On September 8, 2004 a power shift that’s been simmering below the surface for years finally boiled over into simultaneous national recognition.

Like Goliath being slain with a lowly slingshot, the mainstream media (in the form of Dan Rather) came to the undeniable realization that they were no longer in control of information.

Within 30-minutes of that now infamous TV special on “60-Minutes II” broadcast bloggers were digging into the facts and questioning the validity of what had just been presented by the 42-year broadcast veteran. In less than one week, CBS admitted it could “no longer vouch” for the memos. And just weeks after the election, Rather announced his retirement and the blogosphere won another victory.

No matter what your political affiliation is, this incident is one very public example of the power of blogging. Blogging is quickly accelerating into a steeping, sloping growth curve of popularity and application. ABC News selected Bloggers as “People of the Year”, and Merriam-Webster declared “blog” its “word of the year.”

It puts the power of information and the impact of influence in the hands of the “average Joe”. It makes instant publishing a reality regardless of your technical skill level. And it’s a business growth tool that the savvy small business owner can no longer afford to ignore.

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Freethinking and free-speaking bloggers can boost your small business, or sink it. It’s true whether you’re online, offline, or a true Click-an-Mortar 21st Century business owner. Bloggers can help to put your business on top of a word-of-mouth pedestal, or torpedo your greatest efforts and sink you to bottom of the sea.

Blogging is no longer something that you as an effective entrepreneur can afford to avoid, ignore, or excuse as a passing fad. Being active in the blogosphere — both on the posting side, and the research side — is going to become more and more important for the success of your business.

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Those of you who have Tivo for cable or a digital video recorder for your satellite know how convenient it is to watch what you want, when you want — with no commercials and no interruptions. Podcasting is similar in that it’s time delayed and on demand delivery of audio.

Although the spectrum of content is nowhere near what it is through satellite or cable services, that’s only a temporary situation. Podcasting is another client centric technology that puts the consumer in control.

If you’ve followed the videos and setting up your RSS reader and aggregator (you have taken that first step haven’t you ) — you know how they work. You subscribe to a set of feeds, categorize and sort them, and then can conveniently view the new stuff from all of the feeds together, or each feed separately. And if you’re using FeedDemon, you can even create your own fully customized online newspaper.

Well podcasting works the same way, up with one BIG exception. Instead of reading the new content on a computer screen, you listen to the new content on your MP3 player.

Picture your software as being your audio subscription manager, where any feeds that you subscribe to our regularly check for updates and downloaded to your computer or player directly.

There are a lot of software options available right now, but that’s going to be taking off very quickly as podcasting rapidly gains popularity. It won’t be long until you have some really good software options to choose from.

And I can guarantee you that in the not so distant future, top radio shows like Rush Limbaugh and National Public Radio will be available this way.

As I keep reminding you, this is a point in time that presents a ground-floor opportunity for you to establish yourself as a niche expert (or possibly even a national or international expert ) using business blogging as a major tool.

As with the regular RSS feeds, you first step is to become a consumer. In future upcoming articles I’ll be sharing more details on podcasting and coaching you how to get started. Make sure you’re subscribed to our feed so you don’t miss any updates our coaching articles.

John-Paul Micek
Click-and-Mortar Coach
Business Owners Coaching Club
http:/www.AdvancedBusinessBlogging.com

If you’ve ever seen the movie “Karate Kid” you remember early in the movie where Mr. Miyagi had Daniel (played by Ralph Macchio) paint fences, wax his car, and complete a bunch of tasks seemingly unrelated to his main goal.

Daniel didn’t recognize at the time how those repetitive tasks and basic training would serve him later on in competition. It wasn’t until he reached the advanced levels of international competition where everything came together and “clicked.”

Our intent is to do some of those same things here. Now, while I’d love to have you come wax our cars and trucks here in Hawaii (and I’m sure you wouldn’t mind either ) — that’s not going to be necessary.

Establishing a foundation for successful business blogging is nowhere near that difficult. If you’ve already set up your my.yahoo.com reader and FeedDemon Aggregator you’ve got a good start.

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OK, a couple of days ago we showed you how to load RSS feeds into and use the free RSS reader integrated into my.yahoo.com. Now it’s time to kick it up a notch and show you how to setup RSS feeds in a much more robust feed reader – FeedDemon.

So why Feed Demon for this advanced RSS reader tutorial video? Well … you could start with the fact it’s my favorite.

Seriously though — FeedDemon saves time and allows you to keep up to date with your industry, competitors, and news in a fraction of the time it would normally take using traditional online and off-line methods. The fact is most of us busy business owners don’t stay as up to date as we should, and that puts us at a competitive disadvantage. By relying on RSS feeds and using FeedDemon I can scan news sources, industry updates, and check up on competitors in 15-minutes when that used to take an hour or more before!

On the technical side, FeedDemon is a surprisingly compact program that loads fast and uses hardly any system resources. Other than the name (which took a little getting used to :)) it’s awesome! And with it’s special functions, it’s the closest thing to a totally custom “dead tree” newspaper that you can get.

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You know … with new technology it’s almost impossible to grasp the full implications of it’s power, benefits, and application in your small business without experiencing it yourself.

Nowhere is that more true than with Blog and RSS technology.

In previous articles we’ve looked at what RSS is and how it works, but now we’re going to set you up to become a true consumer so you can experience the impact and convenience for yourself. I promise once you do, you’ll be hooked on the time savings.

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If you’re a member of our coaching club (www.businessownerscoachingclub.com), you know that when we talk about Click-and-Mortar were not just talking about the combination of online and off-line channels. It also means using technology to enhance and deepen personal relationships with your target market.

RSS is one of those practical technologies that should be part of your Click-and-Mortar growth strategy. Whether you’re syndicating content from your blog, your newsletter/ezine, or exclusive paid content — RSS is a major convenience for the people in your target market.

Now don’t get me wrong. RSS is by no means a magic wand that’s going to transform your business overnight with no work on your part. But with a focused plan of action, the right know how, and consistent follow-through RSS can become a major player in your Click-and-Mortar business growth.

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If you’ve heard the term “blog,” then you’ve probably also heard the abbreviation “RSS.” As usual, with a new technology comes lots of new acronyms and terms to learn. But not to worry. RSS is something that’s — well, simple.

RSS stands for “Real Simple Syndication,” or as some define it “Rich Site Summary.”

Here’s how it works.

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Blogging is taking off like a wildfire. People are blogging on just about anything you can think of. From the daily routine of their cat, to technology reviews, to politics.

The blogosphere is sorting itself out and still maturing from infancy. At this point it’s difficult for many business owners to see exactly how this new frontier of instant publishing and communication can help boost business growth.

But don’t worry, it’s not going to take long before you begin noticing the impact on the marketplace. Public awareness is already increasing and users are piling in to the blogosphere by the thousands every day. With all that activity and the insight you’ll find here, you’ll start getting a flood of new ideas in the coming months.

For now, the most important thing you can do to prepare for success is develop the right “business blogging mindset.”

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You’ve been hearing this new term “blog” in the news, whispers from friends, and now the final straw – your kids! You figured it’s time to find out what the big deal is, and if you’re missing something.

Well … if you’re a business owner, blogs and blogging, and everything that goes with it will quickly become a VERY powerful compliment to all your other online and offline business growth efforts. And that’s the purpose of this site – to educate and coach you on the advanced uses of blogging, and the advantages to you.

But if you’re just getting started, you may be curious what a blog actually is.

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