You’ve heard about blogging. You’d like to write one, but not sure how. Now biggie. Eco Press has you covered! It’s actually pretty easy. First, we recommend you use Google’s free blogging tool, Blogger. It’s simple to use. We recommend this blogging tool, over others, if you’re a beginner.
Ok, so to write a blog entry, here are 4 easy tips:
- Use the inverted pyramid style writing: that is, present your major key factors and conclusions first, followed by less important points.
- Present one idea per paragraph.
- Write meaningful headings and subheadings (70 characters or less).
- Use bulleted lists to summarize content. This is perhaps the most important tip we can share with you. Because the majority of readers will scan your article.
Be sure to add the twitter widget to your blog (it’s easy to do, we promise– you’ll see this option when you set up your blog), this way, you can link your blog article straight onto your twitter account– a great way to leverage social media.
Feel free to include post your blog articles on Eco Press’ facebook page, and reach several thousand users.
If I could convey one thing to small business owners who are trying to get this whole social media concept, it would be this– STOP PROMOTING YOURSELVES, and start engaging your clients, blog visitors, friends and the like. Some of my own clients still do not get this concept. The fact of the matter is this, if you try to sell your services on Twitter, you’ll fail! What’s more– you’ll lose the few followers you actually have. I promise you that. Same thing goes for Facebook.
Now what? You don’t know what to write about? You can’t grasp the concept of not selling your services, or at least mentioning what your business offers somewhere in the blog entry, is a completely foreign to you? Relax! Chances are that if people land on your website’s blog, they already know what kind of services you offer. Seriously, the top header of your website is a dead give away…………………….
Here are a few great examples of engaging blog entries for the small business owner:
- My client, Dr. Cecilia Magalhaes. Dr. C as many call her, offers home veterinarian services in south east Broward, and north Miami-Dade county. She’s been a long-standing client of mine for about four years, and I love working with her. Why? Because she gets it! She understands the power of engagement. It’s not all about selling her services (well, it is, but as an ends-to-a- mean, not in the way of overtly over selling yourself). Instead of writing about how she performs a spaying procedure, we decided on this article about South African man who is known as The Elephant Whisperer. A touching story, about how elephants, like humans, grieve, and feel deep emotion. In less than an hour, Dr. C’s website got over 200 visitors. It’s only been up for a couple of hours, I am sure by tomorrow, there will be over 1,000 visitors. That’s incredible exposure for a one woman show. Not sure most of the fancy shmancy animal hospitals are getting this kind of exposure in an hour, day, or even week. Take a look for yourselves: http://www.vethousecallsbroward.com/2012/09/02/elephants-grieve-for-lawrence-anthony/
- Psychotherapist, Roberta Shapiro, creator of the meditation CD collection, better known as The Calming Collection. Instead of selling herself, she offers a free eBook to help people with anxiety issues. The results…………. AMAZING! Roberta’s meditation CDs are number 1 on the Billboard Charts.
- The Acne Solution, a natural alternative to harsh, chemically rich acne products– a wealth of free information is given through their blog about acne, and other skin care related issues. It’s an eCommerce website, but their blog has a plethora skin care tips and advice. The blog alone gets over 300 visitors per day. Does your small business enjoy 300 patrons per day? If not, please consider getting engaging more, and selling less. The sales will come, I promise you, they will!
- Bay Harbour Med Spa– an authentic European med spa, located in Bay Harbor (Miami), Florida. Of course the end result that any business aims for is increased revenue. No crime there! Here’s another example of how you can engage potential clients: http://mesotherapymiami.com/the-importance-of-dry-brushing/.
Not feeling creative yet? Here are a couple more ideas, off the top of my head, to get you into the writing groove:
- If you’re a divorce attorney, write an article about resources that a couple on the brink of divorce can seek out, before filing for divorce. Such as couples therapy, or a self-help relationship book. I know, foreign concept, right? Shouldn’t be. Because you want be pushing your services down your readers’ throats, if and when, they decide to divorce, they will remember the attorney who stuck out from the rest of the other boring, pushy divorce attorneys!
