Blogs are all over the Web. Many businesses maintain a blog on or separate from their business websites. Some of them are written well and worth reading; some of them are written poorly and a waste of time.

Besides keeping your eye on popular and successful blogs to see what others are succeeding (or perhaps failing) at, I believe there are several main things that any business owner should consider before investing time and money into a blog.blog 2

1. What’s the Point?

Seriously, what is the point of your blog? If you just want one to say you have one, or because lots of businesses have them, that is not a good enough reason. Good business blogs are there to provide information relevant to the business’s products or service, to offer online content that helps existing clients and actually draws new clients to the business.

The best blogs offer something to the readers, meaning information or humor or a reason to come back and read the next post. Blogs that don’t get return readers are those that are too introspective, unprofessional, or offer nothing of interest to readers. Your hot tub store customer might care about the best hot tub covers or how to clean his or her spa; customers will not care about your problems with certain couriers or manufacturers or how your competitors copied you, and your business blog is not the place to rant about your business or personal issues.

2. Do You Have the Time (and Potentially the Money) to Maintain a Blog?

Anyone can find time to start a blog, and even start it well. The key, however, is in maintaining it. Without regular posts, readers will not return. The blog will be out-of-date and stale.

It takes time to post regularly, and a commitment to do so. Being in business, time is money, whether you do the posts yourself or pay someone else to do them, such as an employee, freelance writer/blogger, or marketing company.

Also, please use spellcheck! Nothing makes a blog look less professional than a bunch of spelling and grammatical mistakes everywhere. Remember, if the blog represents your business and your brand, it needs to do it in the best possible way.

3. Does It Serve Your Business’s Higher Purpose?

Really think about whether a blog serves your business’s purpose. Consider your mission and vision statements. Would a blog help you gain more business and achieve your goals?

Beyond the bigger picture of the blog itself, does every blog post represent your business well? Ensure whoever is doing the writing and posting keep it professional, and doesn’t let personal views taint it. Keep the blog and all the details of it on brand: Ensure it all represents your brand well.

For more information about blogging for your business and how to represent your brand online, see Marketing in the New Media, Do the Web Write, and Writing for the Web: all Self-Counsel Press titles written to help the small-business person navigate web copy and marketing.

For more information about blogging for your business and how to represent your brand online, see Marketing in the New Media, Do the Web Write, and Writing for the Web: all Self-Counsel Press titles written to help the small-business person navigate web copy and marketing.