To Blog or Not to Blog, That is the Question

November 25th, 2008 | Published in marketing, social media

Despite a virtual flood of blogs on the Internet, there are a lot of businesses that still don’t have a blog. Is that good or bad? The answer is an unmitigated YES!

Most businesses, if not all, could benefit from a blog. It’s a great way to communicate with the outside world, establish yourself as an expert on your subject matter and build a community. However, there are hurdles to implementing a good blog. You need to have time to write and to engage your visitors. You also need to have something to say. That sounds easier than it really is. If you post 3-6 times a week, that’s 150-300 posts in a year. It’s easy to start running out of things to say after a year or two. You need to be passionate about your subject matter and honest in what you’re writing.

So, what if you own a business, but you don’t want to blog. Is it OK to have someone else blog for you? Absolutely, under certain conditions. Anyone officially blogging for your company needs to be honest about who they are and why they’re blogging. Never let your PR folks blog in your name or, for that matter, let anyone blog as someone they’re not. Readers WILL find out and it will bust any credibility you have. One thing that’s worked well for many are team blogs. For instance, my friend Nicholas Holland has his team blog for his company centre{source}. Among the cool things about team blogs are: no one person has to write all the time; readers get to experience different ideas and writing styles from different people; and customers and prospects get a good chance to get familiar with your team. It can be very personalizing.

Does your business have a blog? What has it done for you?

Do you not have a blog? Why not?

A Startup Guy