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Blogging As An Internet Marketing | ||
Blog is short for the word weblog. A weblog is a
journal (or newsletter) that is frequently updated and intended for the
consumpution of the general public. Blogs generally represent the
personality of the author or the Web site.Blogs can be used in the
business world as well. It is a concept that started in late 90s. It used
to be a way to comment an existing webpage, an opportunity for visitors
and readers to react or voice out ones opinion on the said page. What
started as a single-sentence commentary has evolved into pages of personal
take on just about anything and everything under the sun. As it continues
to move forward, online advertising has tapped into the blogs potential.
Here are some reasons why you should use blogging as an Internet marketing
tool.
Blogging is simple. The simplest way to get your piece on the net is
through blogging. No skills are necessary an average adult can read and
type, or at least click a mouse. Its like having a virtual piece of paper
and you just write your ideas, experiences, new products, and hope that
the truth behind your articles comes out and entice your reader to also
try your product. If you have a PC and an Internet connection (who does
not?) then you can blog and advertise.
Blogging is authentic. In this day and age where advertising saturate our
lives, we question the credibility of promoters claims. However, in blogs,
real people share their real-life experiences, unscathed by paid
advertising. Reading blogs about first-hand product use is like talking to
people about their first-hand experience. You definitely want to buy a
tried and tested product.
Blogging is free. Because blogging is yet to be proven as a mainstream
online advertising media, most sites see it as something to augment
current marketing tools and thus offer it for free. Any opportunity for
free webtime is definitely a bonus especially to businesses that are
starting up. Needless to say, paid blog pages can generate more income for
your seriously growing business.
Blogging builds credibility. As you get more and more into writing your
experiences on a particular product or industry, your readers come to
realize that they can depend on your posts for their own information
needs. As such, you become an expert on it; as a consequence, more readers
visit your site and more bloggers link to your blogs.
As companies and professional organizations notice the growth of your
readership base, they may soon get in touch with you for advertising on
your blog page, or make you an affiliate, which pays for every referral
generated from your blog site.
Blogging builds your market. Unless you are a Hollywood star,chances are,
only your Mom reads your posts. Mom has a lot of friends, so she lets her
friends know how interesting your blog site is. But you need not depend on
Mom to increase your readership base.
Here are some ways to build your market through blogging:
By using your e-mail. Today, blogging is overcoming the e-mails popularity
in quickly and effectively reaching and expanding a market. In this age of
speed and quick access, logging in and downloading e-mail is simply taking
longer than clicking into a blog site. Let them explore your site by using
a short e-mail message as teaser to your blog site. If your e-mail is on
an entirely different subject, use your e-mail signature to give a link to
the site.
By joining a blog network
A network of blogs maybe a collection of blog sites that share the same
industry, interest, readership base, payment mode, etc. Consumers find
credibility and convenience in clicking one link to several real bloggers
about a single subject. Clearly, more bloggers are better than one.
-By understanding your readers. Conduct a simple survey for your readers
to understand their profile and advertising preferences. Ask consumers to
give you feedback on a post, an ad link, or a trial that you shared. In
this way, it is like interviewing your readers without the commitment and
intrusion of a face-to-face interview.
By using subscription. An easy way to get your readers e-mail is to give
them an opportunity to subscribe to your blogsite. Keep some exclusive
information for your subscribers to entice readers to subscribe and give
their e-mail address. Just be responsible in using their e-mail address,
as the last thing you want is a comment on your blog that you are a
spammer.
By using RSS. RSS is the fastest growing technology on the Internet today.
As such, having RSS feeds to your blog is definitely another means of
generating awareness for your readership base. Having a variety of feeds
can add interest to your blog site.
Your business will get a boost by incorporating and effectively using
blogging as an Internet marketing tool.
