Creator vs. Curator

Post by Lisa Ding, Community Manager

Of the blogs that I read every day, more than half are blogs that link me to news articles, websites, or other blog posts on the web. It used to be that bloggers were expected to write original content. While original content remains highly valued by many readers, it's no longer taboo to simply share things that you find elsewhere on the Internet. Followers will read your blog to see the great content that you surface. Essentially, every blog can be a small gallery of a blogger’s interests and taste.

One of my go-to blogs for Internet trends is Brandflakes for Breakfast, which states its mission is to “read the internet, so you don’t have to.” The posts are short and quippy, and the contributors work for a digital creative agency, so I trust the content that they’re surfacing will be relevant to the Internet, marketing, and branding -- some topics that interest me.

While I’m a fervent reader of blogs, I’ve struggled to post original content on a regular basis. Fortunately, I’ve discovered a couple of sharing tools on Blogger that will help me post more often. As long as I keep finding interesting things on the web, I’ll be able to use these two shortcuts to help me generate quick blog posts:

1. Blog This! tool for Chrome: If you're using Chrome as your browser, simply install this extension and you'll be ready to write a blog post with a prepopulated link.
2. If you want to share a post from another Blogger blog, select the ‘B’ sharing button at the end of the post. A link and blurb of the post will pre-populate, so simply type an intro, and voila! you have a new post. (Note: If you don't see the sharing buttons on your own blog, you can enable them by going into the Design tab and editing the Blog Post page element.)

A question for our bloggers: do you consider yourself primarily a creator or a curator?

Why do you blog?

Posted by Inci Atrek, User Education Specialist

Hi Bloggers,

At the beginning, life can seem a bit lonely in the blogosphere, so kudos to you for taking that first step and starting a blog. Whether your purpose has evolved over the years or you’ve stuck around for the same reasons that got you started, we truly enjoyed reading your responses to our #bloggerasks tweet on why you blog.

@CprincessUK broke it down in list form, music blogger @LinerNotes crafted a mission statement, and @fortnow blogged about blogging for Blogger’s 10th anniversary. Others of you kept your raison d’être under 140 characters. Here are a few of them, short and sweet:

“I started blogging because I loved my wedding and talking about weddings and my fiancé didn't - I needed a community” (@CMatlick)

“Main reason: creative writing outlet. Aux reasons: counteract stereotypes/preconceived ideas abt Pakistan, Pakistanis, & Islam :)” (@desigurrl)

“I started blogging after a near death experience to create a legacy for my three young children” (@FrillyHills)

“Started blogging to write about food and Flavor of Italy's culinary tourism business” (@FlavorofItaly)

Whether it’s your love of magic, to share tips on shaving, to chronicle life with the kids, or for reasons you still haven’t figured out, we want to know -- why do you blog?

Cheers,

Inci

Fashion blogs on Blogger

Posted by Lisa Ding, Community Manager

I wouldn’t consider myself a “fashionista,” but I do follow a good fashion blog or two.

Aside from The Sartorialist, which is one of the most frequently-viewed blogs on Blogger, I’m an avid follower of The Man Repeller. The blog is filled with photos of beautiful clothes, and I love the sassy attitude of Miss Man Repeller herself. This lady really seems to embrace the phrase “dressing for other girls.” Men, don’t worry about it.

There are quite a few popular fashion blogs on Blogger, but one thing that I’ve noticed many have in common is the use of a simple template with a customized header image. The simple template allows you to highlight the most important part of a fashion blog -- the images. And instead of have just text for a title header, you can draw readers in with a splashy colorful image that leaves a strong impression.

What are some of your favorite fashion blogs on Blogger? I’ll take some of your suggestions via comments and feature them in a future post. 

Note: Please only submit fashion blogs -- other types will be featured later. I'll be crediting the nominator, so please leave your Twitter name or blog URL. Looking forward to your suggestions!

