The Skinny on Blogging for Business: Part Two
Ever wonder why InsureMe started blogging? Check out this recap of The Skinny on Blogging for Business as published in the September issue of the TAAR Report, and learn why. To read part one of this series, click here.
What’s a Blog?
Blog. It’s one of those words that, said enough times, sounds like total gibberish. “Blog” is actually short for “web log,” which is simply a personal web site that publishes articles in reverse-chronological order. That means the most recent content is displayed at the top, so it’s easy to see what’s new.
As previously mentioned, blogs are also interactive in that they allow readers to post their comments and questions in response to each blog entry (also called a “blog post”).
Currently, a new blog is added to the blogosphere every second. You probably have a few that you read here and there (undoubtedly the InsureMe Agent Blog!), and I’m willing to bet you’ve been on handfuls of blogs before and not even realized it. According to Pew (via Naked Conversations), one-fourth of all U.S. web users read blogs—and that number is increasing at the rate of 60% annually.
Benefits of Blogging
So we’ve seen that blogging is changing the way businesses talk to customers. But there have got to be some other benefits, right? Absolutely.
In Naked Conversations, authors Scoble and Israel sum up blogging benefits in what they call the Six Pillars of Blogging—which separate blogging from all other media.
Here’s a recap:
- Publishable. Anyone can publish a blog and can do so cheaply. You can post whenever you want, and the content is and instantly available worldwide.
- Findable. Search engines love blogs. The more you update, the more findable you will become. People will find your blog by searching for the subject, the author, or both.
- Social. The blogosphere is one giant conversation. Conversations move from site to site, all linking to one another. Through these conversations people with like interests build relationships.
- Viral. Information is often passed through blogs faster than traditional news outlets.
- Subscribeable. By clicking on the RSS icon, you can get free delivery of all new content on RSS-enabled blogs (which nearly all are). RSS brings all new content to you in one central place, so you don’t have to go out to all your favorite sites and check for updates.
- Linkable. Because blogs can link to each other, every blogger has access to the millions of others out there. And let’s not forget, search engines like links, too!
So the rewards are great. But what about the risk?
Stay tuned for part three of The Skinny on Blogging for Business to learn how to mitigate your blogging risk!
