get an exclusive sneak peek of Love Your Blog, our new step-by-step system that will show you how to create a business blog that pulls prospects into your sales funnel, saving you time, money, and headaches. We’re unveiling Love Your Blog today, so be sure to get a front row seat by registering for this webinar.

Register here for this exclusive event, happening TODAY, and start to Love Your Blog!

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Donna Hull, creator and blogger for My Itchy Travel Feet, is celebrated in the online travel community for her travel tips and advice for baby boomers. She has expanded her reach across various online markets and has created a name for herself in the online travel community, thanks to incredible posts on the My Itchy Travel Feet blog.

We were honored to get the inside scoop from Donna on the online travel community and interview her on her blogging success.

See below for this exclusive interview (*NOTE: All images in this post were provided by Donna Hull):

Tell us a little bit about your blog, My Itchy Travel Feet, and the inspiration behind creating it.

My Itchy Travel Feet, The Baby Boomer’s Guide to Travel offers advice for the active boomer traveler. It’s based upon my personal travel experiences and that of my husband, Alan, who is the blog’s photographer. I started My Itchy Travel Feet three years ago, partly as a platform for my freelance writing business. But I also realized that active baby boomer travelers had no place to go on the Internet for firsthand travel advice aimed at our generation. At that time, most of the blogs targeted towards boomers were about long term care, retirement issues, and sedentary, senior travel. Nowhere did I find information for the type of trips that most of my boomer friends were experiencing—vibrant, active, and inquisitive journeys.

Donna at the Hidden Meadow Ranch in Arizona

What benefits do travelers receive from using blogs as their main source of travel research as oppose to magazines and other travel publications?

Blogs are a great resource for firsthand travel information. Learning about a blogger’s personal travel experience at a destination that I’m researching gives a different perspective from a magazine article or guidebook. But I don’t believe in using one main source for travel research. To me, it’s all a big stew of travel information—guidebooks, magazine articles, and blog posts. If I mix it all together, I come up with a well-planned trip.

How do you drive targeted traffic to your blog? Specifically, what types of online marketing tools do you use and what results have you seen from each?

I think it’s important to try a group of online marketing tools, and then narrow it down to the two or three that work best in the blogger’s circumstance. No matter what type of online marketing tools you use, the emphasis should be on the value that you bring to your reader. What information would help them plan their trip? I ask myself that question every time I write a blog post, tweet about a topic, or publish a link on our Facebook page.

Since I’m appealing to a baby boomer audience, Facebook is a big part of my online marketing because it is so popular with boomers. The My Itchy Travel Feet page on Facebook is a lively mix of travel deals and information that appeals to active baby boomers. I keep a loose editorial calendar. The entries are based upon press releases, previous blog posts from My Itchy Travel Feet, photos from our trips, and links to other travel sites and blogs, depending on the theme that I’m promoting. Our page has over 2,100 fans, many of whom subscribe to our newsletter or click over to posts at My Itchy Travel Feet.

Donna on a Regent Cruise

Twitter is also valuable, but mainly for connecting with travel providers and my travel blogging peers. I tweet about travel information of interest to baby boomers that I find through Google Alerts, as well as posting links to current blog posts from My Itchy Travel Feet. Through twitter, I’ve been invited to visit destinations or try new travel products. Editors have offered paid writing jobs after discovering me on Twitter.

I also participate on forums where baby boomers are talking about travel, such as Eons and AARP. This is more time consuming but establishes me as an authority on boomer travel. I answer questions without pushing my own blog. When it’s appropriate (and the forum allows it), I’ll post a link to a blog post at My Itchy Travel Feet that the forum member will find helpful. Although I don’t receive as much traffic from participating on forums, I’m definitely reaching my target audience.

What does the My Itchy Travel Feet blog provide for travelers? Specifically, how does it help travelers explore the world?

Through blog posts, photos, and videos, I’m showing boomer what it’s like to go there and do that. And because my travel experience is so varied, I can write about a luxury cruise one day and four-wheeling in the Colorado Mountains on another. Since I’m not some super athlete or adventurer, My Itchy Travel Feet also shows the typical boomer that, yes, you can do that, too.

