What Key elements make an Effective Blog

effective blogWhat Key elements make an Effective Blog

By Thomas R. Reich PhD

Short form content in Social Media is great; however, original, thoughtful content is still king. A good company blog is still the perfect platform.

Blogs are a great weekly forum to make your case and a fantastic marketing tool within your website. While short-form social media channels are great at building buzz, thoughtful blog content adds real long-term value to your and attracts the discussion to your website to sell your solution. Preformed correctly, blogging gives customers insight into your brand, establishes you as an industry expert and grow to become an information resource in an area of expertise, and in the process, attract traffic from search engines.

4 Ways to Improve Your Blog!

  1. Use Topics that Personalize Your Organization: Have you recently received a great customer referral? Share it with your blog readers, if you don’t talk about it who will?. Has a particular mentor influenced your organization or shaped the way you do business? Profile them in a blog that exemplifies their values and how you have incorporated those values into your organization. Remember referring to a higher source is a great way to lift up your organization without always tooting your own horn! Another way to spotlight your organization without saying me me me is to feature a star employee you want to point out as an industry expert right there in your organization. All of these things personalize your business and help readers relate to you in a way that makes them trust your organization. When it comes down to deciding between similar businesses, potential customers will often go with the company they can relate to. Content, the kind of writing that spotlights the good works your organization, its employees and the people that associates with you attracts not only new interaction but loyalty as well!
  2. Stay on target, blog about subjects that revolve around your organization: Your blog should stand for the same thing your organization stands for, and you must stay on topic for best results.  An engaged writer makes for an engaged reader, so make sure you’re writing about something that interests you, but a the same time ties it in to your issues, benefits and positions as an organization. Don’t be afraid to have an opinion, but keep that opinion about the expertise and mission of your organization and its employees. Certified Minority? Passion for helping the homeless? Crazy for construction standards for back yard swimming pools? Whatever your organization is involved in, if it’s something that you care about, it will be easy to write about and relate to your business, which is the point of the blog after all.
  3. Be willing to take tough stands in issues your organization believes in: Writing about what customers want to know about is a sure-fire way to keep them engaged. To do so, you’ve got to be willing to tackle tough topics in your content and commentary. Blogging about difficult issues and controversies within your industry attracts customers, and keeps them coming back to you as a resource.  This does not mean take political stands on issues for politics sake, leave that to the politicians.  If you take a stand based purlly on politics you will surly turn off ½ your audience.  If, on the other hand, you angle the same issue towards your organization without invoking politics, you have 100% of the readers as potential believers!
  4. Be well read on all the trends in your industry: Blogging provides an excellent vehicle for discussing news trends that may not directly relate to your business, while engaging with potential customers about a topic that has piqued their interest. Keep abreast of the latest breaking news and figure out creative ways to engage readers. Ask questions to encourage readers to leave comments. By positioning your brand as a thought leader, you build trust with customers, which will count when the time comes to make a purchasing decision or take the actions you are encouraging.

Remember, Social Media is Marketing Promotion to get people to take action and get to your blog on a particular issue or event.  Once on your blog, the job of the blog is to interest the reader in the issues and products surrounding your organization, and to continue on to your website for more information about those issues and their solutions.  That is also a marketing function, but when you are successful and the reader does click onto your website, they should be in your closing room.  Social Media and Blogs are Marketing, Websites are sales floors, your website is and should be your office, but that’s another discussion.  Above all, keep it simple. Your company blog shouldn’t read like a promotional brochure. Readers are looking for concise writing with clear takeaways, along with some fun and personality. Keep it brief, make your point using relatable examples, and then post it.

 

 

 

 

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Wednesday, October 24, 2012
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm online from CharityNetUSA
Key Note Speaker: Howard Walker

Nonprofit Fundraising Expert Howard Walker is back for this vital topic, Fundraising.  Howard will bring real world examples of successful fundraising efforts, and set you on course for some great fundraising events.  We will cover volunteer programs, managing the fundraising efforts, and the necessity of keeping proper control and security of funds and your good name.  Fundraising can bring in more than just funds; it can gather new volunteers, donors and spread the word of your cause.  All it takes is the knowledge and desire to succeed; we give you the knowledge FREE in this information packed webinar!

As the past shows: the economy will recover, resources will catch up with us and finances will level out.  Don’t wait for recovery to happen, get started growing your nonprofit now.  When America recovers, your nonprofit will not only be in the game, but you will be an MVP!

Contact Marketing Coordinator Thomas R. Reich for more info at tom@Bizcentralusa.com or call him at (407) 857-9002 ex 510

Register Now!

Your Friends in the Struggle,
CharityNetUSA

 

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