There are many ways you can go wrong with a blog. It’s a good idea to have in mind from the start how you can make your blog ‘go right’, and avoid the many teething problems a lot of companies endure when they first set up a blog.

‘Corporate blogging’ may be an industry term, but it is a killer when it comes to engaging your viewers. In terms of the blogosphere, corporate blogging is almost an oxymoron. Blogging focuses on human interaction. Removing this element is the first mistake businesses make.

The way to correct it is the first point of blogging best practice. Assign an employee, or two or three employees, to write for the blog. Their continued authorship will help the blog develop a relationship with its viewers, and also ensure that the blog has a uniform tone. Choose someone who can write in an informative, friendly manner.

The second best practice point is to educate your blog writers in corporate communication. Corporate should not be the style of your content, but corporate policies still need to guide your blogging practice to ensure that the content follows the lines of your business. It is also good to set out some guidelines for your blog writers to follow, such as any company names they aren’t allowed to mention, any products or procedures they aren’t allowed to disclose, and keyword density to aim for. For specific keyword allocation, seek advice from SEO Consult. Sometimes it’s a good idea to separate out your keywords and only use one per blog entry. We can assist with targeting your SEO through specific entries.

The third blog best practice point is to update constantly. This is why it can be handy to have two or three employees assigned to your blog. A weekly update is the bare minimum. Distributing the work load between employees means that writing won’t become a chore.

On a practical business note, you need to back your blog up legally as well. Your company should have a policy and a disclaimer for the blog. Blogs, particularly business blogs, can face issues with liability. If senior management is not writing or editing the blog, it’s probably a good idea to include a ‘the views expressed in this blog are not those held by the company’ clause in the disclaimer. This doesn’t mean that your employees are likely to deliberately get you into trouble, but friendly communication sometimes heads into murky waters.

In terms of publication, it’s a good idea to provide a way for your bloggers to submit multiple entries at any time and schedule them for publication. It’s always best to schedule publication outside of business hours, preferably late at night, so that any problems with the blog update can be covered before your viewers are likely to see it.

It can be beneficial to have your senior management involved with the blog, but remember that they need to be aware of what good blog content is. An occasional entry from a formal-speaking CEO can do damage to a blog’s following. A friendly entry from a CEO who wants to share some tips and educate their audience will boost a blog.

Finally, to keep your blog consistent with the rest of your website content and your company policy, appoint an editor to oversee blog posts. This is a good idea even when you have appointed a single employee to post. Appointing an editor, at least for the period when you are establishing your blog, will help to ensure your blog follows your SEO strategy and continue to optimise your site.

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