And now…

Blogs are kinda where mainstream social media began. People just had something to say…and Web Logs (a/k/a “Blogs”) were the new, inexpensive, and immediately available way to say them.

Now, we advise businesses to use blogs as part of an overall content strategy to accomplish one or more of these 3 objectives:

1. Define who you are (brand voice)
2. Improve organic search results and increase site traffic
3. Generate leads

With help from Hubspot, here are some tips to help you accomplish all 3.

Define who you are

Blogs are about content.  Lots and lots of content.  For a moment, I’m going to leave all the high-minded talk about brand to others.  I’d just like to address a very practical question we’re asked a lot – “I like the idea of blogging, but finding ideas to write about and the time to write them is overwhelming.  How do I make this happen?”

Does this sound like you?    We get it.  So here’s a thought:

Probe you own mind.  Don’t you get questions all the time from customers and potential customers by email, phone and in person?  Find article ideas in your sent items folder in your email by reviewing how you’ve answered those questions.  Ask your sales and customer service people about the questions they get and the issues they run into.  You’re sure to cover many popular topics.

We think it’s also important to get the whole company involved and not dump all the blogging and content-creation responsibility on one person. How do you engage the whole company? At HubSpot they have 80 different people who have written for their blog. They do contests. Public praise. Executives contribute. And they say they’ve built it into some of the employee goals for a couple of different groups in the company. Get everyone addicted to the process of blogging, the feedback and the positive loop that can happen by publishing an article.

If you want more comments on your posts – ask a question at the end of the article or be controversial. The more controversial you are, the more comments you will get. Also, leave part of the issue untouched. If you completely cover a topic, you’re not really leaving room for people to add something to it.

Improve search results and site traffic

All that content should grab the attention of the search engines.  One of the first things to remember is that your articles should be keyword rich.  Use keywords that your audience would be searching for – in your titles.

We suggest using both e-mail and RSS subscription. Certainly, most blogging services include RSS. There are ways to do email subscription as well. When you publish a new blog article, it can automatically go to the people subscribing to the blog by e-mail. For Hubspot, about a third of their blog subscribers are by e-mail. Other folks have 70 or 80 percent of their blog readers subscribe by email. Some site visitors use RSS, some use email more, and you should have both of those available to make sure that you’re making it as easy as possible for people to get your blog content if they’re interested in it.

Having an image in every article is good as is adding video.  They make it more visually appealing and give people something to gravitate towards rather than just a whole bunch of text on the page.  They make your blog more informative, more engaging, and therefore more useful.

Generate leads

Ultimately, whatever your business, you want new customers.  If you use landing pages in tandem with your blogs (and you probably should), it’s important to use calls to action to drive more traffic to your landing pages.  Strive to have a call to action in every post – acting as a link to someplace that captures visitors and gets them moving down the sales and marketing process. (e.g.; where people can register, opt-in, start a trial, buy a product, etc.)

Hubspot reports that adding calls to action to their blog almost tripled the number of leads they were getting from the blog.

We suggest using these tips as a foundation for your blogging program.  Don’t use them, and you’re probably throwing your time and money away.

What’s the one thing you want to improve about your blog results?  Let us know.

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When I think of a 23 foot high wall of water extending up to 8 miles inland…there are no words.  As always in disaster, the incredible people of the Red Cross were sending help almost immediately.  From their website:

Those who want to help can go to www.redcross.org and donate to Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami. People can also text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation to help those affected by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific.

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Stat of the week

The vast majority of B2B organizations find direct mail to be either very effective or somewhat effective for their organization. This is likely a result of the various personalization and segmentation capabilities organizations executing this tactic now have, such as personalization for name, location and other data points and segmenting lists based on a number of criteria.

Next, consider creating a social media policy or plan. Once you’ve identified the platforms, assess how much time you can devote to using them. If you only have 15 minutes a day, Twitter is probably your best option for keeping customers informed of news and updates. 30 minutes can allow for Facebook updates, such as pictures of events and products. If you have more than 30 minutes, consider crafting a blog post with interesting information about your company or helpful hints and techniques for your customers. You can create articles from your blog posts and add them to article submission sites to spread the word on your company beyond your followers and customers. Even one blog post a week can work wonders.

