While at Blog World I had the chance to interview Andraz Tori, co-founder & CTO of Zemanta. Here’s his explanation of how the service works:

What makes you guys different from other blog directories?

Well, another big blog directory would be Technorati. What they do is go out and crawl sites, and then people come back and claim them — so they have a lot of different content — way more blogs than we could ever have.

We’re probably the largest user-submitted blog directory, meaning that users come to us, and we manually approve data applications and make sure they’re not spam. We get about 900 submissions a day, and approve less than half of those. So instead of having this large database of every blog, the blogs listed on our site are higher quality.

Do you have any features that are different?

We started as a straight blog directory. Then two years ago we purchased it, cleaned up the spam, and created a new approval process.

Now, you can add other bloggers as friends, create discussions in groups, set up lifestreaming, and so on.

We also added to tools section, where users can submit any tool: whether it’s a blogging platform or a widget or a moneymaking opportunity. It’s only three days old, but the idea is that users can not only submit, but they can also rate and review other people’s submissions.

So when your new blogger, and you want to know what is the best platform, you can compare options and read reviews by bloggers that are actually using them. We hope that will become useful.

It sounds like you’ve built a layer of community and social networking above a traditional directory listing. Am I right?

Yes, it’s a hybrid. A lot of our visitors are not part of the community. They come from search engines looking for blogs, or enter through our homepage and locate blogs by looking in each category.

The other big half are people coming from search. For example, they’re searching for Las Vegas hotels. One post from a small blogger may not yield really high results from the search engines — it may be page 20 — for “Las Vegas hotels”. But when I can put it on a page full of Las Vegas hotel search results – that includes 50 high-quality articles on Las Vegas hotels that super-targeted. Then when search engines crawl that page, they’re going to put it much higher in the results and then it would that single post on its own.

So being included gives the individual blogger a higher level of search visibility?

Right, exactly.

What type of traffic do you get?

We get about 20 million monthly visitors. They come from all of the world, and it may be about 60% are from the US.

Learn more at BlogCatalog.com

As a “destination blogger,” Stephen publishes the Manzanillo Mexico Travel Blog for people interested in visiting Manzanillo, Colima, Mexico.

Why do you blog? Do you have specific goals?

We blog for two reasons, to share our experiences in traveling and the wonderful areas we have discovered, and also to make money to support ourselves as we live abroad. Thanks to the internet, it’s more than possible to run a blogging business from anywhere in the world, and there’s nothing quite like writing your posts to the sounds of crashing waves.

How do you come up with new post topics?

Mostly we take our ideas from our own experiences here. When we visit new places, try out a new restaurant, or happen upon some special piece of expat wisdom, we share it with our readers. Checking the local forums is also a good idea to see what is up in our area and what concerns many might be having and be interested in reading about.

What writing style do your readers seem to like best?

Personal reviews and personal observations. The beauty of blogging is that it makes the world more personable, you get to see an area or subject through the eyes of a real person, and that appeals to many people.

What was your most successful blog post ever?

I don’t know what exactly our most successful post on Manzanillo Blog has been… but the popular ones are always the ones you least expect, that much we have seen time and again.

What’s your biggest tip about writing a successful blog post?

Well… there’s no one tip to writing a successful blog post, and a lot of it depends on why you are blogging in the first place. A MMO blogger will write entirely different kinds of post from a travel blogger. I do both styles quite successfully at the moment, and run a large number of websites that support us on our travels and allow me to live the lifestyle I’ve always wanted. But I believe the biggest key to becoming successful at blogging is doing what you love and loving what you do. If you have a passion for a subject, it will show in your writing.

What is the most common mistake new bloggers make?

Expecting to get rich right away and being disappointed when quick money doesn’t come rolling in. They end up opportunity hopping and never see one project through to the end. If you love what you do, then you won’t care, and if you do care then do the research and work needed in Search Engine Optimization and Internet Marketing to do it right.

What are your 3 best tips for blogging?

Work hard, write lots, and research well.

Rob Conaway publishes the aGreatChef.com blog to “explore the world through food”.