In your opinion, what does the future of travel hold in store for travel blogs? Do you think travelers will use them more as their main source of research?

It’s become so easy to publish travel blogs that we’re going to continue to see a proliferation of them. Blogs that offer quality writing, good photographs, accurate information, and unbiased reporting will be the ones that travelers seek out as they research trips. However, I don’t think there will be any one main source for travel research—it’s still a combination of blogs, informational sites, magazine articles, and guidebooks. And don’t forget about the more literary travel blogs. They may not be focused on travel planning but they offer a slice-of-life picture that you can’t get on pure travel information sites.

Donna in St. Helena

About Donna Hull and My Itchy Travel Feet:

Donna L. Hull writes about active travel for baby boomers at My Itchy Travel Feet, The Baby Boomer’s Guide to Travel, a 2011 Bloggies finalist and selected as the #1 Baby Boomer Blog for 2010 by BeASuccessfulEntrepreneur.com, The Arizona/Montana based freelance writer and photographer is the baby boomer travel expert for Humana’s boomer site, REAL for Me. She also reviews lodging at Uptake.com. and writes about boomer travel for LivingBetterAfter50+.com.

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We’re ready to show you exactly how to have a business blog you’ll love writing and your ideal prospects will love reading—right before they swarm your website to buy from you. Your blog will attract key influencers and the media, who will drive even more traffic to your website.

You’ll educate clients and spend less time on sales calls, so you can talk to more prospects every day. You’ll stand out from the crowd and generate more revenue than you ever thought possible.

And the party starts here, with my free webinar, “How to Increase Profits and Exposure with a Business Blog,” happening June 15, 2011, from 1–2 p.m. Eastern / 10–11 a.m. Pacific.

If you do business online, this webinar is for you. During this extraordinary, 100% free webinar, you’ll discover . . .

• How to use the Magic of the Blog to establish yourself as the go-to expert in your field and make money flow to you.
• How blogging spreads your marketing message virally and plays a major role in your overall marketing strategy.
• Which hidden secrets help you create blog content that presells and preeducates ideal clients who happily pay you what you’re worth.
• Why and how a blog literally pulls prospects, media, and key influencers to you and your website.

These are the same secrets we use for our elite clients to blast the competition and make more money than they ever dreamed possible. Now it’s your turn.

Click here to discover how to easily and painlessly create a business blog that draws well-paying clients, media attention, and plenty of profit. Finally, the solution is here.

Now, about that party . . .

When you sign up for the webinar, you’re part of the Love Your Blog launch party! We’ve created a step-by-step, simple system to help you create a blog that draws prospects, publicity, and profits, AND you’ll get an exclusive sneak peek of Love Your Blog, our new step-by-step system that will show you how to create a business blog that pulls prospects into your sales funnel, saving you time, money, and headaches.

After you register for this webinar, the fun begins. You’ll receive blogging success tips, raffle entries, audios, videos, and more. Keep an eye on your inbox for your goodies, which include . . .

• An Interview with The Good Stuff Guide Blog: How to Get Tens of Thousands of Readers in Months—Founder of The Good Stuff Guide blog, Heidi Farmer, shares how understanding her target audience led to overnight success for her blog. Download this incredible interview, and use it as a blueprint for your own quantum leap.
• An Interview with Blase Ciabaton: How Online Content Leads to Offline Conversions—Founder of TheDirectMailMan.com and direct mail professional, Blase Ciabaton, discusses how he uses his blog to attract clients to his offline business in this downloadable interview.
• 5 Tips for Creating Unique Blog Posts When You’re Strapped for Time—Want to blog, but don’t have the time to write three fresh blog posts per week? Instead of slapping something together or not posting at all, check out our report on 5 tips for creating blog posts that don’t take much time (or effort) to post.

Join the party! Click here to register for this exclusive webinar.

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As a longtime friend of Sumèr’s, Blase Ciabaton of TheDirectMailman.com has cohosted several webinars with me and has been featured on our blog in the past. We are delighted to share our new interview with Blase, where he discusses how blogging has helped his business and how it’s become a vital part of his online marketing strategy.

