Some people love to write. I’m not one of them. But, I am smart enough to know that a blog for my business is a very powerful tool. Our Web Marketing Blog serves three big roles for building business: It brands our expertise, provides content that can be sent (automatically) to customers and prospects via email, and drives new traffic to us because of all the new content being picked up from Google. Having a blog for your small business may be beneficial to you as well.
What is a blog? The cleanest description I’ve read is: “A blog is a web page made up of usually short and frequently updated posts that are arranged chronologically—like a ‘what’s new’ page or a journal.”
Business blogging started in 1999, and since then has exploded to over 100 million blogs today. But don’t think you’ll be lost out in a sea of cyber-posts. There are many techniques for how you can (and should) utilize your blog to build your small business.
Unlike a personal blog that is usually opinions or a personal diary, a small business blog should be used to deliver helpful information to customers and prospects. A blog for your small business is a great way to share your expertise, build additional web traffic, and connect with potential customers.
Blog software is easy to use. You simply type out your posts, which is as easy as typing an email. Then link to resources, and publish to your blog with just a few clicks of the mouse. I recommend the blogging software WordPress (that’s what we use for all our sites).
Blogging can also sometimes be a low-cost alternative to having a web presence, but you want both if at all possible. For small business owners without the time to learn HTML (and who does?) or the money to hire a professional web designer or developer, blogging offers an inexpensive method to establish your company’s presence online.
Updating a blog is fast and can be done pretty easily with a little initiative to learn a few steps.
A small business blog will allow you to share your expertise, knowledge, and company news with a growing audience of potential customers. And with an email service like Aweber, your blog posts can automatically be emailed to your email list. Sweet!
