Blogging Strategies to Build Your Brand
Isn’t blogging so 2005?
I mean, today we obsessively scroll through our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram feeds.
Then we stare on sites like YouTube, Snapchat, WeChat, Meerkat and Periscope—all of which are fighting for our attention in a saturated social landscape.
Where does blogging—some might call it long(ish) form social media—fit in?
I will continue to place blogging on a social pedestal. It has the ability to tell your story in ways other social media can’t. And I strongly believe that if done well, it can give your brand (personal or professional) a tremendous lift.
Building Your Brand with Blogging
Whether you’re considering starting a new blog or you’d like to fine-tune an existing one, here are a few strategies and tactics to help you make the most out of your blog (I shared a few of these on the PR News blog earlier this year).
1. What do you want to accomplish with your blog?
I always recommend tying in blogging activities to overall business goals. It helps you determine if blogging is, in fact, right for your business because you’re better able to measure things that matter to your business.
A few questions to ask: How you can promote the benefits of what you’re selling (without overt sales pitches) in an interesting way? How can you provide value to current and potential customers? How can you help your audience make an informed buying decision?
2. Consistency > Frequency
Offering quality, consistent content is a proven way to attract and retain readers. One mistake I see new bloggers make (and I’ve done this myself), is to get so excited about writing for your blog that you publish five posts over the course of five days…and then nothing for weeks. By the time you publish again, you’ve lost all the momentum you gained out of the gate.
Instead, set expectations for your readers early so they always know when to expect new content. Try to publish at least once a week, but that doesn’t mean you can’t write something every day. Unless something is super-timely, space out your posts and maintain a consistent schedule.
To do that well…
3. Develop an editorial calendar
Perhaps the most important document for What’s Up, USANA? is the editorial calendar. On it, we identify upcoming topics to write about (often tied to corporate marketing messaging).
It also allows us to take a step back and view an entire month—or year—at once to determine how different posts are fitting into the overall blog landscape. This is critical if you have multiple bloggers contributing to your site.
An editorial calendar doesn’t need to be fancy; we use Excel and place it in a shared folder that the entire team can access.
4. Interact with your audience
Your blog is an extension of your brand. If you own a physical store, operate a business online or do a combination of both, the way you treat your customers is your top priority.
Same goes for your blog readers, who are likely current or potential customers.
Listen to them. Interact with them. Engage in conversations that make their lives better in some way.
This could mean answering a question, addressing a concern, or simply acknowledging that they stopped by and took the time to leave a comment about something you’ve written.
4a. Don’t forget to interact on other social sites
Share your blog posts on Facebook and Twitter (or your social media platform of choice). This not only extends the reach of your posts, but it also provides you with another opportunity to connect with your readers.
5. Have fun
This is self-explanatory. Good blogging is a responsibility, but it shouldn’t be a chore. If you don’t enjoy writing or telling your story in this format, that’s perfectly fine. Don’t force it.
But if you do enjoy blogging, I encourage you to give these ideas a shot on your own blog. And be sure to let me know where I can find you online. Leave a link to your blog in the comments.
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Thank you for the topic.I’ve been planning for so long to start a blogging activity.Good advises,thank you for sharing ur experience.
Thank you for the comment, Herve. Planning is very important. Best of luck!
This is a really helpful topic. I’m into blogging and I really want to use it as a tool for my Usana business but sometimes, I just don’t know how to start and what contents to put. People here in the Philippines choose really ‘catchy’ titles just to read blogs.
Hi Claudette, thank you for the comment. We recommend using a blog to show off your lifestyle — What interest you? What are you passionate about? That will attract readers who share the same interests and passions.
Getting started is the toughest part. Write down a few ideas for posts and get them ready to go before you post any of them. That way, there won’t be as much pressure to keep posting consistently (you’ll already have a few saved up).
And yes, catchy titles/headlines are very important!
Best of luck. Keep us posted!
Can we use some of the blog posts from here so long as we give the credit back to here?
Hi Anthony, yes, feel free to use content from What’s Up, USANA? Some of the posts here might be a springboard for your own posts. Good luck!
Thank you for the great information and suggestions Tim!