Ten Steps to Rock Your Business Blog in 2010

Thanks for this great list. I'd be interested to hear more about #5 and how it fits in with the rest of it. Do you see an e-mail list as an essential part of a business blog?

I do see an email list as essential, absolutely. Other than sales, your
number one job is capturing email addresses in order to build up a customer
base.

Thanks for sharing your views i have just started my new business
in the mid 2009 and i think this business blog will really help me
to build my business strong enough.

I hope it does, too. If there's ever anything you want to see addressed
here, contact me and let me know.

Awesome advice, Michael, as always. Concise, pointed, and actionable as all the best advice is. Like Grant, I'm working on making more of myself available in my writing, without crossing my own personal boundaries. I am no Penelope Trunk, and think going that route is ... risky, to say the least. But being personable isn't the same thing as over-sharing.

There is such a thing as TMI. If Ms. Trunk had nothing but personal
info, her writing wouldn't be valuable. It's the combination of the
advice and the personal that provides the best chance for success.

Sent from my iPod
http://remarkablogger.com
http://twitter.com/remarkablogger

Does this apply to selling products aswell? It's great information, but I'm not sure if it applies to every scenario.

Lets say I was selling a ClickBank product on my blog, hows the best way to sell it without sounding pushy?

Jamie, it does, but in a different way when you're dealing with products.
See my post on Commerce Blogging 101:
http://remarkablogger.com/2009/12/17/commerce-blogging/

Getting people reading your blog is the first step.
Getting them to jump over to your website is another achievement.

How many of your blog visitors become website visitors ?

That depends on what kind of website you have. For an e-commerce site, for
example, it's pretty easy to direct traffic from the blog to catalog pages
with links in posts about products (see my recent post Commerce Blogging
101: http://remarkablogger.com/2009/12/17/commerce-blogging/ ). For
services, you'd be linking to your own services pages every chance you get
in the posts you write.

In many cases nowadays, WordPress is used as a content management system for
the entire site, so there's no difference between the blog and website.

Michael, one of the words I think of when I read your post is "focus". Focusing in on who your customer is and giving them what they want/need.

Regarding #8 - Interject more of your personality into your writing. Lorelle did a post on that very thing and I keep going back to it over and over as a reminder to myself to FOCUS in on writing more personally. Writing personally and showing your personality in your words written builds personal connection and trust with readers and without trust, you got nuttin'.

Here's Lorelle's post: http://lorelle.wordpress.com/2009/12/02/have-you-lost-the-human-element-in-your-blog/

Lin, thanks for sharing that. Lorelle is a great example of this as well
(and so are you).

Great list, Michael. Only one problem - I see so much room for improvement! I'm going to file this "right in front of my face" so Mary-Lynn and I see it every time we write a show/post. Thanks! We wish you bigg success in 2010!

George, never write a blog post without the "bigg" picture in mind! ;-)

Thanks so much for your comment!

Tied into #4 - Use examples of businesses that have awesome blogs, and explain why you feel they work so well. Offer your readers ideas on how they can transfer some of that thinking and success to their blog, while still keeping their own voice.

Great list, my friend - thanks for always offering up the goods. :)

Holy crap, did you just give me fantastic blogging advice? I think you did.
:-) And like most great advice, it's the most obvious, simple,
right-in-front-of-your-face thing, just sitting there waiting to be
noticed.

Thanks!

Haha, not quite sure how to take that astounded reply... ;-)

Cheers fella, glad it was useful.

Hi Michael - Great, simple tips but oh so important. I especially like #'s 1-4, and 11.
Thanks for the kick! Happy New Year!
Susan

Susan, thanks. If you pay serious attention to the first four, you'll solve
problems that appear to be completely different problems, like getting more
blog traffic. And yes, who doesn't love a lil' sumpin' extra? :-)

Michael - Happy New Year, brothah! This list just made it to my cork board. Excellent stuff!

Sweet! Thanks for letting me know it helped. :-)

-- 4. Blog about your customers’ success, not what you know or do. --

I don't need to just blog about what I know? Hmm... That's actually a pretty good insight... Mind explaining a little more?

Kris, thanks so much for your question. I really should have taken the time
to find relevant posts and linked to them, but I think if you read Make Your
Customer the Hero, you'll get what I mean by this point.

http://remarkablogger.com/2009/08/22/make-your-customer-the-hero

I plan on taking all these ideas to heart and practicing them starting NOW.

Thanks for the tips

Jason, that's awesome. I'd love it if you came back here and left a comment about your results.

Great list, I already did some of this points and was thinking in couple of other ideas, this list really put's everything clear. Thank you and happy new year.

You're welcome Ricardo. Happy New Year to you as well! :-)

I like the simplicity Michael. Focus on the customer, write to them, and you'll attract more of those "ideal" customers. :)

Rob, my view on business blogging is to attract business. After all, that's
what most marketing has always been designed to do. Too many bloggers hobnob
with their peers instead of focusing on the object of their business: the
customer.

That is a really good point. I'm starting a new blog in a couple of weeks and really need to focus on the reader rather than all my blogging buddies.

I'm printing out this list, and hanging it above my computer!

Your advice comes from such an unselfish point of view, and reverses the typical, selfish blogger to ask the question, "what does my audience need/ want/expect?" This is one of my main blogging goals for 2010, so thank you for giving me simple guidelines to begin with. :)

That is sooo the best thing to do with this list! These are in fact the comandments of the blogger!

Karen, that's what I love to hear!

I wish I could take my own advice more often. I'm trying to (it's harder
than you think). Sometime soon I hope to begin profiling client success
stories here.

As always Michael, to the point and right on point. I know for me, one area I am going to focus on this year is "Inject more of your personality into your writing." I truly feel that in 2010, those businesses who focus on the customer and/or client and provide what they need, will move ahead of those who don't. No longer can businesses and business bloggers rely on the fact or illusion they are it. They have to provide value and take care of their customers.

For the business blogger, doing that is really very simple. Find out what their target audience or market is looking for. Find out what questions they are trying to find answers to. And find out what solutions they are looking for. As business bloggers, those using a blog to promote and market their businesses, they need to jump up and down and scream to the top of their lungs the successes of their customers. How have you solved the problems and provided the solutions of your customers.

Focus on providing the information in a form and fashion your audience can use and understand and you will move in the right direction. And all of the steps mentioned in Michael's post will do just that.

2010 is going to be an exciting year for those businesses and business bloggers who strive to give their customers and/or clients what they are wanting.

Grant, I look forward to seeing that happen at Blog for Profit. You'll find
it gives you a higher level of engagement and people will be more inclined
to subscribe. I can think of no better example than Naomi Dunford of
IttyBiz. If I could make a suggestion, it would be to flip the solution
around and focus more on the problems. People mostly search using
problem-based keywords because they often don't know what solutions exist.
When people are in pain over some issue, you want to appear as sweet
relief!

Could not agree more. And you are exactly right about Naomi Dunford. If there is anyone who is true to themselves in their writing, it would certainly be Naomi.

I also can't wait to kick some butt with what you and I have planned this year too. Thanks again!