Making News

(May 17, 2007)

CAN BLOGGING BE BENEFICIAL TO YOUR COMPANY'S MARKETING MIX?

 

Most companies see the value of creating and posting a company web site, but could the same be said for adding the practice of blogging to your marketing mix? Before you jump into the foray, you need to consider a few things or you may well find your efforts a monumental waste of time. 

Blogging is a commitment. It’s also a promise. It is an opportunity to show your company’s personality, establish yourself as an authority in your sphere of influence and contribute to driving more traffic to your web site. Since blogging is about sharing information and initiating a conversation…you have to decide if your business culture, goals, and resources are in alignment with your needs to accrue the benefits.

 

First things first

What are your reasons for blogging? You should have some business goals you want to achieve. Since blogging software like Wordpress can be very search engine friendly, one goal might be to get listed highly on search pages for a particular key word that is important to your business. If one of your blogs gets a top listing for a search term due to the blog architecture and its content, you have increased your chances for driving better targeted traffic to your blog. This will ultimately establish personal relationships and pull potential customers to your web site where they can learn more about your company and what it has to offer.

Another goal might be to let people know a little more about the inner workings of your company. This could include insight into your market focus or new product introductions. Remember that the act of blogging is the same as speaking in an open forum. The line between simply serving as a purveyor of information or actually enticing feedback is a line you draw by how you craft your message.

Becoming known as an authority in your business or profession is important. Blogging is an iimportant part of your company's the mix of keynote speaking and information dissemination along with other marketing tools. The blog can serve as the cornerstone of your business communications if it is focused and true to its mission.

It's a transparent world

If your company controls the flow of information tightly, blogging may not be an immediate target for you. The power of the blog lies in what you are willing to reveal and how that will resonate with your audience. The format has the ability to establish trust. What you say about your company says just as much as what you omit. The degree of your transparency will be determined by your business goals and your company culture.

 

Got time?

This is the big one. Blogging takes patience and commitment. Even with voracious search engine robots cataloging every piece of content they can find, it still takes your business a quarter or two to get some content online that will be focused enough to make a difference with your intended audience. You need to assign the resources for content generation, monitoring, and seeking search engine optimization to see it succeed. For example, the publisher of AdWeek addressed the manpower issue by assigning an editorial staff to maintain its blog. By sharing content generation, AdWeek always has fresh content without overloading its staff.

Earlier we said that by blogging, you are making a promise. The promise is that once your have posted a blog, you will supply fresh content consistently to your readers – if you want to build readership, generate word-of-mouth and get a growing audience. Is this important if you are only targeting a limited prospect group? Absolutely! You want a relationship with SOMEONE or you have to question your blogging endeavor. As the Internet has proven, the power is in the numbers so you should be concerned with building an audience.

You don’t say  . . .

Simply put, write for your prospect. Again, blogging is a forum and the benefits of starting a conversation cannot always be measured up front. A blog’s success may come from discussing an issue that is totally unrelated to a product, but resonates with your audience. Speak and let them speak. Listen, inform and entertain.

Blogging is an art. You can measure your blog’s success initially by looking at your blog site statistics. Is your audience growing? Is your company website getting listed by the search engines along with some of your blog entries, which should lead a visitor to believe you are an expert in your field? If not, you may need to evaluate your search engine optimization efforts and your content. It’s normal to make adjustments - just don’t forget to meet your blogging goals by staying focused.


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