Do you participate in #blogchat? Every week, this weekly discussion on Twitter focuses on a specific topic and bloggers everywhere are invited to join in. Because I often have more to say than what will fit in 140 characters, every Sunday night (or Monday morning), I post about some of the most interesting #blogchat tweets. Join the conversation by commenting below.
(Still confused? Read more about #blogchat here.)
This Week’s Theme: What company blogs can learn from personal bloggers with @1680PR
This week, #blogchat was held LIVE at SXSW. Sad face that I couldn’t go, but happy face that there was still normal #blogchat at night for those of us stuck at home! Actually, I was so busy apartment-hunting that I didn’t get to the online version either, but moderator and host Mack Collier is nice enough to link to the transcript every week, so I was still able to pick out some awesome points to share with you all!
One that stood out to me just a few minutes into the chat:
@ScLoHo: Every business has people. Share people stories on your business blog
Business blogs are too often outlets for company press releases and nothing else. Think about your favorite brands in the world. I like Hershey’s chocolate. I like Gain laundry detergent. I like Dell computers (don’t judge me, that’s a debate for another day, haha). But really, I don’t like any of those companies enough to read announcements about their products every day – or worse, multiple times per day. It’s sometimes nice to know big changes that are coming, but I don’t need constant content that is little more than ads for your brand.
Corporate bloggers, write this down and post it by your computer: A blog is not a commercial.
Adding personality to your corporate blog is, in my opinion, the only way to go. But if you’re a major brand (like Hershey or Gain or Dell), doing that can be tricky, since you have a corporation to represent (not just yourself) and since you’re probably one of several people working on posts. Even as a small business owner, it can be tough to know how to go about adding personality to your blog.
That’s what I love so much about @ScLoHo’s tweet. Telling stories is something I do regularly on my own blog, After Graduation, and companies can definitely learn to do that as well.
- Share the story of how the company was founded and how the business owners helped it evolve into what it is today.
- Share awesome stories from people who work at your company. Feature everyone from board members to factory workers. Feel-good stories that fit your brand well are interesting and help promote your products.
- Share stories from your customers. Not only are you promoting your brand, but you’re starting to build a community by getting your readers involved.
I think that personal bloggers can take some value away from this idea as well. Don’t be afraid to share your story and the stories of readers if they are relevant to your topic. It’s one of the most basic ways we can connect as human beings. Between the press releases, some human interest stories go a long way for corporate blogs, and for personal bloggers, this is a way to spice up your content, doing something different and interesting for your readers.
Thanks Alli for the mentions.
For several years, I have encouraged my clients to start a blog and with regular updates, Google would start finding them and it would increase their online presence.
Most would say, “But what do I write about?”
My first answer is always, “Write about the people. Share the stories of how the people in your business helped other people. Share the background stories of the folks at your company. Turn the spotlight on your customers, not just the businesses but the people at those businesses.”
Update at least once a week. Write a couple of weeks in advance. If you have more than one person manning the company blog, update daily with each person assigned a day.
When you write, use conversational language, not Press Release style. Include a picture in every post.
Then promote the blog posts. Facebook, Twitter and Linked In are good ways to provide a LINK to each new post and build a following and readership. And be sure to let those whose stories are being told that they are being featured (IF it is a GOOD STORY), so they can share the link with their friends and family.
Make sure you have those easy to share buttons on your blog, so readers can tweet, email and post to LinkedIN and Facebook.
One last thought. I don’t do this full time. I am a staff of one. I have plenty of resources from which I can draw material. I post a minimum of 48 blog post each week over 4 blogs including at least 15 which are original material.
This includes the latest blog I created, ScLoHo’s Social Media Adventure which is updated 5 days a week at http://sclohosocial.blogspot.com/
I work in advertising sales in radio, marketing, media and now social media. If I can find the time to do this, you can too.
You so nice & posting also nice.Good Posting, Every one can learn something. Best Regards,CEO of http://www.makemakingmoney.net