- If you’re a hair dresser, write about allergy conditions that may flare up in clients who get their hair color treated. Trust me, you’ll build a flock of new clients.
- If you’re a restaurant owner or caterer, write out some delicious recipes that are easy to prepare and post on your blog. Want to go crazy? Post a youtube video of yourself demonstrating how to prepare these easy 1-2-3 step recipes.
You’re armed with some great examples, and some promising statistics that should get you in the mood– so what are you waiting for? Get your laptop out and type away. Feel free to send them to me, if they’re clean in nature, and present some useful information, I’ll be happy to post a link for you.
Good luck!
Anabelle Taub
Before I begin…. if you’re interested in blogging for small businesses, this article is for you as well!
Hello, there. It’s your self-professed social media maven, again! Writing about a topic I think most small businesses fail to implement while trying to market to locals (or, globally for that matter). I am going to give you a couple of examples of how you can engage your clients, site visitors and/or blog subscribers, just like the old days.
Remember when years ago, we remained loyal to the local butcher? Ok, ok, terrible metaphor for this animal loving Vegenista- but I am trying to make this relatable. Why? Because your local butcher remembered your mother’s name, your grandmother’s name, your father’s favorite cut of meat (sorry if I am not using correct terminology, I am not a meat eater)! He always asked about your family members, he was marketing while being genuine! He would tell you about the specials coming up, while sending a sample on the house with you. Believe it or not, things are not much different today!!!! Sure the demographics have changed. Geography too. Years ago you could walk down two streets to get to the local market; today, if you don’t own a car, you better wear your favorite walking shoes, and apply copious amounts of sun-screen. However, the concept of catering to people with genuine intentions, with the hope of building solid business relationships has not changed!
Let’s go over some examples:
- Take a local small taxi company owner in Hollywood Beach, Florida. Rather than just having a website serve as a business card (let’s face it, a website without a blog, is just that- an online business card!), this small business owner is catering to his clients’ needs. The majority of them are tourists. What are tourists most interested in? Attractions, entertainment, and restaurant recommendations. Guy’s Hollywood Beach Taxi Service, offers all of the above! Instead of just offering a taxi service, my clients makes an effort to give them all the information they may need, right at their fingertips. It’s not much different from the butcher scenario I gave you. Same concept. Different times. Different method. Same results!!!!
- Take Sydney! Faye-Davis (a spectacular realtor specializing in Williams Island real estate). Just on a side note- if you love fashion and style!, you must subscribe to her blog. She helped get Harpar’s Bazaar get off the ground, so if anyone knows anything about style and luxury, it’s Miss Sydney! herself. Ok, I digress, I know…………….. If you check out her website, you will see that she writes about other topics, not just rentals or sales at Williams Island. She writes about all things that may affect the island’s residents, such as assessments. She writes about the tennis club. The updated summer dinning schedule. If you love your Birkins, Sydney! just wrote an article about how Hermès’ employees were found to be participating in counterfeit merchandise. Considering that the majority of residents at WI are wealthy, Sydney! writes about subjects that would interest them- money and designer labels. She literally caters to each resident’s interest through engagement, and genuine desire to purvey the latest news.
- Let’s look at Miami’s best authentic European med spa- Bay Harbour Med Spa. Instead of just selling treatments such as acne facials and products, we try to educate the public about preventive measures by writing informative articles, so that one can avoid getting bad acne. Ok, I must admit, I am biased in this case. The owner of this fab establishment, is my amazing European-borne and educated, glamorous mother. I help run all aspects of the marketing for her business. In this instance, I am able to gauge the success of what we do on a day-to-day basis. In the last year, my mom’s website has garnered over 30,000 visitors. A lot of them land on pages because they are looking for a home remedy. There are locals that can afford her services, and many that cannot. However, because we openly share preventative skin care tips, we have had quite a few new clients walk through the door, because they remembered an article they read about two years ago. Most med spa websites talk about themselves; not about the prospective clients. As Julia Roberts said in the movie Pretty Woman to the snauty saleswoman- ”Big mistake. Big. Huge. I have to go shopping now.” My favorite scene in the movie. We talk about the client, cater to the client, and focus on the client’s needs at ALL times- that whether today, next week, or next year, the return on investment dividends are exceptional!
