Notes

Building YOUR ORGANIZATION with Blogging - Part 3: The "How"
Blogging: The "How"

Develop a plan and focus on a distinct goal

If you need to use your blog to further your business, it can not be a random gathering of daily thoughts. People will expect one to discuss everything about your company, but you have to create and maintain your site with a particular purpose in mind. Could it be to showcase employees? Provide information linked to your field? Recruit new employees? There are many possibilities, and you have to decide which way you're going before you ever launch your site. Define your audience, what its needs are, and how far better meet those needs. If you are having trouble choosing a direction, you might want to launch multiple blogs, as was done by Stonyfield Farm and Ice.com. However, if you're not used to blogging, it's probably far better start with one.

Identify the editor and retain an authentic voice

Effective blogs are high maintenance--they need to be updated regularly to keep the interest of journalists, customers and search engines. You should choose an editor right from the start. If you decide never to edit it yourself, make sure you choose anyone who has the time, whom you trust, and who has an engaging writing style that may draw in readers. Above all, don't allow your PR department write your blog. Bloggers will figure it out, and it'll cause your blog to reduce all credibility.

Find the appropriate tools

There are way too many blogging tools to list in this article, therefore the best strategy is to research what's on the market and what will best meet your organization needs. Blog tools range between free resources like blogger.com to highly specialized resources offering all the bells and whistles you could ever want. Also, new tools are added on an daily basis. In order to be overwhelmed with options, head to Google and enter "blogging tools."

Facilitate discussion and become open to comment

Part of the selling point of blogs may be the interaction they fuel. Each and every time you post, you need to make an attempt to start out a discussion, either among your employees or with your customers. Plan topics that will start the original discussion and ensure your editor is ready to post as had a need to obtain the conversation going. You should also ensure it is a two-way conversation by including an easy way for readers to respond.

"Permit both positive and negative posts on your own blog, and reply to comments made on other blogs pertinent to your neighborhood of focus," says Katherine Heires in her article, "Does Your Company Belong in the Blogosphere?." "Respond in a specialist and business way. Unless you want to hear from your own customers and critics in a public environment, don't blog."

Update regularly

Blogs are high maintenance. That's because, for a blog to be effective, it must be updated at least one time a week. According to marketing writer Brian Quinton, "Nothing kills off consumer interest--and therefore search engine interest--like a dead blog. Give people grounds to check the blog site regularly."

Drive and analyze traffic

You can't just let your site sit there and hope people will see it. Use any existing newsletter to announce and promote your site. Link to it from your own website . You may also boost your search engine rankings by using keywords and key phrases with which you want to be associated.

You also desire to analyze how your blog is being used. Be sure to have the tools set up to learn who reads what, when and where. This can help you better adjust your strategy and meet your customers' information needs.

Monitor occasionally

Unfortunately, you can't just let your blog go and hope everything turns out fine. Periodically check discussions and see should they flow the way you intended and when they meet your targets. If they don't, you may need to rethink your blogging strategy.

Final Word

Blogs probably aren't the last great word on marketing, but they are here to stay. If you want to get your name from the Internet and prove you take your visitors seriously, consider blogging.

"The phenomenon is real," says Andrew Sullivan in his article, "The Blogging Revolution." "Blogging is changing the media world."

Andrea's writing background includes features, editorials, reviews, profiles, poetry and fiction. She was the winner of the MOTA short story contest in 2002 and received honorable mentions for fiction from Writer�s Journal magazine in 2002 and 2004. Andrea served as editor of AVA (Advertise Virginia) Magazine from 2005 to 2006. Have a look at her blog at http://creativewithwriting.blogspot.com.
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