The document provides tips and guidelines for starting and maintaining a successful business blog. It includes: 1) Key statistics on the popularity and business benefits of blogging. 2) Suggestions for blog content such as reviewing products, books, places, or interviewing experts. 3) Guidelines for companies on their social media policy, confidentiality, professionalism, and respecting copyrights. 4) Tips for motivating employee bloggers through rewards, providing editorial calendars and content ideas, and recognizing top contributors.

1. Why Blog? Social Media Policy: Blogging “Musts” Content Ideas
66% of daily Internet users read
What to Include
• Always respond to comments. • Follow articles and
blogs • Add analytics (Google occurrences in your industry,
-UM Oct 2010 Your policy on discussing
partners, employees, Analytics). and comment on other
46% of people read blogs more • Include images in posts experts’ articles with your
than once/day. competitors, customers or
– Hubspot 2010 clients. Our stance: Do not • Tie content back to what you own opinions or ideas.
negatively critique any company. sell but don’t be “salesy” • Review a book
40% of companies blog for • Share blog posts on social • Review a product
marketing purposes
- eMarketer Aug 2010 Confidentiality: What topics are media • Review a place
off limits to discuss • Use keywords in titles and • List: Top 5 or Top 10, tips,
Companies that blog have 55% copy (Google Keyword tricks, web sites, etc.
more website visitors
- Hubspot 2010 Professionalism: Do not post any Suggestion Tool) • A 2-3 part series of posts
material that is obscene, • Set business goals about a larger topic.
B2B companies that blog generate • Leverage categories and tags • Interview of an authority in
67% more leads per month than defamatory, profane, libelous,
those who do not. threatening, harassing, etc. • Schedule content for business the field (could be a Q&A
– Hubspot 2010
Respect your audience and your hours done by email with a partner
coworkers. Don't pick fights. • Stick to a topic – keep your or authority in the area)
Companies that blog have 434%
more indexed pages in the search blog themed • Describe something
engines. Company has the right to delete • Break up long blocks of text technical in a step-by-step
- Hubspot 2010 with sub-headings way
or edit content published.
Companies that blog have 97% Respect copyrights and do not • Include contact details and • Recap an event Prediction
more inbound links. plagiarize. “About” information an upcoming trend or
- Hubspot 2010 change
• Case study
How to Motivate Bloggers • Podcast
Style and Tone • Video (YouTube)
• Cash rewards for posts or authors with the most traffic, comments, • Presentation (SlideShare.net)
Use present tense and first person or social media shares – quarterly or monthly • Announce a webinar
“I am thinking about…” • Send them “food for thought” occasionally – articles and story ideas • Announce a white paper
• Encourage shorter, more frequent posts - Do not set a minimum • Reference guide
Infuse your personality or the word count requirement • Buyer’s guide
company’s style into your posts. • Recognize bloggers who contribute valuable content or write often • Comparison tables / charts
by awarding them, or give them badges on company intranet, etc. • Photographs
Many business blogs are about • Provide an editorial calendar of topics • Infographic (Easel.ly)
80/20 professional/personal in • Send out updates on progress toward blogging goals, business • Guest post
their tone achieved via the blog, and/or number of posts published per blogger
Blogging Tips, Produced by Erin Moloney | ErinMoloney.com | @ErinE