It's August 1st and the summer is almost over. (Feel free to scream now.) Thank goodness we have lots to look forward to like...like...oh come on, you know! There's something coming in the future that's positive, I'm sure of it! (Hockey for one!) Anyway, onto the meat of the matter, and that's Blogtipping, which comes at us on the 1st of every month. Blogtipping is simple: Write 3 things you like about 3 blogs and then slam them to pieces with one bit of ripping nastiness. No, no, that's not it. Three blogs. Three positive things. And...right! 1 tip for each to help them improve what they're already doing. Sorry folks, I've just spent a week on vacation and endless hours watching Dora the Explorer with my 23-month old son. I'm a bit frazzled. If I could ever get those songs out of my head! Here are some previous blogtipping episodes to get you in the mood: Blogtipping Day and Canada Day Rolled Into One! Today is Blogtipping Day, Join in the Fun. BLOG #1: Bill Baren Blog: The Creative Intersection of Life and Business from Bill Baren 1. Simple, easy to read and straight to the point. And I don't mean simple as in Bill's a simpleton, he's got a lot to say about marketing, management and business. 2. Bill is motivational. I think it's a combination of his writing style and the content; there's something motivational and inspirational (without being "over the top") about Bill's blog. 3. He'll help you if you ask. Ask properly of course, and Bill will help you. Tip: This is more technical than anything, but I would recommend changing the links from the obscure Wordpress URLs to the date & name versions. The date and name versions are better looking, clearer to read and make for better links. Some say that the link name itself helps with SEO although I'm not 100% sure that's the case. In Wordpress go to Options->Permalinks. Click here for an example. BLOG #2: Change Is Good from Brian 1. This blog is hysterically quirky. Each day Brian tells us how much money he's found in the form of coins. It might be off the street, in a store, or between your couch cushions. It's exactly my style of fun from the Web. 2. He's found over $600.00 since 1998, and he's been posting since then. That's a long time for someone to be online, which makes him practically a pioneer. That's cool, and the fact that he's found over $600 since 1998 and counted it is even cooler. 3. There are some great links on the sidebar, including Where's George which apparently allows you to track U.S. currency and where it's been. There's a Canadian version as well called Where's Willy which I'll have to try out. Tip: Who are you Brian? You've provided a link to your email address, although it's not as obvious as I think it should be, but you don't tell us any more than that. For your new readers, we'd love to know more about you and the project. How did it start? Why? Have you received any publicity because of it? Any other opportunities? People are naturally curious, particularly about this sort of project... BLOG #3: Hee Haw Marketing from Paul McEnany 1. Paul's writing style grabs you by the "you know whats" and drags you in laughing and nodding. He's got a biting style that's too attention-grabbing to ignore. Some quotes:

"If you haven't checked out her blog, yet, you probably can't read."

"I sent one to Godin, and one to Jaffe, and then I felt like a blog whore and went into a shame spiral. Anybody else feel this way, too? I just feel so dorky trying to send a link of something I wrote."

2. Paul tackles problems head on, and doesn't just complain, but provides ideas for discussion. Lowering your prices can be a problem companies face. Here's his take on deep discounting for example. 3. He puts contact information right up there for everyone to see and notice. His About page has his email address and AIM listed. Maybe he gets a bit of spam from doing that, but it's worth being so available and open to contact. Too few bloggers do that properly. Too few bloggers say, "Here I am, contact me." Tip: Stay honest and true to your beliefs and you'll do just fine. Better than fine I'd expect. Don't let the naysayers and clueless drag you down. (Technorati Tags: blogtipping, easton ellsworth, hee-haw marketing, bill baren, paul mcenany, marketing, motivation, business)