The value of business blogging
I’ve set up many blog on many web sites over the years, but relatively few of those site owners really make the most of, what can be, a very effective way of promotion.
A blog doesn’t have to be a “blog”
In it’s basic form a blogging system is really a method of posting written information, often categorised into different types of topic. They can be turned to any sort of information archive such as;
- Company news
- Articles
- Press releases
- Product/service documentation
- Product/service showcases/case studies
- Product/service FAQ’s
- Feedback from customers (via commenting)
- ...and of course blog!
How can a blog benefit a business web site?
That’s answered in one word - communication! If you don’t go out and tell people about your products no-one will buy because they don’t know you exist.
What should you write about?
The better informed your customers are, the more likely you’ll keep their interest and convert them into paying customers;
- Write about products or services to inform potential customers
- Write about the business/company to enhance customers perception
- Post regular company news can show that the company is active
- Write about the things customers ask you
- Write about your customers and how they use your products/services
There’s no set formula about how often you should write except one - post regularly! You don’t have to post every day but, given all the things you could write about, it can be more often that you’d imagine.
What benefits are there?
Improved search engine presence
Everything you write about gets listed on search engines, that’s an extra page for every blog entry you pen. The benefits are obvious - the more pages you have the more chance there is of people finding you. Post once a week and you will have 52+ additional pages indexed, it all adds up.
Better informed customers
Ask yourself something - when you go shopping, who are you most likely to buy from? - the web site that allows you to make an informed decision, or the web site that leaves you guessing? It’s a no-brainer really, customers like to be informed.
You become more open and accessible
Having a higher profile on the web and demonstrating your expertise in your field of business can help you get noticed, and if you get things spot on people will spread your name for you - in the world of business we all know how valuable personal recommendations are!
It’s cost effective
A blog can be bolted onto your existing web site, or even in some cases your whole site can be converted to run on a blogging system. The real cost is in regular updates, but when you look at this in proportion what’s a few hours each month spent on writing good content to woo your customers?
Are you ready to start blogging?
It does take some commitment to maintain a blog and it’s one of those things that requires constant attention - a blog where the most recent addition was posted 12 months ago is not likely to inspire!
If you think you’re ready then there’s no better time to start. In these times of world recession every avenue of promotion needs to be investigated to generate new business.
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