Some Blogging Best Practices
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about blogs– probably pretty obvious, since I recently started this one. Specifically, I’ve been thinking about what the best practices are and how one should go about it.
I’m relatively new to the corporate blogging space. There’s a number of people out there who have been in the game since it started and they’ve laid the ground for the rest of us. How frequently do you read blogs, either for business or personal use? I know I read blogs constantly, since I work in a field that literally can change from day to day. There’s no doubt that blogs can be a huge asset for a company. But how to go about it?
As with most things, there is no one right answer. Different industries and niches need different things for their audiences. But so far, I’ve stumbled across some blogging best practices and I think they’re relevant for most corporate bloggers– that is, people writing on behalf of a company. Some of these seem pretty common-sense to me, but considering how frequently I stumble across people who have chosen to do the exact opposite of what I recommend, I think there’s a place for those recommendations here.
Provide interesting, valuable content. I will say this on every single recommendation list that I put together until I die (or until I think it’s a universally acceptable truth, whichever comes first). People don’t read blogs that they don’t find interesting, period. All too often, companies put the cart before the horse and plan their entire website and social media strategies on a tactical level, creating accounts all over the place, before deciding what they’re actually going to provide for their customers/readers. Really.
Don’t focus on “Return on Blogging Investment.” Ultimately, blogging is not a direct sales tool. If you try to use it as one, customers will smell it from a mile away, and stop reading. No one sits down at their computer, opens their blog reader and thinks, “I can’t wait to be obnoxiously hard sold to!” I’ve seen a number of companies look only at the number of dollars spent on their blog and, when they can’t attribute any revenue dollars to it, decide it’s not worth it. Don’t make that mistake. A blog is an invaluable tool for interacting with current and potential customers, but the only way they’ll come to you- and stay with you- is if you drop the marketing talk and provide some value (see point #1).
Stay fresh. It’s important to keep a steady stream of new content coming in to your blog. Statistically, pageviews will plummet if you let the same content sit on your blog for even a few days. Don’t make the mistake of going for quantity over quality though, as balance in that regard is really important. You should constantly think about what you can write about, and don’t shy away from talking about what’s happening in the world at large and how it pertains to your industry.
Get involved and Stay Involved. If you put the effort into creating and maintaining a blog, don’t forget one enormous component: comments. Keep track of your comments and respond to them. Remember, the point of a blog is to engage with customers and start developing relationships and customers’ affinity for the brand. Alienating them or ignoring them is going to do exactly the opposite of what you’re trying to do.
If you’d like more information, here are some really helpful resources: Outspoken Media’s Blogging Category, Compendium Blogware’s Blogging Whitepaper and HubSpot’s 4 Business Blogging Tips.
