Chris Baggott's Guide to Blogging

I saw a blog today, quoting a well-known social media expert talking about best practices in business blogging. According to the author the expert said:

“For example, airline mergers, fuel surcharges and the fate of low-cost carriers in recessionary times have all been newsworthy topics in the travel industry over the past 12 months, and this is what a company in the sector would have focused on to attract readers."

"On the other hand, it is advisable for companies in the real estate sector to use their blog as an opportunity to offer tips on how to overcome challenges such as falling property prices, or how to take advantage of historically low interest rates when applying for mortgages. These are useful tips that go far beyond simply advertising a product and can help companies build a loyal client base, as they offer valuable information to readers free of charge.”

Uggh! Contrast that with the simple and logical advice of the master: Seth Godin…..

“If you own a lot of acres but just have a few bags of seed, you might be tempted to spread out what you've got and cover as much territory as you can. Farmers tell me that this is wasteful and time consuming. You end up with less yield and more work.”

This is fantastic corporate blogging advice….Focus Focus Focus.

First of all, it's a myth that corporate blogs have regular readers. Most corporate blogs have 80-95% of their traffic coming from first time visitors. This puts the idea that you should be talking about big picture industry issues out the window. Even big time A-list business blogs have most of their traffic coming from first time visitors... And most of your corporate blog traffic is coming from search.   If you are in the travel business should you be talking about the macro-effects of fuel prices on the travel economy? (a few seeds on a big field) Of course not.

Great corporate blog topics start with knowing the keywords your traffic is using to find you...and talking about that. For every 10 people who care about fuel prices there are 10 million looking for info on trips to Florida. The only thing that a business should be blogging about is what their customers are interested in....those customers express their interest by the use of keywords in search engines or search boxes on your site.

Think again about the real estate example in this light. What gain can a single real estate agent get from blogging with advice on mortgage rates? Last month there were nearly 10,000 searches on '2 bedroom condo, chicago'   If I'm selling a two bedroom condo in Chicago, I should be blogging all day long about my condo's countertops, bathrooms, views, coffee shops nearby etc... My traffic wants me to help them solve their 2 bedroom condo problem, not the mortgage crisis.

Make sense?

Relevant content to based on what your prospects are searching for is what should drive your blogging goals.   Engagement comes from telling compelling stories about how you solve problems for the people who find you....finally, business bloggers need to focus on converting that traffic.   Win the search, win the credibility and win the conversion...That's what makes great corporate blogging.