WOMEN MEAN BUSINESS - Blog

Blogging for Business - 5 Reasons to Start One Today!

If you’re still resisting setting up a blog for your business, read this post and see if it changes your mind!

A blog is the cheapest, quickest and easiest way to get your business on line. Here are my top 5 reasons why you should set up your blog today, if you don’t already have one.

1. Search engines love blogs

If you’re not blogging, you’re missing out on one of the best ways to raise your search engine ranking. Forget complicated SEO (Search Engine Optimisation), simply write regularly with relevant content aimed at your target niche.

Search engines love fresh content and by blogging two to four times a week you’ll really help raise your Google ranking.

2. You’ll be creating valuable content on a regular basis

Writing a book may seem like an overwhelming task, but short blog posts a few times a week seems a lot more manageable. Some people really have blogged to create their book, which was later published.

Blogging regularly on targeted topics creates valuable content that you can then repurpose – in articles, your newsletter, e-books, Special Reports, guest blog posts and even audio recordings and information products. Once you start blogging regularly you’ll be “primed” to come up with ideas for content.

3. It’s the easiest and quickest way to create a website!

You can get your blog up and running in an afternoon. In fact using a blog platform you can create your whole website in as little as a week. If I can do it, so can you! I use Typepad as the platform for my blog and my website. You can also set up a free blog on Blogger.com or on Wordpress if you’re more technically minded.

4. You’ll be seen as an expert in your field

If you’re still resisting blogging for your business, think about this – your competition may be establishing a strong presence on line with a website and a blog they write on regularly. Do you want to be left behind?

Blogging can be very low cost, or even free, but it can set you apart as a leader in your field if you do it the right way and consistently. A great blog can really help your business. If you’re sharing useful information and tips via your blog, you can create a connection with your potential clients. You could even get new clients as a direct result of what you’ve written on your blog.

5.  You can blog once and appear in several places

Did you know that your blog content can be automatically linked to post to Facebook, Twitter and Linked in? So you write the post only once yet you can appear in at least four different places as a result! Great for visibility and Search Engine rankings.

(c) Shona Partridge, Women Mean Business
 

Get Blogging for More Business

If you've been wondering whether or not to start a blog for your business, you'll want to read this month's Women Mean Business "SUCCESS STRATEGIES" newsletter.

The main article will be "Blogging for Business - It Really Works!"

The newsletter will now be going out on Tuesday so there's still time to sign up to get your own copy delivered straight to your in-box. Plus you'll get other business building bonuses too.

Marketing 101 - Tip # 4 Have a follow up system

Have a follow up system

We all go to networking events and gather handfuls of business cards and we may even get as far as putting them into Outlook or some other contact system, but what do we do after that? I think it’s vital to have some form of “keep in touch” marketing such as a newsletter or blog.

I really cannot overestimate the importance of follow up. By keeping in touch regularly, it means that when someone is ready to buy, your name and business is at the front of their mind because they have heard from you recently.

Marketing 101 - top tips for your small business

I'm running a  blog series starting today, with 101 marketing and PR tips for solo professionals.  These will be very short and easy to digest and posted every day or two.

Keep an eye on these postings and start to include one or two in your own marketing.

I'm running a  blog series starting today, with 101 marketing and PR tips for solo professionals.  These will be very short and easy to digest and posted every day or two.

Keep an eye on these postings and start to include one or two in your own marketing.

Are you on Facebook yet?

I'm a huge Facebook fan and have had a personal account for nearly a year. It's a great way to keep in touch and to re-connect with people. But you can also use Facebook for your business. For a few months I've been telling myself it was time to start a Facebook page for Women Mean Business. However, unlike a personal Facebook account, it wasn't the easiest thing to get to grips with so I put it on the back burner.

On Saturday, however I decided that I was not going to bed until I had mastered creating my Facebook fan page. And at 11.30pm (before the clocks changed!) it went live. So it took me about 5 hours altogether, most of which was trying to figure out one particular application. Sometimes you have to try things that don't work so you can figure out what does. In the end I found a staggeringly simple solution that wasn't in any of the "how to do facebook" websites and chat rooms I tried. Perseverance does pay off!

