Long Term Planning for Your Small Business Blog

blog planning

While teaching a blogging class to small business folk recently, we were doing an exercise to get us thinking about our blogging strategies beyond the next post or the next month.

We posted flip chart sheets around the walls and together filled in all the topics and themes we could think of for each month (or season). The answers reflected the different types of businesses represented in the room - lots of variety. By walking through the months, paying attention to the many holidays and seasonal activities, we mapped out the whole year.

Sure, we all know when Christmas is, and that September is back-to-school. Some people are romantic at Valentine's, and others are gardening in the summer. Go the extra step and think about how your target market is impacted by these events, how they're feeling about these things.

Even if you can't solve their biggest problems, maybe you can make them feel better by helping in a smaller way.

To find those opportunities, you'll want to think beyond the event or the season. Try to walk in your customers' shoes. Making people feel good is where it's at and you can absolutely do that on your business blog. (This applies to more than blogging, too!)

Click to Tweet this Article

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Paper Counts

The paper you use when providing printed documents to contacts and clients is a big deal. Well, I should say that it's a big deal only if you use the right paper. It's a non-issue if you use plain old 20lb. paper and it's a real detriment if you use cheap photocopy paper. I have had a lot of people comment on my paper over the years and many have said it's an important part of my brand. Not only does quality paper look good, but it also feels good to the touch - it engages other senses - which makes it (and you) memorable. I think it also says that the person you're giving it to is worth the extra cost and effort. The environment: I try to compensate for my excess by recycling all the paper I print for my own use. Once done with, paper gets flipped over and used again. I had read that this isn't good for your printer but I just retired a printer after doing that for 11 years - can't ask for a printer to last much longer than that! (I also b...
Keep reading »

Storage for Great Ideas - Back of Book (BOB)

Image
Do you often flip to the back page of your notebook to jot down content ideas ? If not, start! When I'm teaching small business classes about online marketing, I insist they start a page in the back of their notebooks for jotting down ideas for blog or social media posts. This page will extend beyond one, but it's the start of something great. BOB (for back of book) becomes a new friend... your idea catcher . When you are looking for something to write about or post, check your BOB for ideas. Click to Tweet this Article
Keep reading »

Being a Rebel (Book Review)

Image
Interesting and frustrating. Those are the two best words to describe my reaction to Rebel's Guide to Email Marketing by DJ Wadlow and Jason Falls. The book was interesting because it was well-researched and full of case studies and examples. It explains a lot of aspects of email marketing in great detail. In particular, the authors do a good job of describing how email and social media work so well together - calling them Batman (email) and Robin (social media). Their definitions of social connecting, social sharing, and other social terms cover the basics but they fall a bit short of offering unique ideas about combining the two. The book was frustrating because it was about email marketing in general and I specialize in enewsletters. I kept thinking, "But that's not true for newsletters" or "I wouldn't do that." Much of the information referred to promotional marketing rather than content marketing . While some things hold true for both, ther...
Keep reading »

How to Make Smart Marketing Decisions

Image
Small business owners can spend a lot of time and money on marketing initiatives. Sometimes we're successful and sometimes not so much. I think of marketing as an experiment because - really - there are no magic bullets. There are best practices, there is good and bad advice, there are lots of experts and gurus. But we, the business owners, have to make the final decisions and... live with the results. Marketing isn't cheap (even if it's our own time) and poor decision-making can hurt more than our wallets - our reputation may also be at risk. So, how do we make decisions about things we have little experience with? How can we possibly know what all of our options might be when it comes to getting a new website? Or knowing which social media platforms will work best? Or building a content strategy? We can't... unless we put some extra effort into it. Step #1: Clearly identify the decision that needs to be made. Sometimes it'll be staring you in the face ...
Keep reading »

