Last week blogs took a kicking. Turns out most readers don’t trust them.
On the back of the Forrester report, some business folks might be wondering whether a blog is worth it. Personally, having picked up two contracts in three days via my blog, I can’t recommend them enough. An interesting blog generates traffic to your site and gets people interested in your company and what you do.
How to write effective, trust-building copy
If you’re wondering how you can get a blog to work for you, here are four tips to write effective, trust-building copy that will help you get readers sticking around and generate customer loyalty.
1. Write Conversationally
The best blogs on the Net speak directly to their audience. They don’t drone on in corporate claptrap. Instead, they strike up a conversational tone that addresses the reader.
Write your blog with your target audience in mind. Don’t fall into the trap of filling your copy with a sea of jargon. And certainly don’t try and impress people with your vocabulary. The emphasis is on writing in a friendly, accessible way so people stick around and listen.
I find it’s always a good idea to read a blog post aloud before I hit publish. That way you ensure there’s personality in what you’re writing.
2. Share Stories
Readers want to know who you are and what you’re doing. In the the last couple of years the Net has become incredibly social. That’s partly why Twitter has become so popular. It gives followers an insight into people’s lives.
As a business blogger, if you give your reader insights into the work you do, you have the chance to show the human side of our business. One of the hardest things to get across in brochures and advertising copy is the personality of a business and the people that run it. Blogging can help you overcome that.
By sharing the challenges, innovations, problems and services you deal with, readers will get to know you better. This can be an important step in making them feel like they can approach you.
3. Update Frequently
There’s nothing worse than coming across a corporate business blog that has lain idle for a month. Even worse if it’s six months.
It’s essential to regularly update your blog, and keep readers coming back for more. If you don’t have a minimum posting schedule, you should to ensure you don’t fall behind.
If left to dwindle –even if you’re super busy with projects– a blog can work against your business as it may give the impression that you start things and leave them half-finished. Or that you never follow through. This is not something you want customers to associate with your company.
4. Don’t Avoid Difficult Issues
Silence is not an excuse. Not these days when consumers are adept at blogging, tweeting and stumbling their thoughts about a company.
With a blog you can always put your side of the story. And sometimes you will have to when individuals or groups work against you. A good example of this is the way that Basset Hound breeders in the UK didn’t respond sufficiently to the accusations raised by a BBC documentary earlier this year – Pedigree Dogs Exposed.
A blog doesn’t just generate traffic to your website or promote your skills and services. It can also tell your side of the story in times of crisis. Because Google tends to rank blogs that are updated regularly fairly highly, you can almost always guarantee that your position will be heard.
A company blog is an excellent tool for promotion, communication, and information. I hope the tips outlined here will encourage you to improve the way you utilise blogging in your company or small business.
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