Five Reasons For Small Business Owners To Blog
Why do small business owners write on blogs?
With millions of people worldwide doing it, blogging has become a major phenomenon of our time. (If you arrived here through a search engine and do not know what a blog is, well, you are reading one right now.)
I’ve been tagged by Troy White and Edita Kaye of the Rich Writers blog, to give five reasons that I write a blog. So here goes. Blogging is:
- A faster and better way to create newsletter articles. Four years ago I used to place newsletter articles online either by sending each one to a Web design firm (an expensive option), or doing it myself using Dreamweaver (a time-consuming option). Then I found blogs and discovered the freedom of posting articles online quickly and easily. The whole process of publishing became much more satisfying, too, because I found I have greater control. For instance, if I happen to notice a small typo or a left-out word, I can change it in seconds. Because of the many advantages of blogs, this site has since taken on a much bigger purpose in my business. But in the beginning I merely was solving a simple problem: finding a better way for my small business to publish newsletter articles.
- A strategy for getting published. Publishing my own articles on the Web, daily, was the fastest and most direct path to getting published at magazines and other business publications. Once I had enough articles published here at Small Business Trends for readers to judge my ideas and writing ability, I naturally started to get the attention of magazines and business publishers. A track record always helps.
- A low-cost way for a small business owner to market online. You can spend a little or a lot marketing your business online. I choose to spend a little. A blog gives a small business a fighting chance to get found in the search engines, alongside the sites of big companies that have more money to spend. I learned that after I set up this site. One day, someone pointed out to me that when my name was searched online, my blog showed up higher in the search results than my traditional business website. That’s when I decided to focus my efforts on this blog instead of the traditional website.
- A method to communicate and connect — especially important for business owners. When you run a small business, as I do, you feel alone at times. We may be in business, but in the end we are human beings — isolation is a real issue. We blogging business owners actually communicate with one another, online, using our blogs. You can’t do that with a traditional style website. For instance, I have never met Troy or Edita. The very fact that they “tagged” me by writing an article and linking to my site (thank you Troy and Edita!), demonstrates one way we communicate with one another and establish connections. This is one of the things people mean when they use the now-overworked phrase, “blogs are conversations.”
- Satisfaction of some inner need to share. Many of us have a strong desire to exchange opinions and ideas with others. It must be an instinctive human need. How else do you explain 70 million blogs?
Why do you blog? Or, if you do not currently blog, tell us the reason you do not.
March 3rd, 2007 at 9:49 pm
Great article Anita. I think there is another reason you didn’t mention that is still true for most industries. Have a blog is a great way to differentiate yourself. In my industry, label printing, my blog is the only active blog about the label industry in the world! For most non-tech related industries, at least for the time being, you can differentiate yourself merely by having an active blog. Make it an informative and well-written blog and you will be a world ahead of your competition.
March 4th, 2007 at 1:29 am
[...] Continue reading Five Reasons For Small Business Owners To Blog [...]
March 4th, 2007 at 7:22 am
[...] In a bit of very nice timing, Anita Campbell of Small Business Trends, always worth reading, brings us five reasons for small business owners to blog. Some of her points seem very relevent for eBay sellers, and here are my own five reasons why eBay sellers should have a blog. [...]
March 4th, 2007 at 12:02 pm
Hi Peter, yes I agree with you about differentiating your business. And especially for non-tech industries, where blogs are not very prevalent, you can have a real advantage.
Plus, people will become citizen marketers and spread the word, because it is notable for non-tech businesses to have blogs. I wish I had a dollar for everytime someone asked for an example of a non-technology business with a blog, and I mentioned the blog of Horsefeathers Restaurant or Landfair Furniture or Lightning Labels.
Best,
Anita
March 4th, 2007 at 11:07 pm
As a web services provider for small businesses, the hardest part is getting business owners who aren’t internet saavy to recognize the utility of blogging–then convincing them to post regularly or pay a writer who will do it for them. I’m emailing this post to a client immediately.
March 5th, 2007 at 2:20 pm
Hello…
Great post — we are professional advisors to people starting new ventures. The reason we blog is to share some of our approaches and views to getting started and growing - which speaks to your fourth point. We also like sharing what we are thinking and what strategies have (and haven’t) worked.
Like in life, getting a blog set up was the easy part — consistantly posting meaningful content is a bit more challenging…
thanks!
