Alright, so I’ll admit I was a little slow to jump on the blog train as it were. My first impression of blogging was LiveJournal – and if you remember the type of teenage drama that would often unfold there after school hours, then you can’t really blame me for my hesitation.
But we all know know a lot has changed, and blogging has long since proved to be one of the most useful and pervasive aspects of online media. There are least a hundred reasons to start blogging for any given situation, but here are a few of the most compelling:
Why Blogging Is Important For Business
- To Better Yourself As Writer: From developing better writing habits (my personal advice: write 15 minutes every day) to slowly discovering your voice, writing a blog helps you become a better writer just by writing more. People who love to write oftentimes get bogged down with the pressure to adhere to some imaginary standard. If you keep up a blog, writing will become so routine you won’t find yourself so intimidated by the task, and your everyday personal communication will improve.
- As a Marketing Tool: You’ve heard it before: the best advertising is word of mouth. Blogging is the modern, online counterpart, and rarely can you exercise such control so easily in terms of the message you send to people. Not to mention it’s value – you can’t find a better bang for your buck. It’s a low-cost and high return solution that can be easily incorporated into social media platforms of any type.
- Further Agency/Credibility: Whether you are promoting your personal ideas or your company through your blog, having a vocal and current presence online gives you agency or credibility in any given agency. While this is dependent on the quality and relevance of your posts, rarely can you take the representation of your brand into your hands so easily – so make the most of it!
- Jumpstart Networking: In the age of internet, you don’t need to wait for industry conventions to hobnob with other like-minded people. Blogging is an incredibly simple and rewarding way to connect with fellow professionals in your chosen field to share knowledge, promote each other’s ideas, and further your business relationships.
- To Start The Conversation: One of the most unique and game-changing aspects of blogging as opposed to other written forms is the ability to communicate directly to your audience, and receive an instant, unfiltered response. Not only does this allow you to refine concepts based on collective knowledge, but it gives you the chance to target your audience with increasing accuracy. You can forget the market research – a lot of pertinent information about your blog’s demographic can be derived simply by reading your comments section.
Now What?
So how does one begin blogging? Most platforms take mere seconds to set up and begin; the hardest part is choosing your platform. Because there are a sizeable variety of blog platforms today – wordpress, tumblr, blogger, and xanga just to mention a few – I suggest trying a few out to determine which one is your favorite.
