Why Your Company Needs a Quality Blog
Yesterdays blog post “What’s the Difference Between a Blog and A Web Site” was extremely popular. It seems that everyone wants to know how to add a blog to to their marketing campaign.
Most of the interest was how to set one up and make it work to develop new business.
First I would like to point out a recent blog published by popular blogger Steve Pavlina. Someone asked him “can anyone make money with a blog”? Steves answer, “”99% will not make money from a blog, but 99% of smart people can”.
Most people are smart. So my response to that question would be more like, focused, motivated and trained people will generate new business blogging.
What Is A Blog?
A blog is a communicating tool, like a phone is a communicating tool. The benefit is that you can communicate personally with many people rather than one at a time.
The key to developing a blog is to learn how to use it effectively. You don’t need to be a genius to get it working for you, you just need desire.
Just like speaking on the phone or meeting someone in person the blog needs to be personal. If you can write like you’re are speaking to someone you are 75% of the way there.
You have heard about the fortunes some people have made with blogs. The reason is they know how to communicate and the blog is a tool for communicating with a lot of people. It’s leverage.
Here’s the bottom line. Blog networks and communities are popping up in every industry. Small companies are using blogs with all the attachments and crushing the big guys overnight. The big guys who develop effective blog networks are leaving their competitors in the dust.
There are 3 components to a successful blog.
- Quality
- Consistency
- Community
Quality
Let’s say that you are a manufacturer of Concrete Overlays. You know more about the uses for your product than anyone. You speak to distributors, contractors, architects and consumers probably more than anyone. (You’re The community leader). It’s too difficult to get all your ideas and case studies onto a web site but you can with a blog.
Example
What if a contractor who uses your product got a project to resurface the exterior foundation walls of 200 homes in a new development. The developer wanted a stone pattern but didn’t want to spend $1 million for stone resurfacing but could have a decorative concrete application applied to look like stone for $300,00.00. That a reduction per home from $5,000.00 each to $1,500.00 each. Assume that the project took 2 months and contractor made $150,000.00.
Thats a good story. Thats a story that as many people as possible should know especially your contractors. Using your blog you update the progress of the project step by step. You describe every little detail. As the project moves along your contractor base might have some ideas to add. Now the project gives you some ideas for picking up more of that kind of business. You send some prospective clients over to the blog to watch the progress. The content of the blog engages your community.
Thats quality, relevant information. Maybe Metrocrete does a post about the project. Now the information is broadcast to another community. The information on your blog is now reaching thousands of people. Consumers learn it’s possible to resurface foundation walls with a stone pattern using a concrete overlay.
Consistency
People are always saying they don’t have enough time to update their blog. No problem, your competitors are. Maybe you just want to plod along one person at at time while your competitors are reaching 1,000 people at a time. (Sorry, you really don’t have a choice, blogs are like a runaway train and everyones jumping on).
So be consistent. Keep the blog updated at least twice per week if not daily. You have the information, just write it like you would say it. Add a few pictures to support the content.
Think about the time you spend on the phone. Your blog enables you to communicate with a mass market the way you do with an individual on the phone. Think about all the calls for information. A lot of the questions are probably similar, use your blog to educate your market.
Community
If you create a quality blog with consistency visitors will come back frequently. Your contractor base won’t want to miss it and distributors probably won’t either. Contractors will send their clients to the blog. Blogs create community and everyone in the community benefits.
You will find that you’re meeting people that you otherwise wouldn’t. You will start to hear stories about contractors hooking up to do business together as a result. Distributors will communicate more with you and contractors. Your website doesn’t differentiate you from your competitors but your blog will. Remember blogs are personal. They’re your voice.
Your community will become active. Contractors will start wanting their own blogs to educate and develop their own community. Communities become powerful. In business a community is like a battalion of Navy Seals. Unbeatable with new members joining daily.
Developing a blog takes time and effort but not at the expense of other daily tasks. You will notice gradual changes in the quality of your business, less fragmented and richer. Slow at first, than after about 3-6 months things will change. You won’t be able to put your finger on it but new things will be happening. You will learn things about your market that you didn’t know before. Blogs create target marketing. You’ll learn to pin point where the opportunities are and use you blog to go in that direction.
An example of this is the development of Facebook. The founder of Facebook started his own community at Harvard as a sophmore. Same concept as a blog. Within a short time everyone on campus was using it as a social network. It brought together a fragmented community. Now the 23 year old founder is worth $3 Billion 4 years later. When he started his venture he didn’t have a clue it would work out the way it did. He was not aware of the potential size of the community or what they wanted and needed.
Feedback from the community enabled Facebook to respond to what their community wanted and needed. Thats the power of a social network, a community.
I can tell you first hand that this blog has created opportunities for me that I never knew existed. This blog has enabled me to develop new friends, business relationships and ventures that I never even considered. If you’re a business owner take this seriously.
If you are interested in learning about this wonderful tool to enhance your business contact me at tips@metrocrete.com
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