March 5th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Your own blog can be very helpful in starting a relevant dialogue with (potential) customers. By posting on relevant industry topics, visitors will start to see your company as a knowledgeable source of information, which is invaluable for building trust.
Also, people like to know the faces/personalities behind the serious, corporate website. Blogs can help to make your small business more personable to clients.
March 5th, 2007 at 9:16 pm
To expand on Anita’s “Satisfaction of some inner need to share” point, I would add that it can also be a great learning tool for the blogger. Many times it forces a blogger to become a little better educated on a specific topic or to learn the latest great technique. Then we get to share that information, giving makes people feel good about themselves.
March 6th, 2007 at 9:01 am
Great article Anita!!
In your first point, you have described the biggest advantage of having a blog. Unlike newsletters one does not have to worry much for blog posts. Whenever you make mistakes, you can change them instantly. Blogs communicate with the audience easy and quick.
March 7th, 2007 at 2:03 pm
[...] Over at Small Business Trends Anita Campbell recently posted her Five Reasons For a Small Business Owners to Blog after being tagged by her peers Troy White and Edita Kay at Rich Writers Blog doing the same. [...]
March 8th, 2007 at 3:39 pm
Speaking of blogs, I just went to a seminar conducted by Jackie Huba, author of the book “Citizen Marketers: When People are the Message” and her blog (which is updated daily) focuses on word-of-mouth and social media marketing.
This is a great resource for small business owners: http://www.churchofthecustomer.com
March 10th, 2007 at 3:53 pm
I really enjoyed reading your blog, Anita. I just recently answered that question on my blog and in doing so, clarified some things for me.
I blog because . . .
1. . . . I like to be on the leading edge.
2. . . . it’s a creative way to connect with others, share ideas, and create community.
3. . . . there are no boundaries and no rules to the flow and exchange of thought.
4. . . . doing so provides a witnessing presence for my life and the lives of others.
5. . . . tomorrow will soon enough become yesterday, so I blog to remember who I am today.
March 11th, 2007 at 8:24 am
Thanks, Susan, for sharing your reasons for blogging. I LOVE number five, “I blog to remember who I am today.” We all should have a chronicle of our lives. — Anita
April 10th, 2007 at 1:51 pm
[...] Read the entire article at SmallBizTrends.com, here. 08 Apr 07 | Why Blogs?, Tips and Tricks [...]
April 12th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
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September 2nd, 2007 at 10:28 pm
Your own blog can be very helpful in starting a relevant dialogue with (potential) customers. By posting on relevant industry topics, visitors will start to see your company as a knowledgeable source of information, which is invaluable for building trust.
May 5th, 2008 at 2:46 am
I want to start up a Website but do not have products at this time to sell. Should I consider becoming an Affiliate for miscellaneous products and services?
I am a member of Clickbank.com of which I have a nickname, but no Website of my own. I bought a copy of one, but I am so new I think there are some steps I have to do in order for it to start generating any kind of transaction. Then I came across this idea of doing a Blog but does a Blog have to be a specific product or service?
It’s kind of a dumb question I suppose, but can you help me? I know of a company that would benefit from doing the Blog thing. Could I be an
Affiliate for Small Business referring them to this kind of info?
I am thinking out loud now. So if you can help me with sorting this all out I would truly appreciate it.
Thanks in advance.
Lin Marie
September 29th, 2008 at 2:26 am
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October 14th, 2008 at 11:25 am
[...] We agree with many industry analysts that blogging – just one of the many legs of the social-marketing centipede – is a viable means to keeping customers up-to-date and interested in a brand while simultaneously attracting new devotees. In fact, we actively blog on behalf of many of our own clients. But, as with all online marketing techniques, there are proverbial potholes along the road to success that could derail a social-marketing mission if proper attention isn’t paid. [...]
October 15th, 2008 at 5:15 am
Hi Anita
Your comments are most interesting. My office is based at my home, which is fantastic, but unless I pick up the phone and call someone, or someone contacts me, I can have very little contact with people. Our business is website based and we don’t have a blog on it at present, but I would really love to communicate with others from around the Globe. I found your site through Yaro Starak, Brisbane Australia, from Blog Mastermind. Have you done any of his multi-media lessons or been involved with his blogging?
I would really appreciate your comments.
Cheers
Diane