Lots of our competitors have set up blogs on their websites. If we create one, what should we write about and how successful could we expect it to be?
First you must decide what you want to communicate. Lots of early corporate blogs were set up without much thought and quickly ran out of steam.
Digital marketing strategist Leon Bailey-Green suggests retailers define the content first, and try to do something a little different so site visitors have a compelling reason to visit the blog. He says: “For instance, Koodos has a blog called Bargainista which is aiming to give out information on great offers customers can get anywhere.”
He says this positions Koodos as a fashion discounter, while at the same time being helpful for search engine optimisation. For other retailers, a focus on products, or what members of staff are getting up to and have seen could be more appropriate.
Bailey-Green says: “Blogs work best if entries are quite short and snappy, around 120 words, and with lots of pictures.” He adds: “Everyone should be able to write something relevant about their company within half an hour.”
To get the maximum benefit you should publish the blog on the same domain as your main site, or at least a sub-domain. Another trick is to post blog content on relevant product pages, as well as via a blog or news page, to maximise its impact.
Bailey-Green suggests initial success should be measured on how many other sites link to a blog, as well as who views it, talks about it and post comments. Only after four to six months of consistent blogging should you start to look closely at how it is affecting sales.
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