9 Rules for Blogging for Business
Dec 06, 2012
We've talked about the value of blogging for business (Why Blog?) and you like the idea of getting started with a company blog to jump-start your online success with some good old fashioned content generation. Content forged around some really good keywords can really help your webpages show up really well in search results, but for you to get the most out of your efforts, here are a few rules for blogging that you should consider:
To quote Mr. Gibbs from Pirates of the Caribbean, “Actually, they're more like guidelines than rules...”
- Your article's main goal should be inform, educate or entertain – post about something relevant to your business that you think people would be looking to learn about, an easy solution to a problem, etc.
- Your blog is not for selling – if you have company news, it should go on your company news page. You can post about new products or changes in the industry, but in blogging, self-promotion just doesn't get you very far.
- Your post can be written more casually than a formal business whitepaper, like you're talking with someone. Still try to keep it semi-professional by doublechecking grammar and spelling.
- Keep it short, between 200 and 800 words. If it's too long, most people will either just click away before even starting to read because they just don't have the time to get into it, or they'll tuck it aside for later (which means they'll just delete it later usually) If you have that much info to talk about, consider breaking up the content into a series of blog articles.
- Add images to make your post more eye-catching. Sounds obvious, but our brains are definitely more stimulated by images than bland pages of words.
- Bullet points – bulleted lists are another great way to get a lot across without having too many words
- Break up paragraphs with subheadings is another way to add visual interest to an otherwise blah page, and breaking big clumps of text into smaller bites helps more things get picked up by skimming eyes.
- Once you start blogging for business, if you're hoping to gain followers, you have to keep at it on a regular basis. Whether it's once a week or once a month, stick with it. People unsubscribe when they're magazine doesn't show up in their mailbox on time.
- Don't get salesy! Just relax, let them get to know you and your company first, and when they conclude that you know what you're talking about then they'll come to you.
So, the good news is you don't have to write a thesis once a week to have success with your blog. The rules for blogging are simple: keep it short and sweet, and easy-on-the-eyes, and save your sales-pitch for later!
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