Your Business Is Your Past And Future Self

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After hearing Max Siegel’s motivational speech at Ron Sukenick’s "At the Top" networking event, I just had to have my autographed copy of Siegel’s book Know What Makes Them Tick.

I loved the whole book, but the chapter called "Balance Your Past Self and Your Future Self" really resonated with me. That’s because, when I’m in the planning stages of a business blog for a Say It For You client, as I meet with the business owner or professional practitioner, what I’m doing is trying to draw out that individual’s "self".

I often begin by questioning the blogging client: "If you had only 8-10 words to describe why you’re passionate about what you do, what you know, and what you sell, what would those words be?"

For business blogs to be truly effective, I believe, they need to be the "voice" of a company or of a professional practice. And, you know, that "voice" can change over time; it tends to become richer and deeper. It doesn’t seem to matter whether I or one of my Say It For You writers is actually composing the blog posts, or whether the entrepreneur’s doing the writing and I’m just playing the role of coach and editor. A blog, of course, is no one-time effort, but something that develops over months and years.  And what I’m finding is this: the very process of creating content to "put out there" in your blog forces you, over and over again, to answer the question of "What-do-I-want-my- business/practice-to-be-as-it-grows-up?"

The thing Siegel stresses in his book is that, while "the secret to reaching success is to see where you want to be, the secret to keeping success… is to stay grounded in where you came from."

I’ve always thought Toys ‘R Us was a genius choice of corporate name, and I guess what I’m trying to express here about business blogs is that your blog ‘r you, but not a static "you".  A successful business blog showcases your past – all that experience and knowhow you’ve acquired – and at the same time hints of your hopes and plans for the future. You might say your blog helps your online readers know what makes you tick!

 

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Business Blogging To Put Fears To Rest

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"The idea that people love to buy is one of the biggest myths in sales," observes Grant Leboff of Marketing Donut.  The actual buying process, he says, is hindered by fears and doubts.

As a ghost blogger and blogging trainer, I fear (pun intended) Leboff’s right.  In fact, for business blogging to work, bloggers (business owners and professional practitioners) and "bloggees" (online searchers) each have certain fears to overcome.

The main two fears I uncover on the part of business bloggers are these:

  • If, in their blog, they "give away" information about their field, including tips and "how to’s", they’ll lose, rather than gain customers – the customers won’t need them!.  .
  • They’re not comfortable "tooting their own horn".

I reassure bloggers that both these fears are unfounded.  First of all, I explain, the only people who are likely to find your blog are those who need your product, service, or expertise – they don’t want to do it themselves!.  Sharing advice and information serves to showcase your know-how and build the kind of trust it takes for searchers to become buyers.

As far as "bragging" in your blog is concerned, I explain that modesty won’t help searchers get the help they’re looking for. As sales trainer Steve Wamsley explains in his book Stop Selling and Do Something Valuableputs it, "In your role as an advocate for good service and quality product, you need to persuade people to act." 

By contrast, blog readers (the "bloggees") are fearful about the same things all buyers fear, only (because they’re meeting you online rather than in person) more so:

  • Paying too much for your product or service
  • Being disappointed in the quality they receive

Short, personal, and conversational, business blog posts (to a much greater extent than brochures, billboards, flyers, and even, I’d venture to say, face-to-face sales presentations) are ideal for showing how much you believe – in your industry, your cause, your products – and how much you care – about your clients and customers!

Blogs, by nature, are the perfect vehicle for putting buyers’ fears to rest!

 

 

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Easy Does It In Navigating Business Blogs

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The Wall Street Journal's observation about the hobby of "sweeping" is right on target for business blogging, I think. While sweepstakes have been around since the 1700"s, WSJ points out, they're more popular now.  Why? (Here's the reason, I, a professional ghost blogger and blogging trainer am so interested in the article) "…because online entry forms are so easy to complete."

Unfortunately, I've found, the same is too often not true of many business blogs – nor is it true of many business websites, for that matter.  Sites that make it difficult for online searchers to navigate make it easy for those searchers to "bounce away".  You see, the crucial moment in any online reader's encounter with your blog is that very moment when he/she decides to "do something about it"!  The searcher wants to:

  • Call your company (Is the phone number in plain sight?)
  • See more (Is it easy to click to a page of product pictures?)
  • Know more (Are there easy-to-find links to landing pages or other sites?)
  • Ask a question or submit a comment (Is that an easy process?)
  • Request information (How easy is that to do?)
  • Buy (Supposedly a result every business blogger covets, but how easy is this to do on your site?)

