I'm talking with a business owner at a Mohawk Valley Chamber of Commerce meeting the other day, and he asks, "Everybody's telling me I've got to blog. But how? Where do I start?"
I've been hearing this a lot lately. Trade newsletters, marketing seminars, business journals...they're all advising businesses to blog. Wisdom has it that a business blog will attract visitors to your website and generate sales.
And the thing is, that's true!
But people who've been in business awhile wonder what their approach to blogging should be. What should they be thinking about as they plan their blog and actually write the posts.
Well, try thinking about it this way...if you're a middle aged boomer (like me!), you remember when you knew the owners of the local stores.
Way, way back when, in my hometown of Clinton, NY, if you were doing a little fixing up around the house and you ran into a problem, you drove up to Allen's Hardware and asked Jack Allen for help. He'd advise you as to how to finish the job and then he'd sell you the tools and material to do it.
Same with Bob Ford at Ford' Market. If you weren't sure of the size turkey you needed for Thanksgiving dinner...he'd know just how many pounds to order. And Ginny Bennett at the Country Store gift shop knew exactly what my mother wanted for Christmas...Mom had talked about it last time she was there!
One major change since then is technology and the internet. The other, of course, is the unfortunate demise of these delightful, locally owned Mom and Pop stores on Main Street, USA.
But people still need information to solve their problems. They still want to know how to do things. It's just that now they don't drive up to the local store, they search the internet to get answers. And that's where your blog comes in.
So, as you write your blog posts, pretend you're Jack Allen, owner of the hardware store and local expert on all things tools and materials. Write to that one person who's visiting your store and who has a question that your expertise...and your product or service...can solve.
This holds whether you're a hardware distributor or a plastic parts manufacturer...an investment adviser or an insurance agency. It's the frame of mind you should be in when you think about starting a blog, and then when you start writing your actual posts.
Now there's more to business blogging than just this. Things like keywords, frequency of posts, platform etc etc. are important. But answering questions and providing information in a small town, conversational way will help you connect. Just like the old days. And if you connect, you'll draw visitors to your website and have a much better chance of turning them into customers.
Give me a call anytime to talk more about all of this. Maybe you need help starting a blog. Or worry about running out of ideas. Or can't find the time to keep up your blog posts. Call me at 315.738.1890 or get in touch here. I can help you with this very profitable piece of your content marketing program.
Until next time,
Nick
