Business blogging gets all your messages across

In this article I want to give you some idea of what business blogging is and how it may be useful for you.  I’m sure you have all heard the term blog/blogging, but the Oxford English Dictionary defines it as:

A regularly updated website or web page, typically one run by an individual or small group, that is written in an informal or conversational style.

You can use a blog just to inform people about your business news. Another objective could be to try and persuade people that your company is the best at what it does (case studies/testimonials). You may want to use it to persuade people to buy your products. Perhaps you want ensure that they return back to your website, because they value it as a source of up to date information relevant to them (returning visits can mean more business coming your way!).  There is also the option to publish the odd humorous/interesting post, blogging doesn’t have to be boring nor does your blog!

The system I use to build websites started it’s life as a blogging platform, then evolved in to the complete website system it is today.  Because it includes a blog system in its core then that just makes your decision to get started business blogging a little easier. Of course, you don’t necessarily need to call what you use it for on your site a “blog” specifically.  Label it as latest news – press releases – new product information – client case studies or whatever fits in which what you are trying to achieve.

Don’t limit yourself to one type of posts because your website system is incredibly flexible in how and where you can display them.  Your blog posts can be displayed, or merged in with your website pages so they are seamlessly integrated with the look and feel of your design.  I personally have added the last 8 published blog posts so that they are displayed on the home page of the site – for me they are really important messages I want you to read. When you go to any of the information pages there is a right hand column which displays the last 5 posts, and the blog categories I use.

The information you publish via your blog is useful in several ways.

• It adds fresh content to your website which could attract visitors back as they see you as an evolving source of information relevant to you.
• Search engines like websites which are regularly updated, so it could help with your search rankings.
• You can publish additional search engine optimised pages which can help with your local search rankings.  For example case studies can focus on how you have worked in a particular town doing what you do.  Creating pages “stuffed” with lists of keywords can have a negative effect on your ranking, but well written blog posts can be very effective.
• Testimonials from your clients can be blogged.  It’s relevant feedback on your business which prospective customers will value reading. Again these can be useful for local search results.
• The blogs you publish form part of your coordinated social media strategy.  Publish on your website, then post links to it on all your regular social media sites.  This will hopefully drive traffic back to your site and the visitors may just stay around and browse the rest of your site.

This business blogging sounds like hard work…

Of course it’s easy to preach to you about your business blogging, but I’m practicing that message here.  You can see from my blog that I am creating articles to get you thinking about your website, and that it can be so much more for your business than you likely thought.  I want to educate my website visitors that although there is a lot of technical mumbo jumbo in web design, it’s can simple enough for them to get involved in the process.

I will also be documenting case studies and testimonials so that you can see the work I’ve carried out and how it’s received by my clients. In addition to this, they provide additional content on my website which is then posted out on my social media sites.  It’s an inclusive part of my marketing strategy.

It takes time out of my busy day to create them, but I value the benefits that actively updating my website will bring.  I hope that you can see that potential too.