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5 Tips for AV Blogging

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As we wind down 2014 and get geared up for the year ahead, it is a time for reflection and resolutions.  For many integrators and manufacturers alike, that may mean thinking of ways to help promote and grow our businesses.  One way that many businesses are generating buzz is through blogging.

Some companies have hesitated getting into blogging and many I have spoken to honestly just don’t know where to start or what to write about.  So with that, I submit these 5 tips for AV blogging to perhaps help your efforts in the New Year.

Whats-the-plan1) Plan Your Content.

The obvious place to start is to make sure you know what you want to write about.  Sometimes this can be a daunting task but it really shouldn’t be.  If you are committed to doing a blog a month, it’s easier if you have your content pre-planned.  Think of the top 10 questions your customers ask you about your business.  What are they?  Those are the 10 topics for your blogs.  Then as your industry or business has noteworthy changes or achievements you can sprinkle in a blog or two about those as well.  Having a list of topics already planned out will make it much easier to write once you sit down, and help eliminate some writer’s block.

Say it2) Write It Like You Would Say It.

This is probably the most important part of blogging.  Blogging is more social media than it is journalism.  Forget what you learned about writing in college. If you are sitting down with and MLS guide as you start to blog, you are starting in the wrong place.  If you are answering one of the Top 10 questions about your business as I recommended above, you should write that blog in plain English.  If someone asked you a question at the dinner table about a new development in AV or a new technology, what would you say?  That’s what you should write.

3) Don’t Pull Punches.

PunchesBlogging for business is still a personal endeavor.  Since blogging is more social than literary, it’s OK to use the first person perspective (I. me, you, etc).  As such, readers know that what they are reading is your opinion.  Odds are if they are taking the time out of their day to read something you wrote, your opinion is important or valuable to them.  Let them have it.  Always be professional, but don’t shy away from giving your honest and fair take on the subjects at hand.

 

4) Stay Engaged.

engagedMost blogs allow people to comment on what you wrote, and a few will take you up on the opportunity.  I always judge the quality of my blogs on the number of comments I get, good OR bad.  Many times, if you are giving your opinion as I recommend above, others will disagree in the comments below.  Always respond.  I always thank the reader for taking the time to comment, affirm that there are alternate opinions on the subject, and then reassert why I think mine applies best to the situation at hand.  When you engage a reader enough to turn them into a writer, and then reward them with further interaction, the chances of them reading and commenting again increase.  Other readers may have had the same reaction to your blog, and responding to the comments allows you to address those people as well, even if they remained silent about their reservations.

ideas5) Pitch Ideas Not Products.

We’ve seen advice of this nature a lot lately.  The reason you blog is to establish you and your company as a subject matter expert.  If you were at your client’s Christmas party, you wouldn’t turn every conversation into a product pitch.  Not everything is a segue.  If you establish yourself as an expert in your field, people will come to you for advice.  You are looking for mind share when you blog, the market share comes later.

 

So, there you have it.  5 tips for leveraging blogging in 2015 to grow your business.  Now let’s just hope you’re thirsty, because you can lead a horse to water but…

 

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