A blog is not just a way of sharing your thoughts with the world; it is an important marketing and branding tool. Blogs invite potential customers to begin fans of your brand who check in with you on a regular basis. They can increase your search engine ranking because of the constant flow of fresh, keyword-rich content. In addition, they offer a platform for you to share information about your brand. However, many small business owners do without this important marketing tool because they simply don’t know how to begin. Here are five easy, time-effective tips for starting and maintaining a blog that will build your small business brand.

1. Host your own blog. While there are many websites, like Blogger, that would be happy to let you improve their popularity, the best way to blog is on your own website. There are several programs that make this easy. You have probably heard of WordPress, which is one of the more popular and, with absolutely no cost to you, one of the cheapest as well. A good blogging program will make your blog easy to maintain and update while allowing you to personalize with podcasts, videos, and other media.
2. Research keywords. It’s important to have an interesting, well-written blog, but it needs to be full of keywords in order to attract relevant traffic that will fuel your brand. There are several keyword tools that allow you to research which keywords in your field are hot right now. Pick one or two for each blog post and use them several times in the text and in the tag. You’ll almost immediately see your Page Rank go up. It’s really that easy.
3. Be your brand. It’s important to use your logo design and other visual elements of your brand—but you probably already know that. However, you should think hard about what kind of language, images, and posts will work best with your brand as well. If you have any questions, talk to a branding consultant before you start your blog. This will keep you from making embarrassing and/or brand-breaking mistakes.
4. Stay relevant and organic. There are two blogging crimes that we see all the time in small business blogs: keywords stuffing and off-topic posts. Don’t start cramming keywords into every nook and cranny of your blog; use them where they make sense and fill the rest of the space. Search engine crawlers are good at identifying this behavior and even better at penalizing it. At the other end of the spectrum is the owner who blogs about their favorite foods and where they are going on their next vacation. Make sure your posts are relevant to your small business brand and that all keyword usage is natural in sound and feeling.
5. Link. Where should you link to? Anywhere relevant! Your blog should be linked to related pages of your website as well as your social networking pages and vice-versa. Creating this interconnected web of media will make it easier for customers to find you while possibly improving your search engine ranking. This also gives customers the opportunity to interact with your brand in a variety of ways, hopefully to become lifelong fans and customers.

Blogging For Your Brand

Many people think of blogging as a way of disseminating personal information and sharing cute pictures of your children. However, their many benefits for a small business as well. If you are looking for a way to build your business and get more exposure for your brand and logo design, blogging can be a great way to go. In fact, recent studies have found that a blog can increase traffic to your website by an average of thirty percent. Here are a few tips for starting a blog that will be an asset to your small business brand.

1. Talk To A Professional.

   It is possible for even the most inexperienced computer user to start a blog, but the blog will not be the professional tool that you need. The first step to starting a business blog is to talk to a professional graphic designer. This person can help you set up a blog that will be linked to your website and be a good visual representation of your brand. Further, a professional can often make it easier for you to post and to organize past posts, creating a blog that is user-friendly for both you and your readers.

2. Identify Your Audience.

   Before you begin to blog, you need to know who your target reader will be. This will determine the tone and language used in your blog as well as the type of subjects you will be blogging about. You will need to adjust your level of humor and the amount of advertising as well. In short, as in all other aspects of marketing, you must consider your audience at every juncture.

3. Give Them A Reason To Read.

   No one is going to visit your blog if you don’t present interesting and informative information in every post. You need to have something important to say and a little bit of expert knowledge to share. Moreover, you should have a strong opinion on subjects that affect your industry. Don’t be afraid of stepping on toes; if you are civil and open-minded, most of your readers will respect you more for even a dissenting.

4. Keep A Sense Of Fun.

   Why would anyone read a blog that is boring or tedious? They have no reason at all. If your readers want news, they can turn to one of the many newspapers on the internet or to news programs on television. If you want to capture the attention of your audience, you need to make reading your blog a fun, humorous, and entertaining event.

5. Consider Hiring Out The Job.

   As with any other task, some people are good at writing while others simply aren’t. If you have a talented writer in your office, consider having them do the blogging for you. If you don’t have any natural writers on staff, consider hiring a consultant to manage your blog posts. The grammar, syntax, and sense of style you display on your blog will be a direct reflection of your company, so it pays to put your best foot forward.

5 Tips For Making Your Blog A Practical Business Tool

Did you know that small businesses with blogs get 55 percent more traffic than those that do without? A blog is a valuable way of generating traffic to your website and building your company brand. However, it is important to build your blog according to a few sacred rules of corporate blogging. Here are five corporate blogging essentials that will make your blog the best it can be.

1. Stay True To Your Brand.

   The first part of building a blog is to decide on a theme, a blog name, a color scheme, and editorial guidelines. These basics will determine the overall look and tone of your blog. These should be an integral part of your brand and feel like a good fit with the rest of your business. However, branding is not limited to colors; you need to keep the language, topic choice, and other aspects in line with your brand as well.

2. Offer More Than Marketing.

   Marketing certainly will be a part of your blog, but it is only a small part. You need to be an expert on your chosen topic, as this will make customers feel good about doing business with you. Most important, your blog needs to have a defined value for the people reading it. You should be offering information and solutions that they can use in their day to day lives. This will make them feel that you are both an expert and a persona that they can trust.

3. Assign An Office Blogger.

   If you are running a one man show, this will be easy. However, if you have several employees it can be more difficult. Choose an employee with impeccable grammar and spelling who enjoys writing, as this will make it easy to turn out readable and pleasing blogs on a regular basis. Train them in the specific language and tone that you want presented on your site and give them a list of topics. From there, let them work their magic. If no employee fits this lofty description, consider having a group of employees work together.

4. Link To Other Business Websites.

   Your blog should be linked to your company website and social networking pages (and vice-versa). It also should be linked to other blogs that post on similar but not competing topics and anything else that seems relevant. These links are usually the way that others will find your blog. Not only will they bring more traffic, they’ll make you a better-rounded member of the community, which readers tend to appreciate.

5. Be A Person.

   Your blog is a chance to show your human side and attract customers that like a human touch. Show a little personality and, if appropriate, a sense of humor. Think of your readers and try to make a connection with them. Many small business owners neglect to include pictures, humorous anecdotes, and other personal touches that make personal blogs so much fun to read. If your blog is on topic but fun to read, you’ll be ahead of the game.