You probably already know this, but a blog is a special type of website where articles (or ‘posts’) are added regularly and displayed in date order, usually with the most recent one at the top.
You may already host your own personal blog on topics that interest you or about which you are particularly enthusiastic. Or, one of your duties at work may be to write posts for the company’s website. It’s this kind of blogging that we are going to look at now.
Blogs typically use ready-made templates for their design, and are an integrated part of a company’s website, accessible from the homepage. Another important aspect of blogs is that they are usually interactive. This means it is possible for readers to comment on any post, ask questions, make suggestions, and so on.
Businesses use blogs as another way of connecting with established and potential customers. They are really PR (Public Relations) tools, and involve little if any direct selling. Instead, companies use them to project a positive image and build relationships with people in their target markets. A typical company blog might include news stories about the business, information on new products and services, helpful hints and tips, case studies of satisfied customers, news of awards/prizes received, special offers, and so on.
The aim of a company blog is to build an audience within the business’s target market who keep returning to read the latest posts. This will hopefully lead them to linger on the website – perhaps browsing through the products in the company’s webstore or learning about their newest offers. Most blogs also offer readers a range of ways to ‘subscribe’ to them. For example, readers may be able to enter their email address to get each new post sent by email, thus saving them having to keep returning to the blog itself.
A blog can help project a positive image for a company, and make it more likely that readers will turn into buyers. Another important aspect of blogging is that, as mentioned above, it is interactive. A blog therefore provides a channel for people to express any concerns they may have about the company, make suggestions about its future direction, new products and services they would like to see, and so on. It can thus be a useful tool for market research.
There is no great mystery about blogging. You should write in mostly short sentences and paragraphs, use lists and bullet points where appropriate, and aim for a friendly, informal style (though the style must, of course, also be appropriate to the readers your client is targeting). Blogging software makes it easy to incorporate photos and videos, and it can be a good idea to do this when the opportunity arises, to give the blog added interest and break up the columns of text. Also, research shows that posts accompanied by pictures or video clips get more readers.
Running a company blog can be an enjoyable and not too difficult job. In the beginning you will be largely dependent on the company to feed you with news and information to turn into posts, but over time as you become more familiar with what works and you start getting feedback from readers, you may well be able to generate many of the ideas for posts yourself.
So, if you want more information on PR writing – and copywriting in general – then you should check out our Complete Copywriting Course. Copywriters are seldom short of work and it can be a lucrative career; working in an agency, working as a freelance or simply using your skills to improve your job prospects with your current employer.
