December 15th, 2009 | 
Author: 
Man! New Year’s is just around the corner and many small businesses are planning for next year. So for your small business it is necessary to include the launching of your blog if you haven’t done it yet. Or else you’ll be left behind!
NO excuses! This is Do or Die so you have to do this for your business to survive. Blogging for your small business is a great idea for you to generate new leads and new customers, connect and engage with your target market, and have a very effective web presence.
It’s also great as far as search engine optimization plus there are more and more people around the world reading blogs because they’re social and interactive. So here’s what you need to do to launch your small business blog, below I made a list for you to get this going for your business.
Domain Registration: You need to register a domain name for your small business blog, I register all my domain at godaddy.com and they’ve been good to me and I’ve really never had a problem but of course there’s plenty of them out there so just search and get one that suits your taste and budget.
Also just a quick tip on this, it’s a great thing for you to incorporate your business name or relate your business into your domain.
Let’s say your business is about “Pest Control” then your domain should be something like pestcotrolservices.com or pestcontrolguys.com something like that but of course this is just an example to give you an idea.
Hosting Company: Guys this is very important you need to research out there for a quality hosting company for your small business blog and your key pointers are reliability (at least 99% uptime) you don’t want your site to be down all the time.
When visitors are ready to buy and they go to your site and it’s down then you’ve just lost a sale. Second, make sure it has all the software pre installed in your server like PHP, email services and database, this is necessary to install blogging software like Wordpress.
Also you want a hosting company that has a great support with a 1-800 number to call so if you’re having an issue or problem you can call for help this is very important.
BTW: I use IXWebHosting.com for my own blog and for the majority of my sites and products I can recommend them because of my great experience with them having been with them for four years.
This is my affiliate link to IXWebHosting.com meaning if you use this link and signup for their service I will get paid I just want to let you know if you don’t want to use my link that’s fine you just can go directly to their site.
Setup Your Blog: Now that you’ve already registered your domain and got hosting it’s time to setup your blog using a wordpress platform. You can go to wordpress.org to download the latest version which is worpress 2.8.6. You need to upload this to your server and run the installation.
If you don’t have a clue how to do this you can sign up for my FREE Video Access “How To Setup Your Own Wordpress Blog” on the right sidebar or just follow the link. Also you can call me at 702-430-1649 for coaching on this (we can go further like branding and much more).
Install Plugin: This is very important make sure you install all necessary plugins for search engine optimization and for security to secure your blog from attacks and hackers and all the plugins for wordpress is available at their site and the majority of the plugins are free.
Branding and Structure: You need to implement your branding with your blog if you already have one if NOT make sure you brand your blog and also choose the right structure for your blog that will convert as far as getting more leads and customers.
You can do this from testing a few wordpress themes out there and see what works for you. I recommend you customize your theme with your brand so your small business blog will stand out.
Create A Buzz: Now it’s time to spread the word through the world so tell your employees to help spread the word about your blog. Also you can tell all your friends and family to help you tell everyone they know that needs your service to go to your blog.
You can also use the social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to tell everyone about your new small business blog.
Be A Source: This simply means that you need to provide value in your content so your readership will have a reason to go back to your blog and read more of your posts.
By the way you can also do a video blog and based on my experience this is very effective to really connect with your visitors, It’s more personal because they can see you talking and it’s in their mind that there’s a human being behind that blog so they’ll be more confident going to your blog.
Blog Post Optimization: Ok please don’t make this complicated it is simply making sure your blog post is optimized for the search engine so you can get laser targeted traffic from them and this is by making sure that you incorporate keywords that typically your visitors would type for the topic of your blog post.
You make sure you put your specific keywords on your meta data.
Make Your Business Blog Social: To attract more leads and visitors (Traffic) for your blog you need to make it social and interactive.
A blog is two ways so if your visitors comment on your blog you need to reply to them even if you’re just saying hi or thanking them for stopping by this will initiate conversation and will attract more visitors to participate and they will tell others.
That’s pretty much it… Now you just keep on blogging and provide value so your blog audience will grow and that means your business will grow as well.
Well guys like always I hope you learned something and I also hope this will help you and your business. Please put it into action so you too can get more buyers and customers. If you have something to say well speak up and comment below. Take care and love you guys.
Till Next Time and God Bless You!
Albert Hallado
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Posted in Blogging For Business
thank for the sharing. i love this blog. because i learning much more here. i still newbie and you was be my best teacher.
Hi Andi,
Hey! Bud thank you so much it meant a lot to me what you’ve said I really appreciate.
God bless you and yours,
Albert
Hi Albert,
Here’s a thought. I’m trying to teach myself blogging but as you know it’s slow going.
Now I can’t afford personal coaching but if you offered a class with 5 to 10 students I’m sure that would make it affordable.
There is a place around the art district that offers classes on a variety of subjects and they are always looking for instructors. You see them advertising their classes on craig’s list from time to time.
Thanks for the info you provide.
Hi Dave,
Hey! that’s a great idea I will definitely will think about that. This is probably the fourth time I’ve been ask the same question to do an online coaching or class. Again thanks Dave.
God bless you,
Albert
It’s crazy how blogging wasn’t always taken as seriously by some businesses until now and social media definitely changed that. For those of use that have been blogging since way back in the gap, it’s a benefit because we can easily adapt the social media approach into our blog by integrating all the necessary tools, since I have integrated these tools, traffic went sky high, especially through twitter.
I definitely agree with what you said about “plugins” “branding” and “creating buzz” that’s a must do if your blogging, your plugins are one of the most important tools to have, it’s what makes your blog interactive and function the way it should promoting interaction for your users and visitors, and branding, one of my favorites, you’ll definitely want to have your brand downpact for 2010, it is a make it or break it year, everyone can compete now, and if your lacking, you’ll be left behind. Good post
Hi Terrance,
Yes! I’m big in branding too! without it blog is just a blog so it’s like your standing still rather than to stand out the crowd
Hey! thank you for your comment and glad to see you here back Terrance.
God bless you,
Albert
Thanks Albert,
That is a great blueprint that puts all that you do in perspective. You have aways told me that it isn’t rocket science. You do such a nice job of laying it all out there and being so accessible. I like the idea above of a small group class. Let me know when you want to put one together.
Mark
Hi Mark,
Hey! thanks for stopping by and for your comment. Yes definitely I will let you know
God bless you,
Albert
Hey Albert,
That was a step-by-step easy blueprint to follow. Most people may not realize that you just gave them the “master keys” to blogging.
Great post and thank you for laying it out in plan english that we can all understand…..
Blessings – Duane
Duane Hope´s last blog ..Happy Thanksgiving From Our Family To Yours!
Hi Albert!
Have you decided when to have your coaching class? Please let me know when.
Thanks.
Ros