How do you come up with new post topics?

Usually my blog posts are about something that is going on at the restaurant or the hotel. If there is nothing new happening then I’ll blog about something personal that is related to the food/hospitality industry or will add a freebee like a recipe.

What writing style do your readers seem to like best?

I use a combination of insider tips/information and offers/freebees. Since my blog covers myself as a chef, the restaurant from my view and the hotel I have found that this combination works best. The insider tips and information helps with those who already know of me and/or the restaurant to be kept up to date on what s going. This allows me to get them new and exciting information ahead of any other media outlets, since I control the timing of the release. The offers and freebees are great at attracting new traffic via the search engines while adding some great content for the social media outlets.

What’s your biggest tip about writing a successful blog post?

If you are looking to drive traffic to your site, make sure the topic is something that people are searching for. If you are looking to attract a lot of comments, blog about a topic that is controversial or people have different opinions on…and always respond, even if you do not agree.

What is the most common mistake new bloggers make?

Expecting that everyone will find the blog, or the “write it and they will come” mentality. You must be constantly marketing yourself and your blog every chance you get, from SEO and directories to word of mouth and social/traditional media outlets. During your waking hours you should be thinking of new marketing opportunities for you and your blog.

What are your 3 best tips for blogging?

1. KISS or keep it simple stupid.
2. Regularly add new content and posts to keep your blog fresh and sticky. Nobody likes stale bread.
3. Keep your posts on topic. If people are signing up for updates on your travel or hospitality blog, they are probably not going to care if your cat went to the vet. It’s better to write nothing at all then to cram you blog full of off topic fodder.

]]> http://www.blogforguests.com/interview-rob-conaway/feed 0 http://www.blogforguests.com/interview-darren-cronian-from-my-life-in-leeds http://www.blogforguests.com/interview-darren-cronian-from-my-life-in-leeds#comments Tue, 13 Oct 2009 10:00:55 +0000 samantha http://www.blogforguests.com/?p=49

Darren Cronian of Travel Rants fame also publishes My Life in Leeds – a destination blog which showcases attractions and acts as a travel guide for Leeds in West Yorkshire, England.

How do you come up with new post topics?

At the moment I am concentrating on topics that I know people are searching for, i.e. Leeds attractions and writing in-depth guides. What I have started to do though is use tools like Twitter to monitor the buzz events that people are discussing and then writing about those events.

In July, we had a free music festival called Party in the Park in the city, so one of the writers put together a guide, highlighting the acts, information on the venue, and public transport information. That guide alone received nine hundred unique visitors, which is pretty incredible for a site only eight weeks old.

What was your most successful blog post ever?

The Party in the Park post has received the most traffic, but a number of the guides have already had a mention in the Guardian, Times and BBC. For Travel Rants there have been some pretty controversial posts written, which have generated thousands of visitors and hundreds of comments.

What is the most common mistake new bloggers make?

I have seen so many corporate blogs that have implemented a blog incorrectly; not switching on the permalinks feature to make the links SEO friendly, to not blocking duplicate content out of their robots.txt file. This causes a lot of work in the future and is simple to do before publishing that first blog post.

What are your 3 best tips for blogging?

Write about something that you enjoy, and if it’s a corporate blog that you’re writing for your company, make it fun for people to read. Don’t be corporate, and write corporately. Be a human, interact and network with other bloggers, and ask questions within your blog posts.

What are your most effective methods of attracting more readers?

For a start, hard work and dedication, but I think one of the things I learnt early on was that you have to network yourself online. Leave comments on other blogs within your niche. I really do believe that if you write unique content that people enjoy reading and commenting on then the rest takes care of itself. I spent zero time link building because so many people link to my posts.

I use social Twitter, but, I think my Travel Rants readership was born pre-Twitter, and it has just grown since using this and other social media tools. The majority of my traffic though comes from Google, and the good thing about WordPress is that if you implement it properly, it can be very search engine friendly. I write a new post and within 5 minutes it’s in the search results and getting traffic. This is incredibly useful when writing about a breaking news story, i.e. airport strikes, airline in administration etc

Kevin Joyce publishes the Carlton Restaurant blog for the Carlton Restaurant in Florida.

