A blog is a powerful tool for a business to have in its utility belt. It can significantly improve your internet presence and, if done correctly, your peers will soon flock to you for your insights! However, one must learn to crawl before they can run, and one needs to learn how to blog before you become an internet sensation.
Consider this segment of our blogging for business series a crash course. These are the 5 essential elements you need to consider before you begin to publish posts. We all had to take our time to learn the basics and now it is your turn!
- Platforms. First of all, you will want to figure out what website you want for the blog’s home. There are many platforms to consider, however we have found that WordPress is one of the most effective and comprehensive. They offer mobile applications so you can blog on the go and is comprised of an interface that is easy to use, no matter what level of experience a user has. There are other well-known sites such as Blogger and Tumblr, which have proven themselves as useful. Tumblr specializes in microblogging and has a more of a social media feel to it. While it was once very popular, more serious bloggers currently flock to WordPress and Blogger.
- SEO. Search Engine Optimization is a complex beast. In its simplest form, it is a tool to help articles reach the front page of search engine results based off of their keywords. However, it can be considerably more intricate than that. Luckily, WordPress incorporates a simple SEO field so you can master Google and others with ease.
- Your Audience– Now that we have the technicalities down, you need to figure out who will be reading your blog! Will it be potential customers, your peers, or simply avid readers? By figuring this out, you will make the next two elements easy as pie.
- Topics- Now that you have figured out who will read your writing, you need to figure out what they like. Business 2 Business blogs like to center around practices in the industry or current events and policies that affect your work. Those who want their customer base to read their posts would benefit from tips, tricks, and ideas that would essentially incorporate their product. Sure, you could make every article a sales post, but you will not get many readers that way.
- How to Write- You need to figure out the tone that will work for your audience and subject matter. Is it a strictly professional piece of writing or does it have a conversational feel? Regardless, make it unique! You will want to be sure that there is a reason readers are going onto your website as opposed to others’.
Do you feel ready to write now? Once you have these five elements down, you should be able to rock the blog world, no problem!
What do you think about these five essential elements? Comment below!
