(By Traci Bisson, as seen in NH Mirror, August 2008)
”Does a blog have something to do with a computer?”
Even though the concept of blogs and blogging has been around for nearly 10 years, small business owners still ask this question. Many entrepreneurs are unaware of what blogs are and how their businesses can benefit from this versatile marketing tool.
Blogs can provide commentary or news on a particular subject, while others function more as a personal online diary with which readers can interact by posting comments. Bloggers, the people who write and maintain blogs, have the responsibility to deliver valuable content on subjects of interest to their target markets and, much like a magazine or a newspaper, readers can subscribe to blogs via feed readers or e-mail.
People blog for many reasons. Some blog to “have a voice,” while others blog to invite comments and discussions from readers. Many blog to build a large community of readers, which allows them to solicit advertisers and sponsors and make money with their blog.Many entrepreneurs choose blogging as a way to interact with readers who might have questions about a company and its products or services. Whatever your reason is, blogging in today’s fast-paced world allows you to hang on to the coattails of the ever-changing technology industry.
Ready to start your blog? Follow these eight simple steps:
- Choose a blogging service. Blogger.com is a great place to start. The service is free and easy to use. Once you decide you enjoy blogging, the blog can be upgraded and migrated to a traditional hosting service.
- Choose a name for your blog. The name should have meaning to your target market (i.e. “name of your company”.blogspot.com).
- Write a description. What is your blog about? Write a brief description so readers will understand your blog’s mission.
- Offer a complete profile. In the bio section of Blogger, create a complete profile for yourself so readers can get to know you.
- Syndicate your blog. Use a program such as FeedBurner to syndicate your content so readers can easily subscribe via a feed reader or e-mail.
- Post content. Begin posting information to your blog that your target market will find interesting and valuable. Be diligent and post once a week at a minimum.
- Notify your network. To begin building your community of readers, e-mail everyone in your network about your new blog and ask them to subscribe as well as spread the word.
- Experiment. This is the fun part. Add widgets to your blog to add interest and generate revenue. If you see a widget on a blog that you like, you can grab it by simply clicking on it.
|