My Digital Filipino Club Fellowship and Networking Event Experience

By MoneyAmulet on November 1st, 2008

Last October 25, the Digital Filipino Club Fellowship and Networking Event for Manila was successfully held at the PAGCOR Airport Casino.

E-commerce industry players and Pinoy bloggers came that night to catch up with friends, meet new people and exchange ideas on new media marketing.

Ms. Janette Toral also organized this event to present the Top 100 Blogs for 2008 as measured by Ratified.Org. Furthermore, some of the bloggers whose websites belonged to the list were given a chance to talk about how they were able to grow their blog this year.

As I was listening to their talks, I realized that most of “the secrets” and online marketing techniques that was shared were not at all different from how you can grow your business. I tried to organize everything I learned that night and would like to now share some of the strategies that these bloggers did to boost their traffic and online presence.

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So whether your business is online or offline, try to apply these pointers and I’m sure your enterprise will likewise experience growth.

A Unique Voice
I remember Ms. Janette pointing out that one of the most important factor that contributes to a blog’s success is personality. Indeed, if you have a unique voice, people will be interested to listen. This is also true in business, if you can successfully find and define your edge over your competition, then your target market will surely take notice.

Quality Content
Blogs tend to talk about similar topics, but those who stand out from the crowd are those who genuinely provide value to their audience. Quality content means posts that are informative, entertaining, comprehensive and/or exclusive. Just like in business, if you offer products and services that add value to your customers, then you’ll be able to establish your niche in the market.

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Helping Others
That night, Jehzlau said that one of the factors that made his blog grow was because he helped a good number of newbie bloggers on how to establish and grow their blogs. Eventually, these people became his friends both online and offline. This strategy is an example of how offering freebies and promotional products to your customers can help boost your business.

Search Engine Optimization
Blogs that get a lot of visitors from search engines mainly attribute their success to SEO. For offline businesses, I think word of mouth marketing is its equivalent. Providing for your customers’ needs, tapping your clients for referrals and rewarding their loyalty are just some of the ways you can encourage such personal recommendations.

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Engagement
Another growth contributor for blogs is engagement to the blogging community. Blog hopping, doing memes, attending events, micro blogging, joining contests and participating in writing projects are just some of the things a blogger can do. For businesses, community engagement can be done by joining business alliances and sponsoring community projects among others.

Seek Out Your Audience
Personally, one of the things I did for this blog is by actively seeking out my audience. By participating in online business forums, joining blog carnivals and guest posting in other personal finance blogs and websites, I was able to capture a good number of readers and get visitors who are genuinely interested with my articles. Businesses likewise need to reach out to their target market. Activities such as advertising campaigns, business collaborations and partnerships are some of the things you can do.

I guess that’s it. Special thanks to all the bloggers I met that night including Roel, Eugene, Gary, Ed, Aj, Micamyx, Jehzlau, Mommy Dine, Dione, Angel, Reynz, Jonel, Azrael, Nicely and Edelweiza.

I apologize if I forgot anybody. If I did, then please leave a comment below and I’ll add your link love as soon as possible. By the way, if you want to read more about this event, then please visit here.