Why do you Blog? Do you have specific  goals?

We started blogging to let our guests and future guests know a little bit more about us and about the exciting new things we’re doing, special events and more.  In addition, we thought it would be a great way to help us gain top billing with search engines to help enhance and expand our popularity.  Our specific goals are to keep our guests and staff informed about what’s new at The Carlton Restaurant, to generate excitement for our brand and to help drive our Internet popularity.

How do you come up with new post  topics?

It’s pretty easy because we’re always doing something new and exciting whether it’s a new menu feature, new wine we’re offering, or special wine dinner we’re holding.  Plus, the Pittsburgh cultural entertainment and sports scene is quite active and our guests are always looking to combine a visit to The Carlton with a concert or show or cheering on the Steelers, Penguins or Pirates.  Also, keeping up with the local and national news helps me provide a point of view too so our guests feel like they’re part of our family run business when they dine here.

What writing style do your readers seem to  like best?

The writing style that works best for us and our guests is personal, conversational and relevant. Also, our style is best accepted when we offer true value – that is news, offers, special events and expert insight into Pittsburgh’s regional entertainment scene and food and wine tips to make their dining experience with us, at home  or away more enjoyable.

What  was your most popular Blog post ever?

Our Barsotti Wine Dinner Announcement closely followed by our Geyer Peak Wine Dinner announcement have been our biggest posts to date. Our guests like to hear about special events and newsworthy items of interest – again, value-added “What’s in it for them” communications is key to our success.

What’s your  biggest tip about writing a successful Blog post?

Find and use your own voice in your writing and be interesting, be relevant and add value.

What is the  most common mistake new Bloggers make?

The biggest mistake most new Bloggers make – and hey I was one for a while – is that they don’t plan to take the time to Post frequently and add value with their posts.  And, many Bloggers stress about writing the next great novel in a post when a few simple, brief but interesting value-added comments is all that is needed.

Sheila Beal publishes the Go Visit Hawaii, a Hawaii travel guide and vacation advice blog – which recently won Lonely Planet’s best destination blog award.

Why do you blog? Do you have specific goals?

My goal is to provide user-friendly, practical tips that help my readers make the most of their Hawaii vacations, while appreciating the culture, people, and scenery.

How do you come up with new post topics?

I have two main sources for post ideas:

1. I make a list of all the questions and challenges I had when I was planning my first vacations to each island. Each question and challenge eventually becomes a post and solves my readers’ questions and challenges.

2. My husband and I take lots of photos when we visit Hawaii so I draw quite a bit of post inspiration from our photo collection.

What writing style do your readers seem to like best?

I like to provide a balance of styles, but my most popular posts have been advice based. I have a variety of readers – some are planning their first trip to Hawaii while other readers have visited so often that they know the islands like the back of their hands. Believe it or now, I have a very faithful contingent of readers who are long term Hawaii residents. So a mixture of styles engages them all.

What’s your biggest tip about writing a successful blog post?

It’s very important to think like a visiting tourist would think. Try to anticipate their needs and challenges so that you can address them. Readers will appreciate the valuable information.

What is the most common mistake new bloggers make?

I think that new bloggers tend to obsess over their blog analytics. I confess that this was an issue for me in the early days. It’s a natural thing to do, but my advice is to try not to focus too much attention on the figures. Instead of obsessing that you only have 50 or 100 readers while another blog has thousands, celebrate your small successes, such as a growing readership, occasional comments, and the valuable skills you’re learning as a blogger.

Another mistake I made in the beginning was that I was reluctant to let my personality show in my writing style. That was frustrating for me, plus I think my blog was more boring. After I gave myself permission to be me, I started having so much more fun blogging. So, I’d encourage new bloggers to show personality. That’s one thing that sets blogs apart and engages readers.

Guido is one of the most popular hotel blogging personalities online today, and authors the Happy Hotelier blog. He is owner of the Haagsche Suites in the Netherlands.