Blogging Best Practices

It has become almost expected in business by now to have a company blog. What happens to most company blogs, unfortunately, is they become stale. Either the content offered is so carefully crafted that it lacks any sort of creativity, or the task of updating the blog becomes dreaded, and those assigned to update it start slacking. The problem is one of control. Management needs to loosen the reigns on the blogging employee and allow them freedom to write about things other than your “incredible new forays into the Chinese market,” and your “acquisition of first quarter clients.” No one cares about these self-serving puff-pieces and before long, your audience will be your family and friends - and even they will only stand for that sort of drivel for so long.
The following points are suggestions for making your corporate blog an enjoyable read for your visitors.
Stay Honest Your readers will appreciate a blog that does more than just cheer on the company. Blogs can be glimpses into the lives behind the corporate façade. Rants are acceptable in blogging.
Keep it Moving â€" Post Frequently Fresh content keeps readers coming back. If your blog remains idle for a week or more, people will stop returning to it. One post a day is not too much.
Share If you find something newsworthy in your industry, share a link to that story or article with your readers. Linking improves your chances of being seen by others.
Tag It “Tags” or “categories” are the words at the bottom of your blog post that tell the various aggregators what is important about this post. For instance, writing about a new technique in laser surgery might be tagged with “laser surgery.”
Put Information in Your Titles â€" Or Be Intriguing The title of each post is sometimes the only thing some readers will pay attention to. Like a newspaper headline, it should “grab” or otherwise intrigue a reader to keep reading.
People Like Pictures A picture in your post is always helpful in conveying your main idea. It can be funny or informative.
Check Spelling Like it or not, people judge us by our use and misuse of the English language. Misspellings can hurt you.
Moderate Comments Comment moderation allows you the control of deleting abusive comments before they appear on your blog.
Allow Anonymous Comments Some people appreciate the opportunity to be anonymous when commenting on a blog. Unless it becomes a nuisance and people are abusing this privilege, allow anonymous comments.
Controlling Comment Spam Sadly, the spammers have figured out ways to post comments on blogs. Make sure your commenters are required to type in a word verification.
Avoid Fights Sometimes people will challenge claims you make in a blog post. They might even call you unkind things in the comments section. Address their concerns without resorting to mudslinging. Keep the discussion civil.
Promote Your blog is your blog. It is perfectly acceptable to promote upcoming events, specials, appearances, speeches and anything else about your company.
Visit and Comment at Other Blogs A great way to drive traffic to your own site is to visit other blogs and offer relevant comments about a particular post. For instance, if you are a lasik surgeon and you note that Joe from Milwaukee blogged about squinting to read a sign a suitable comment to Joe might be, “Hey, Joe. Bummer on squinting. You must be getting old! I might be able to help.” Signed “Dr D” with “Dr. D” being a link to your blog.
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