Marketing With Your Very Own Blog

Marketing With Your Very Own Blog

By Craig Ritsema

A couple of years back, no one knew what a blog was; and then suddenly it burst upon the scene and nowadays, the word blog is indeed fashionable whether you are a "netropolitan" or not. Blogs – a short form of web log – are so popular that nearly everyone owns one, right from a big corporation to the neighborhood grocery shop owner! There's no reason why you should be left behind in the race; and here is why you should own a blog:

Blogs are like personal diaries open to public inspection, and they are super tools that communicate in an informal manner. Whether you are a corporate honcho or an understudy, blogs give you the freedom to let your hair down and post your random thoughts on them. In fact, it's okay to get personal on blogs and post a bit of personal information here and there.

Your blog readers will also figure out what kind of a person you are because they know they are reading your thoughts. This may help you strike up a friendship with some of them. In fact, it will be a good idea to allow your readers to comment on your blog by sending you a mail. You must make it a point to be polite while replying back to visitors' comments and emails though. All this back and forth will make your blog lively and interactive.

If you have started a blog with the intention of promoting your product then you must invite readers to leave feedback or suggestions. You can even ask them to suggest improvements or add-ons. That way you will know what the market thinks about your product. When you reply back to your readers' suggestions or queries, they will figure you are an authority as far as your product goes, and they will begin to rely up on you for their purchase decisions in respect of products that are similar to yours'.

As trust builds up with time, your readers will begin using your product or services because they will get more comfortable and personal with you, and it is a proven fact that people like to deal with businessmen whom they feel comfortable with.

Blogs can also be used to announce forthcoming products, services, discounts or promotions. If blogs are used the right way, they can act as marketing executives of your company who are forever prowling the Internet trying to develop business.

Blogs also help you develop backlinks to your site and thereby, increase its Google PageRank (PR). To achieve this, every article, every snippet and every comment you post on the blog must be linked to a page on your site.

Finally, blogs help you sharpen your writing skills. And that is because when you are writing on blogs you tend to be more casual and you end up trying to write in a snappy tone, which is quite different from the way you write while at work. Who knows, you may discover your writing style while penning thoughts on blogs!