Finally!

Posted by Beth

October 20, 2008

OK, I’ve been helping clients launch blogs for a few years now and just now I am launching my own professional blog. You may ask, how can I consult others when I did not have my own blog. Easy, I first help clients decide if a blog is right for them and their business before I ever consult on the best way to implement it. I asked myself the same questions I would ask a client and until recently all my answers pointed towards “No, I should not blog.”

How did I come to that conclusion? For one, I didn’t know if I would have the time to commit to writing posts and moderating comments. In order to have a blog worth reading, it cannot be an online news site where you just post the company’s latest customer deal or new product. You have to connect with your audience and provide worthwhile information. While I may not have any more time than a year ago, I have decided it was well worth my time to commit to a blog.

The second thing that kept me from starting my blog was dealing with negative comments. I want everyone to like me and while I know that is not possible, I feel like if I can’t hear or read the negativity towards me it must not exist. Having a blog and opening yourself to negative comments is an important consideration. I feel like I am now at a place where I will welcome a healthy debate. I will be working on a post soon about dealing with negative comments. I promise to take my own advice.

The final thing that kept me at bay for so long was that you should have something to say and have a unique position in your industry to share. There are hundreds, if not thousands of blogs on social media and social media marketing. What I have found over the years is that there are many small businesses out there that may understand they need to be involved in Internet marketing, but don’t know the best way to implement. When I talk to companies, a light seems to go on in them and they connect the dots. I’m using this blog to give small companies that first step and the information they need to make the best decisions for them.

So you may ask what was I doing with my time if I was not blogging? I took the time to participate in many other forms of social media. I first studied them as a anthropologist rather than from a technology or marketing point of view. I wanted to first observe and learn how people used each tool and interacted with each other. After the initial observations, I began to glean that information into what would and would not work in marketing your company.

The conversations between people have not changed over the years. People have always participated in word of mouth about companies they like and dislike. The thing that has changed is that these conversations are now more public and there is a permanent record of them for future viewing. Your main advantage is that you now have an opportunity to listen in on the conversation and respond if you choose.

There are many tools that allow for you to join the conversation and they are constantly evolving with new ones coming onto the market all the time. As each tool is introduced, people and organizations are finding new and exciting ways to communicate. The number of tools does make it overwhelming, but you do not have to be involved in every social media site on the Internet. Pick and choose what works best for you and your target audience.

So given this information, I have identified the tools that I want to use at this time and this blog will become one of my main communication tools. I hope to provide you with insights and opinions regarding the what, why, when, where, who, where and how of the social media marketing landscape. I hope you join me in discussion by leaving comments and asking questions via the Ask Beth button in the right hand column.

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