Blog. What a crazy word. Five years ago no one knew what it meant. Today it’s even possible to have a six-figure income as a blogger (OK, it’s possible, but not likely).
While blogging has become much more widespread, it still prompts befuddlement. Even if you can avoid the puzzled look, you may be just as perplexed at the idea of your business having a blog. Why would your business need a blog?
The popular concept of a blog is a place where unedited blowhards rant and play loose with the facts. Certainly some blogs are like that, but yours doesn’t have to be.
The original concept of a blog was simply a website with updates in reverse-chronological order (newest at the top). The word blog comes from “web log,” because it was a log of the latest updates. But blogs really took off when software automated this process and made it ridiculously easy to post new content. Comments made it possible to have a two-way conversation. Suddenly blogging enabled a new form of web publishing where anyone could easily post continual updates and interact with people.
The fact that blogging is dominated by partisan rhetoric and confusing techno-babble shouldn’t scare you away. What’s important is blogging as a tool. Just because it’s called a blog doesn’t mean it has to be a blog. Instead of putting on the blogger label, just use the tool.
A blog for your business doesn’t have to be a personal diary chronicling your favorite brand of breakfast cereal. Instead it can be a tool enabling you to easily post updated content to your website. The genius of a blog is the software behind it makes all the headaches of posting, archiving, linking and disseminating that content super easy.
Imagine the possibilities:
- Post news updates about your business.
- Share special deals and coupons.
- Post press releases, newsletters or any other content you’re already creating and reuse it online.
- Share tips, wisdom or ideas related to your products or services.
Your business can have a blog without having a blog. Don’t call it a blog if the word seems intimidating or doesn’t fit. But do take advantage of the basic tool of blogging.
