Blogging for your business can be hard work – but if you do it right, it can be very rewarding.
So how do you make it successful? This very topic was discussed on a recent edition of BoagWorld, and I have summarised the main points here:
- Your posts don’t have to be long. Only have a couple of paragraphs to write? That’s fine. (In fact, shorter posts may even be read by more people than longer posts.)
- Keep a list of ideas. Often when it comes time to sit down and write, you struggle to come up with something. However, you’ll think of great ideas in the shower, or somewhere equally inconvenient. When you have that moment of inspiration, make a quick note of it somewhere. That way, when it’s time to write, you can just pull out that list and get started!
- Vary the type of post you do. There’s a huge list of different ways you can attack your blog, including:
- Asking questions and inviting comments
- Doing an interview
- Case studies (don’t make it too self-congratulatory though – does it interest the reader?)
- Event reviews or previews
- Multimedia posts that include audio, video, or both
- Commentaries – posts that comment on something you have read elsewhere
- News – industry or sector news that would interest your reader
- Reviews – books, software, services, and so on
- Hints and tips – brief ones
- Tutorials – more in-depth
- Lists – everyone loves a top-10 list! (Don’t they?)
- Resources
- Predictions
- Debates – put forward opposing viewpoints and invite comments
- Don’t be too critical of your writing. Obviously check it for spelling and grammar, but don’t be too much of a perfectionist or you’ll never publish anything!
- Believe you have something of value to say! Even if you think everyone already knows what you’re writing, there is often value in getting a refresher. How often do you hear, “I already know it, but it was good to hear it again anyway.”
I may have to take some of this advice myself!