If Efficiency is Your Goal, You'll Want These Tools

Image
“You’re assuming efficiency is my goal,” my good friend replied one day when I suggested a better way (to me) of doing something. Oddly, I might be inclined to say that about some parts of my own work (just not whatever it was we were discussing at the time). This is not a story about the dangers of assuming (although that could be another article). This time I want to dish out some advice about how to be more efficient (since Danielle doesn’t want to hear it). I’ve written before about my essential small business tools ( Part 1 and Part 2 ) but these ones below are especially important to my productivity . FreshBooks (aff) Immediately upon implementing FreshBooks, I saw an improvement in outstanding accounts receivable. Reminders are automated and I rarely have to follow up with anyone myself. No more wondering, "Did I already remind that client?" Canva I've been using graphics applications for over 20 years - for fun and work. Nothing beats Canva's ...
Keep reading »

How To Give and Get Great Referrals

Image
Originally published in  Work Better, Not Harder newsletter March 27, 2018 How about that feeling when a colleague sends you a new referral? Great, eh? Referrals are so much more than new business; they're also a sign of trust . That's why we need to treat our referrals with such care. But what happens when you discover a referral isn't so good... or is downright wrong for you? During the past few months, I've been on both ends of this interaction. It can be awkward for all three parties. It comes down to expectations . The referrer sets certain expectations when they make the referral - and they can be about any number of things, including prices and turnaround time. Unfortunately, the referrer may not know the business they are referring has changed their offering - so it no longer meets those expectations. Disappointment abounds. How to receive good referrals: A good friend once told me how important it is to keep my potential referrers informed abo...
Keep reading »

Small Business Decision Making 101

Image
Simple is powerful... and a recent tough decision reminded me of that. I'd been sitting on the fence for about 2 weeks with a marketing project half completed. I couldn't decide whether to keep going or to stay with Plan A - and so, I wasn't accomplishing anything. I had an investment in time and money that was just sitting, doing nothing for me. Talking the problem through with someone seemed like the best idea and I finally pinned down the right opportunity with the right person. The night before we were to chat, I decided I'd better make some notes so I could present my problem in an organized way. I grabbed a sheet of paper, drew a line up the middle, and labelled the halves PROS and CONS. Within 5 minutes I had put my finger on my "sticking point" - the biggest CON. After a little research and math, I made my decision. No discussion needed. When I put my pen to paper, all the conflicting pieces of the problem suddenly became clear - instead of sw...
Keep reading »

The Best Reading of 2013

Image
The best reading from our newsletter contributors during 2013... Does your writing pass the $1-a-word Test? by Neil Everton, Podium Media & Communications Coaching If you are looking for a quick and certain way of giving your words more impact, look no further than your purse or wallet. Take a look at the last thing you wrote. It doesn't matter if it's a letter, email, report, newsletter, web content or promo script... read more Marketing to Your Tribe by Stephanie Holmes-Winton, The Money Finder This just in: some people don’t like what I have to say. They might unsubscribe from my newsletter, or they might make a snide comment on social media... read more Anyone Can Find Business on Twitter by Anita Hovey, Twirp Communications That’s right... ANYONE. The next time someone says “Twitter is just a bunch of nonsense” I want you to share a link to this post... read more 6 Ways to Become Part of Your Customer's Story by Bernadette Jiwa, The Story of Tell...
Keep reading »

Super Easy Screen Recording

Image
For a long time, I've been meaning to research and find an easy free screen recording application. It just never made it up very high on my to-do list. A few days ago I had an urgent need to explain something to somebody and words weren't cutting it. I needed to record my screen while I did something but I sure didn't want to spend a bunch of time researching and installing and learning. Saying I am  really impressed with  Screencast-O-Matic (aff) is an understatement. In only 5 minutes I had recorded a 30 second video, signed up for a free account, and sent a link to the video off by email. Seriously, 5 minutes... my first time using it! As an example, here's another short screencast I made just prior to publishing this post, which was easy to share to my YouTube channel. It's about how to check your iContact statistics. Click to Tweet this Article
Keep reading »

Remember Your Audience

Keeping blog content relevant to your target reader is a key factor in blog success but can easily get lost in our rush to get everything done. One way to slow down and remember your audience is to sit quietly at your keyboard for even a minute or two, just before you compose your post, to think about the topic you are addressing in terms of your target reader. Once you place yourself in your reader's chair, it becomes easier to write specifically to them. This short moment of meditation will absolutely increase your focus and build your blog success. Keeping your posts relevant, interesting and helpful will have your readers returning for more. Click to Tweet this Article
Keep reading »