Blurbs - Going Beyond Book Jackets to New Frontiers in Cyberspace
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What in the world are blurbs?
Blurbs are everywhere! At work, someone might ask you to write a blurb about the presentation you'll be giving at the staff meeting. If you've decided to join an online dating service, you'll need to write a blurb about yourself. Heck, even here on Squidoo, the submission blocks are called blurbs!
Once Upon A Time, Blurbs Were For Books
The term 'blurbs' was originally used to describe those short synopses of books found on the back covers or jackets. These short publicity announcements evolved into a household term for any type of short, descriptive text of a paragraph or two. 'Blurbs' are no longer limited to announcements -- but you can use them online to announce your products, services and information.
So, what can you do with blurbs to promote your online business?
You can write snippets about your products and services and submit them to services such as Squidoo ... and you can submit 'blurbs' to The Blurbosphere, a free service that's dedicated to promoting small businesses. We have a lot in store at The Blurbosphere network. For example, we are currently creating new sites devoted to mom and pop businesses and are working "behind the scenes" with some real, brick and mortar business owners who need a bit of help understanding what to do with their web sites. The results of this work will be available in step-by-step videos for small business owners whose focus is not internet marketing.
Some of those business people have submitted blurbs to The Blurbosphere network. You can see some of their posts at:
- Find Something New - Products and services are showcased
- Independence Seekers - Information on making money and investing it
- Unknown Resources - Webmasters make their resources known
- Advertising Blurbs - A variety of ads from all sorts of sites
- Blurbs Galore - More blurbs, posted daily
Or, take a look at the feed below from The Blurbosphere blog to see what kind of snippets people are announcing.
For the published authors and book sellers out there, a service will soon be available for you to post your book blurbs.
Happy blurbing ... and stay tuned for further developments from The Blurbosphere!
Blurb of the Week
Some favorite blurb submissions ...
Sword Forging Techniques...
One thing that makes Japanese swords so much stronger than others is both the high quality iron ore that goes into the steel used to make the finished product, but the skill of the sword smith who produces that blade. The basic technique involved folding the metal over on itself, usually a total of 18 times while red hot. The blade is cooled from time to time which brings the impurities in the blade to the surface, whiile at the same times creating layers in the steel, which makes for a blade of incredible strength. Finally, the use of differential heat treating, where the top of the blade is cooled more quickly than the cutting edge causes the blade to curve, and creates an edge that, once sharpened, will probably never need it again.
The latest in user-submitted blurbs ...
... from people around the world.
Here are some snippets submitted to The Blurbosphere.
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byGreat Stuff on Amazon
Common Sense, The Rights of Man and Other Essential Writings of Thomas Paine (Signet Classics)
Amazon Price: $6.95 (as of 07/05/2009) 
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
Amazon Price: $25.15 (as of 07/05/2009)
The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition
Amazon Price: $9.95 (as of 07/05/2009)
New Guestbook
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