How any business owner can write a blog?

If you want to write a blog you can buy a course, get some training, hire some professional guru or get some coaching.  Personally, I would suggest coaching because you can get better results sooner.  That is what I plan to do in this article.  I will tell you what I tell all business owners who want to write a blog, but are not sure where to start.

First, come up with some good information to write about.

What to write in your blog

• Write about your Frequently Asked Question.  What do people ask you about often?  If you can’t think of any, visit a website of a competitor and find their FAQ’s.  Don’t steal their information, but use their questions to get you started.
• Share some videos from Youtube or Vimeo.  If you see a video that may be helpful to your customers share it on your blog.  I suggest adding a few sentences with you expertise and opinions about why you are sharing.
• Share some news.  There is always something happening in the business world today. Find relevant topics to talk about as they relate to your business. Then, add in your personality and tell why you think it is relevant and what your customer needs to do about it.
• Share some entertainment.  No, I am not talking about the latest celebrity gossip, unless that is relevant to your business.  I am talking about sharing things that are fun.  Share a funny story that happened at work.  Share a funny picture and tell what it reminds you of about your work.  People love to laugh and if you can help them laugh, you will have a new friend. . .and possibly a new customer.

I hope you can see that you don’t have to write everything.  Make your blog a collection of relevant information to your customer. 

Let me give an example:

Let’s say Lacy runs a dog grooming business. She starts by writing about the technique she uses.  She shares her experience about how she got into dog grooming and answers her top ten FAQ’s.  She was able to come up with three months’ worth of blog content in one afternoon.  She spends 20 minutes a week writing and uploading her blog.  She even has time to add some really cute pictures to go with each posting.

The next month is busy for her, but takes ten minutes to upload four blog posts, one for each week.  On one she shares a cute picture of a new puppy and congratulates the family on their addition.  The next one she adds an encouraging quote for dog lovers.  The next week she shares a news story about a lost dog being found.  And the last one, she shares a single paragraph about her upcoming specials.

The next month she is back on track, she shares her thoughts on a new dog feeding system she saw at the store.  She took a quick picture on her phone and used that on her blog.  People are excited about it and she orders a bunch for her store and sells out in a few weeks all because of a regular blog posting schedule.

As you can see, there are a lot of things to write about, even for a simple subject like dog grooming.  Imagine all the things you can write about for your business.

Quick Exercise: Pull out some sticky notes, index cards, scratch paper or a note pad and start writing down anything you can think about your business.  Just put the topic or title in one sentence on each pieces.  Write as many as you can for about twenty to thirty minutes.  Even if you think you run out of idea, go to a search engine and search your business or industry.  See what other people wrote about your topic.  Use that as a spring board to write more topics.  Before you know it you will have over 50 topics to write about.  That is enough for a blog a week for an entire year!

Tips on Writing Your Blog

• Write like you talk.  No one wants to read boring technical mumbo jumbo.  People want to hear from real people.  They want to hear stories.  They want to hear how you can help them.  Always write as if you are talking to your favorite customer in person.
• The more you write, the better you get.  Your first blog posts may feel clunky at first, but keep at it.  Eventually you will develop your writing voice and your blogs will be regularly read by your customers.  The more your customers like what you post, the more they will share it.  When they share it, their friends may become customers, who share it with their friends, who become customers . . . I think you get the point.
• If you don’t like to write, just talk.  Record an audio or video of you talking about your topic and have someone transcribe it.  There are services that will transcribe your video a dollar a minute (like the rev.com).  It may be worth your time to have someone else type it up if you don’t type fast.  You can even hire someone from a college, have a secretary type it up or ask your loving spouse to do it for you.
• If you must, hire a writer.  You can use a writing service, a college student or a site like Upwork to get someone to write for you.  I suggest that you read it for quality and verification and make sure you take time to view their writing before you hire anyone.  Remember, they will be representing you and your business.
• Always keep ideas handy.  Once you begin looking for ideas, you will see them everywhere.  Have a single place to keep all of your idea.  You can use electronic notes or programs like Evernote.  Or you can just keep notepad or sticky notes handy.  Whatever you do, write down any interesting information and you will always have something to blog about.

Conclusion

I have to admit it.  I am a bit ADD.  There are times where I just can’t focus.  But even with that, I still find time to write a blog.  Yes, I know we all have a business to run, but taking a few minutes each week, or once a month to share our expertise is imortant.  People need and want your wisdom.  Share it with the world and the world may just come knocking at your door.

If you need some personal coaching, I have limited availability, but I would love to help out.  I bet we can get you started on the right path of blogging quickly and it won’t cost you an arm and a leg. (Click here to learn more)

Attention Do It Yourselfers!  I know a lot of us are DIY Entrepreneurs.  When we get started, we have more sweat equity than money.  If that is you, I have created an entire training for entrepreneurs teaching WordPress.  I am offering it for a special price for a limited time, so jump on it quickly if you are interested. (Click here to see the course.)

PS: If you are a person of faith, you especially need your voice to be heard.  Read this great article on Christian Business Revolution.