- Need another example? Roberta Shapiro, a mental health therapist based out of Miami Beach, provides her blog visitors with a free eBook to help reduce anxiety. The butcher knew you by name. Do to geography we don’t have that luxury anymore. However, Mrs. Shapiro knows the plight of those suffering from anxiety, so she provides them with tools. Thus, many of her readers, end up purchasing her Sleep Solutions meditation CD, as well as her other Calming Collection products.
- Last example. Take my clients in Sarasota; they provide home concierge services. Part-owner, Leighton Klevana, writes about tax issues affecting second or vacation homes. Now who is not concerned with taxes? Anyone I know is!! Most of his subscribers, have become active on the website because of this very topic.
Suddenly, the local butcher is a global one, but with a down-the-street kinda feeling! I’ve given you plenty of examples. I hope you are able to think outside of the box, engage your current and future clients, and go back to the ol’ way of doing things, with a dash of modern-day social media marketing tactics.
Are you getting the point now? Feel free to comment (bottom of this page) if you agree, disagree, confused. Or, wanting advice on blog topics for your own site.
Cheers,
Anabelle Taub
Thanks for stopping by Eco Press. I am not only the proud owner of my social media marketing and web design agency (located in Aventura, Fl), but I am also a huge animal lover and advocate. Today’s short topic/tip is about business blogging. One of the biggest mistakes people make is talking about themselves, and trying to promote their services, rather than writing about useful and informative tips.
I find it so difficult to get this point across to my clients. Consumers and web surfers are very savvy now-a-days! They know when you’re trying to sell them on something, rather than genuinely give them tips and information they can use on a day-to-day basis. People are tired of sales pitches. They want to know you care about their needs, and not just the dollar. Of course we are all concerned with earning a living- so am I. However, I’ve learned how to leverage my contacts, website followers, subscribers and clients, by giving them information I think will help them. Social media is changing in a big way. It is about building a personal relationship with people.
I’ll give you an example. It is one from my own pet-friendly real estate services. Rather than talking about selling pet-friendly properties in Miami, I write about something I really care about– PETS!! Now the theme of my real estate websites is based around pets. So, chances are the people landing on my website are pet lovers. If they care about pets, they will care about their how their pets react to fireworks. Most pets are afraid of fireworks. They get anxious. In some cases, dogs have gotten heart attacks. One of my dogs is absolutely petrified, to the point that we monitor her heart beats.
As such, I’ve written an article about tips of how to take care of your pets during 4th of July. I achieved several things. First, Marketing 101, appealing to people’s emotions. Thus, rising an interest in them to want to read my article. Second, if they like my article, they will share it with their friends and peers. This is a perfect example of social media leveraging. Thridly, if they live in South Florida, they will now know that there’s a pet-friendly realtor in the area. Last, but not least, I get to write about a topic I love, I help to spread these pet care tips to others, while marketing my business at the same time. Truly, the best of two worlds.
Before you leave, here are a few more great examples of how my clients mix social media and CARING:
One of my clients offers a home concierge/house sitting service based out of Sarasota, Florida. Rather than just selling their services, we concentrate on articles about how to secure their homes against burglaries (while they are on vacation), or tax deductions on vacation homes.
Take Sydney! Faye-Davis, the maven in all that is Williams Island real estate– Sydney! writes a great article about how to manage your home remodeling project. [On a side note: if you're considering renting or buying a property in prestigious Williams Island, Sydney! is your go-to-gal]!
Need more convincing? My client, Dr. Cecilia Magalhaes is the world’s best veterinarian (she’s a client, and my beloved are kept healthy due to her superb care). Dr. Cecilia does home visits, serving North Miami-Dade and South East Broward counties. Her website is the perfect example- some pages explaining her services, and then, some short and to the point tips of how to care for your pet.
All of the above should give you some food for thought. These are perfect examples giving you ideas on how to run your business or charity blog. Less about you, MORE about your readers needs and interests!!!!!!!!!
Cheers,
Anabelle Taub
