Growing your business through blogs and newsletters
Right now, armed with nothing more than an internet connection, a social media page or a blog you can generate leads or sales for your business for next to nothing. The next important question is where do you begin? You can get yourself a free blog right now, from Wordpress.com or Blogger.com and be blogging within minutes. View our previous article on if Wordpress is right for you business to find out more. Each platform has its ups and downs. I will only dig in slightly to blog marketing as I could be here all day boring you with what to do and what not to do! In short the foundation of your online marketing should be a blog.
Through a blog you can develop a massive community showcasing your talents to your prospective clients/customers. When I first started writing blog posts I looked into SEO software. Big no go, Google like SEO software but your readers will hate it! The beauty of a blog is it helps provide you with the needs of your marketplace and puts you at a personal level with thousands to millions of prospects. Through your blog you need to utilise as much valuable information as possible into everything you write to engage and entice your prospective customers/clients. Ensure you are building a community through connecting with your target group. You need to make sure you are being proactive, join in conversations and ask questions.
Ultimately, like anything you put in what you get out. Any business, in any industry can benefit from a Newsletter or a blog. However, starting your newsletter you have very few readers. Attracting readers comes down to doing the right things, in the correct way. Content most importantly is the finest way to generate a massive readership. The valuable rule of newsletters is staying away from the sales pitch, wrapped around generic boring spam content. You need to ensure you are writing for your readers, specifically for your target market. Lastly, always ask your readers to forward your newsletters. Do it in a way which is not begging, you are not desperate you just want to attract as many subscribers as possible. “If you found this newsletter helpful, please forward it to anyone you think it would benefit or find interest in!”
One of the most frequently asked questions with regards to a newsletter is how often do you send a newsletter a month? It all boils down to you being realistic. How much time have you got to write decent content that will attract, rather than deter subscribes. I would say no more than once a week but no less than once a month.
If you have found this article useful, please share to anyone you think it would benefit or find interest in. If you have any questions, or if you would like a blog adding to you exisitng site then feel free to let us know on Facebook, Twitter or Email.
