With so much recent buzz about micro-blogging on social networking sites such as Twitter, there has been suggestion that traditional blogs are becoming irrelevant. This is simply not the case. Not only do blogs still hold an important place in our internet-focused business world, but they also provide a perfect starting platform for social media newbies to connect with their customers and enhance their business prospects.
Whether you are considering starting a business blog or planning to improve an existing one, the following list will certainly give you a helping hand.
1. Establish a Strategy
Every successful business starts with a strategy, including a clear plan and a list of target customers and specific aims. The key to a successful business blog is to make it a part of your strategy. The first step is to decide on your specific target audience and blog purpose. Do you want a blog for brand building, increasing sales or communicating with employees, customers, prospects or vendors? Remember that blogs created with content solely for search engine optimization purposes tend to lead very short lives!
2. Create A Blogging Policy
Now that you have a clear idea of your audience and content, the next step is to determine your blogging policies. Whether your blog content includes employee activities, client projects, or internal processes, it needs to be reflected in your policy. The best idea is to consolidate all your policies into one ‘communications policy’ rather than having one policy for e-mails, another for memos etc. Bear in mind that one of the main purposes of your policy should be to ensure that trade secrets and employee personal lives are kept private.
3. Find A Voice
Your online voice will be determined by your blog content and the readers. The most effective business blog writing style is generally a simple and refreshing conversational tone. This allows for easy-reading and skimming. By all means remain professional, but try to inject some personality. A bit of humour won’t go amiss either, because after all you want your customers to enjoy reading, otherwise there will be little chance of them coming back!
4. Create Compelling Content
It is not enough to just scribble down a few sentences on your blog and expect readers to return. Your blog content must be engaging, informative and relevant. Topics to write about can include company successes, current projects and interesting industry facts. You can also make product recommendations or interview industry leaders. Remember, your blog represents the face of your company and potential customers will be making judging based on what they read. The most useful thing about blog posts is syndication. This means that readers can subscribe to your blog’s syndicated feed (also known as a ‘web feed,’ ‘RSS feed’ or ‘feed’). Once subscribed, they can read the blog in a computer program of their choice, and receive up-to-date posts, reminders and links, all of which will drive traffic back to your site.
5. Keep It Fresh
Readers will quickly lose interest in your blog if you don’t make frequent updates. Constant publishing may seem time-consuming but in reality blogs are easy to add on to, after all that is what they were designed for. To keep readers coming back you need to discipline yourself and plan ahead. Make blogging part of your weekly routine and stick to it. Keep content fresh by checking for hot news and relating it to your business, involve readers by asking their opinions and if you really are too busy, hire writers to assist you in your blog updating.
6. Reinforce The Company’s Core Values
Blogging is a great way to promote your business and provides another opportunity to showcase what you can offer customers. Ensure that your blog reflects your company’s mission, aims and direction and above all make it consistent with the other media platforms your business uses. Consider using quotes to help reinforce positive thoughts, which in turn will support a positive image of your company and the services you provide.
7. Make Sure Your Blog Is Found
Perfect planning and remarkable writing are just a waste of precious time if your blog doesn’t receive any visitors, so making sure your site is easy to find is of upmost importance. One of the best ways to direct customers to your blog is via a link on your company website, usually on the ‘company page’ or ‘about us’ section. Wherever you decide to place your link it must be prominent. One good way to promote your blog is to read and make comments on other blogs. This will allow you to make friends and direct more people to your site.
8. Encourage Employees To Use It
Company blogs can create a platform for even the quietest of employees to make their voices heard. A positive atmosphere within the company and close monitoring are recommended to deter negativity from your blog. Encouraging your employees to blog will also bring together employees across the company and promote communication.
9. Engage With Readers
Compelling content is the way to keep readers coming back for more. Let your spark shine through, particularly in the opening and closing statements of your posts. If you successfully connect with readers, they will leave comments. If they link your site to their blog, thank them to show your appreciation. Ask for readers’ opinions and then respond to their comments to make them feel valued. Participating with your readers will expand your network and lead to blogging success.
10. Spread Your Content
Spreading your content to the target audience is a great way to expand your business. Starting a blog is the first step in understanding the new age of social media. From there you can expand to other social networking sites and as your knowledge and experience grows, so will your company and its customer base.
11. Don’t Obsess Over Your Return On Blogging
There may not be an exact calculation to measure the effect your blog is having on company "profits" but it is nevertheless an important marketing tool. With so many advantages, including making close customer connections, enhancing your brand, increasing your search engine ranking and getting more media exposure, to name but a few, blogging is by far the best social media channel available for businesses today.
With most big businesses using blogging and with all the benefits blogging offers, it isn’t hard to see why this trend is growing. Opening yourself to using blogging as a business marketing technique will not only provide you with more customers, but also with more confidence in the world of social media!
