Using blogs to improve your business

To attract new clients, small business owners may want to look at advertising online. One technique they can adopt is blogging online.

Blogging allows you to share your expertise and attract with potential customers, as well as increase your web traffic and brand awareness. Programs small business owners can use for blogging include WordPress and Blogger, both of which are free.

What is a blog?

A blog can be thought of as an online journal - a page made up of posts published in chronological order at regular times. However, unlike a personal journal, blogs are viewed by other individuals who can comment on each post. This element allows for feedback and provides a direct link with those who are reading  and can generate discussion that leads to repeat traffic.

The benefits of business blogging

Blogging is not only low cost and easy to establish and maintain, but also gives you more communication with both existing and potential customers.

Blog posts are typically fairly short, making them an easy and often lighthearted method to convey business related knowledge to a larger audience. Frequently asked questions can also be answered, which is useful for readers and makes it easier for you rather than answering via email.

You can also utilise your blog to further promote your business. For example, advertise new information, promote any sales or discounts, provide sneak peeks, run contests or encourage people to sign up for your newsletter.

How to start blogging

To begin blogging all you need is a computer, internet connection and a platform to host your blog. This can be done by either adding a blog to your own website or using an external option, such as Blogger or WordPress.

Then you just need to choose a blog name and start blogging. A target audience should be established, to help choose the name, description and type of content to post for your blog site.

Before promoting your first blog post, take some time to plan. How often will you post? - a key to a successful blog is consistency. What will you blog about? - brainstorm some ideas and plan your posts in advance.

Basic rules of blogging

There are a few basic rules of blogging that’ll get you up to speed:

• Make a regular time to blog - the most successful blogs have a weekly schedule and post content several times a week.
• Ensure that your content un personal and engaging - make sure you are 'having a conversation', not simply promoting your products or services.
• Keep your blogs open, honest, and personal.
• Cross promote over different social media platforms - when you write a new entry tweet about it on Twitter or link it on your Facebook.
• Keep your writing short and make it easy to scan. Most people will scan your posts before they decide whether they will read them or not. This means writing short sentences, using subheadings and avoiding long blocks of text. You should also make use of images and bullet points, and highlight key words.
• Keep your posts short and easy to skim through - often people will briefly scan the post before deciding to properly read it.
  • Write short sentences, use subheadings and avoid large blocks of text
  • Use images and bullet lists

By following these tips you will be able to use blog to improve your business.