Mike… you said today that the SME policy for article distribution is zero. But how do you control what other people copy and paste (i.e. steal) from you?  

@roadturn

Hey Don,

Here’s a trick to prevent unauthorized redistribution of your content: Always include a link to one or more articles on your blog, from within the article.  This will trigger trackbacks and those are reported to you within WordPress. 

When you see someone has copy and pasted your article, leave a message in the comments section of the post that tells them to remove your copyrighted content and do remind them they do not have permission.  90% of the time they will take it down.

Thanks! Of course, I would provide the link back. Would some authors care? I thought I would be helping promote their work….

Mike,

I get it, NOT copy and paste but like a review, with your own take. Thanks for your answers.

@kimberlycarlo maybe do a review of two different lawns using different products, and showcasing the “how to” portion vs. the actual product

@sabina

Thank you for responding!! If we compare, I fear we’re going to offend the vendors that sell with us. I should mention that I am a small business with 9 garden centers and 3 supermarkets in Central PA.

What do you think if I leave specific product names completely out unless asked in the comments section or if I suggest multiple products so that everyone feels the love? I do know that some vendors will not allow promotion with other competitors nut I can cross that bridge when I get there.

What a tangled web we weave! lol

Hi,

I have really enjoyed and learned a lot from the webinars!

My questions is: Do people who are interviewed for the blog to sign a media release? For example, if I take a photo, do a video interview, do an audio recorded interview or email interview, does the person I interview need to sign a media release to use their image and/or comments?

Thanks!

Hi Micheal,
This webinar is awesome!  I am learning so much, thank you for sharing your vast knowledge. You mentioned that you edit the title and first lines of blog posts.  I was wondering if your contributors then all first send the blog post to you for editing and formatting and then you “publish” the post to the SME blog?  If so, I would guess then that you use the contributor’s login to publish it so that they can then be the one to respond?!  (After your comment today about responding to posts. :-]) Is that how you do it?

@mike-stelzner – Thank you for responding … So you actually proofread, edit and format every post that goes on SME??

@mike-stelzner Thanks for responding – nice to see that you are such a hands on business owner, even as large as SME is.  (OK to call it SME?) thanks again for the great webinars, I look forward to today’s and many more!  All Best

For a business blog, do you recommend adding CTA’s (call to action)? And if so, what are less marketing types of CTA so not to sound like a pitch. 

What are the right keywords to put in the blog article and how do you determine that using Google Keyword tool? Can you go into more detail about optimizing blog articles with SEO?

@s_tank_matty

Thought leadership: Any content that demonstrates your knowledge can establish thought leadership.  See any articles on our site for examples.

Call to action: Yes, ask them to leave a comment.

Length: As long as it takes.  It depends on your audience.

Blog SEO: See http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/forums/tag/seo