Week 9A: Crafting Connections

Benjamin Franklin said, "If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading or do things worth the writing."

Everybody loves a story, and especially a "real life" story. Movies that advertise, "Based on a true story!" get lots of attention because it can be fascinating to hear other people's life stories. Their struggles, their failures, their successes despite setbacks. Even a short story about a little thing that happened in life can touch us deeply.

That's part of what makes Facebook and Twitter so interesting sometimes. Real people telling about a real thing that happened can be powerful. A video about a soldier returning home from war can go viral. A mommy writing about her terminally ill child can be riveting. Even a little post about the crazy cat lady next door can be fun.

But why? 

Because stories connect with people on an emotional level. More than just facts, statistics or selling a product, a story can get past the intellect and reach us at a deeper place. A place where we can relate and have compassion. A homecoming, a difficult road, a missed assignment, a love crush, a betrayal, a victory - we have all experienced these things as we enter adulthood. We have been down and also lifted to the heights of happiness. When we hear of another who has experienced similar emotions, we feel a connection.

Telling stories in a blog can be powerful, but in a business blog, it is a good idea to keep your story short and to the point. Three pages on your kid's goal in the last soccer game is not appropriate in a business blog. However, a paragraph or two about the struggle that child went through leading to that little victory can be a good example of not giving up when things get tough.

And zing... your reader just connected at a deeper level.

A personal touch can make a great point. Just remember old Ben Franklin's advice. Go through your story, cut out a word or a phrase if it really isn't needed, reflect on your story and "write things worth reading".

Now, to track how your blog is doing, you can add Google Analytics. Here are some directions from the class:

1. Install Google Analytics on your blog. To do this you will have to go to www.google.com/analytics and sign in and create an account.
2. They will provide you with an HTML code to COPY and PASTE.
3. In your blog, go the the "layout" area and click "add a gadget"
4. Scroll through the suggested widgets until you find the HTML/JAVA script one and click the little blue plus sign to add it.
5. In the new window that pops open, paste the code in there and hit Save

Below is an image from when I added this analytic software to my blog.

Happy blogging my Crafties!

Maxine