I’m not one to set New Year resolutions (mainly because I’ve always given into whatever I’ve given up round about the third day of January) however as a solopreneur, I know how important it is to regularly set business goals. And there’s no better time to do that than in the early weeks of January.
So, my first goal is to regularly blog. As someone who has written about a myriad of things for nearly 20 years in my everyday job, you may ask, what has taken you so long? Good point.
However, 2017 was a year of huge change for me. I started my business in March and, three months later, relocated to Bournemouth.
So, with my focus on ensuring my family were settling into their new life (which I am delighted to say a big ‘hurrah’ to); developing my business (I was fortunate in winning some contracts very soon after launching); enjoying the beach rather too much; and generally acclimatising to a very different town to the one I’d moved from, blogging wasn’t on the agenda. Until now.
So, blogging. Why should I or any business do it? Are blogs even still relevant in 2018?
If you research some large-scale companies, they will say that blogs are regular performers on their website.
They’re a great way to talk in a little more detail about your business or your product and interact with your customers. The best blogs tend to be a conversation – so if you drop in a couple of questions, you have a better chance of your blog being shared.
Scared of writing? Don’t be. No-one’s expecting Shakespeare. It should be natural and YOUR voice; that’s what the audience will engage with.
Have nothing to say? Of course you have! I often advise clients to make their ultimate goal that of becoming an influencer. If you’re passionate about what you do, or know your product inside-out, people WILL listen to what you have to say.
I was recently talking to a nutritionist friend of mine who wanted some social media help, but who was cautious of blogging. I mentioned I had been following the clean-eating trend in latter months which generally alludes to not eating fruit because it contains sugar.
Nutritionist friend was aghast at how many important nutrients I was missing out on. I said, “there’s your first blog post – riding the storm of the clean eating fashion with some old-fashioned fruit and veg”.
Similarly, one of my clients was a high-end garden nursery. We’d seen a TV garden programme which said driveways were not conducive for wheelchair users. But the Nursery sold gravel stabilisation (yes, I didn’t know what it was either) which could make it easy for wheelchairs to travel on… and a blog was born!
And if you do:
• Be concise and easy-to-read. Some bullet points are good
• Include photos (and insure you alt text them for SEO)
• Make your headline stand out
• Have a call to action
Still not sure? Get in touch to discuss your blog ideas further. Remember, if I can write about gravel stabilisation, then you can definitely blog!