“What do I say?” can be both the first and most challenging question a new blogger can face. To answer this question, first think of your main reasons for communicating with customers, such as generating brand awareness, acquiring and building relationships and gaining a foothold in content marketing. But while your blog should certainly reflect those goals, it also has to attract readers in the first place. so, as you write to your customers, continue to ask yourself “what will they want to read?”
Find Your Home Base
Before you venture into the blogosphere, research blog sites that best fit your business. We recommend WordPress. With both free and paid options, this blog site features an easy interface and gives you the ability to customize your blog’s look to fit your brand. As with all marketing efforts, tracking your progress is imperative. With WordPress, free plugins let you view numbers of site visits and what posts and pages are most popular. This will grant insight into what your customers like most and, thus, give guidance for future content.
Content, Content, Content
A great place to start for your first blog post is an introduction to your blog and to the culture of your business. This provides a window into your store and is especially valuable to new customers. Your blog posts thereafter can be used for whatever you deem necessary. Test ideas and see how your customers respond. Your blog can be used as a way to announce new lines, write reviews, promote events, spotlight staff or give advice relevant to your business.
Avoid solely promoting sales on your blog. Customers are on your blog to learn, not hear about deals on every post. For example, if you sell food products, provide recipes that include items in your store. Not only are you promoting product, but you’re also providing interesting (and sharable!) information to readers. If you’re an interior designer, give them the latest decorating trends or tips on quick fixes for the home. Same thing goes if you have a salon/beauty store; share the latest trends and tips with your customers.
Promote It
The easiest way to get the word out about your blog is through your social media channels and email. Costumers already interested in getting email from you are likely to investigate your blog as well.
Sharing information via Facebook and Twitter also gives you a great start for followers. One method of using Twitter is to reformat your tweets to share content multiple times. For example, you can use the title of the post in the first update, create a variation of the title for a second update and then ask a question related to the post in the third update.
In turn, include social media buttons on your blog for customers to locate your pages. Encouraging customers to interact with your company on multiple levels can only benefit your business.
be prepared to spend time reviewing and replying to reader comments. Whether good or bad, comments should be addressed. It shows your personal involvement with your online presence. It also illustrates your sincere interest in the customer. Your business is about more than numbers. It’s also about personal connection.
And you’ve finished! Well, almost. You’ve reached the end of the road for starting your blog. Now it’s time for the best part – writing, writing and more writing!
Kelley Sloyer is an interactive copywriter at SnapRetail. If you’d like to see how easy creating a comprehensive marketing campaign can be, request a demonstration with one of SnapRetail’s retail experts. Click to schedule your appointment now.
