Blogging For Your Business

Tuesday, January 24, 2006 | Tagged as blogging, business

Today was the worst day that I can remember in my 32 years of existence. The boss was all over me because I forgot to hand in my TPS report last Friday and then every client that uses our software called frustrated that the new upgrade crashed their computers and for some reason I must be the person to fix it! To make matters worse I was involved in a 4 car pile up on the way home. But it was so nice to return home to my loving cat as he curled himself through my legs...

You’re probably thinking this is a blog! You’re probably sick of all of the hype that blogs have created over the past year! You’re probably wondering how a blog can be so important to your business.

Over the past two year blogs have become one of the most explosive eruptions in the information world since the invention of the Internet, and still most businesses and entrepreneurs look at blogs as an optional element of communication instead it is a requirement of doing business. Whether you’re a single entrepreneur trying to start a new business or if you’re a company that had its founding in the 1800’s, blogging is not an optional element, it’s a requirement of doing business, much like communicating with clients is apart of doing business.

Many people have asked if blogging is a trend that will fade away, and the answer is a definite “No!” The reason blogging will not fade away is because of power of communication it provides individuals and businesses. In the age of mass media businesses are trying to get published in journals, magazines, and books - they are trying to get recognized. But that has changed! Now business can setup their own blog and publish their own thoughts, their own views, and their own expertise in a matter of ten minutes. Businesses can go to services such as Blogger (http://www.blogger.com) and setup their own free blog and have the power of publishing right at their finger tips.

Because of this freedom, just one blunder by a company can cause an uproar in the blogging community. In January of 2005 Google employee Mark Jen started complaining on his blog about the company’s health benefits and how their free food was only an incentive to keep employees working longer. Within two weeks Jen was fired from Google. Jen became an overnight success while Google was hailed as the mean bully for over reacting. Jen was wined and dined by large technology companies such as Amazon.com, Microsoft, and Yahoo, and eventually ended up signing with Plaxo, an Internet contact management company. Plaxo (http://www.plaxo.com) hired Jen to help coordinate Plaxo’s blogging endeavor and to monitor what people are saying about Plaxo around the Internet.

Blogs provide businesses with flexibility and also the ability to publish instantly. Blogs give businesses the ability to respond to crisis in real-time and to have information readily available over the Internet. It can also give businesses the ability to post breaking news, product releases, and other exciting news that your customers want to learn about.

Even though blogs provide an easy way to post time-sensitive news to the public, blogs also provide an avenue for customers to provide feedback on your products and services. In August, Apple released its new mouse called the Mighty Mouse. The Mighty Mouse hit the blogging community with both negative and positive feedback. No matter what your opinion was on the new Mighty Mouse, Apple had instantaneous feedback on the usability and the quality of the product. Dan Cederholm of SimpleBits (http://www.simplebits.com) wrote about his experience with Mighty Mouse and within days he had 51 comments from fellow readers. Not only did Cederholm provide feedback on the mouse, he also provided a avenue of free marketing for Apple for the number of readers who read his blog on a daily basis.

How Do I Get Started

So let’s jump in and get our feet wet - let’s get our blog started! There are so many different directions you can go with blogging, and so I have put together a very simple guide in directing you to several blogging services based upon your blogging experience.

If you have little knowledge about blogs it is recommended that you start your business blog with a free service. These services are designed to help you get started quickly and easily with little to no technical knowledge required.

Free blogging services:

You may have some experience under your belt and you are ready for more bells and whistle but still are not ready for a custom solution, it is recommend to use a subscription based blogging service. These services provide many more features as well as much more flexibility in your design and layout of your blog.

Paid blogging services:

You may be a blogging veteran and want a blogging solution that is totally integrated into your existing Web site to your brand consistency it is recommend that you look to a custom solution. These custom solutions typically require the specialties of a Web design company.

Custom blogging solutions:

Best Practices for Business Blogs

Whether you’re new to blogging or you’re a blogging expert there are still some best practices when writing your blogs. While it is not a complete list of best practices there are a few things to keep in mind.

  • Be Honest - A blog that is not truthful will not be read. Readers will think that you are just giving the company line. Being truthful, even in the bad times, creates an environment of trust with customers.
  • Be Consistent - No one likes to go to a Web site where the content never changes, so be consistent about your postings. Decide ahead of time that you post on your site every Friday afternoon before you leave the office or every Wednesday during lunch - the day does not matter just be consistent in your blogging.
  • Be Personal - If people wanted to read a corporate document they would read your white papers and press releases. The reason people read blogs is because they are personal and because the readers can connect to the writer.
  • Be Interactive - The reason blogs work is because both writers and readers have an open forum to exchange their own ideas without the risk of being condemned.
  • Be Smart - No matter what use common sense. The basic rule of thumb when posting on a blog is if you wouldn’t tell this news to a complete stranger, your family, and your friends then do not blog about it.

Summary

You may still be sitting there with hundreds of questions running through your mind about how blogs work and will people actually read it. Studies have shown that people will read your blog. Pew Internet (http://www.pewinternet.org) found that blog readership raised 58% between February 2004 and November 2004.

So go out there and start your blog today - it’s easy, it’s powerful, and it’s effective!