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Blogging for your Bottom Line
by Lani and Allen Voivod
More Blogging Articles
Published on this site: July 14th, 2007 - See
more articles from this month
From the feedback we've heard from clients over the last
month or so, the idea of blogging as a way to build your
business isn't yet hitting home with all the VIPs of small
business.
So let's bring it home.
First, go to Google. In the search bar, type the name of
your industry and then add the word "blog" to it. Chances
are, there are people already blogging in your market
space. They could be competitors, industry analysts,
consultants, media pundits, self-styled consumer watchdogs – anyone who has an opinion and a burning desire to share
it.
We just did this with one of our corporate clients in the
Voice-over-IP world, and found no less than 20 blogs in the
first page of search results. (That's because a few sites
had multiple blogs running!)
To this, you may say, "So what?"
Imagine you're at a big event for your industry. Imagine
you have no presence there.Imagine all the people who
report on your industry – from trade groups to investors to
the media – talking to each other, and you're not part of
the conversation. You're entirely left out of it, because
it appears you have nothing to say.
Is this good for your business? of course not.
A blog, then, is a seat at your industry table. And when
you're at the table, you can join the conversation. Heck,
you can even change the direction of it. The point of
blogging is to create a space for dialogue, and you do that
by writing something that gives people a reason to respond.
You're reading news and doing business within your
industry. You have opinions about what's going on in your
industry. Your blog is the place to air your opinions,
share your sources, and invite feedback.
And here's what happens
as a result:
- More clients and prospects come to your site to see what
you're talking about.
- More analysts come to your site to do their research –
and they have more reasons to get involved with you than
the competition that isn't blogging.
- More industry reporters and media folks come to your
site, use your comments as fodder for their own material,
and reach out to you for more information.
- More industry bloggers add you to their blogs and
blogrolls, creating inbound links to boost your natural
search engine rankings and a bigger Buzz about you in your
industry.
- More visibility in your industry means more customers,
clients, opportunities, and ultimately, more revenue.
To sum up, blogging can be as simple as:
- Reading an industry news story
- Having an opinion on it
- Typing up your opinion and supporting it with your
unique set of knowledge
Could you, and the rest of your team if you have one, do
this in 15-30 minutes or so, once or twice a week? Or even
a month?
If so, you've earned your seat at your industry table.
Now, make the most of the opportunity.
Lani & Allen Voivod: Help budding
entrepreneurs and small biz dynamos "a-hathemselves" in
fun and profitable ways. for free articles, marketing tips,
and content strategies designed to fire up your passion and
profit-ize your niche, sign up for their "Inciter" ezine at http://www.EpiphaniesInc.com !
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