[grin]

Thank you.

Conversation is engagement and engagement is powerful . . . just exactly as Chris says with more patience than I ever could.

Bring your head, heart, and real meaning to a conversation. Then listen. Think about the last time someone gave you their undivided attention in the 3-D world. Think about how powerful it is when someone is truly interested in an opinion you have to give. Be that someone and people will tell you how to serve them well.

So many companies and bloggers try to “think like their customers/readers” when their customers would be more than willing to tell them what they think.

Thank you, Chris. You are a brilliant conversationalist yourself and I can’t wait to see you on Saturday!
Liz

PS Liz (No Relation) I’d love to meet you.

[grin]

Thank you.

Conversation is engagement and engagement is powerful . . . just exactly as Chris says with more patience than I ever could.

Bring your head, heart, and real meaning to a conversation. Then listen. Think about the last time someone gave you their undivided attention in the 3-D world. Think about how powerful it is when someone is truly interested in an opinion you have to give. Be that someone and people will tell you how to serve them well.

So many companies and bloggers try to “think like their customers/readers” when their customers would be more than willing to tell them what they think.

Thank you, Chris. You are a brilliant conversationalist yourself and I can’t wait to see you on Saturday!
Liz

PS Liz (No Relation) I’d love to meet you.

Conversation is far from my blog it is mostly technical and informative. Conversation seems to be a cool style for a blog and life in general. Kinda like sharing.

My good friends sister is crazyauntpurl.com pretty down to earth out side your blog and hers I tend to lean on blogs for more technical and resourced based info. Liz seems to have a pretty cool thing going on too. The SOB thing gave me a chuckle.

It is a new chapter in blog life for me with all this hype about conversation, I will have to start reading more conversation based blogs.

Conversation is far from my blog it is mostly technical and informative. Conversation seems to be a cool style for a blog and life in general. Kinda like sharing.

My good friends sister is crazyauntpurl.com pretty down to earth out side your blog and hers I tend to lean on blogs for more technical and resourced based info. Liz seems to have a pretty cool thing going on too. The SOB thing gave me a chuckle.

It is a new chapter in blog life for me with all this hype about conversation, I will have to start reading more conversation based blogs.

Maki from DoshDosh is a good example of writing a complete, self-contained article that does not promote much addons from the comments.

That said, I really like his articles as the breath of information he provides is really wide.

Maki from DoshDosh is a good example of writing a complete, self-contained article that does not promote much addons from the comments.

That said, I really like his articles as the breath of information he provides is really wide.

thanks for a great article. Of course, your blog is an excellent example of an engaging blog. 2 other favorites of mine are http://www.brainbasedbusiness.com and allthingsworkplace.com. I also agree with Mark Silver’s point about different levels of engagement, of which conversation is an important part.

thanks for a great article. Of course, your blog is an excellent example of an engaging blog. 2 other favorites of mine are http://www.brainbasedbusiness.com and allthingsworkplace.com. I also agree with Mark Silver’s point about different levels of engagement, of which conversation is an important part.

On how it’s good for business – it’s not just business to client, conversations can lead to collaboration, joint venture, new business proposals, who knows what… so esp good for freelancers (like me)

Joanna

PS Two other tips I learned from Liz – 1, leave your writing a little unfinished, if it’s too perfect people won’t comment just because you ask ‘what do you think?’ at the end 2. ‘I’ll go first’ – have you ever known anyone else thoughtful enough to answer their own questions to give us permission, show us it’s okay to say something or other, it doesn’t have to be brilliant, to break the ice in the comment box…

On how it’s good for business – it’s not just business to client, conversations can lead to collaboration, joint venture, new business proposals, who knows what… so esp good for freelancers (like me)

Joanna

PS Two other tips I learned from Liz – 1, leave your writing a little unfinished, if it’s too perfect people won’t comment just because you ask ‘what do you think?’ at the end 2. ‘I’ll go first’ – have you ever known anyone else thoughtful enough to answer their own questions to give us permission, show us it’s okay to say something or other, it doesn’t have to be brilliant, to break the ice in the comment box…

Apart from inviting feedback/discussion, or leaving a hanging question to be answered in a future post, what else would you advocate doing?

And I’ve incorporated a forum into my WordPress blog using the XDforum plugin. Would it be appropriate/desirable to link to it from each blog post? How would you word such a link?

Thanks, Chris

All success
Dr.Mani

Apart from inviting feedback/discussion, or leaving a hanging question to be answered in a future post, what else would you advocate doing?

And I’ve incorporated a forum into my WordPress blog using the XDforum plugin. Would it be appropriate/desirable to link to it from each blog post? How would you word such a link?

Thanks, Chris

All success
Dr.Mani

It’s particularly interesting what you say about being inclusive and responsive. Every topic has its own peculiar vocabulary, and although we needn’t shy away from using it, it is important at times to define some of those terms–not only is this ‘inclusive’, but it’s educational.

And, as you mention, when the author is actively involved, s/he can put a little spark back into a dying conversation, or even pose another related question, or reference additional resources. That way, the comments are more than an appendage–they become part of the blog, the content.

Excellent post.

It’s particularly interesting what you say about being inclusive and responsive. Every topic has its own peculiar vocabulary, and although we needn’t shy away from using it, it is important at times to define some of those terms–not only is this ‘inclusive’, but it’s educational.

And, as you mention, when the author is actively involved, s/he can put a little spark back into a dying conversation, or even pose another related question, or reference additional resources. That way, the comments are more than an appendage–they become part of the blog, the content.

Excellent post.