Why should you blog, about what...

...And some simple and free tactics to get the traffic flowing


With Facebook and Twitter dueling for year-end honors in the Social Media space, advocating a blog is a bit like driving around in an Ambassador. We know that blogging is not going to make us rich overnight, and we also know we're not going to get a million page views by sharing random snippets of our lives. But, there's still a lot to be gained by going this route. The top three reasons why I believe a blog benefits professionals/entrepreneurs and small businesses:

• Personal Branding: Suppose you are an auto engineer and are interviewing at one of the top manufacturers. Imagine the impact, if you pull out your blog and show them some great design or your thoughts on transmission. The written word is way more powerful than anything you can speak, and since not many of your peers blog it shows your commitment and passion.
• Connections: This is a great way to build connections. You will interact with fellow professionals outside your workplace, you might never have met otherwise. 
• Visibility: Again, if you put yourself out there, you never know who you are reaching out to. A blog gives you visibility beyond what your Facebook and twitter updates can.

What should you blog about? Blog about what you are passionate...it might be part of your profession, a hobby or maybe a subject--like the environment--that you care about and you feel the need to share. Some simple dos for a good blog:

• Pick one topic: Random rantings on a variety of topics is not going to build you a readership. Let's face it, just a tiny fraction of writers are good enough to do that. It's better to focus on one subject, preferably micro focus and go the whole hog. Your readers know what to expect, and the keyword density helps push your rankings up with the search engines.
• K.I.S.S: Keep it simple stupid. Short sentences and paragraphs. One clear thought per blog entry. Write in an easy and engaging style...unless you blog on literature or poetry.
• Post regularly: You don't have to write long every day. I like to do one long-piece a week and then for the rest of the week post links to other articles/news items that I found interesting. This way, I ensure my blog is refreshed everyday and I'm not under pressure to deliver an article a day.
•  Make it personal: A blog is supposed to be an online diary. So share your knowledge, but also share experiences. Readers appreciate first-hand info.
• Wait: There are a billion websites and blogs competing for attention...readers are not going to come just because you have a great blog. It takes time to build a following, so be patient. Most of us set high expectations and give up when they are not met. What is the waiting time? Depends on the topic, but it could take you six months to build a reader base. 

While there's no short-cut to building up a readership, here are a few simple steps that could hasten the process:

• Push on your Social Network: Most of us have decent friends' lists on Facebook and Linkedin. Push your content to them. Your initial traffic will be from familiar sources. As they like what you write, they will viral it.
• Twitter it: Facebook and Linkedin are closed circles, in that you and your friend need to accept each other. Twitter, however, lets anyone follow you and you can do the same. You will pick up a bunch of followers by posting regularly to twitter.
• Link back: Ensure your online resume, Linkedin profile and every other online entry has a link back to the blog. Get your friends to link back to your blog and do the same for them. This will enable the search spiders to find it more often...thereby increasing your ranking.
• Submit to web and blog directories: This is a one time activity you do at the start of the blog. You need your blog to be picked up by the blog and web directories. A number of sites do this for free. I have used http://freewebsubmission.com/ and http://www.blogcatalog.com/. Pay if you want to, but its not really worth it. Eventually content will drive readership and good content will always rise to the top.
• Build a Facebook Page: You can build a page on Facebook for your blog. I haven't done this yet, as I don't have the time to maintain a blog and the Facebook page to promote it. But, I've experienced the benefits that compareindia.com derives from its Facebook page, so will eventually get around to setting it up. 
• Publish on your blog and in the media: All my entries on social media marketing appear here. I have a monthly column in Entrepreneur India and also write regularly on biztech2.com. This helps me reach a wider base and validates me as a subject expert. Getting onto a publisher is not that difficult. Figure out the right publication for you and ask the Editor. You'll be surprised by how many of them say yes.

Finally, you wonder how much time all this would take. I normally spend about an hour a day on the topic of Social Media marketing. This includes my reading, writing and whatever experiment I carry out to push this blog or compareindia.com. I do have to spend more when I write these long pieces, but I keep that for the weekends.