Blogs for Business

I recently participated in an exceptional Webinar hosted by Andrew Patricio of the Toronto company BizLaunch. His session: How to use Social Media to Market your Business.

While much of this content was not new to me, it served as a reminder to the power of Social Media and how some businesses are still missing the opportunity to increase their on-line profile and profits.

Simply put - Social Media will help:
-Grow Traffic to your website
-Increase lead generation
-Increase Sales
-Improve search engine rankings (Google)
-Improve Brand recognition

And what smart business owner does not want those things to happen?

Using a Blog, you can:
1) Share your expertise and communicate daily with your customers.
2) Build a 'buzz' around your business and the media may pick up your stories.
3) Easily update content.
4) Promote your Blog using Facebook, Twitter and regular marketing tools.
5) Get your Webmaster to put your Blog on your Website. Google loves Blogs.

Where do you start?
-Chose a Blog service that suits your needs (Blogger, Wordpress, Blogspot, just to name a few)
-Develop a great name for your Blog
-Develop a Blog strategy and Blog regularly (at least 3 times a week)
-When Blogging, use great headlines and include strong keywords
-Develop tags for your Blog posts
-Allow people to share your Blog posts

Other points of interest that were presented during the BizLaunch Webinar:
Rule of Three:
-Blog 3 times a week
-Stick to 300 words per Blog
-It will take up to 3 years for your Blog to really grow traction.

Are you ready to develop stronger relationships with your customers? Blogging is just one of many great Social Media tools that are available to you right now.

For more assistance setting up or managing your personal or company Blog, please contact me directly.

Additional content previously published by BizLaunch.ca

-Darren

Tell me what you want - what you really, really want

That Spice Girls song popped into my head when I was looking for a title for today's posting. Sorry!

But seriously - when it comes to connecting with your customers either through your website, email marketing, social media and even face-to-face conversation, you have to offer them more than just a 'deal'. Today's consumers are concerned about the price points but they are also very interested in a developing a stronger relationship with products and services you provide. Is your company offering this kind of engagement with your clients and customers?

As a Media Coach and Consultant in Calgary, Alberta, I encourage clients to use Social media as a tool to create this kind of engagement. Social media, when done properly is key in developing deeper relationships with customers.

eMarketer.com just published this interesting statistic from the US:



Notice how customers want to know about specials, features and services. This information is like currency to your customers.

If you have read any of my Blog posts, you will see a recurring theme: use social media. Social Media may not be the primary solution for the success of every business, but it can bring new customers through your doors - and I am pretty sure you want that to sustain the growth of your business. Some companies are fortunate to have a full-time staff of social media experts who are responsible for creating and implementing these new forms of social media engagement. However if your company is new to social media or struggling to understand how to maximize your footprint in this new media, you simply need to look around and ask for help. There are many social media experts who are willing and able to assist you with your learning curve.

So tell me what you want - what you really, really want.

-Darren