See below for our interview:

1. How do you use your blog, TheDirectMailMan.com, to generate leads?

My blog helps generate leads on a number of fronts. Probably the most obvious is that it helps to attract potential customers who would otherwise never find me.

Perhaps a less obvious benefit is that for existing clients or for people who already know me, but aren’t yet clients, it helps to move them forward in the sales process. In this case, my blog is a vehicle to showcase that I am an expert in my field of direct mail marketing.

Finally, an unanticipated benefit of blogging is that it’s made me a better listener. In many cases, the blog comments that I receive from readers lead to future blog topics. By leveraging the questions and information shared in the comments from my blog, I can be sure that my topics are relevant and interesting to my readers. This also leads to more interaction with visitors to my blog, which then increases quality leads.

2. Do you believe that blogging for business has helped you to express your brand message?

Absolutely—in fact, I’ve created a special animated superhero persona to brand my blog. While I can’t walk around in real life wearing a cape, my blog offers me the flexibility to express my brand and myself in a more creative way.

My mission with my blog is to literally act like a superhero and provide information that is timely, useful, and relevant to my target audience. The fun superhero graphic reinforces my brand message that I want to be the absolute best resource online to help businesses and nonprofits launch more successful direct mail marketing campaigns; I strive to be each reader’s personal superhero.

3. Where does your blog fit into your overall marketing strategy? Where does your blog rank in terms of the most successful marketing strategy you have?

In many cases, my blog is the engine that drives my other marketing initiatives. For example, I can pull a few blog posts together and quickly create a printed newsletter that I can distribute via direct mail to clients and prospects.

The content from my blog has also led me to get published in multiple business publications. I have adapted posts and submitted my own content for publication in business magazines, or in other cases, I’ve been contacted by local media for interviews as an expert in my field because of something they’ve read on my blog.

No doubt, consistently publishing blog posts ranks as one of my most successful marketing initiatives.

4. You’ve managed to merge online and print marketing quite well! How do you use the two in unison to produce your desired results?

Everyone wants loyal customers, but many fail to realize that lack of consistent communication is one of the main reasons that customers leave. Communicating through any single marketing channel will always result in gaps that lead to alienation of certain segments of the customer population. For this reason, I am a huge believer in the importance of integrating marketing efforts across different platforms, and I practice what I preach.

For me, QR Codes are a natural way to connect print with online content. These codes are essentially free to add to printed marketing collateral, and they provide such a convenient way for customers and prospects to interact right from the palm of their hand using a mobile device. QR Codes are the perfect bridge for these two diverse channels.

I think that integrating online and print is much easier than most people realize. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel and create separate content for different channels. In almost all cases, the same content can be repurposed from online and used for print or vice versa. In fact, for a business that wants to establish a consistent brand image with their customers, they will want to synchronize communication across different channels.

5. How have your online marketing strategies evolved over time? What has been your most effective online marketing strategy thus far?

My blog is the backbone for all of my social media activities and is hands down my most effective marketing tool. It would be much more difficult to interact without this content. Every time I publish a new post, I have something to share via Twitter, LinkedIn, and my e-newsletter.  Minus my blog, I’d be limited to sharing only other people’s content; the direct link back to my business and me would be lost.

In terms of evolution of my online marketing strategy, I’ve refocused my efforts this year on developing deeper relationships instead of broader relationships. I think it’s very easy to get caught up with the numbers in social media. By obsessing over questions such as How many Twitter followers do I have?, How many LinkedIn connections do I have?, and How many subscribers do I have to my e-newsletter?, it’s easy to lose focus on what’s really important.

A quality relationship with a fellow blogger or peer who can refer me business is worth more than 500 Twitter followers. To develop those relationships, I need to engage with my key contacts by commenting on their blogs, sharing their content using my favorite social media platforms, and being timely and responsive whenever they reach out for help.

This renewed focus on quality interactions versus quantity is so much more rewarding, both personally and financially. It’s also much less stressful than chasing what, in many circumstances, are just arbitrary numbers.

