One of the best reasons to give corporate blogging a try is that it has the potential to really help you grow your business. If you are just establishing your online identity or if you are trying to actively increase your customer base and your sales, a corporate blog can make a big difference. There are many different ways that this type of communication can result in more sales and a larger customer base.

First, you’ll be adding content on a regular basis that covers a wide variety of topics. This means that there will be more content for search engines to index and more keywords used to ensure that you land in the top spot. This makes it much easier for new readers to discover not only your blog but your company as well. By taking the time to really work on a blog and publish it regularly, you can dramatically increase the number of visitors that your site sees every day.

Next, a corporate blog adds a level of humanity to any site. Many consumers perceive corporations as cold entities with little concern for the common man. By putting a name and a face to your company you’re creating a relationship and showing that there is a heart behind that business exterior. This is very effective at building up customer trust and is useful when you are trying to project a certain image for your company.

A corporate blog can also be used to connect with readers and get their feedback. While allowing comments on a blog can be scary, they are a great way for your customers to get their thoughts across. You’ll have a bird’s eye view of what your customers really want and this is a lot easier that relying on a focus group for the same thing. If you are concerned about allowing comments on your blog, you can always set them to moderation to avoid having any controversy erupt.

Lastly, a corporate blog helps you announce new products and specials – if you do it in the right way. Try to steer clear of blatant advertising and find ways to incorporate your announcements with current events. This helps you gain some powerful advertising that doesn’t cost a dime.

When you’re ready to start your own corporate blog it is important to make sure that you know how to handle it. It is much easier to hire a professional that knows how to run a corporate blog and keep it going in the right direction. You can actually end up saving money with this approach and you won’t have to worry about diverting company resources away from your other projects.

Corporate blogs can be powerful and effective but they do need to be managed properly. By working with a professional, you can ensure that your company will avoid common blogging pitfalls and you will be able to achieve the results discussed above as well as many other benefits.

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Originally posted 2008-06-23 05:34:25. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Since corporate blogs are so popular, there are quite a few myths that go along with them. Before you even start your own blog, it is important to be able to separate fact from fiction so that you go into this process with the right expectations. You can really learn a lot from these myths, and you’ll know what you should not be doing on your blog.

1. Build it and they will automatically come.

This is completely untrue. You need to work to build your readership and it may take months. Unless you are already very popular and get a lot of daily traffic, you’re going to have to work hard to build up that audience. It is very easy to get discouraged with this process, but if you can stick with it, you’ll be greatly increasing your chances for a very popular blog.

2. Comments are a bad idea.

No one really wants to give their customers an open mic, especially if the company already has a history of customer service issues and a bad reputation. However, comments, when moderated, can lead to an open and frank discussion that is very useful for your business. In addition, it gives the impression that you really do want to hear from your readers. Commetning on blogs is a very big part of many blog reader’s lives and they will want this opportunity.

If you do have a problem with disgruntled customers, then comments may not be a good idea, especially if you let them go live without first moderating them. Try to weigh the pros and cons and then once you have made your decision stick with it. It is better to have never allowed comments, than to have allowed them and revoked them down the road. This will be perceived badly and will give the public the impression that you are trying to hide something.

The best answer is to set all comments to moderation, which means that you will get to read them and approve them before they go live. There may be a few grumblings about this, but overall, it is much safer than allowing comments to go live immediately after they are written.

3. It’s ok to have fun and be strange on your blog.

You still are representing your company, so you’ll need to find that balance between being engaging and being stupid. You don’t want your company to get dragged through the mud because of one ill thought out post. Make sure that you never post anything that could result in someone thinking less of you or your company. It’s fine to have fun with your blog, but never forget that it needs to be professional.

Blogging is tough, and many companies prefer to hire someone to help them through the entire process. A blog management company can assist you in determining the future path for your blog as well as with marketing and daily maintenance. They make it easy to have a successful corporate blog.

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Originally posted 2008-07-01 05:35:27. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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For those thinking about starting a corporate blog, there are a few caveats that should be considered before you ever throw your hat in the arena. The blogosphere can be a scary place if you are not prepared and it is easy to have a disaster of epic proportions on your hands without even realizing it. There are numerous stories of corporate blogging disasters and while they can be amusing, the owners of the companies affected probably would not agree.

A corporate blog is a unique tool that allows you to reach out to the public, increase brand awareness and build up your customer base. It is also a tool that has the potential to cause irreparable damage. You don’t want your blog to go down in flames, and you certainly don’t want it to take your company with it. Here are some tips to help you avoid the most common blogging disasters.

1. Pick your bloggers well.

If you will not be doing your own blogging, this usually means that the task falls to an employee. You will need to make sure that they are well balanced, can handle criticism and can post in an articulate and friendly manner. Think of this blogger as a public speaker – would they present the right face for your company to the public?

You also need to make sure that the employee is a stable individual that is not prone to bursts of anger or being disgruntled. You don’t want your company’s dirty laundry aired to the world and it only takes one angry blogger to turn the tide against you. If you end up firing a blogger, make sure that you remove their posting capabilities BEFORE you do so that they don’t have a chance to post one last burning missive.

