Back in 2011, Hubspot recorded that amongst the interviewed respondents, 65% of small businesses own a company blog. With buzzing social networking platforms throughout 2009-2011, blogging was rumored to be dead and gone but clearly, that isn't the case. If you are still not blogging, you are in the minority.
So, you have thought about starting a company blog but don't know if establishing a content outlet will add any value to your brand? For small businesses operating on low resources (human and monetary), evaluating the effectiveness of any new marketing venture is essential before proceeding. Blogs have been popular for a long time and many companies have been very good at harnessing their social power. Words cause an impact and if you are genuinely keen on building relationships with the audience, a company blog will help you achieve that.
 |
There are 5 major reasons why you should go ahead with blogging.
Publicity
Blogging is free publicity! All you need is a basic idea, (if possible) someone in your team with good writing skills and passion for the service/product you offer. There is no better way to promote your message than by writing it in a blog post. If you are authentically believable, the enriching content you add to web space will be noted and in return help you build trust.
Build Expertise
Writing a blog post requires in-depth research. Doing so gives you an opportunity to enhance your industry knowledge. Over-time, you will also find yourself getting well versed with the products/services you offer. The more content you produce, the better you will get at explaining someone exactly what you sell. As time passes, customers will start trusting you as the go-to source for information. Moreover, expertise in a subject means you will remain up-to-date on the latest industry developments and ever prepared to answer customer queries.
Boost Team-work
A well proven method of generating content is to get everyone in the organisation involved. Company blogs are a brilliant platform to showcase your employees' ideas/views. In terms of small businesses, this process is even easier to achieve. Team members can spend time together, brain-storming over ideas. You will have a variety of blog ideas and at the same time give employees an opportunity to shine.
Search point of view
For small businesses, showing up within Google's local search results is important. By addressing product/service related queries or updates at the local/community level, you will be able to reach the right kind of audience. More content to offer means, more pages will get indexed.
Networking and Engagement
Networking via blogs with other stakeholders is something you should look forward to. Once your blog has considerable authority and you are treated as an expert, you could invite your customers to generate content. You can also connect with other bloggers and invite guest bloggers to write occasionally. Getting your audience involved in some form, generally leads to engagement. Engagement will go a long way in building lasting relationships.
Best Practice for Blogging
1. Quality vs Quantity: Companies focusing on hard-selling will choose the later but for a company truly interested in creating an engaging impact on their audience knows the importance of providing quality content. People are quick to see through the fake. Page-views can't justify your sincerity and that shouldn't be your ultimate goal. Stick to being honest and passionately writing about the values your brand reflects. You don't have to write frequently, don't stick to a schedule. Write whenever you can but make it good!
2. Ideas can be recycled: There are only so many topics within any industry that are popular at any given moment. Your posts can't be unique every single time. Instead, pick up ideas from other sources and build up on those. Do NOT plagiarize! Add your own flavor and contribute to the subject. Read...Read...Read. Inspiration will come to you. Start following influential people and websites, utilize Google Reader, use Google Alerts; the web is full of services you can use, that will help you keep up with what's new in your industry.
3. Don't quit social media: Blogging is just another outlet to get your word out there, it is not a replacement for social networks. Utilize your social network power to share your blog posts. Your fans and your followers are your instant audience.
4. Promote: Going back to the previous topic, you can't expect people to somehow find your blog. Your blog won't gain authority within search engines unless your content is shared. Sharing won't happen unless you go out and promote your blog. It is a social loop. Integrate RSS feeds to your social networks to remind people about recent updates, use a bold link to the blog on your website, spread the word among employees and other stakeholders, include link in email newsletters, add link to email signatures etc. Furthermore, make contributions to LinkedIn Answers and comment on other industry blogs.
If you are sure you want to begin blogging, read my post about choosing the right blogging platform.
No comments:
Post a Comment