Whenever I speak on the topic of platform-building, someone always asks, “How can I generate more traffic for my blog?” Most are hoping I have a silver bullet, something that will instantly get them the recognition they deserve.

The bad news is that it’s not quite that simple. Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither is a platform. It takes doing several things right—and doing them over a long period of time.

I admit, when I hear someone suggest that you can take your blog posts and turn them into a book, I am skeptical. But when I really thought about it, for all my skepticism, and as much as it pains me to admit it, my first book, To Love Is Christ, came about just that way. Let me explain.

On August 1, 2002 I made a vow to God. He and I weren’t on the best of terms at the time, and when I finally got fed up hearing myself complain, or filling my journal with more whine, I decided to do something dramatic. My strategy was both simple and logical. That morning I decided since the Scripture tells me that God is love, I would write every day for one year on that one subject, love. That was it. That was my strategy.

If you are trying to establish a personal brand or build your own platform, you may be overlooking some of the simple tools at your disposal. Literally, every point-of-contact is an opportunity to create a positive brand impression—if you are intentional.

Here are five basic personal branding tools you should take advantage of before you move on to more complex ones.

In my previous post, I wrote about how I revamped my Speaking page. I thought I would document the process here, in the event that you are thinking about “going pro.” This is the second of two posts.

If you are an author—or want to be one—I highly recommend that you consider public speaking as part of building your platform. It is a great way to raise your visibility, promote your products, and develop credibility with your audience.

Now that public speaking has become my primary focus, I thought it was time I revamped my Speaking page. I thought I would document the process here, in the event that you are thinking about “going pro.” This is the first of two posts.

If you are an author—or want to be one—I highly recommend that you consider public speaking as part of building your platform. It is a great way to raise your visibility, promote your products, and develop credibility with your audience.

This past weekend, I passed a major milestone on my blog. I received my five thousandth comment. When John Saddington, my blog designer and developer pointed that out, I was blown away. I had no idea.

Of course, this is the essence of Web 2.0 or, as it is sometimes called, the “read/write” web. People are not content to let authors pontificate. They, too, want to participate in the conversation. Blogging is no longer a monologue (if it ever was); it’s a dialogue.