By Tom Ryan
For many small businesses, blogging is proving to be a low-cost, high-return way to create public awareness.
Across businesses, blogging companies are still a small minority. According to a recent American Express survey, only 5 percent of businesses with fewer than 100 employees have blogs.
And blogging experts don't recommend blogs for the majority of businesses. Among the challenges is that they require some writing skill and a large time commitment. "If you're a clothing manufacturer or a restaurant, blogging is probably not as high on your list as making good food or good clothes," Guy Kawasaki, managing partner of Garage Technology Ventures and a prolific blogger, told The New York Times.
But Aliza Sherman Risdahl, author of The Everything Blogging Book, told the Times the most obvious candidates are consultants. "They are experts in their fields and are in the business of telling people what to do," she said.
For those in the professional sector, such as advisors or lawyers, blogs can not only help gain business and publicity but also serve as a networking tool and position the blogger as an expert in his or her field.
For other companies, it can be a challenge to find a legitimate reason for blogging unless the sector served has a steep learning curve (like wine), a lifestyle associated with a products or service (like camping gear or pet products) or a social mission (like the environment or a charitable cause). Even in those niches, companies need to figure out if they have enough to say.
"As a consultant, blogging clearly helps you get hired," Ms. Risdahl said. "If you are selling a product, you have to be much more creative because people don't want to read a commercial."
Discussion Questions: What do you think of the potential as well as the limitations of using a blog as a marketing tool? What types of businesses can best capitalize on blogging? What, if any, has been your experience with blogging?