By Ian McClarty
Do you have a company blog? If not, it is time to start one.
Almost every successful business connects with their customers through content marketing, or blogging. It’s a new way of marketing that allows the customers to know you are out there, and it gives others an intimate look at the company. Smaller companies and startups can benefit most from a blog.
The Information Highway Is Your Key To More Sales
Never underestimate what a steady flow of useful information can do in the form of returns.
How can you take advantage of blogging? Well, here are seven tips for growing a company blog that brings results.
1. Don’t Skimp On Quality
It would be easier to copy and paste articles from other sites to create your own. However, the high-tech algorithms built within the search engines are sensitive enough to rate your content and identify plagarism. You could also find yourself in hot water for copyright infringement, which can be reported to Google.
Not only will the search engine rank you by page hits and other things, but it will also rate you on the quality of content you post. The key is quality, not quantity. Sometimes, less is more. Make sure you have something new and valuable to add to the subject.
Do an internet search and see what’s already out there. Find a different angle to attract a larger crowd. Content is king on every blog.
2. Hit It – Get It – and Go
People are busy. When growing a blog, you must consider the readers. Don’t drone on and on about your products or services. If you babble, viewers will equate you to a used-car salesperson giving them a pitch. You want to put a great deal of effort into your content.
According to Jessica Smith, Content Director for Data Center IT Company, “Don’t beat around the bush. Say what you need to say with little fluff or going off topic. Stay on the subject and engage with the customer. Hit on the topic, get out what you need to say, and go! Short and sweet is always best.”
3. Show Your Authority On The Subject
When you have a problem with your car, you don’t just ask some random person in the car repair aisle at the store. Rather, you find a mechanic who is well versed in the subject. The expertise of this mechanic is what you trust.
Copying or spinning someone else’s work is in poor taste, and how can you push your company if you are not an expert on the subject? You must create a reputation of someone who is knowledgeable. When you are trying to sell products or services, you want to make sure potential customers believe what you say because you have demonstrated your expertise.
Be enthusiastic about your company. Tell them why they can’t live without your products. However, come about it more from an angle of someone educated rather than giving them a sales pitch.
4. Write About What Interests Them – Not You
Writing a blog is not all fun and games. There will be times when you must write about subject matters that are of no interest to you. It can be downright boring. Blogging seems like an easy job, but coming up with quality content day in and day out can be difficult.
You must go to the areas that attract the customers. You need to make sure they are engaged, or they won’t read it. Do you want all your work to be in vain? Growing a blog takes time and effort.
If you are a carpet cleaning company, you will pick relevant topics. For instance, doing an internet search shows that stain remedies are a “hot” conversation area. So, branching out and talking about different stains and treatment methods would get plenty of hits.
5. Don’t Underestimate The Power of SEO
Okay, you probably already know about SEO.
Proper search engine optimization is essential for your blog. You must write so that the target audience can find you on the web. For instance, if you are writing a blog about losing weight, you want to include keywords that will attract an audience.
For the above example, you would use keywords like “fast weight loss,” fighting the battle of the bulge,” healthy eating,” “lose weight quickly,” and so on. Choose the most common phrases or sentences that your clientele will put into the search engine.
SEO simply optimizes your site so that people can find you. Don’t forget to use a good meta description and title tags too.
6. A Blog Is Not About Advertising
Don’t be confused about a blog’s purpose. It’s not a place to advertise. Blogging and social media are meant to connect with the customer on a different level. A blog is a place where you can be more intimate.
Be sure to share funny stories, talk about your experiences, and tell a joke or two. There is no wrong way to connect with your audience if it’s working. Save your advertising for your website, newspapers, radio, and television ads.
Sure, you market your product on social media and blog outlets, but people expect more from you here. They want to see and feel a personal connection with you.
7. Know Where You’re Going When Creating A Company Blog
Have you ever been lost while driving your car? Most people have experienced that feeling.
When you’re driving, you need to have a sense of direction. The same thing can be said for blogging. You must know where you are going. You don’t just start blogging without a plan.
Take the time to write out a timeline, from where you are starting to where you would like to end up. Take the readers on a journey with you. Leave them hanging, and give it to them in installments. They need to have a reason to come back. Because there are 2.75 million blogs written every day, you want yours to stand out from the rest.
Tease your viewers with content that is unlike others out there. Don’t conform to living inside the box. You will attract more people with something that no one else is doing.
Getting Started
Growing a company blog takes time, patience, and creativity. Do a great deal of research before beginning such a big undertaking. Spying on the competition never hurt anyone either.
Business blogging is a wonderful outreach and marketing method that is very valuable, but you won’t see results overnight. Be sure to structure your blog well, use plenty of graphics, and have the proper SEO in place.
By following these seven tips, you should be able to create a company blog that will be popular, impressive and rewarding.
Author Bio:
Ian McClarty holds an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management. He has over 20 years executive management experience in the cybersecurity and data center industry. Currently, he is the CEO and President of PhoenixNAP Global IT Services. PhoenixNap employs a staff of over 600, operating in 9 separate locations including two in Phoenix, Los Angeles, Valletta, Malta; Belgrade, Serbia; Novi Sad, Serbia; Amsterdam; Singapore; and Charlotte, NC.
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