I recently wrote some comment guidelines for the primary site I manage, and was surprised by the paucity of information on this topic. Of course you’ll pull up thousands of entries if you do a Google search. But I wanted authoritative, meaty stuff.

In fact, what I most wanted was a book covering the topic. However, neither of the blogging books I own did. One is even on corporate blogging.

The implication is that guidelines don’t matter that much — that things like search engine optimization are what’s really important. For many blogs, I expect that’s true, but not all.

I’ve used to manage a dicey blog (now history) where guidelines were a lifesaver. Early in that blog’s life, I opened my email one day and discovered about ten comments submitted the previous evening by one person. The first four were flames, but then came the fifth. It began, “I just read your guidelines….” and proceeded to be quite rational, even calm, after that, suggesting that I not post his earlier comments.

For others looking for meta guidelines, I did happen across one helpful summary. It’s several years old, but cuts to the chase with four rules used by all of the corporate blogging guidelines they reviewed:

• You’re personally responsible
• Abide by existing rules
• Keep secrets
• Be nice

From: Policies compared: Today’s corporate blogging rules

If your gut is telling you write guidelines, pay attention. Even though I couldn’t easily find a subject authority, there are plenty of good examples found with a quick search. Just add a dollop of common sense, and you should come up with something that will help you sleep better at night.

Geez louise. I keep forgetting to blog. I read a number of stories over the weekend about bloggers who get so stressed they have heart attacks or worse, but that’s obviously not a problem for some of us. I expect it’s mostly confined to those who are A-list or A-list-wannabes.

What’s the secret to my success … in maintaining blogging health and sanity, I mean? Of all things (at least for now) it’s knitting.

I haven’t knit for almost 30 years. I became moderately proficient at it in my early 20s, but then life (babies, etc.) intervened — plus I don’t like clutter, and crafts are incredibly clutter-inducing.

So what happened? Why the return? I’m not quite sure. A friend mentioned her favorite yarn shop, I happened to be near it the next day, waltzed in, got some yarn, next got a chatty e-newsletter from them, and even signed up for a class.

Now most evenings I can’t wait for a little knitting and Star Trek with Mr. Web Diva. Bliss.

Holy Batphone. According to the latest Pew Internet & American Life Project, cell phones matter more to U.S. adults than the internet, TV and email.

“When asked how hard it would be to give up a specific technology, respondents are now most likely to say the cell phone would be most difficult to do without, followed by the internet, TV, and landline telephone. This represents a sharp reversal in how people viewed these technologies in 2002.”

Add to that the central role web browsing plays for iPhone users, not to mention Google Android, and I wonder — how can any self-respecting web diva not be riveted by cell phones? Right after the iPhone was released, I figured my interest would morph from a hobby to a critical professional skill, but now I’m wondering just how soon that will be. Six months? One year? I can’t imagine it will be as long as two years.

“The greatest problem with communication is the illusion that it has been accomplished.”
– George Bernard Shaw

This morning my church sponsored a most helpful “Getting the Word Out” workshop for church leaders (board members, committee chairs, staff, etc.). Based on introductory comments, here is a “Cheat Sheet” of things to consider when you want to communicate your church event.

• Remember the number seven. If you want the majority of your congregation to hear about your event, you’re going to need to publicize it seven times. Saying it once doesn’t even begin to get the word out.
• Cover the basics. It seems obvious, but you’d be amazed how easy it is to forget some of these, especially if you’re in a hurry.
  • Who?
  • What?
  • When?
  • Where?
  • Why?
  • How?
• Be clear about your audiences. Possibilities include:
  • Current congregation members
  • Newcomers
  • Prospective members
  • Visitors
  • The larger community
  • The media
  • The denomination
• Pick your communication methods wisely. Keep in mind your audiences, your message and that number seven. These will affect which methods are best. At my church, the primary possibilities are:
  • The newsletter
  • The church website, particularly the announcement blog
  • The weekly email
  • The order of service
  • An announcement from the pulpit
  • A press release
  • The bulletin boards
• Remember: effective communication is not simple. In fact the technology I adore is making it ever more complicated, or so it seems. What, I wonder, would George Bernard Shaw, make of Web 2.0?

Yesterday I was (happily) a bystander in one of those interactions that are so prevalent in smallish volunteer organizations coping with the new media. Out of the blue, my church’s Green Team (our environmental conscience) got an email from someone no one had heard of before, telling them they should “champion, promote and implement the conversion of our tree eating, postage wasting newsletter to an internet version.” Yikes.

Astonishingly, our very kind and patient Green Team co-chair bristled and let the person have it. She noted that they were just a small group of volunteers who didn’t have a magic want. Then other church leaders weighed in, pointing out, for example, that online actually is the primary mode of distributing the newsletter.

Eventually the thread made it to the Communication Committee (AKA Comm Comm). It’s where newsletter responsibility actually lies. Comm Comm is a sizable group, full of older, less-than-reticent members, and at that point, there was much hilarity. Thank heavens. It was absolutely the right response. We’ve been down the online-vs.-print road goodness knows how many times in the last few years. If I could have an ounce of chocolate for every hour Comm Comm has spent talking about and working on this issue, I’d be a very fat diva.

Yet still there is so much to see and learn from this kind of interaction. The take-aways for me right now are:

• Humans yearn for the simple. Alas, the shift into new media is anything but simple.
• Volunteers are fragile. They are at risk for lack of appreciation, and having a healthy, vibrant community to disperse such issues into is a wonderful antidote.
• Good humor can save the day when dealing with complex issues mixed with tender feelings.

What do you take away?