How blogging can better your business18 November 2004
According a recent BBC report, Bill Gates said blogs could be a good way for firms to tell customers, staff and partners what they are doing.
It's not just Bill Gates, who sees the benefit in blogging for business. Blogging, the term for keeping a regularly updated journal on the web is fast becoming one of the most used methods to expand your business on a budget.
It's an easy way to publish content to a web site - you type what content you want (this is called a post), press one button and your content is online for the entire world to see.
But the main appeal of blogging lies in the fact that you can do it for free. Web sites like blogger.com allow you to publish content free of charge! In this way you have a minimum spend for maximum reach!
Firstly, blogs enhance the overall communication of your business complementing the traditional methods like email and web sites. Because it's sitting on a site and is updated daily, your blog takes away the element of SPAM and gives your customers the information they want, when they want.
Blogging also improves online marketing. Many blog services have a built-in tool that will let you easily share your blog's content to other web sites. This boosts your exposure and keeps people better informed of new products, services, and updates.
You can use blogs to give your business a 'human' element. If you keep them informal and fun, blogs can be a great alternative way of building an online presence and adding personality to your business profile!
If you want to top the list on search engines but don¿t have the money - blogging is the way to do it. Blog posts, when written around keywords and key phrases, end up in the top 10-20 places in the search engine lists.
Finally, it gives you the ability to react immediately. Businesses can keep in constant touch with customers - reacting to demand, or changes in the market. Also if you enable your customers to give feedback - you can begin a dialogue with them giving them the best possible customer service!
