Blogging is nothing new. Professionals use Blogs for many reasons including marketing their own ventures. Using a blog effectively as a marketing tool however, is not as straight forward as one might think. Today I'm going to discuss several things you can do to refine your blog to communicate the "right" message to your readers and promote your business while doing it.
1. Write something useful
The bottom line here is that your blog will have no impact on your business if no one reads it. This may seem obvious, but I consistently come across blogs that are meant to promote a business yet the author writes articles about vacationing, birthdays, recreational activities, etc. It may seem to these authors that sharing their personal life is a great way for readers to identify with them, but unless they are well established with fans this just won't work.
Think of your blog as a way to demonstrate your expertise in your industry. Offer yourself as an authority by writing topics that are informational about your industry. This will not only affirm that you are qualified to serve your readers needs professionally but also provides real value that your readers will enjoy consuming. This value is what will build your return visits and loyal subscribers. Remember that your blog is a long term investment, not a lead generator.
2. Don't make your business the focus of your topics
The temptation to plug one's own company is strong and I see a lot of blog authors fall into this trap. Posting articles to a professional blog should not be an exercise in boosting the author's ego. People simply aren't going to continue reading advertisements, assuming a readership exists in the first place. There are situations where sharing news about your business is appropriate and can even be beneficial, however this is usually the exception not the rule. If your readers want you to write about your products and services, they will let you know.
3. Write disruptive topics
Sometimes you can gain a lot just by stirring the pot a little. Posting about something that has polar views will get your readers a little fired up which can be a good thing. People love to share their opinions on something they are passionate about, and if you give them an opportunity to do so, they will. Chances are some of your readers are also bloggers and getting them to write about your posts can give your blog a little publicity boost.
4. Don't mock your competition
It is sometimes tempting to poke fun or take a jab at your competition, especially if they leave their glass jaw exposed. Avoid this temptation as it will make you look childish, unprofessional and may even cause your readers to jump ship over to your competition. Likewise it is vitally important that you do not provoke or fuel direct attacks on your business and especially those directed toward you. If your product or service is really worth defending, your customers will do a more than adequate job in stepping up to put undeserved attacks in their place.
5. Do your research
Nothing looks worse than a writer passing themselves off as an expert in a subject they clearly know nothing about. Don't think you can get away with this; your readers will call you out, or worse, not call you out because they just unsubscribed to your feed. If you are going to post about something that you are not intimately familiar with, disclose that information up front and do as much research into the subject that you can before writing your article.
6. Don't be your own editor
Just as programmers shouldn't perform their own code reviews, writers should not edit their own copy. If you simply do not have anyone available to read your articles before you post them, at least run a spell checker and look for common typos that spell checkers do not catch like "the the". This extra step can help you save face, especially if you're in the marketing or copy writing industry.
7. Make social promotion easy for your readers
Always provide links on your articles to submit them to social news sites like Digg or Reddit. There is no reason not to, and if your readers are capable of getting your articles ranked high on these sites, you can realize a large boost to your regular readership and subscriptions.
If there is anything that should be taken from this article it is this. Your blog will not be successful if your intention is to use it simply as a sales tool for your business. A successful blog will establish a symbiotic relationship with its readers that may ultimately develop into business for your company. The more people enjoy reading your articles, the more they will talk about, link to, or even blog about, you, which will inevitably increase your readership base. Over time this is going to raise awareness of your company, and though it won't result in a dollar today, it could mean priceless market exposure tomorrow.
As always, if there is a topic you'd like me to cover, please let me know and I'll credit you for the idea.