Creating a Corporate Blog People Want to Read

While many of the tips on blog resource sites concentrate on “personal blogging”, many can be transferred to a more business-minded blog.

Yet what about corporate blogs, where many of the tips given might not apply, or come up against everyone’s favourite, the Red Tape Roadblock?

Can generic tips apply to more organizational blogs?

Yes and no – depending on the company in question, and their willingness to experiment. Here are some ideas for those that might be willing to look at how their organization could use a blog.

One of the biggest complaints I hear about blogs for organizations and enterprise is that the number of legal hoops they have to go through, just to get a post approved, means it’s not worthwhile to pursue.

By the time the approval comes, it’s too late to miss a hot time for a particular story, or opportunity. Fair enough – but if you’re missing out on a lead generation or business opportunity because legal is syphoning you, perhaps you have bigger company issues than jumping on a trend?

Organizations don’t always need to write things where legal minefields are visible. There are way more things to write about, that can receive instantaneous approval (if any is needed). These could include:

• Loyal customer or preferred client showcase / thank-you.
• Highlighting your great team.
• How your company came into existence.
• Cool innovations in your market that aren’t necessarily from you.

These are just some suggestions, but each offer a way to have continuous content without waiting for a dozen rounds of approval.

People are visual creatures. We like to see things, as opposed to just reading about them. So why do so many businesses not use video as part of their blogging strategy?

The great thing with video is that you don’t even need to have someone in front of the camera (although offering a face to the company is always a great way of humanizing it).

Video also makes it easy to offer an educational portion to your blog – how to use your online purchasing system, for example, or how to put together one of your products, as opposed to a fifty page manual.

The opportunities with video blogging for businesses is huge, and it doesn’t even have to be top-notch production. You can get a great set-up – camera, tripod, external mics, etc – for under $1,000, which in the grand scheme of things isn’t that much.

The reason social media is so popular with customers is because it allows a greater connection between them and the brands they choose to connect with.

Connect well, and the potential for lead generation and sales – as well as brand loyalty – is palpable.

Another reason social media is so popular is one word – honesty. There’s nowhere to hide online, and this is encouraging businesses to be better at how they deal with customer queries, issues and more.

Blogging’s just another facet of social media – so use it as such, and try and be honest in your blogging.

• Use it to admit to mistakes made by your company and how you aim to rectify.
• Correct false news stories and present the facts to back your point(s) up.
• Use everyday grammar as opposed to techy business talk, or creative talk (unless that’s specifically your audience).
• Accept criticism of posts, and reply professionally and honestly, accepting the critiques if they’re valid.

Again, these are just some of the ways you can make your corporate blog more interesting.

You could also share examples of how you help in the community; or support local charities; or encourage guest posts from your customers about their experience with you (although this may come under legal, for obvious reasons).

The point is, there’s a lot you can do with a corporate blog to stop it being just another dull news site. And you might just be pleasantly surprised how well your customers – existing and potential – respond to a non-dull approach.

How about you? If you’re a corporate blogger, what have you found that works? Or, if you’re a reader, what would you like to see more of in a corporate blog?

image: maxymedia

originally appeared on Danny Brown | Social Media Marketing Blog - The Human Side of Media and the Social Side of Marketing under a Creative Commons license.

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