Seeking Sales Success

I see dozens, if not hundreds of articles and posts, per month on the topic of getting the most for a corporate blog. This article written by Sarah Campbell out of London's Times Online has some very straight forward and valuable points that I felt needed to be shared with a wider audience.

Sarah includes 10 points to making the most of your corporate blog, all of which are supported by real world corporate bloggers. They include;

Get into the ether. Start out by monitoring what people are saying about your company and products.
You don't have to do it. A blog needs to be a logical step in the conversations you have with your customers.
Test the water.
A blog is only part of the mix. Forums and blogs go hand-in-hand. Allowing people to comment on your blog is fine, but giving them the chance to continue the conversation in a forum is more constructive. ( I would add that giving your audience the proper points of conversion and/or calls to action are equally important here. Make sure that you have provided them the ability to subscribe to your email newsletters, or perhaps include an option for them to Click2Call and speak with someone immediately.)
Use your company knowledge wisely. Pull in contributors from all over your company. Your job title is not relevant.
Don't over regulate. Bloggers need to be free to say whatever they like – consumers will not value what they read if they think it is corporate propaganda. (It is wise to monitor what is being blogged about from within your company, however over regulating could kill the passion your employees have.)
Be structured. Hold weekly editorial meetings to discuss what is being blogged about.
Have regular content. If you are not updating regularly, readers will stop checking back.
Monitor it. “It’s the behaviours that count, not necessarily the comments,”
Enjoy. Do not force people into it, invite those that are passionate to blog.

Again, I have read dozens or hundreds of these articles, but this one is put together well and offers easily attainable goals for anyone exploring the option of implementing a corporate blog.