About the Author: In 2009, Blase Ciabaton used his 6 years of expertise as a direct mail professional to launch the blog www.TheDirectMailMan.com. The blog caters to small businesses and tackles issues related to customer prospecting, improving response rates, and identifying targeted mailing lists. If you found this post valuable you may want to sign up for his weekly e-newsletter or following his blog’s RSS feed.

Share Blase’s interview with your followers on Twitter.

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As the owner and president of Sumèr, I invite all of my Copy Doodle readers to attend my Love Your Blog Launch Party on Increase Profits and Exposure with a Business Blog, happening Wednesday, June 15 from 1 – 2 p.m. EST. And guess what? You don’t even have to leave your office to attend! See below for more details or click here to register now .  .  .

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As no surprise to us, travel has become one of the most popular blog topics. So what is it about travel blogs that make them such a popular platform for travelers looking to research various destinations around the world? Just ask Freelance Travel Writer Spencer Spellman (seen in the picture to the left).

Spencer has traveled to some of the world’s most exotic places—including South Africa, Costa Rica, and Ireland—and documents all of his travels so that other travelers may benefit from his tips and past experiences. In addition, Spencer manages and produces blog and social media content for Sumèr’s elite travel clients.

We interviewed Spencer on the power of travel blogs and how travel professionals can fit them into their online marketing strategy.

See below for the interview.

1. Where do travel blogs fit into travel research? Specifically, who visits travel blogs and what are they looking for that they can’t find in magazines or other travel publications?

Travel blogs are only part of the travel planning research. Travel bloggers are often transparent and very savvy, so travelers can get a certain experience from them that they won’t find on other websites. I think that many people don’t quite trust guidebooks, magazines, and large travel websites like they once did. They want to find travel blogs that match their style of travel.

2. How do you use social media and blogging hand in hand to increase exposure and facilitate conversation among the travel community?

Travel blogging and social media have made travel planning so immediate. In the past, travelers who had a question about travel planning may have emailed someone, called, or asked on a forum, and it could be hours or even days until they got an answer. Now, travelers can get their answers within seconds.

I’ve used social media and blogging to establish myself as an authority. Even if I can’t point someone to a post I’ve written to answer their question, at least I can point them to the right authority. Then the next time they have a question, they’ll come straight back to me.

3. How do you come up with your blog topic ideas and constantly generate fresh topics?

It’s about new experiences and not doing the same things over and over. Not to mention, travel has become more than just sightseeing. While people want to know about where to eat and what they should do, they want to have an experience or conversation that makes their trip different from the next person who goes to the same place. I like writing about those experiences and the change that often takes place as a result of travel.

4. In your opinion, how has travel blogging evolved over the past few years?

Anyone can be a travel blogger. In an hour, someone can have their own travel blog up and running and their first post written with some photos. Traveling and then writing about your travel experiences is the dream thing to do. So there’s been somewhat of a rat race to get a piece of the cake.

5. What one tip would you give travel providers who are currently blogging and involved in social media?

Make it personal. That’s why so many travelers are using blogging and social media, and not websites, magazines, and guidebooks like they used to. Connect with other travelers and be transparent. This means snapping and publishing photos and videos, talking about your travel gaffes, and answering people’s questions. It puts a person behind the brand. People want that human connection.

What’s your favorite travel blog and why?

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Nobody wants to read a stuffy law blog littered with complicated industry jargon and phrasing. So how does a law firm create an enticing blog that gets read? Just ask the attorneys at Uricchio Law Firm, a firm that represents clients facing serious legal problems, including criminal defense, personal injury, and workplace accidents, throughout South Carolina.

Paul “Ricky” Uricchio III, attorney and founder of Uricchio Law Firm, was able to take his passion for the law and motorcycles to create a blog that people want to read and share.

See below for this exclusive case study on successful blogging practices:

Challenge

Paul Uricchio came to us looking to ramp up online marketing efforts and increase online exposure for his firm. With a personal interest in criminal defense and personal injury, and as an avid motorcyclist since 1967, Paul wanted to combine his extensive knowledge of motorcycles and law to develop a blog featuring topics related to motorcycle and transportation law, safety tips, and biker information.

