It's important that every business, large or small, have a blog on its website. It's where visitors look first to see if anyone is at home on the site. Unfortunately, too many companies — even large ones — have blogs that have gone months without an update. (We think anything less than once a month has people worried you've had some type of Donner Party tragedy.)
One complaint about updating a blog we hear regularly from those who run small businesses is this:
"I can't think of what to write about."
Here is a list of topics and ideas for you to refer to next time you need to update your blog, but don't know what to say.
News
Announcements | Updates | Alerts | Recognition
Ideas | Welcome new staff, announce new products you are carrying or service you are offering, professional awards, sponsorships you've provided to a local cause. Things you hear at conferences or trade shows. News that ties your business into the events of your home town. Anything that might answer the question, "what's new at your business?"
But beware | Don't use your blog as a place to post press releases. If you fall into this trap, your blog will be as boring as, well, a series of press releases. That said, whenever you issue a press release, make sure to add it to your blog at the same time you release it through any other channel.
Instruction
How-tos | Tutorials | Resource Curation
The best way to retain customers is to teach them how to most effectively use your product or service to succeed at what they were trying to accomplish when they purchased your product or service. Often, you don't even have to create the how-tos or turoials yourself. By finding and directing users to materials created by product manufactures, trade media and product mavens, you have added greatly to the value of your product by helping the customer solve the problem that led them to purchase your product in the first place.
Features
Interviews | Profile | Cases
We know of a small business manager who posts a brief and witty profile of an employee on the employee's first employment anniversary. Each profile is standard, making it easy to write. But the standard questions always open up an employee's mind and they typically end up sharing a funny or poignant post.
Insight
Commentary | Opinion | Response
If you've heard the term, "thought leader," and wondered how to be one, part of the price of admission is (as we've explained previously) to have interesting ideas and share them as many ways as possible. Starting with sharing them on your company blog is a great way to begin.
Multimedia
Video | Audio | Photography | Explanatory Graphics
Some of the best posts on a company blog have the fewest words. Photos of customers, new products, and home-town activities are a must. Check out our guide to marketing with photography for more ideas.
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