Through my interactions with writing blog posts and guest posts for a bricks & mortar painting business website recently I discovered that it’s not quite the same as writing for yourself.
I’ve enjoyed the whole process thoroughly as you can probably tell if you’re still reading along with my series so far about how I setup my web design mini business.
Perception
Perception seems to be pretty important when you’re marketing a real business online.
Are you a funky business? A professional business? A local hero? A corporate wrangler?
As you can imagine, the online marketing strategy you might take for one kind of business could be pretty different to another.
Tone
Tone sets the perception of how your writing will be interpreted.
Using the wrong tone of voice for the business can really damage how it’s seen. If you’re trying to come across as a professional but can’t seem to string a coherent sentence together you’re in trouble.
I like to act as a bit of a buffer between my clients and the world wide web. It’s a harsh place out there.
When I say buffer, I mean screening the text they write up for me and editing it for tone.
Audience
There is about a million factors you could look at when analysing your audience, but I think if you nail these two you’ve got a lot of the equation sorted:
- Who are they?
- How do they want to receive this information?
Usually for business blogs you’re writing to your existing customers or potential customers.
For customers you want to convey info that might affect them as customers of your business. This might mean you focus on, product information and updates, giving out rewards for being loyal customers, and anything else that could change the way they interact with you and your business.
Potential customers will be a lot more interested in hearing about how your products or services are going to help them. You should work on providing them with some real value via your blog to build trust and convince them that real salvation lies in becoming a customer.
How this info is delivered to can take a few different forms and you can vary your approach depending on convenience (for both you and them).
Have you written for a business blog? What sort of business was it? I’ve recently done some writing for a painting business and loved it. Tell us about your experiences.
Photo Credit: ktylerconk
I think it’s important to research the blog and know the audience you’re writing for before making a guest appearance.
Oh my word yes, in fact, you’re absolutely right. I’ve left that out and it’s one of the most important things.
Connecting with the owner of the blog is absolutely critical. If it was just about saying “hey, give me a guest post” and them replying with “ok, give it to me” then what’s the point of the relationship?
It’s far easier to become friends with the people you’re working with – it’ll make the interaction much more genuine.