Using Blog Technology to Reach Tobacco Users

1. Using Blog Technology to Reach Tobacco Users …Catch on or Catch you later www.Quittersblog.com

2. Introduction • Objectives • What is a Blog? • Case study of www.Quittersblog.com • Technology behind the blog • Using blogs as marketing tool • Keeping your blog meaningful • RSS Syndication

3. Objectives • Develop a public blog (web log) that highlights the experiences of local tobacco users quitting tobacco • Create an internal blog or identify affordable external hosts • Monitor blog submissions before posting • Understand how to market blog • RSS/Feeds

4. Catch on or Catch you later…

5. What is a blog? Or weblog? Or online journal?.... • Much like a regular website, exists solely online • Designed for a specific audience –general public or targeted niche group • Individuals can voice their opinions • Become a micropublisher virtually overnight • Blogs are timely, allowing for immediate content updates • No need for sophisticated knowledge of web publishing • Strong community among blog writers and visitors – most blogs are not regulated or censored, visitors rely on them to be completely truthful

6. Facts • 2004 was called “The Year of the Blog” because blogs were so influential during the Iraq war, presidential election and the tsunami disaster • A recent study found that over a quarter of all American internet users read blogs • There are over 100 million blogs in existence, with 40,000 new ones created each day • Active blogs ?

7. Types of blogs • Personal – focus on passion or hobby • Topic or industry-specific – current events, experts in specific industry • Publication – newspapers, magazines, written by established journalist • Corporate – written by executive within company

8. www.Quittersblog.comA Case Study

9. Need for a new program • The Maricopa County Tobacco Use Prevention Program (MACTUPP) wanted to foster a closer relationship with current cessation clients and potential clients within the public at large • Needed a fiscally conservative tactic to meet objective • Move tobacco users along the quit continuum in a new and innovative way

10. Solution • Numerous articles - increased awareness and success of blogs • MACTUPP decided to venture out into new territory and create its own blog • Using a blog, cessation clients able to chronicle their successes and struggles on quitting tobacco with MACTUPP quit classes • Blogs are flexible, cheap and easy to maintain • There were no other blogs sponsored by a County program that focus on clients quitting tobacco with a program in the US at the time of launch

11. Ease of use • You don’t need any HTML or coding experience because everything is text-based, just like writing an email • You can designate access to any number of people to post as the moderator(s) • Comments can be posted by anyone that visits the blog • The moderator can have complete control over what comments appear on the blog before they are posted • Comments can be posted immediately without being filtered

12. Mechanics • Each week, the bloggers send their entries through email to the moderator who posts them online • All content is reviewed before approval • No entries are modified unless there is inappropriate content • Comments reviewed before posting to avoid unsuitable content and spam

13. Unique Features • Each client’s journal page includes a brief biography • Includes the participant’s age • how many years they have used tobacco • why they are quitting • Quit class registration form submit to enroll in a class • Readers from around the world can submit their quit tobacco story online • A story post form can be filled out on the blog • Sent to the moderator who will review and post the story • Streaming video of featured bloggers on the news or radio

14. Our visitors • Visitors include: • Current cessation clients • Our counselors • Former clients wishing to express support • Others include: • Potential clients pondering the use of our services • Other people worldwide who have struggled with tobacco use and the quit process

17. Entry from Larry “At 18 I had Cancer and that wasn’t enough to get me to stop smoking…I like to think of myself as a pretty nice an honest person but when it comes to smoking I’m not. I have lied about smoking, took cigarettes from someone else’s pack when they weren’t looking when I was supposed to have quit, that pretty much makes me a thief. Didn’t buy things I needed because I had to have cigarette money…I have smoked old cigarette butts I have found, God only know what germs were on them. The list goes on and on and it doesn’t paint a very pretty picture of me... For me nicotine has become a very wicked addiction that I hope someday I can look back on and honestly say that it is behind me. I quit drinking 20 years ago this past Independence Day, cigarettes are a million times harder to quit but son of a gun I just made it another 15 minutes. Life is good!”

