Winning Online

I hear the question all the time, do I need a blog? What do I need a blog for? What IS a blog? Truth of the matter is that most lose themselves in the word “blog”, before they can begin to understand how it can help their web site succeed. My answer to this question is an emphatic “yes, you do need a blog”! I don’t care what industry you are in, what kind of website you have or what kind of marketing plan you intend to implement – if you want to get the word out about what you are doing then indeed you do need a blog.

Maybe the word “blog” isn’t the best term to use. From my experience, people are generally scared away by the word – after all, it does sound a little bit techy, let’s be honest. However, the term “blog” is not all that misleading. Blogs are just that, blogs – or web logs, or online journals, or discussion boards, or threaded discussions… however it is that you want to define them, blogs are big!

Blogs generally include daily/weekly content updates and are usually part of a larger content network (part of a website). Due to this, blogs can achieve and maintain quality search engine listings, and therefore drive very targeted traffic to a website. A blog provides a platform to create, edit, archive and distribute your content. If you are trying to sell TV’s, then you would want to use your blog to talk about some exciting offers you have, post some exclusive offer coupons or maybe announce a new store opening.

For the purposes of Search Engine Optimization alone, I would suggest including a blog on your next website. However there are other noteworthy advantages beyond achieving organic rankings. First, everyone has one! Seriously, everyone really does have one – you are the only one without a blog! It’s 2008, and chances are that you have one that you just don’t use, or you know someone who writes for one or owns one. Blogs are cool now, go ahead and jump in there! Second, it is an excellent way to get fresh content on your site. You know what sites I’m talking about- you go there every couple of months and the same stuff is always up there – no way! Static content is old news! With a blog you can quickly add new and relevant content to your site. That will surely get those visitors interested and coming back. Third, you can do whatever you want with your Blog! Come on now, let’s get creative! You can add video, audio and your own wording to your blog entries. There are really very few boundaries with the popular blogging software utilities.

If you are looking to add a blog to an existing site, we suggest checking out WordPress or Blogger.com. More information about custom blog integrations is on the way!

Until next time - nb