Blog Marketing: Give Your Small Business a Boost with a Business Blog

The Ins and Outs of Business Blogging

Business blogs are yet another tool in the small business marketer’s informational cache. As is the case with any approach to internet marketing, blog marketing has a few ins and outs that must be addressed.

• The ins:

  • Easy to use. Business blogs are not unlike any other weblog. With the overwhelming abundance of blogging technologies available, all you need for a successful blog is a computer, a mouse, and a complete thought.

  • Easy to produce. Small business marketers generally do not have the available funds to contract with an internet designer or software developer to promote his or her business. Blogs are the most cost-efficient way to convey a copious amount of relevant information without the investment of advertising.

  • Easy to manage. All that is required for managing a business blog is regular updating. Because you do not have to learn the lingo found in the secret world of web designers, you can quickly and easily keep your customers informed through your blog.

• The outs:

  • Necessity of time. As is the case with any small business activity, there is a time factor involved with the maintenance of a business blog. The best way to manage your blogging time is to create a schedule of regular updates and follow it.

  • Necessity of material. What if you just do not have an update for your business blog? Try these tips when short on material:

    • Short of making something up, find relevant links and post a few comments on how they relate to what you are marketing.

    • Answer some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). If they are frequently asked, they deserve a reply.

    • Post a picture or video of the week and add your own caption or comment.

  • Necessity of self. Some small business marketers may find blogging too informal or “unbusiness-like.” Quite the contrary. Through your blog, your customers can get a glimpse into the brains behind the business, making you more real and your information more meaningful.

Me, The, and FREE: What Could Be Better than FREE?

As a first-timer, a “newbie”, to the business blogging world, it is best to seek out the most user-friendly weblog publishing site. There are many from which to choose, but some are more widely used than others, making them a more likely place for searches among those searching for specific business information.

• Great Google-y Moogly. Blogger is Google’s version of the free weblog. The greatest thing about Blogger is that it is automatically linked to other Google gadgets that you and your customers may subscribe to, such as Google Friend Connect or Google Reader.

• The Three Ws.

  • WordPress. WordPress may be found in two forms: WordPress.org and WordPress.com. WordPress.com is managed by the developers of WordPress created to make blogging as simple as possible without the drudgery of learning coding and other challenges of technology not embraced by the general user. WordPress.org is designed for the user planning to use a web host (perhaps your own domain) and has the luxury of time to invest in blog maintenance.

  • Wetpaint. Wetpaint is a source of opportunity for anyone wishing to join a broader community of information swapping. By creating your business blog through Wetpaint, you can join the mix of social networks and discussion forums and increase your web traffic and customer base.

  • Weebly. No, Weebly is not the internet product of Weebles. Weebly is a hosting service that is geared toward the simpler side of blog-and-forum sites rather than the social side. They offer the basics of design templates as well as the drag-and-drop feature for adding site content.

Business blogs are not brain surgery, but they are an essential component of the successful small business marketer. With user-friendly formats and blogger control of content, business blogs are a great low-cost alternative to expensive web site development and maintenance.

image credits to Leonie²

Video Marketing Online: Keywords Are a Key Step to More Website Traffic

Video marketing has become the number one priority in 2009 for internet marketers who are searching for an increase in website traffic. When implementing video into your online marketing strategy, it is important to remember that keywords are vital to getting more website traffic and longer website visits. Take into account these suggestions for maximizing keywords in your video marketing strategy:

Tip 1: One is the loneliest number.

• Although the selection of keywords is crucial to generating more website traffic, do not limit yourself to just one or two general words. Brainstorm the keywords that directly relate to your site and broaden them to include synonyms and other similar terms.

• Make your keywords specific for your targeted customers. If you really want to generate sales results, choose several appropriate keywords that will attract genuine customers rather than those who are just window shopping.

• Use keyword combinations that give your customers more opportunities to access your site and your video. Using these "long tail keywords" as opposed to single words will multiply the number of search results returned through the search engines.

Tip 2: Variety is the spice of life.

• Even a minimal amount of keyword research can result in more website traffic. Which keywords are “hot” and which keywords are not? Using obsolete or unfamiliar keywords will certainly not generate visitors to your site.

• Utilize keyword research tools, such as Google’s AdWords, to find out which keywords are the most used in internet searches. Knowing how potential customers are searching can enable you to follow their patterns and increase website traffic.

• Take advantage of commonly misspelled words. With spell check software and search engine keyword optimization, many people are not conscientious about the correct spellings of their searches.

Tip 3: Role play.

• Approach internet marketing videos from the perspective of the customer. It is the customer you want to attract; therefore, consider why a potential customer might visit your site and list all keyword possibilities that a customer would use to search for and find you site.

• Maximize video marketing by creating a video the customer wants to see. Combining ideal keywords with a video supports what your customer has searched for. If your keywords include coffee, coffee beans, and Starbucks, a video about English tea would not only confuse the potential customer but likely guarantee the customer would never return to your site.

• Use video marketing to the advantage of the customer. With the right keyword selection, the customer is directed to your site for a video that offers something for his or her efforts: first glimpse at new product on the market, the opportunity for a limited time offer, etc.

The right keywords can make or break your attempts to increase website traffic to your site. No video marketing strategy is complete without thorough keyword research prior to integrating video marketing into your web site. The more research you are willing to put into keyword selection, the more website traffic you will receive in return.

image credits to Fray Bentos