So You’re Going to Start a Blog for your Small Business… First of all, congratulations—and smart move! Blogging is a great way to generate marketable content, boost your site’s SEO, increase your position as a thought leader, drive traffic (aka, potential sales) and so much more. But now that you’re ready to put proverbial pen to paper, you might be asking yourself, “What do I blog about?” And guess what? That’s a valid question. So here are a few things to think about as you dive into small business blogging… Photo from https://edubirdie.com Expertise Everyone is an expert in something. You wouldn’t be running a small business if you weren’t knowledgeable about your specific line of work. If you’re running a florist shop, chances are you know more than a thing or two about horticulture or the flower business. Take some time to define your expertise and, subsequently, your point of view. Share personal experiences and thoughts surrounding your expertise. Industry News You likely have your finger on the pulse of what’s happening in your specific industry. And naturally, you probably have thoughts or a point of view on those specific news items. So comment on them! Sticking with the florist example, say there’s a rose shortage. Weigh in on that! Blog about the reasons why or what your shop’s doing to combat the rose shortage or what flowers can sub in for the rose. Ultimately, what’s happening in your industry is prime blog fodder. But beware: regurgitating the news isn’t interesting and it won’t attract eyeballs. You need to have a provocative point of view. Speak your mind! (BONUS TIP: include links to relevant news articles.) Company News A blog is a great forum to share with your customers (and potential customers) what’s happening within your business. From new hires to expansions to new offerings, pulling back the curtain can not only generate great blog content, but it can also help build trust with your customers as it humanizes your company. As you can see here on the Kashoo blog, we regularly mix in company news, small business accounting software product updates, employee features and more so that we can keep you all up-to-date with what we’re working on and familiar with who you’re essentially hiring to help you dominate your small business accounting. Promotions Promotional content also makes for great blog fodder. Say Valentine’s Day is approaching for your flower shop. In January, you could run an “Order your flowers by January 31 and get 25% off!” post. (Of course, that’s assuming the aforementioned rose shortage does not actually happen.) If you have an ecommerce platform in place, include a coupon code. Or if you’re in-store only, include an image the reader can print off. (BONUS TIP: circulate promotional blog posts throughout your social networks like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn as they serve as virtual amplifiers.) Hopefully this is enough to get those wheels turning! PS – If you know you want to blog but haven’t identified the right platform, this article should help. And if you need more assistance, feel free to email us. After all, we’re a small business that blogs! PPS – One more tip… If you’re still not sure what to write about, check out your competitors. Do they have a blog and if so, what are they blogging about? By no means should you copy their content—that can actually hurt you in more ways than one. Instead, use their content to spark new ideas.
