CURRENT SITUATION:
You’ve hired someone to build your store a website, because that’s what you know you needed to do to keep up with the competition. But, outside of the occasional employee or family member making a comment about it, you really don’t have any interaction on your site from potential customers. Posting a few items from your weekly sales flier hasn’t drummed up the interest you had hoped it would. A trusted friend from the local business community has recommended that you add a blog to your site to attract new customers.
OBJECTIVE:
Establish a blog for your company and create your first blog posts. There are a number of blogging platforms available for beginners for little investment. Common blog platforms, such as WordPress, are customizable and either free or relatively inexpensive.
STRATEGY:
Identify key areas of interest that your customers want to learn about. Likely, your customers want to hear about building industry news and new products that are available. They are probably also looking for ways in which they can simplify and improve their own work—from building plans to business management tips. A good idea to start
is to list the top 20 questions that customers have at your store. Once the list is compiled, commit to writing blog posts answering each question.
TACTICS:
Commit to writing two blog posts per week. Gentry Hipp, of Hipp Modern Builders in Mountain View, Arkansas, said that he writes two to three posts a week, each around 300-500 words. He’s been doing so since Jan. 2010, and has amassed more than 1,700 posts on his website. (See sample posts from hippshelp.com below.)
“It’s all to be found,” he said. “That’s why I do this.”