Setting up a personal account in your own name is quick and easy though, and if Facebook was a country it would have around the fifth largest population in the world. That's a lot of people! It's free to join and you can stream your blog posts and Twitter posts automatically. I highly recommend adding it to your marketing mix. Why not open an account this week and start finding your way around? And do connect with me at Shona Partridge and the Women Mean Business fan page.

This blog post is being streamed through to my new Facebook fanpage blog -  so if you're reading it there rather than on my main blog - welcome! You're obviously on Facebook already and know its value!.

Check your web links

I'm always reminding myself and my clients to proof read our work. Another thing we need to check fairly regularly is that all our website and blog links are working as planned.

Also, if you have a newsletter, don't forget to check that all links are live and lead where they should before you hit the "send" button. Broken links are really frustrating for your readers and could even lead to a lost sale or prospect.

Why not put a note in your diary to check your web and blog links once a week or once a fortnight.

On being number one - or not!

In the current "celebrity" culture we could be forgiven for thinking that if we're not number one - not "famous" - then we don't make an impression. I don't hold with that thinking at all.

Is Susan Boyle less visible because she was runner up in "Britain's Got Talent"? Is Kate Walsh's career suffering because she didn't actually win The Apprentice? I don't think so!

So what does this have to do with you and your business? It illustrates that there's room for all levels of expertise and you don't have to be at the top of the tree to have a viable business, get clients and provide value. For instance - even if you've only been in your field for a year, you're a year ahead of a complete newbie. Maybe your ideal market is absolute beginners.

Or maybe you're ready to teach or coach an intermediate level. My reason for writing this blog post is to show there is room for lots of different levels of "fame" and expertise. You are unique, with a unique set of skills and experience. No-one else will approach things in quite the same way. So don't worry about being the next "......."  Just be yourself and see who shows up!

You won't get everyone to be your client - but then you don't want just any old client do you? You want the ideal clients for you! I'll be blogging more on this topic so do come back regularly and do post a comment.

Twitter overwhelm - how many posts is too many?

Like many other small business owners, I've been grabbed by the Twitter phenomenon. However, I'm not going to tweet 20 times a day thank you! Twitter does have it's place in my marketing and PR arsenal, but not at the top of my list. I can see how addictive it might be, but personally, as a writer, I prefer to invest my time in creating more content - 140 characters is a tad on the short side for me!

You can call me old fashioned but I prefer blogging, Facebook and even the good old e-zine newsletter as ways of keeping in touch and sharing information. Maybe part of the disconnect with Twitter for me is that anyone can add you to their list. When I first joined, my contact details were hoovered up by dozens of complete strangers. Fine if you want to grow your contacts list with no interaction....I just like to have some kind of connection with the people on my lists.

Recent statistics show that around 90% of tweets are being posted by only 10% of Twitter members. I know these people are getting great value out of the profile building possibilities of Twitter - it just doesn't feel like something I want to spend a lot of time on. I'd much rather be creating content for programmes and writing feature length articles and blog posts.

I will continue to Tweet as part of my marketing mix - sometimes it can be quite fun - but I'd much rather you read my blog!

Creating new Blogs

I've been having lots of fun this past week creating brand new blogs for clients and for myself. I've been blogging since 2006 and love the whole concept.

Initially I wondered what on earth a blog was and how I would ever create my own. Fast forward a couple of years and I'll create a new blog for myself in a few hours! And now I help my clients create their own blogs! Not bad for someone who doesn't consider herself a "techie"! 

I've also discovered that this is one of the simplest ways to create a website where you have total control over the content. No more relying on someone else to post your content for you and no more relying on HTML for website creation.

I love Typepad but there are other platforms you can use like Blogger and Wordpress.  I looked into these other platforms but because of its simplicity (and it looks great!)I fell in love with Typepad, so that's what I personally use and what I teach my clients to use.