FutureNow's Brendan Regan rightly stresses that effective websites and blogsites "optimize a marketing outreach from the driving point to the landing page and on through to conversion."

According to Clare Rosenzweig of the Promotions Marketing Association, when companies like Coca-Cola run a sweepstake, their bottom line is that consumers have a positive experience with their brand.  Are your online readers having a positive experience navigating your business blog?

 

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How To Show And Tell In Business Blogs

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"It’s easy, it’s fast, and it’s proven to increase results," says direct response copywriter Michel Fortin, referring to adding pictures, photos, clip art, and graphics to salesletters. Using pictures along with text, according to Head First Labs, increases brain activity and aids learning. It stands to reason that including photographs or pictures in business blog posts makes the blog more interesting and engaging to readers, besides offering a hint of what your website is about.

Again talking about salesletters, Fortin stresses that better headlines have been proven to increase readership and response by as much as 700%…."But adding photos and graphics near the headline", he adds, "has equally boosted response, sometimes even more."

The types of photos Fortin recommends using for printed marketing pieces are the same types, I think, that are perfect for business blogs.

  • Photo of the author. In the case of ghost-written blogs, there would be a photo of the business owner(s) whose "voice" is expressed in the blog
     
  • Photo of the product being offered
     
  • "Before photo" representing the problem suffered without using the product or service
     
  • "After photo" showing successful results or relief
     
  • Graphics and clip art images to portray abstract concepts. 

One really important tip Fortin offers is adding captions to photos.  "Captions are powerful, as they’re almost always read," he claims.  What’s more, he points out, a caption can add an interesting fact or tidbit related to the graphic.

By providing recent, frequent, and relevant content on your topic, you’ve "gotten found" on the search engines. The next step, of course, is to "get read".  "If you don’t get people to start reading your copy," Fortin warns, "it doesn’t matter how good your copy is." Pictures and photos can certainly help in that department.

 

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The Most Over-Hyped Things In Business Blogs

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We humans are a funny bunch, remarks Mark Juddery in Overrated! The 50 Most Overhyped Things in History.  People seem to "find comfort in that which has been passed down as accepted knowledge."

I think perhaps there’s some over-hyping going on when it comes to blogging for business. I can think of at least three aspects of business blogging that tend to be over-emphasized (sometimes at the expense of the things that really do matter for building business through blogging):

1.   Number of RSS subscribers (or repeat visitors):
You certainly want to use your blog to boost your credibility so that you’re seen as the "go-to" source for information in your field. So in theory, at least, having lots of RSS subscribers is what Martha Stewart might call "a good thing".

The reality that I’ve found, though, is that many who RSS a blog are pure information-seekers not ready to act.  I’m not saying RSS is a bad thing, not at all.  What I am saying is that, while you’re busy accumulating numbers of RSS subscribers and Facebook fans, keep in mind that the majority are probably not your prospects.  The bottom line of business blogging is reached when the cash register rings with an online buyer at the other end of the transaction.

2.   The above-the-fold rule:
Going back to an old newspaper term, where the important news was placed  where it could be readily seen by buyers passing news stands, the version of the "above-the-fold" rule that’s been hyped for websites and blogs is that visitors shouldn’t need to scroll down – or across – to read the information on the blog page.  While it makes sense to have the most important content on each page be the most visible, the above-the fold rule has been a bit over-hyped. Bloggers become preoccupied with finding the "ideal length" for a post.  The rule I’ve arrived at is "Make your blog posts as short as possible, but not shorter!" If developing an idea means going below the "fold", I say, go ahead and do it.

3. High-tech visual effects:
I love the advice Robert Bly offers in 5 Ways to Stretch Your Marketing Budget: "Don’t over-present yourself!" "Your prospects will look at your overdone literature and wonder whether you really understand your market and its needs."

The blog site equivalent of what Bly’s describing is overdone blog pages, complete with "flash", scrolling icons, too many videos, colors, elaborate type – anything but plain and to the point.  Too much garnish, too little meal. The star of a blog is the content.  Period. All the rest is the accompaniment, and what you don’t want is the band drowning out the singer….

 

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