In This Issue Business Blogging: Q & A Resources Feedback Central About Cassie Hart

Ok, so I lied last month. I promised to offer tips to create better brochures in this issue of WriteTips, but I've recently become terribly intrigued by the concept of blogging. So I thought I'd talk a bit about blogs instead, and discuss how this relatively new communication tool can benefit your business.

I recently set up a blog for my writing business. Suggestions for creating marketing collateral, project management issues, and other useful bits of writing- related information--from a business perspective--will be discussed here. Ultimately, I hope this blog will serve as a useful resource for both existing and potential clients.

My writing blog is not intended to replace the What's New portion of my site, which simply provides a brief overview of selected projects in the works. Nor will it replace this Ezine; instead, I hope my blog will compliment both of these resources.

Check it out and let me know what you think. As always, feedback is welcome. And that's easy to do with this blog. Just click the "comment" link at the end of the entry you want to respond to. Then type your comment. (You don't even need to use email to do this!)

I look forward to hearing from you!

View my blog here.

All the best,

Cassie Hart

www.cassiehartwriter.com

Business Blogging: Q & A

Blogging is rapidly becoming a popular tool for online communication. Many businesses are starting to publish blogs to provide up-to-date information for employees, customers, and other target audiences. I've attempted to answer some basic questions about business blogs below.

What is a blog? Blog is short for web log (although the term has gone from just six letters to four--but anyway.) At its most informal, a blog is sort of like an online journal. Most blogs focus on a particular subject, such as politics, music, technology, etc. An Internet search will turn up thousands of blogs, and one source stated that there are now over 3 million blogs being published!

So what's the relationship between blogs and business? While many blogs are little more than personal accounts of day-to-day events, more and more corporate blogs are appearing online. When they are written in an organized and informative manner, blogs can provide all sorts of useful information, including product and service highlights and informative articles and opinions relevant to a particular industry.

Business blogs are typically used to communicate with customers (or employees). Blogs leave the headaches associated with online marketing strategies such as list- building, opt-ins, and spam by the wayside. Although blogs can usually be emailed to others, they don't typically operate on a subscription basis. Visitors will punch in a blog's URL whenever they feel like it and read posts as time allows. (To save time searching for your favorite updated blogs, RSS subscription services are available. Read more about this here.) Up-to-date information will help keep readers informed---most blogs are updated several times each week.

Does my business need a blog? Not necessarily, but any opportunity to communicate with your customer base should at least be given some consideration. And methods that are low or no cost, such as blogging, are definitely worth a look. You can blog for free using a number of hosting sites, such as www.blogger.com.

Are there blogging "rules"? Bloggers have a lot of creative freedom to write and publish content. There is no predetermined structure to follow. Although most posts are relatively short, you can post as much information as you'd like. Including relevant links and images will help keep things interesting, too. It's also worth noting that most blog writing styles typically adopt a casual, conversational tone.

You can use your blog to announce new products or services. You can also ask for feedback--about anything--from readers. Most blogs have a comment feature allowing readers to respond to posts. This is an excellent way to encourage communication with customers and site visitors.

What are the advantages to blogging? Here are a few advantages of publishing business blogs:

- Establish expertise/credibility by posting articles, hints, tips, and general information.

- Build customer confidence and relationships through excellent content and well-written posts.

- Post up-to-date information as it occurs, because in today's competitive market, keeping your customers informed is crucial. Your blog may even help close a sale!

- Facilitate discussion (when comment feature is used) between your staff and customers. Let them know that their opinion matters.

- There's no need to know HTML. Just enter text and roll with it!

Who should be in charge of my business' blog? A knowledgeable employee with excellent writing and organization skills is the best choice for managing your business blog. This can be the vice president of your company, an office manager, or any customer service representative. Keep in mind that posts should be regular; at least a few times a week, so if you want to publish a blog but don't have the time to maintain it, you might consider hiring a professional writer to manage the content.

I'd like to try blogging. Where should I start? Visit http://www.lights.com/weblogs/hosting.html for a list of blog hosting options.

	Resources
Notable business blogs Small Business Blog http://www.sbblog.com/sbbloghome/ Duct Tape Marketing http://www.ducttapemarketing.com/weblog.php Notable casual blogs Wil Wheaton (child star of Stand By Me and brainy teen on Star Trek: Next Generation) http://www.wilwheaton.net/ Rotten Tomatoes (for film buffs) http://www.rottentomatoes.com/ Notable blogs of all sorts (organized by category) Forbes.com http://www.forbes.com/personaltech/2003/04/14/bestbl ogslander.html Visit my blog! Writing4You http://www.writing4you.blogspot.com

	Feedback Central
If you've got suggestions or comments about how to make this Ezine even better, I'd love to hear from you. Are the articles useful? Have any of these tips helped with your own writing? Send me an email and let me know how I'm doing! Next issue (December)--TBA

	About Cassie Hart
Over six years of professional writing experience has allowed me to learn the finer points of writing efficient, effective, and creative copy. Press releases, brochures, newsletters, website content, press kits, and articles are among the many types of marketing and promotional communications I regularly generate for clients. To discuss potential projects not listed here (or to obtain more information about any of those mentioned above) feel free to send me an email. Contact me today for a fr*e estimate on your next writing project!

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