WSJ.com Bloging for Bucks
WSJ.com - Enterprise
Note reference to spam below
Clients come to the blog, not the other way around
"What began as a form of public diary-keeping has become an important supplement to a business's online strategy: Blogs can connect with consumers on a personal level -- and keep them visiting a company's Web site regularly.
While any size company can use such a strategy, small businesses may benefit most: Blogs offer little-known small businesses name recognition, and the chance to boost traffic well beyond what they'd get if they were simply offering goods and services for sale.
"It's a new way of communicating, rather than marketing," says Charlene Lee, an analyst at Forrester Research. Like other forms of publishing, blogs attract the largest audiences when they avoid overt commercialism and deliver compelling and credible content, Ms. Lee says.
In a similar vein, blogs with character are seen as more effective than some more traditional online-marketing strategies, such as static, brochurelike Web sites and electronic newsletters that may get blocked by spam filters."
and
"Although financial rewards can be hard to measure, many small-business owners also use blogs to establish reputations as authorities in their fields or to provide how-to advice."
"Another strategy company blogs use is to engage in direct dialogue with customers by using a "comments" feature that allows visitors to post remarks. While some companies post comments selectively or edit them first -- typically to avoid embarrassment or having to write many responses -- others let it all hang out."
"To build an audience, blogs don't have to be edgy, provocative or funny, says blog coach Griff Wigley, of Wigley and Associates, Northfield, Minn., who has helped several dozen small companies start online journals. But they do have to be authentic and provide useful information. The personal touch helps build relationships with customers, something particularly important to small companies catering to local communities."
Note reference to spam below
Clients come to the blog, not the other way around
"What began as a form of public diary-keeping has become an important supplement to a business's online strategy: Blogs can connect with consumers on a personal level -- and keep them visiting a company's Web site regularly.
While any size company can use such a strategy, small businesses may benefit most: Blogs offer little-known small businesses name recognition, and the chance to boost traffic well beyond what they'd get if they were simply offering goods and services for sale.
"It's a new way of communicating, rather than marketing," says Charlene Lee, an analyst at Forrester Research. Like other forms of publishing, blogs attract the largest audiences when they avoid overt commercialism and deliver compelling and credible content, Ms. Lee says.
In a similar vein, blogs with character are seen as more effective than some more traditional online-marketing strategies, such as static, brochurelike Web sites and electronic newsletters that may get blocked by spam filters."
and
"Although financial rewards can be hard to measure, many small-business owners also use blogs to establish reputations as authorities in their fields or to provide how-to advice."
"Another strategy company blogs use is to engage in direct dialogue with customers by using a "comments" feature that allows visitors to post remarks. While some companies post comments selectively or edit them first -- typically to avoid embarrassment or having to write many responses -- others let it all hang out."
"To build an audience, blogs don't have to be edgy, provocative or funny, says blog coach Griff Wigley, of Wigley and Associates, Northfield, Minn., who has helped several dozen small companies start online journals. But they do have to be authentic and provide useful information. The personal touch helps build relationships with customers, something particularly important to small companies catering to local communities."
posted by JTH at 8:20 PM
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