There are a lot of “social media experts” out there screaming that “YOU HAVE TO USE LINKBAIT!!! YOU HAVE TO SUBMIT TO SOCIAL MEDIA SITES!!!” Sure there are definite advantages to doing these things... quick traffic, a few new links, etc but… do you really have to?

I am going to have to say that no, no you do not. I hate to say it, but the overused cliche really does apply: "If you build it (great), they will come." By this, I mean if you really want a large audience of viewers that read, talk about, share with friends and really LOVE your work - you only need to write great content. Great content will be found (and linked to) no matter how you promote it.

Case in point: I was honored to discover last week that this blog has been included in the SEO category of "Alltop" - Guy Kawasaki's new site. I hadn't sought this out, submitted by blog to be included; it happened by itself.

This is easier said than done of course; you actually have to know what you are talking about and, as I have said before, you should have a passion for your writing! That is what makes people read your blog day in and day out. Striving to write better, more informative posts is what will make your blog a success. It's not the one-time traffic surge of StumbleUpon or Digg; it's the writers who day in and day out produce great content that is helpful for their readers.

Here are just a few great blogs where the authors really get that content is what it's all about: SEOMoz, ProBlogger, DoshDosh, WolfHowl. (I subscribe to hundreds of great blogs in my news reader; I wish I could list them all here!)

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Titles are everything. Blog titles, Web page titles, Advertising titles. Titles should be short, snappy, and attention gr...

Yahoo Maps announced Wednesday that an update was rolled out, which includes several data and style improvements. Gus Maldonado, senior product manager, wrote on the Yahoo Local Maps Blog that users can expect to see lower zoom levels, new neighborhood data for 300 North American cities, and expanded worldwide coverage. New points of interest have also been added and include schools, rest areas, and ski resorts. Usability was also a focus of the recent update, offering increased city density as well as adjustments to hybrid road and label colors.