Lesson 3 - Put a Subscription Form on Your Blog

You've probably already heard, or read, others say, "The money is in the list". Well, it's true. This is a list of people who have subscribed or registered to receive emails from you in the form of a newsletter or promotional emails. For some of you, this is old news, and to you I say congratulations, because you probably already have Sign Up forms in place. For the rest of you, you should ALWAYS have a mailing list opt-in form on whatever is the first point of contact with your potential customers. This includes your Splash Page, the main page of your website, and your business blog.

When you set up your business blog, you should have a form on the front page for readers to subscribe to your mailing list. There are many form plug-ins to choose from for different types of blog platforms. I use PayNet Responder because they are the cheapest. If you already subscribe to an autoresponder service, then chances are you may use it.

You should offer your readers something for free for signing up to your newsletter on your blog. Do you have a service you could offer an hour of for free or half an hour? Or how about a product you sell? If you can offer your readers a small token of appreciation, they will return the favor by subscribing to your email list.

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Your list is built one person, one email at a time. Even if you only have one subscriber to your newsletter, begin sending information to that person that will benefit him/her, and that he/she will most likely respond to. However, you never want to send email to your readers simply for the sake of sending them something. The purpose of the email is to keep in touch with your readers so they will continue to return to your site. Therefore, be sure you offer them something of value in your newsletter or promotion.

There are several email management programs to choose from on the web, so finding one that suits your needs won’t be difficult at all. They range from a simple email management program for up to 100 subscribers, to a full blown ecommerce system that supports everything from your email lists, to a shopping cart, and so on. Of course, these come with a healthy monthly fee, so if you’re just starting out with your business blog, you may not want a full ecommerce system yet. As I said above, I use PayNet Responder. I like it because you can start with a free account, which is good until you reach 2,500 subscribers. At that point you would have to upgrade to either their Pro or Pro-Plus accounts, either of which is much cheaper than other email management systems.

If you already have a business blog established but do not utilize an email management system, you are missing out on a huge opportunity to reach more people and retain the readers you already have. Don’t wait one minute longer! Boost your business instantly by setting up an email management program now.

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Here's to Your Success!
Yoshio Sugawara
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Lesson 2 - Focus Your Business Blog on Your Target Market

It is very important that your business blog focuses on your target market because they are your true potential customers. They are your bread and butter. So how do you focus your business blog on your target market?


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First, choose the name of your business blog carefully. This is the title of your business blog your blogging platform will require when you set up your blog for the first time. Here are a few things to keep in mind as you come up with the name of your business blog.

• You may use the name of your business (i.e. Sam’s Hardware Store Blog). However, that all depends on the actual name of your business, because you definitely don’t want your business blog name to be too cheesy. Neither do you want it to be so long that no one can remember the exact wording, so if the name of your business falls into either of these categories, consider modifying it accordingly.
  
  
• You can use the name of a specific product you sell. For example, if you sell jewelry, you could use something catchy, like "Gems from Julie", or whatever your first name is.
  
  
• Another great way to come up with an appropriate name for your business blog, is to do a keyword search on the words that best describe your business, target market, and products you sell or services you provide. Doing a keyword search will tell you how many hits certain words that pertain to your business receive. Then incorporate the words that get the most hits into the title of your blog. That way your target market will easily find your business blog, when they use a search engine, such as Google or Yahoo. Here is a free keyword search tool you may use: Google Keyword Tool

Second, when you are coming up with blog posts, stick with topics that pertain to
your business. When readers come to your business blog, they are expecting to find information about the services or products you offer. Don’t sell them short by posting about stuff that has nothing to do with your business. This may cause them to leave and never come back.

Finally, if you place any ads on your business blog, be sure that they are relevant to your business. You won’t make any money, if you have buttons advertising jewelry when you sell tools. Google AdSense is a great service to use, because they automatically place only targeted ads onto your business blog, based on the content of the page you put them on. Besides, your readers may get the sense you are just trying to make money instead of truly helping them, which may also cause them to leave and never come back. Remember, providing something that will help your readers is really the main goal of your business blog.

Click here to get your copy of "The Business Blogger's Manual"

Here's to Your Success!
Yoshio Sugawara
Click here to see where this article originated.

Lesson 1 - Be Consistent With Your Blog

Consistency is "Job One" with your business blog. It is the key to attracting a loyal reader base. Your readers will begin to develop expectations from visits to your business blog. Your readers will come to know you by your brand. Your brand is conveyed by your writing style, the frequency of your posts, and even the colors and fonts you use. Therefore, maintaining consistency throughout your business blog is something you will always want to keep in mind.

First, formulate a plan before you create your business blog. Consider what colors and font styles you are going to use on your business blog. If you have a business website, you'll want your business blog to flow with it, so using colors and styles that complement your website would be your best option.

If you don't have a website for your business, but you've got a logo, then use colors and styles that are in your logo. Note: If you have a logo for your business, be sure to put it on your business blog. If you don't have a logo, think of a look and style you want your customers to recognize as your business.

Now if you've already got a business blog up and running, make sure you haven't used too many colors or fonts. Limit yourself to 2 or 3 colors throughout your blog and then choose only one or two font styles at the most. Having too many colors and fonts will make your blog appear cluttered. Your readers may lose interest because they will feel overwhelmed by all the "busy-ness".


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Second, you must maintain consistency with the content of your posts, as well. When you are writing posts for your business blog, they need to be geared toward your products, services and business. It's okay to add a little personal flair in some of your posts, but for the most part, the main content should always be professional information about your business. A personal or social blog is something completely different, because you want to brand it with your own personality, so this advice pertains specifically to business blogging.

Third, your writing style should also be consistent. If you are writing your own posts, this shouldn't be a problem. Just decide on a style you want to use for a particular business blog, and consistently follow it. If you use a ghostwriter to write your blog content, be sure to limit yourself to one or two, for any particular blog. There is nothing wrong with using a ghostwriter. Just be sure their writing style is consistent and produces the kind of content you would, if you were actually doing the writing. Otherwise, you may end up with too many writing styles and your readers may pick up on the fact you use ghostwriters.

Finally, be consistent with the frequency of your posts. You don't have to post every day, or every other day, to have a successful business blog. You can post once a week, or even twice a month, but if you do, make sure you pick a specific day of the week, or month, and consistently post to your blog on that day.

Everything combined becomes your brand, so once you have decided on the colors and fonts you want to use, your writing style, and the frequency of your posts, consistently follow your plan. When you are consistent on your business blog, your customers will come to trust you. Consistency shows your readers reliability, and when your readers know they can rely on you, they will buy from you.

Click here to get your copy of "The Business Blogger's Manual"
Here's to Your Success!
Yoshio Sugawara
Click here to see where this article originated.