Blogging for Business

Blogging is an important part of developing your online community, and can be a very valuable part of your marketing toolkit. Using persuasive and topical content on your blogs and updating your blogs regularly have the following benefits:

• Public searching for topics that you have blogged on will be more likely to find you
• Public will be more likely to return to your blog if they find fresh and relevant content on it
• Returning public will be more likely to purchase training from you

Successful blogging will also support your assertion as an expert in your industry.

Tips on Writing Content for your Blog

1. Write with a specific topic in mind for each blog post

Let's use this article as an example: My topic is "How To Blog" with the target audience "Personal Trainers"

2. Name the article something topical or informative

The two main thrusts of this article are "Blogging" and the audience is "Personal Trainers"; if this were the internal blog of a personal training gym where they are referred to only as "Trainers", my title would be "Blogging for Trainers".

3. Choose topic-specific keywords for the content

I have identified the following terms ("keywords") and keyword phrases as relevant to this article, with the intent of increasing the likely-hood that my audience, (Personal Trainers who would like information on how to blog,) would be able to find it easily, both on an internal site and from an internet browser such as Google or Yahoo:

Blogging, Blogging for Trainers, Marketing Toolkit, Successful Blogging, How to Blog, Google, Yahoo, Personal Trainers, Tips on Writing

Notice that there is variation in how I use the word "Blog". It is used in combination with other keywords and phrases, as well as in different forms, including "Blog" and "Blogging"; if this were a blog about Personal Training focused on Triathletes, I would include such variations as "Triathlete", "Triathletes", "Triathlon" and "Duathlon", which all functionality address a single topic, but that address multiple variations of how the terms are used.

4. Write in positive terms

Blogging is a relaxed form of communication, and can tend towards being anecdotal and informal. In the context of your business blog, you are representing yourself and your gym to the world, so be sure that your communications are positive, avoid negative comments, and stay away from casual abbreviations such as "lol" and "btw". Reinforce your position as an expert in your field by giving good advice that is related to the topic of your article.

Avoid the use of excessive exclamation points!!! and UPPERCASE WORDS. Notice how the preceding sentence took a turn for the worst in both clarity and tone Uppercase words are read as though you are shouting, while repetitive exclamation points quickly dilute the meaning of your post.

5. Write bite-sized pieces

Huge blocks of text with no breaks are difficult to read. Paragraphs should tend towards being around 3 to 4 sentences, with bulleted and numbered lists of short phrases used when necessary to communicate related thoughts; this article is written for ease of understanding: those who don't have the time or inclination to read the whole article can get the gist of it by reading the section titles. They also have to opportunity to focus in on the section of the article that interests them.

6. What do you want your reader to do?

Be sure that every post has a "call to action". If you want your readers to purchase a specific workout that is related to your post, tell them which one: "In order to fully understand the techniques described, have a look at the "Triathlon - Training for Swimmers" video, along with a link to the video. (More on creating links below.) In the case where you would like to communicate information that is already publicly available on the internet, either paraphrase it and include a link, or simply tell your readers what it is about and include a link to the information.

7. Wrap it up

Summarize what your post has been about and make a closing statement. This can be done in a single sentence or as a short paragraph, that can also include a call to action, or to reinforce a previously stated call to action: "Go out and get started on your Ironman training today!"

8. Publish your post!

By following these steps, have just improved your online marketing, created a new level of reinforcement of your client relationships, increased your credibility, and potentially attracted new clients to yourself.

Congratulations! Now get blogging!