Blogging Essentials: Google Services & Other Engines

The other day, I asked you what would the readers like to see more of on Black Blog Media? And if there were any questions. LaToya responded:

- I would like to know the "must-have" widgets needed for a blog.

- Also, what's the deal w/ Foursqure or other new social media sites? Are they fads or should we pay attention and get on the bandwagon now?

Well 2nd question first. Social media sites are here to stay...companies are mainstreaming with these web/mobile app start-ups because people spend a lot of time on them. It's a good marketing move and a great way for start-ups to pull revenue. Minority Report...remember that scene where Tom Cruise's eyes are scanned and then all of the ads are automatically tailored for his personality. The future is now!

I was already in the midst of writing a series about "essentials" when building a blog and here we are. If you don't know, I've developed a few sites here and there and the question usually comes up, "What features do you think I need to be successful?" Or something like that. What's being asked is, what gadgets or tools do I need to have similar success to [ insert blogger's name ].

Here's the preface, having a blog and cultivating it, is a lot like walking into Home Depot. You can have every tool in the world, but it really depends on what you are building. I will always suggest that site owners read over and be familiar with material. But hire somebody who knows what they are doing.

There are a lot of people who will try to make you believe that they are a pro because they've learned a little jargon in a couple of months. Don't be one of these people. You'll get laughed at. Leave comments and questions! They are all welcomed.

1. Google Services and Other Search Engines

You can do a Google search for "Blog Submit" and a whole list of places where you send your blog show up. You can go down the list if you like but there are few items that you may want to focus on.

Google Blogsearch blogsearch.google.com/ping
- Inserts blog into Google's Blogsearch index.

Google Webmaster Tools google.com/webmasters/tools/
- Detailed reports about your site's visibility. Produces meta tags that you need to verify your site so that it can be tracked. Sitemaps, keyword, etc.

Google Analytics analytics.google.com
- Robust statistics and analysis.

Feedburner feedburner.google.com
- Your site's feed with a lot more flexibility. Feed stats, newsletter, delivery.

Google Buzz buzz.google.com
- Sharing.

Google Custom Search Engine google.com/cse/
- Search with revenue

Google Adsense adsense.google.com
- Contextual ads for revenue

Google Alerts google.com/alerts
- Track visibility by keyword

Google Trends google.com/trends
- Track what's hot right now.

Submit to Yahoo add.yahoo.com/fast/add?17051064
- Submit your site to Yahoo

Submit to Bing bing.com/webmaster/SubmitSitePage.aspx
- Submit your site to Bing

Bing Webmaster Tools bing.com/toolbox/webmasters/
- Like Google Webmaster Tools, but Bing'd.

Technorati technorati.com
- Blogs and blog directory