Meet Bruce, Blogger PM

Posted by Bruce Polderman, Product Manager

Hello Bloggers!

I’m relatively new to the Blogger team, but have been a Product Manager on Google’s “Geo” team since 2006, specifically for the Google 3D Warehouse. Product Managers work closely with software engineers, designers, and marketing to establish product requirements and define product features.

What initially attracted me to Blogger was the impact that it has on people’s lives. Blogs, by their very nature, enable people to express themselves. Some blogs attract our readership from an intellectual perspective, some for their entertainment value, and still others stir our emotions. That’s powerful stuff.

On the Blogger team I hear frequent use of the term “bloggers.” While it’s natural to generalize sometimes, what’s fascinating about Blogger isn’t the entity of a blog, but instead the interests and motivations of the real people who are behind each and every one. As human beings, we enjoy listening to and sharing stories. This is what Blogger facilitates at a fundamental level.

What I hope to gain from Lisa’s focus on Community Management is greater insight into how you are using Blogger. The deeper the understanding we have for how you use the product, the more informed we are when deciding where to take Blogger in the future.

Happy blogging!

Bruce

http://poldermanblp.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/#!/PoldermanBLP

The best blogging advice you’ve ever received

Posted by: Inci Atrek, User Education Specialist

Hi Bloggers,

We've set out to learn more about blogging from the people who know it best -- our users. I’ve really enjoyed your responses to our #bloggerasks tweets over the past two weeks, and spent a good amount of time reading through the blogs and posts that you’ve sent us.

Something that always astounds me about blogging is how the core experience of sharing stories pulls together an incredibly diverse group of people. The emphasis you all put on connecting with each other really speaks to the power of community among bloggers.

Here are some of my favorite responses to the question, What’s the best blogging advice you’ve ever received?

• “Write to build community; link to others and participate in the conversation” (@LisaSpangenberg)
• “To blog consistently, respond to comments, and to read and comment on other people's blogs (especially those who read mine).” (@kelblogg)
• “To not only be active within your own blog but on others' as well - leave comments, but don't spam!” (@OnceBittenBlog)

Although it’s important to keep your readers in mind, most of you tweeted about staying true to yourself, and writing about what you love. @Mistylovesvamps said it best: “don't be a slave to stats & followers.”

The balance between writing for yourself and becoming part of a community can be difficult at first - even a little scary - but it’s worth it. And if you’re still on the fence, consider the best blogging advice @Shakestweetz received: “Hey, you should start a blog.”

Missed our #bloggerasks? Keep an eye out for future tweets, and for my posts on your responses. Have even more blogging advice? Let us know - leave a comment!

Cheers,
Inci

Getting to know the Blogger Community

Posted by Lisa Ding, Community Manager

Hi Bloggers!

For more than a decade now, the Blogger team has watched our community of users grow dramatically and have had the pleasure of seeing some truly amazing blogs along the way. Here on Buzz, in addition to keeping you updated on new features, we’re going to focus on engaging with our user community and connecting more readers to exceptional blogs.

On Buzz, you can be expecting a variety of new posts, such as:

1. A revolving showcase of funny, interesting, beautifully designed, creative, and just plain awesome blogs. 
2. Guest posts from other successful Blogger users. 
3. Re-shares of interesting posts from your blogs. 
4. Personal posts from members of the Blogger Team, so you can get to know us better. 

In the coming weeks, I’ll be asking you to submit quality blogs that you enjoy reading. Each week, I’ll post a sample of the best blogs I’ve found within a certain theme (food, design, sports, etc) or, that incorporate a recently-released feature. I encourage you all to nominate blogs that don’t necessarily have an established following, since we’d like to promote new bloggers who could benefit from more interactions with other bloggers and more readers. Also, we’ll be sure to credit the nominators, so you’ll be getting a readership boost, too!

Please say hello via comments, and tell the Blogger community a little about yourself. Also, look out for the first request for blog nominations coming soon.

Best,
Lisa