Take a Walk on the Blog Side, Part III

Remember when I said that a blog is a dialogue? Not only do I encourage you to read other blogs out there in your industry or for your personal development, but I would encourage you to take the time to comment.

If you were reading here last week, you would have seen a call to action... a Point To Success challenge. The only one who took me up on the challenge was Troy Aeby of Duralum. Congratulations Troy! Your comment earned you a ticket into a drawing of one...and a pair of pearl earrings from Tesori Trovati...and two truffles from Sugar Cubed!

Bloggers thrive on the comments from their readers. We are all hoping that the readers will not only come to visit our little corner in the blog-dom, but we hope that what we have said will resonate with them enough to inspire a comment. When I write a post I have a plan....all my posts begin with a title to entice the reader, a quote to intrigue the reader and a post that ends with a call to action. Specifically, I will ask the reader a question related to the post so that I can ensure that there is a thoughtful answer. While I am happy that people stop by, I am happier when I receive a comment that tells me the reader is paying attention and stirred to action by what I have to say. Leaving comments like, "Hey, nice post today!" are really not effective.

There are some benefits from taking the time to write insightful comments. Most of my 67 followers on Treasures Found have leapfrogged to my blog from other seemingly unrelated blogs that I have taken the time to post an intriguing comment on.

Just yesterday I received a comment from Dr. Liara Covert from New Zealand. How did she find me? By clicking on my name in the comments of a daily inspirational blog called "The Jungle of Life." So now I have started an email conversation with Dr. Covert halfway around the world. And she is not the only one who has reached out to me from across the globe...I have regular readers/commenters from New Zealand, Australia, Poland, Nigeria, UK/Wales, France and Germany...and that doesn't include the North American reach that I have. And each time that I write I use it as an opportunity to further my brand. They may never buy something from me, but then again, they might.

Another benefit I have found is that all the comments I have made, if I sign them as Tesori Trovati, land me on search engines. Ever Googled yourself? I have found links to all sorts of comments I have made on other blogs. This exposure helps my company to grow in the search engine rankings as well.


If done correctly, a blog can attract a dedicated audience to your brand. How many of you wouldn't want that on a regular basis? So how can you boost your business with a blog and accelerate your online success?

1. Humanize your brand.
We all want people to be our clients. But blogs create a familiarity with a company and the author that borders on friendship. And that connection is what turns consumers into friend-sumers. Blogs should be written in your unique voice and give your brand a human face, this in turn assures your readers that there is a real person who cares about their needs. Promoting your company, product or service by creating a blog that features how-to advice, news and other information of interest to customers makes them want to follow you in turn they can post testimonials, feedback, questions and comments, plus participate in surveys. By taking an informal, non-sales approach, you can interact with customers, gain useful feedback and build an online audience that can ultimately be directed to your company's main website. And that blog allows you to put your personality into your brand much more personally than any website will do.

2. Provide exceptional customer service.
Think of your blog as an interactive FAQ as your customers can submit questions and you can answer them. Each post can share information of relevance to your customers through how-to articles and behind the scenes facts. And by showing that you have a commitment to carrying on a dialogue with your customers, prospective clients will be encouraged that you are providing good customer service.

3. Increase your credibility.
A blog is an ideal tool to position yourself as an expert in you field by sharing your thoughts, knowledge, experience and insight. Obtaining expert status can increase your earning potential, and help attract new customers. When you provide a well-written, regularly updated blog, you will build a following of loyal readers who will come to see you as a reliable source of good content. And with the built in archiving feature of blogs, by date and category, it will be easy for you to post new content on a regular basis and easy for your visitors to jump to the information that they want to find. And if they believe in you as an expert, they will feel more confident to buy from you.

4. Gain more exposure.
A website is essential to your company's image, but a blog can boost your traffic levels. When new visitors come to your blog, it is important to have your website prominently displayed so that they can hop over to check out the main sales website. You can entice the readers with links and even special offers. And it should work both ways. You should have a link on your website that takes visitors to your blog. Just as you should always sign emails and letters and even your business card with your name, company, website, email and blog. Never lose that opportunity to connect.

5. Promote your products or services...with a whisper.
There are some out there that use a blog as little more than a thinly veiled attempt to get you to buy something. I don't put much stock in those. I don't regularly follow the blogs that a just a steop up from a telemarketing call. Sure, I have come there voluntarily but I will just as surely leave when confronted by post after post touting the products or services as the best. And that is not positioning yourself as an expert and giving me something to think about. Rather, I prefer those that show the process behind the creation, the methods used in manufacturing, the thing that sets the raw materials apart from the rest....in other words, show don't tell. If you show me why your products are worth buying I will more likely buy from you. On my own blog I made a conscious decision that it would never be used to sell. Instead I prefer to focus on the inspiration behind a piece of jewelry or the technique that sets my work apart. I have driven customers to my website and more importantly engaged them in a personal conversation that has led to a custom creation. They want to buy from me when they see how I go about it and what makes me differnt. That is how I promote my products and services with a whisper.

6. Generate extra income.
A blog can be monetized using the advertising programs that are already in place in the blogosphere. Google AdSense is one such program, and each blogging platform will have another. I personally have chosen not to clutter up my blog with ads from other companies. I feel that my readers deserve that from me and I know they appreciate that sincerity that I am there for them not to make a buck.

Once you have decided to host a blog (and I hope that I have given you something to think about in that regard), you need to decide if you would like to host the blog in your own website environment or in an externally hosted server. Just pick whatever is best for your commitment level, talent with all things technical and corporate structure. Posting content to any blog platform is generally very easy, but maintaing it yourself can be a challenge, so choose a platform that fits your budget and level of technical experience.

Free developer-hosted platforms: Easy to use, low-cost or no-cost options that will have you setting up and launching a blog in as little as 5 minutes. Some even have features that allow you to customize aspects of your blog's appearance, address and functionality.

Try these:
Blogger.com
Wordpress.com
Blog.com
Vox.com
Typepad.com
Livejournal.com

Premium developer-hosted platforms: You will pay for premium features for a developer to host and maintain your company's blog. They will likely have online tools to customize the functionality and look of the blog. Those listed above will surely have options to pay for the premium features while still being hosted on these external sites.

Stand-alone platforms: The greatest degree of customization will be with stand-alone versions that you host on your website yourself, but this will also require the greatest degree of technical expertise. Usually, you will need to consult with a website developer to integrate this effectively into your blog, but there are platforms out there that allow you to use their software to host your blog yourself. You will need to manage your own domain name and troubleshoot on your own, but sometimes that might be worth that added cost.

Building that blog may take only a few minutes, but developing that blog into a living, breathing extension of your brand will take more time and thought. Isn’t that a risk that you are willing to take? Who here doesn't see the value in reaching out to your clients and connecting with them on a personal level all while positioning yourself as a subject matter expert and encouraging them to not only buy from you, but carry on a dialogue that will lead them to become your friend?

Take a walk on the blog side with me....and let me know by your comments how it works for you!

Working Words of Wisdom:

(in honor of my son hitting his very first out of the park homerun last week!)

“Progress always involves risks.
You can't steal second base and keep your foot on first.”
~Frederick B. Wilcox