This week, the idea using blogs for your business came up in a conversation. There is no denying that it takes time. So, is it worth it?
Could I point to some tangible evidence of my blogs attracting clients?
No
This is hardly surprising. I’ve only been blogging for a few weeks.
That said, there are many who can demonstrate its effectiveness. Though, the common wisdom is it takes time.
Unfortunately, there is no guarantee and it’s difficult to stick with something that might show results in a year or two.
This got me thinking. What are the more immediate benefits of writing a business blog:
Understanding your Customers
As business owners, we live and breathe our businesses. We understand what we do, how we do it and why it’s so important.
Unfortunately, this might not be so obvious to our customers.
I find blogging helps me take a step back to look at things from the customer’s perspective. What do they need to know, what questions do they have?
Focus your Thinking
It’s been said that the best way to learn is to teach.
One way to improve your own understanding is to share with others. It greatly increases your own clarity as well as encouraging you to explore a topic more fully.
In fact, this blog is an example of this.
Efficiently Answer Questions
How many times do you get asked the same question?
Rather than writing variations of the same response time after time in emails, what about writing a blog?
This can then be shared with those who probably have the same issues or those who ask the same question in the future.
Building a Useful Resource
Many business web pages contain many articles providing an excellent resource.
This is quite daunting. Especially when you only have a handful of blogs to your name.
However, if you want to build up a useful resource, answering your clients’ questions, there is only one way to start; blog by blog over the years. May as well start now, rather than waiting a year and then wishing you had something in place.
Improving your Writing
I hated English at school. It’s fair to say that I’m not a natural writer.
But, there is no denying that writing is a crucial skill for business. It’s a major form of communication and we owe it to ourselves and our clients to become proficient.
There are many great resources out there to improve this skill; I’m halfway through Everybody Writes by Ann Hanley.
However, like any skill, there is only one way to improve. Practice.
It’ll come as no surprise to hear that I’m going to keep on blogging.
If my blogs help others, I’ll consider them a success.
And, if any business comes in because of them, that’ll be a bonus.
More importantly, I’m lucky to have those who help me challenge my decisions.