18. Promotion • Our successful news stories

19. Results • The blog generated 16 news stories in both print and television mediums • This generated over $23,500 in earned media • Stories appeared in the Arizona Republic and the Tribune • KTVK (Channel 3) and KPNX-NBC (Channel 12) • In the first month, the blog accumulated over 7,000 hits • Over 50 individuals have registered on the blog for free quit classes

20. Technology behind the blog

21. Technology • The blog itself contains 19 different pages, including each participants blog page, registration forms and streaming video. • Specific computer programs that were utilized in this project: • Adobe Photoshop CS • Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 • WordPress (blog publisher) • StartLogic (server) • Microsoft Word

22. Collaboration • MACTUPP wanted complete control over the design, maintenance, and speed of posting to the blog • Collaborated with county’s Public Information Office to receive clearance to purchase its own separate server space and host the blog outside of the county • MACTUPP able to easily monitor page hits and visitor statistics • The blog was designed and implemented within one month by the community promotions team

23. Using Website Server • What is a server • Web hosting solution • Capabilities / Startlogic • Ability to use web design program to customize blog • Control all functions of blog • Get analytics and stats • Unlimited Email Accounts • eCommerce Enabled • FREE Setup & FREE Domain • Website Builder Enabled • Front Page 2002/2003 • Promotional tools

24. Promotional Abilities • Marketing Guides (500+ Page Manual) • Search Engines Check • Positioner • Search Engines Submitter • Meta Tags Generator • Keyword Generator • Link Checker

25. Build your Blog • Paid • Typepad • Macromedia Dreamweaver, Adobe GoLive • Free (extra features avail. for a monthly fee) • Blogger (owned by Google) • WordPress • Bloglines (owned by AskJeeves) • LiveJournal (owned by SixApart) • Moveable Type

27. Using blogs as a marketing tool

28. Marketing the blog • Readership is dependent of search engine results or word-of-mouth • Linked or mentioned by other blogs • Register on blog-specific search engines • Advertise online • Public Relations efforts

29. Blogsearchengine Blog explosion Bloglines Blogarama Blog catalog Bloghub Technorati BlogPulse Registering blogs in search engines

30. Keeping your blog meaningful

31. Meaningful measures • Referral sites linking to blog • Search words led to site • Unique visitors • Visits per month • Average length of visit • Blog rank on search engines

32. Analytics

33. Referral Sites

34. Keywords & key phrases

35. Unique visitors & hits

36. Average length of visit

37. Blog rank on major search engines • Can we improved by monitoring key words and phrases, more requests, etc. • Most web publishing programs have a tool that will insert keywords you choose to include by just clicking a buttom • Can be purchased to rank higher

38. RSS Syndication

39. Feeds / RSS • Really Simple Syndication delivers content from the Internet for personal viewing • Uses XML web language to create metadata – metadata gets delivered to a service called a news aggregator or reader • News reader brings information from numerous and assorted websites into one place • When a website that you have subscribed to publishes new content it is delivered in the form of either headlines or the full article to the RSS reader • Think of your favorite bookmarks, going to each website, when you can get all the relevant information in one place

40. Using Blog Software • Another quick way to generate feeds is using blog software that automatically creates feeds: • Install software such as Movable Type [http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/] or WordPress [http://wordpress.org] on your server • Use a subscription service like TypePad [http://www.typepad.com] or a free service like Blogger [http://www.blogger.com]

41. Anatomy of an RSS Feed: What to look for People paste the link into their reader. • “Syndicate to this site”, “Subscribe to my feed”, XML button

42. Why RSS is Important • Important, for higher statistics consistent help and visitation • Spread around web quicker • Monitor readership

43. Feeds / RSS continued • Feedburner and other programs create feeds • Can be inserted with a paid program or input manually • Can Google “How to apply RSS Feed”

44. Questions? Erica Velasco Maricopa County Tobacco Use Prevention Program Community Health Promotions Senior Specialist ericavelasco@mail.maricopa.gov Phone: 602-372-7272 www.Quittersblog.com