If You're Blogging, Are You Using the Power of Trackbacks?

As you know, I've been blogging for a while now - sometimes not as often as I'd like to, especially for this blog, as it's strictly a labor of love.

If you're not blogging for your program, you should be. And if you are, I want to make sure that you're using the power of trackbacks.

If you don't know what a trackback is, it's kind of like the game "telephone" or "gossip" that you might have played as a kid...somebody gives you a message, and you deliver it to someone else, who delivers it to someone else, and so on and so forth.

The cool thing about trackbacks is that, unlike the game where the messsage sometimes gets garbled up, or doesn't get delivered at all, a trackback is a way for someone to talk about a post you made on your blog with the people they know...and if it's relevant, those people can talk about it to other people, and it goes on and on!

That's the beauty about social networking. The other reason that using trackbacks is so important is that they are a way to get your blog - and your Website listed in the search engines. The higher you're listed in the search engines, the easier people will be able to find your blog or your Website, and that will get you one step closer to achieving your goals and continuing with your mission.

So, how do you trackback? Click that link (with the word trackback) and be sure to read both posts. The guy who wrote it explains it a lot better than I can - in fact, he's the one who (finally) was able to make me understand what trackbacks are and how they work.

And then after you've read it, get busy and start doing it!

VISTA Program Reaches 500,000 Members - President Bush Personally Welcomes Alivia Sturgill to White House

White House Meeting with West Virginia AmeriCorps Member Part of AmeriCorps
Week

WASHINGTON, May 18 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- President Bush welcomed
West Virginia AmeriCorps member Alivia Sturgill to the Oval Office this
morning as part of a nationwide recognition week for the AmeriCorps
national service program as it reaches a historic milestone of 500,000
members.
"AmeriCorps was founded to encourage citizens to strengthen their
communities through acts of service. Today, thousands of AmeriCorps
volunteers contribute to a culture of compassion by mentoring children,
providing shelter for the homeless and performing countless other acts of
kindness. This week is an opportunity to raise awareness about volunteerism
and honor those who are making a difference in the lives of others," the
President said in greetings to those observing the first-ever AmeriCorps
Week.
"I am grateful for all those involved with AmeriCorps for your
dedication to a cause greater than self. Your compassionate efforts
demonstrate the great character of our country and inspire others to build
a more hopeful society," the President said.
To read the full text of the President's message:
http://www.nationalservice.gov/about/newsroom/statements_detail.asp?tbl_pr_id=698.
To view a photo of the President and AmeriCorps member Alivia Sturgill:
http://www.nationalservice.gov/about/newsroom/photos_press_detail.asp?tbl_pr_id=69
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Sturgill, 24, will mentor low-income elementary students in rural Mingo
County this summer as part of the Energy Express AmeriCorps program run by
West Virginia University. Sturgill graduated last week from Midway College
in Kentucky with a bachelor's degree in Elementary Education and will
immediately put her training to work providing summer reading instruction
to students. AmeriCorps members in Energy Express have served more than
34,000 low-income and rural children across the state since 1996.
After meeting with the President, Sturgill joined 100 of her fellow
members from Washington, D.C. area AmeriCorps programs for a reception at
the Indian Treaty Room at the White House. They heard words of
congratulations from USA Freedom Corps Director Desiree Sayle and
Corporation for National and Community Service CEO David Eisner. AmeriCorps
Director Kristin McSwain led the members in taking the AmeriCorps pledge to
"get things done for America."
The President's recognition highlighted a series of more than 200
events for the first-ever AmeriCorps Week including service projects,
recruitment fairs, and recognition ceremonies. The U.S. House of
Representatives passed a resolution recognizing AmeriCorps for its
important contribution to our nation on Monday; and 19 Governors have
issued AmeriCorps Week proclamations.
"One of the President's major goals is building a national culture of
service and responsibility, and AmeriCorps is doing that every day in
profound and powerful ways in small towns and big cities all across
America," said David Eisner, CEO of the Corporation for National and
Community Service. "AmeriCorps members tackle our toughest problems; make
our communities safer and healthier; and improve the lives of tens of
millions of our most vulnerable citizens. AmeriCorps Week is a time to
thank these local heroes and ask more Americans to answer the call."
AmeriCorps was created by President Clinton and Congress in 1993 as a
way for Americans to give back to their communities and country and earn
money for college in return. President Bush first championed AmeriCorps as
Governor of Texas, where AmeriCorps members were a key part of his
statewide literacy initiative to get more third-graders up to basic reading
levels. As President, he successfully pushed for a 50 percent expansion of
AmeriCorps to 75,000 members each year. His Administration has also enacted
reforms to reduce costs, increase efficiency, devolve more authority to the
state and local level, and strengthen AmeriCorps focus on recruiting and
managing community volunteers.
AmeriCorps members have provided more than 637 million hours of service
since the first members began serving in 1994. Using Independent Sector's
estimate of the dollar value of a volunteer's time, those hours equate to
more than $11.9 billion in value. In addition to their direct service,
AmeriCorps members have proved to be a powerful force multiplier for
volunteer efforts. In 2006 alone, members recruited and managed 1.4 million
community volunteers. Once they complete their service, AmeriCorps alums
remain highly engaged and active in their communities, volunteering and
entering public service careers at disproportionately high levels.
AmeriCorps Week kicked off on Monday, when the Corporation for National
and Community Service announced AmeriCorps grants and education awards
totaling $172 million for 167 organizations across the United States. On
Wednesday, the agency released a new study showing that serving in
AmeriCorps is a way for individuals to gain valuable career skills,
leadership abilities, civic connections and a lasting ethic of volunteering
and civic engagement. Yesterday, agency leaders were in New Orleans to
launch an initiative to engage 200 AmeriCorps VISTA members in helping city
children and youth have safe and productive summers. This initiative
complements the NCCC Summer of Service, which will engage 300 14-17
year-old youth in a three-week residential program to carry out community
service projects in New Orleans, Charleston and Denver.
AmeriCorps Week ends this Sunday in Biloxi, Miss. with a closing
ceremony that also serves as the kickoff of Habitat for Humanity's annual
AmeriCorps Build-A-Thon. During the following five days of the
Build-A-Thon, hosted by Habitat for Humanity of the Mississippi Gulf Coast,
more than 500 AmeriCorps members and alumni from across the country will
blitz build 20 Habitat homes in Gulfport, Miss.
AmeriCorps is administered by the Corporation for National and
Community Service, which also oversees Senior Corps and Learn and Serve
America. Together with the USA Freedom Corps, the Corporation is working to
build a culture of service, citizenship, and responsibility in America. For
more information, visit http://www.nationalservice.gov.


SOURCE Corporation for National and Community Service