In order to position themselves as the leading South Carolina personal injury law firm, especially in motorcycle injuries and accidents, Uricchio Law Firm knew they needed to develop a blog that not only educated clients about South Carolina laws, but that also spoke to motorcyclists in South Carolina and nationwide.

Solution

Sumèr designed a high-performance blog for Uricchio Law Firm that positions the firm as a leader in South Carolina law, the rights of motorcyclists, biker events, biker safety tips, biker charities / fundraisers, and applicable criminal law.

The blog design provides viewers with easy navigation and access to valuable law resources. The layout of the firm’s blog, Biker’s Law, was created based on Uricchio Law Firm’s brand image and message. Sumèr also developed a blog editorial calendar for the firm that allowed them to generate fresh and valuable content on a consistent schedule.

We also provided them with optimized web copy on interior blog pages, meta data, and submitted their blog to various blog directory platforms to help facilitate traffic. To further enhance promotion and awareness, Sumèr coached the Uricchio Law Firm team on Twitter and Facebook usage, and assisted them with setting up their accounts.

Sumèr provides Uricchio Law Firm with bi-weekly updates on blog progress, providing the firm with detailed spreadsheets outlining blog statistics.

Here’s what Uricchio Law Firm says:

“Sumèr came in and literally turned our blog into all we dreamed of and MORE. Over the course of three months, Lowcountry Bikers’ blog readership increased by an astonishing 90%. Our firm is so pleased to work with such a talented and creative team. What I find most unique about the Sumèr team is how they truly dedicate themselves to understanding your business and then mix in their creativity and talent to produce a phenomenal product. Our results speak for themselves!”

-Katie Perkins, Attorney at Uricchio Law Firm

Visit Biker’s Law at www.lowcountrybikers.com and share the Uricchio Law Firm blog success story on Facebook or Twitter.

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Whether you’re a small business owner or run a PR agency, BlogDash is a great online tool for individuals looking to reach out to bloggers in various niches and areas of expertise. In addition to businesses, bloggers can also use BlogDash to gain exposure and build relationships online.

How do businesses benefit from using BlogDash?

Businesses with a result-driven marketing plan often utilize online media platforms to market their brand. And some of the most influential online platforms are blogs. But if you’ve ever tried researching and pitching to bloggers, you probably know how time consuming and difficult it can be to find bloggers interested in your brand. With the creation of BlogDash, small businesses can turn hours of strenuous research into a few minutes of research and pitching by narrowing their search results through BlogDash’s filters.

BlogDash’s extensive blogger database is a quick and easy way to promote your product / services and share your brand story with influential bloggers. With a database containing more than 30,000 bloggers worldwide, BlogDash makes it simple for businesses to find bloggers related to their industry. Once you find influential bloggers who are interested in your unique brand message, you can start building powerful relationships and request guest blog spots and / or featured posts pertaining to your brand. When influential bloggers publish posts around your brand, and market and promote these posts to their followers, you’ll gain exposure to entirely new markets.

If you already have a list of bloggers, you may upload your contact spreadsheet(s) to BlogDash. Once BlogDash receives your spreadsheet, they’ll gather information pertaining to each particular blogger, including bios, social media profiles, blog stats, and more. You can also create data lists within BlogDash to track results for outreach efforts.

Companies using BlogDash can choose from two packages to purchase, including the Premium package and the Plus package. You may view these packages here.

How do bloggers benefit from using BlogDash?

Unlike businesses that use BlogDash, bloggers don’t have to pay a cent for utilizing BlogDash’s resources. Bloggers can register their blog and set specific preferences on how they wish to be pitched and what types of stories and features they’re looking for. They can even develop relationships with influential businesses while finding fresh material for their blogs. BlogDash even offers a blogger badge for bloggers who wish to link their BlogDash profile to their blog.

One of the best parts about using BlogDash is that you won’t receive any mass messages from spammers.

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