Here are some quick tips on making the most of your time:

1. It’s not about who posts the most. It’s about who stands out. Find a niche or an angle that makes you unique so you become a leading knowledge source.
2. Take five minutes to answer questions via social media. You will engage followers and potential customers, and show you care about questions and feedback.
3. Be sure all of your social media platforms work together. Keep your messages consistent and link back and forth between platforms. You’ll best maximize your time this way.

Keep these time-saving techniques in mind and use them to revamp your current social media actions.

For over a year now, I have preached the gospel of content.  More content.  Better content.  Relevant content.  Just keep generating and distributing content…it’s the “software” of marketing.

While preparing content and materieals for the launch of the “new” Burst Marketing, I’ve broken my first commandment:

“Thou shalt never stop producing new content.”

While attending to new clients and the launch of a new business, I ingnored the responsibility to connect with Burst Marketing’s readers.  And such, Google rankings are down.  I’ve lost some continuity with readers.  I’ve been a bad boy.  And I apologize.

So let my misguided ways be your beacon of light.  Once you start your blog, newsletter, friending campaign, tweeting, or however you communicate with your peeps – don’t stop, never stop.

That’s just the way it is.  See you next week.

Posted by: Steve Banis

Content is king, now more than ever. In the May 29th, 2009 edition of the Albany Business Review, I mentioned that distribution of content is separating ever more quickly from the production of content.

Traditional electronic and print content mediums are joined by mobile broadcast and by websites, blogs, social media outlets, email, video and audio streaming and other online content distribution channels to blur the focus of where people get their content.

As the where becomes more fragmented, the what becomes the central hub of your communication plan.

To put a spin on a piece of advice mom may have once given you…

‘it’s not how you say it, it’s what you say.’

Targeting is still important – very important. But the reasons for that and the execution of it are different than they used to be not so long ago. Targeting now comes first in the form of content and next in the area of placement. Cost per 1000 or GRPs are too misleading today to be reliable measures of spending effectiveness.

Your target may be listening or watching something one moment and then seconds later be somewhere else. Trying to hit them in a single spot is like tracking a mirage in the desert. Don’t try.

Content is the one constant you can control.

Posted by: Steve Banis

You give readers a chance to get to know what you’re about and provide them a forum for discussing your ideas. Posting regularly (at least once or twice each week) offers search engine spiders the one thing they crave most: new content. So it helps with SEO.

The best blogs try to provide a service to readers. Good information, insights, and tips. That’s what keeps them coming back and builds your credibility.

Blogs also provide an essential service to its creators…it lets them think out loud.

We take in so much information that it’s hard to remember all of the little observations that can turn into big ideas each week. So writing is a chance to noodle through your thoughts, organize them, and pick out a few gems.

Panning for gold

This process goes on all over cyberspace. And readers are the big winners. You can mash up your favorite blogs using your reader. This allows you to decide which “gems” have value to you.

My fellow bloggers are some of the most brilliant and creative people on the Web. I use their ideas in my business and for my clients almost every day.

I’d like to share a few of the best resources I’ve found on the web for marketing ideas and information in hopes that you’ll find a little extra help in these difficult times.

• • • •

(the brief descriptions are by EvanCarmichael in his post last year)

• • • •

Duct Tape Marketing Blog – The award-winning John Jantsch offers his astoundingly practical advice, tips and tricks for small business marketing.

Seth Godin’s Blog – One of the most famous names in the industry, Seth Godin’s blog has long been a favorite for all things small business marketing. As the author of the most popular ebook ever, his blog never fails to give you advice you need.

Marketing Profs – What started as a simple blog by marketing professor Allen Weiss in 2000 has today turned into a fully-staffed venture that provides marketing know-how and offers valuable B2B articles and event information.

Brand Autopsy – How do you conduct a marketing physical for your brand? Check out John Moore’s blog to find out.

Marketing Sherpa – Using case studies, surveys, and other techniques, Marketing Sherpa researches what works – and what doesn’t – in all things marketing. (BMB note: Emarketers and online merchants will find studies by affiliate Marketing Experiments extremely useful)

• • • •

This list is by no means complete. In the future I’ll try to add to it so you can extend your own blog library.

…your comments on the burstmarketingblog are always appreciated.

Posted by: Steve Banis