First Today, Then Tomorrow

Everyone’s telling you that you need to get a business blog. But why? It’s a lot of work.  You may not be a writer. And so much of it seems like giving everyone a peek behind the scenes, showing them how sausage is made (messy, right?).

But you do need to have an active, planned blog program. Here are 5 reasons why:

1. Permission email lists die off fast – between 30 and 50% loss per year. I’ve personally seen rates that approach 6% for EVERY email blast sent, even to customers who have asked to be on your email list.
2. You can’t anticipate when your customer will have a problem that your product or service can solve. You need to be the first company they think of when it does happen.  I used to say if they go to the Yellow Pages, you lose. Now it’s Google. You need to keep your customers from searching for a solution, by knowing already that you can help.
3. Your competitors are getting better at getting the word out. You are reading your competitors’ blogs, tweets, and other online materials, aren’t you?
4. You can’t afford to send them good old fashioned, honest to goodness paper direct mail to stay in front of them all the time.
5. No other form of marketing can take off like online marketing. Not everything works, but if the planets align and you have a terrific online vehicle like your blog, you could see dramatic response increases as something you’ve published goes viral.

How long do you think your ideal customer’s attention spans is? Are you a big enough part of their core business that they think of you constantly? Of course not. For most products and services you’re lucky if you’re back on their purchase radar yearly. But you never know what’s going on, what changes are happening, and what opportunities you may be missing.

That’s why the blog is becoming one of the standard marketing tools. You need the ability to communicate constantly with your customer, but on their terms. If you use email, you’re demanding their attention. Eventually, they’ll get tired of that, just as they’ve gotten tired of direct mail – better known as junk mail. Even your best customers will start unsubscribing from your email newsletters, even if it’s filled with the best content.

But a blog is something that doesn’t demand their attention – it’s available to them when THEY want. It’s your job to fill it with posts that interest them enough to come to you. And here’s the kicker: you know a LOT of things that your customers will find interesting. Give them a look at your industry. Let them see how your business works and what doesn’t work. Let them see you and your staff as individuals, as real people. And these people sometimes have fun – let them see that as well.

When it works, your customers will bookmark your blog; better yet, they’ll subscribe to your RSS feed (I’ll post more about the importance and use of RSS in the future). They’ll come to you, frequently, regularly. And that’s better than interrupting them with occasional emails, isn’t it?