When blogging first started, it was typically someone’s thoughts like a diary on a topic. Since then, blogs have matured into many different venues.  In some cases, Web sites do not even exist. They are a mixture of a Web site and blog, even for e-commerce sites. The blog provides rich information about the site’s theme, product or services.

You will see that on this site, online-business-guide, blogs are considered very important.  The are useful for attracting visitors, keeping visitors on the site, building your credibility, selling products or services, creating helpful search engine optimization and growing your business.  They are also perfect for starting your online business and business Internet marketing online.

The main purpose of the blog is to provide relevant, up-to-date information on your established theme. If you sell football jerseys, for example, your blog can have postings on the football season, teams, trading, players, or just your thoughts on certain football issues. Remember, in the minds of your potential buyer, information is one of your most essential products. Offering relevant and up-to-date information:    

 *Builds community

*Makes you a credible source for visitors

*Keeps people returning to your blog for more information and education

*Encourages visitors to follow your lead with suggested products to buy and go to your Web site and purchase them

*Helps you build customer lists — a must with online marketing

*Gives your visitors an opportunity to become involved with your blog with feedback

*Offers a means of education about your products or services

*Helps you keep the pulse of the users

*Offers relevant material for the search engines

*Enhances your listing rank with the search engines

*Allows you the opportunity to introduce new products

*Sells more of your products

Before you start your blog, you should also spend a few hours traveling online and looking at some of your competitors’ blogs for ideas for layout and design, articles, and promotional tools. Also start looking for some blogs that will be appropriate for sharing links. This will begin to expand your audience readership. Just make your blog different enough from everyone else’s, and you are on your way.

 Patience is crucial when it comes to online marketing. Do not write 20 blog articles on Monday and expect to see them on top of the Google list on Tuesday.

It is good to do a few every few days, then give it a few months before you expect to see results. Studies report that there are millions of blogs online, but a large number of these were started and never continued. Another large group never attracted the search engines and are sitting in some online limbo land.

Unless you can 1) generate a blog post at least two times a week and 2) continue to do so until you begin to get higher listings on search engines and visitors to the blog, nothing will happen. This can take several months. Too many people do not build up their blog vehicle, because they do not write enough posts or have the patience to wait for responses.

You need a topic that is going to be of interest to your intended visitors and that is related to your product line or theme for your book or Web site. This will take some research, especially for some retailers whose products do not lend themselves to prose. Go back to your initial research and see what your buyers are interested in. It may be a subject that is only somewhat about your merchandise.

You have to think carefully about the people you want to target and their interests. Then, you need a subject that you know well, that is wide enough to write about on a regular basis, and that is continually changing and offering something of interest for your readers. Since your blog is about your business, you can write about product industry news you read about in the newspapers, business publications, or online.    

Since you need to have a link back to your Web site in the article, your blog post has to relate somehow to the products you are selling. No one is looking for a doctorate-level report on a subject; just a few personal comments can be enough.

If you just cannot think of anything for your postings, respond to someone else’s blog on a similar topic. Include a link to this other blog in your blog post, and then send the author of that blog an e-mail about the link. This not only provides a topic on which to write, but goodwill with another blogger who already has ratings established. It is quite possible that this blogger will respond by sending a link back to you. 

 Encourage responses from your own readers. Even ask them to send in articles, and give them top billing. If they are passionate enough about a topic, they will want to write about it. This, too, builds community and lends credibility to both your blog and Web site. Also, it may give you additional blogs and Web sites with which to link. When someone does respond, include a “thank you” on the blog page or send the person an e-mail.