At a recent Chester County Internet Marketing Meetup, I took part in an exciting conversation about blogging for business. As it was, most of the people at the Chesco IM Meetup work either for themselves or for small businesses and organizations — and practically everyone was interested in learning about blogging for business. The conversation eventually progressed onto how to use a professional copy writer to help craft posts that visitors to a business blog would want to read.
The following suggestions are just some of the conversation highlights — the list is not exhaustive. Moreover, the ideas below are not entirely mine; they are mix of my own ideas and recommendations from a number of intelligent people at the meeting.
Share your knowledge of your business
No one knows your business better than you do. Even your employees won’t know the history, aims, customers and services like you do. You’re passionate about your business. Share that knowledge and passion with your copy writer to help him or her understand and feel your excitement.
Share your industry expertise
Many professional writers produce blog copy for a variety of industries. While those writers are likely to know something about your industry, they probably will not be as much of an expert as you are. To help your writer get to grips with the subtleties and nuances of your industry, be sure to coach your writer on the ups and downs of your business field.
Provide detailed feedback
Few tasks are as difficult for a creative as creating blog content in a vacuum. Without input from you, your copy writer will struggle to get the proper tone and angle for your blog. The writer will need detailed feedback from you about what you like about a draft post, what you don’t like and where and how edits can be made to improve the piece. Rely on the copy writer’s skill to add flavor, creativity and professionalism to the blog, but definitely take the time to engage in the drafting process.
Be timely in responding to requests for feedback or further details
In order to maximize the efficiency of your writer, it’s important to respond in a timely fashion to requests for feedback or further information necessary to complete a blog post. Courtesy considerations aside, the process of good writing demands a certain attention and rhythm, just like most creative activities. If your writer is in a rhythm, it’s best to support that with timely answers. Forcing the writer to wait a lengthy period for answers might even cost more as the writer will need to review the draft blog post before making further edits.
Plan in advance
As with any consultant, planning in advance makes for a more efficient and cost-effective business relationship. You will be aware of the different topics that matter to your customers and to your industry at different times of the calendar year. Plan your blog post content with your copy writer in advance of when those topics become relevant. This will save you running around at last minute to finalize your posts. It will also help ensure that you publish your posts in a timely fashion.
Be flexible to accommodate news, hiccups and other changes
To truly resonate with your business blog readers, you need to respond to marketplace in real time. That means allowing your schedule to be flexible enough to accommodate posts to address a potential issue in your industry. Flag up these news items and potential hiccups to your writer as early as possible.
Using a professional copy writer to help with your business blog can certainly be a great way to deliver quality content for your readers. Following the above steps can help you work in a cost-effective manner.