2. Be consistent.

If you decide to allow comments on your blog, great. Just don’t change your mind. This gives an incredibly bad image of your company and makes it seem as though you have something to hide. Likewise, refusing to allow comments on your blog can give the same impression. Find the balance by using comment moderation tools to weed out bad comments and let the good ones through.

3. Always remain professional.

Your corporate blog is not the place to get overly personal. You may be having a bad day, you may hate your job, you may want to stick it to your spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend but your corporate blog is not the place to air these subjects. Always keep your private thoughts private – they just don’t belong on your blog. Keep your posts friendly and open, but make sure that you never cross that line.

By utilizing these three simple rules, you can avoid becoming a blogging disaster for the history books. If you have never blogged before, or you prefer not to leave your company’s future in the hands of an employee, it is a good idea to get some help with your blog. There are blog management services that specialize in helping you present the right image and get your message across.

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Originally posted 2008-07-15 05:25:42. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Are you ready to make blogging work for your business? If you already know the benefits associated with corporate blogging, then the next step is to put these concepts to work by creating your own corporate blog and sharing your company with the world. This is part 2 in a short series on tips for making blogging work for you.

6 – Create outgoing links from your blog as much as you can, or as much as is feasible.

If there are people in your network who are posting excellent content, talk about that content, and link to it. Book mark their posts and refer to them any time you touch on the same topic. This is good blogging etiquette. Your blog content does not have to be completely unique, so feel free to give a nod to other bloggers online when their content is worth talking about.

7 – Make comments in other blogs and on other websites.

This is not only about exposure or placing links, but it also has to do with being generous and participating within your industry. Don’t simply leave brief comments like “Nice post.” Or “Good topic,” but rather, you should leave meaningful and useful comments that facilitate conversation in your blog and others.

8 – Give people methods to share your content with their networks.

There are plenty of social plugins like Digg, Share This, StumbleUpon and Reddit that make it possible for readers who appreciate your content to share it within other circles and networks. This is an excellent way to get some free publicity simply by writing worthwhile content.

9 – Give your readers different ways that they can engage with you.

One of the most obvious ones is simply to allow for commenting. Stay on top of comment moderation and respond to the comments that you receive, facilitating conversation between you and your readers. The more your readers are aware that you are reading and responding to their comments, the more likely they will be to keep coming back for more.

10 – Create a good, hard working search function for your blog.

A popular choice is Lijit, which you can find at http://www.lijit.com. Another one is a Google Search button, and there are plenty of other search functions that can be found online and integrated into your blog. The point here is obviously to allow people to search for any topic of their choosing on your blog, which is much easier than trying to find your blog topics from an outside search engine.

11 – Sign up for an RSS Aggregation Service.

So that you can stay on top of blogs and online publications that you read through syndication. Google Homepage (http://www.google.com/ig), Google Reader (http://www.google.com/Reader), Delicious (http://www.delicious.com), FriedFeed (http://www.friedfeed.com) and Bloglines (http://www.bloglines.com) are all popular options for this particular purpose.

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Originally posted 2009-01-20 05:16:18. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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You want your blog to be engaging, but that may not always be easy. Here are some great tips on how to keep your corporate blog reader friendly.

1. Pick your design well.

One of the biggest problems for corporate blogs is design. You can need to make sure that your blog is easy to read. This means sticking with simple backgrounds, regular text and a dark font. While black backgrounds may look nice for a blog, they are hard to read off of and your customers won’t appreciate having to strain their eyes. Shoot for a very neutral palette that is very easy to read on.

2. Don’t bore them to tears.

Sometimes, corporate news can be a bit boring to the average consumer. Try to change up your posts so that they are not continuous dronings that would put even the most die hard fan to sleep. Add fun elements such as polls to keep your readers engaged and willing to come back each day for more.

3. Talk to your readers, not at them.

One of the worst mistakes you can make is sounding like you are pontificating. Try to develop a writing style that is engaging so that you are talking to your readers not at them. This may take a little practice but in time you’ll be able to develop the right kind of writing style for your audience.

4. Always publish regularly.

Once you have a posting schedule stick to it as closely as possible. This may not always happen, but really make an effort to be a dependable blogger. You won’t have to worry about your readers losing interest and failing to come back since they never see anything new.

5. Try to run a few fun contests.

One of the best ways to make sure that your readers are engaged is to run a contest. Offer a free giveaway or something similar to all of your readers. You can have them place their entries in the comments section of your blog.

6. Allow comments.

Today’s blog readers want to be able to interact with you and this means allowing comments. If you are worried that things may get out of hand, use a moderation feature which will allow you to preview all the comments before they go live on your site. This gives you the best of both worlds and will make your blog much more fun to read.

7. Have a little fun.

While it is important to be professional, you don’t need to be dreary. Don’t be afraid to change things up every now and again to keep your readers guessing. This will help increase your daily visits and your readers will want to check back more often.

These are just a few tips that can help you create a very reader friendly blog. You may also need to work with a blog management company to increase your readers and to stay on target with your goals.

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Originally posted 2008-07-02 05:41:01. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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