The benefits of blogs for your business Short introduction The current state of the Romanian Blogosphere - oportunities

1. The benefits of blogs for your business • Short introduction • The current state of the Romanian Blogosphere - oportunities • Advantages of blogs • A short guide for writing a blog • Timsoft dialogue with you about blogging Carmen Holotescu Director Timsoft – http://www.timsoft.ro Author eLearningBlog - http://www.timsoft.ro/weblog

2. I. Short introduction • The term weblog appeared in 1997 - Jorn Barger; called shorter – blog in 1999 - Peter Merholz • 2004 – the year of blogs; 2005 – podcasts; 2006 – vlogs • Weblog / Blog Definition - Dave Winer, The History of Weblogs “A weblogpoints to articles elsewhere on the Web, often with comments, and to on-site articles. A Weblog is kind of a continual tour, with a human guide who you get to know. There are many guides to choose from, each develops an audience, and there's also comraderie and politics between the people who run weblogs, they point to each other, in all kinds of structures, graphs, loops.” • Blogs are about communication, collaboration, facilitation of dialogue, learning together, responsibility, implication, spaces with no external pressure

3. I. Short introduction • Blogs + RSS feeds = World Wide Web - real-time, alive, validated Web • Blogosphere = a treasure of information, experiences, knowledge • Worldwide - 50 million blogs - 6 mil active, Technorati report • USA - 10 million blogs ( 4% of population ), Pew / Internet report • Japan- 4 million blogs ( 3.13% la population ), The Blog Herald - Blog Count for July • Europe – 8 million blogs, European Blogosphere wiki • Romania – 15000 blogs - 2-3000 active ( 0.06% of population ) – estimation based on blogging systems; more than half were opened this year

4. II. The current state of the Romanian Blogosphere • Robloggers Survey – designed and run by Carmen Holotescu & Cristian Manafu ( manafu.blogspot.com ) in august 2006 • promoted by word-of-blog – 104 blogs • 272 bloggers responders, 402 blogs • results - http://www.timsoft.ro/weblog/survey • sections: demographic data, information resources, monitored blogs, edited blogs, opinion on the Romanian Blogosphere

5. II. The current state of the Romanian Blogosphere • Age – oportunities: public for advertising, it’s time for the experienced people to imply, for education • Sex – worldwide 68% of blogges are women • Studies – quality of information on blogs

6. Information Resources II. The current state of the Romanian Blogosphere • Activity Field • 25% - ICT • 28% - pupils & students • 20% - Media & Marketing • 6% - Teachers • Geographic distribuition – oportunity for the voices outside Bucharest to be heard and listened • 55% - Bucharest • 35% - other cities • 10% - abroad • Blogs credibility – compared with traditional media

7. Monitored blogs Edited blogs II. The current state of the Romanian Blogosphere

8. III. Advantages Advantages resulted from Robloggers Survey

9. III. Advantages corporateblogging.info • To give employees information and insights relating to their work assignments • To provide a working team with a tool for research, collaboration and discussion • To strengthen organizational culture. Typically through informal content of social or non-work related character. Types of blogs in companies • Brand awareness/Brand positioning • Business development • Issues management / lobbying • Crisis communication • Media relations • Recruitment marketing • Customer support • Reseller / dealer support • Part of community of practice It’s your decission when to start – but your competitors are already in

10. IV.Short guide • To open a blog is the same easy as writing on a paper – what you put there is important; when it’s the time to start? • Prepare for blogging: Learn to search / listen / monitor / communicate • Find valuable blogs - from blogs blogrolls, Romanian blogs directories, Technorati, Bloglines, Google BlogSearch • Learn to monitor blogs ( other sites ) sites using RSS; create search feeds • Learn to search information about you and your company on blogs • Comment blogs / comunicate with the others • Compare blogging styles, types – determine what is suitable for you • Develop a content strategy • Compare blogging platforms – see which Romanian bloggers use in survey; choose one ( OS ) • Work with /imply your team in all the phases

11. IV.Short guide • Start blogging: Learn / improve to communicate / collaborate • Keep informed • Provide useful information, analysis • Write at least weekly • Facilitate comunication on your blogs and in blogosphere, draw connections, be sncere, human, participate • Create / improve your blogging style • Track conversations • Don’t be afraid of different opinions • Time management is important • Continue!

12. V. Timsoft dialogue with you about blogging • eLearningBlog– about Romanian Blogosphere, Tips on RSS / Blogs • Romanian Collection of RSS / Blogs – categories, tops, blogs on map, notoriety information, BlogsBattle tool • Online courses on Blogging in Education and Business

13. Thank you! The floor is yours now