Why communicate?
Most firms forget they have a story to tell, and even if they realise this, they do not always have a plan through which they will deliver the story. The single objective of continuous client communications is to remain present in your clients’ minds, with relevant content that illustrates your capabilities.
Blogs are online articles created with the purpose of providing regular and relevant communication to your customers and partners. Done well, blogs can enhance your brand and your SEO rating.
Why are you doing this?
Think about your purpose when blogging. You might have multiple purposes or a very focused view. You may be looking to acquire new customers or retain existing ones. You may want to improve awareness of your brand. Your objectives will shape your blogging strategy.
Blogging is an opportunity for you and your business to demonstrate your credentials and credibility to both your prospective customers and your current customers. Let’s talk about prospective customers first.
Blogs can be an excellent opportunity to communicate areas of expertise in your business and a demonstration of how you can answer questions which your potential customers might have.
Let’s think too about current customers. Many businesses have a blind spot when it comes to communicating with their current customers and they can often fail to keep them up to date with their latest product services or initiatives. Blogging is a great way of engaging customers. It can provide you with a ready made opportunity to connect with customers through email or direct marketing, to demonstrate your latest thoughts in a blog.
Worst case is that you simply remain top of mind for them as a potential supplier. Best case is that your blog lands with them at an appropriate moment and stimulates them to contact you with a question, a sales enquiry, and potentially an order.
It also allows you to talk to your audience more naturally, with less need for ‘business-speak’, which really helps with your overall brand.
Re-purpose and re-use
When you create blog content, you are creating an asset which you can re-purpose and re-use.
Some ways in which you can re-use your blog content:
- E mail your latest blog to your appropriate contacts, so that they have an ‘exclusive’ peak at the blog when it’s released.
- Convert your blog into a LinkedIn article.
- Use your blog as the basis for a podcast script