Blogging Etiquette for Notaries

Since the mortgage industry slow down over the last couple of months, several notaries have taken to reading and writing blogs.  When you first start blogging, like anything else, there is a trial and error  period.  Some notaries are finding out the hard way, (by being banned from some groups) what proper etiquette is.  Etiquette is defined as rules governing socially acceptable behavior.  I would like to suggest a few blogging etiquette guidelines that might help everyone express feelings more effectively.

        

     1.  Source your Blog  When stating that something is a “fact” in your blog, ensure that you either mention the source or put a link to the source.  If you, the blogger, are quoting a conversation between you and another party or quoting conversations between two other parties get permission from all parties to post.  This will definitely bring the proper credibility to your post.

2.  Always stay Professional.            If you disagree with another person, company, or agency position on a topic and want to communicate it in your blog, make sure your communication is professional and respectful of your readers.  For the last several months, notaries “Professional Code of Conduct” has been at the forefront of the blogging discussion.  This is in part due to the perception of some lenders and title companies that all NSAs are unprofessional.  Calling someone who disagrees with you names and using profanity in your post, brings negativity and loss of credibility for your blog.  It also plays directly into the myth that all NSAs are unprofessional.

           
      3.  Properly prepare for negative comments.  Properly brace yourself for handling negative comments on your blog.  According to Gala Darling, owner of galadarling.com and recently named one of the 10 most influential style bloggers in the world, blogging is like giving birth or creating a new piece of art.  People don’t realize how much work that goes into them.  Some people could be looking to garner attention for themselves at your expense by publicly attacking you on your blog.  There is no one way to handle this best.  Some strategies used by professional bloggers have been to develop a policy for handling negative comments before they come.  Always try to remember that negative comments are never about you or what you’ve written, they are always about the person who wrote them.         

      4.  Follow up.  Be sure to follow up with those people who were kind enough to take a moment and post a comment.  Let them know you truly appreciate them stopping by your blog and taking the time to drop a line.   

  

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 If you have more tips that would help others with blogging, please feel free to share them here.