Personal Blogging for Improved Customer Relationships

Blogging started as a way of electronically communicating your thoughts, and marketing those thoughts was never really that important.  Today, nearly everyone participates in some form of online medium – through blogs, traditional web sites, social networking, forums, chats, and so on.  The bridge between the blog that we use for online growth and our personal thoughts should be growing. 

photo credit: doll damned

Note: The ideas expressed below are intended for small, usually one-person businesses.  Larger companies have policies that may forbid blogging about your work experiences.

Personal ideas, philosophies, political stances, relationship problems, and other issues that we all encounter in everyday life should be kept separate at all cost from your business-focused blog.  Unless you set the tone from the start, readers and customers won’t feel as though they should purchase a product or use your services, instead leave you a donation, literally, which would be of much less value in most cases.

It all makes sense, not to have a post reviewing a product, with the next post discussing your child’s birthday party.  However, you should also try to refrain yourself from adding tiny tidbits about yourself and personal life when focused on writing articles on serious, powerful, reader-focused blogs. 

As you develop your online business, think about the connection that you want to create with your customers.  Will you know then simply by their first name or will you also know a little about their business and how they got started? 

It’s okay to have a personal site (myname.com), completely separate from any of your business affiliations, which then is placed on the main business web site or in the contact/about area.  Another way of gaining newfound credibility is on a subdomain (myname.company.com), which then adds an additional “personal” factor to your company, yet keeps in closer to the business.  Post about upcoming developments and your personal goals.

Adding a personal blog can come with some major benefits, while it also can lead to some negative results.

Positives

• Improved customer relationship - The personal feel of blogs helps the customer be able to relate more to the business, the individual employees of the company, and the similarities that may exist.
• Demonstration of services - When potential customers see your work ethics, the way you handle, maintain, and conduct a blog that you own, they will feel an added confidence when deciding on the final purchase.
• Returning customers - Even if customers don’t remember the company’s name, they might remember the blogger’s name (if provided), the blog itself, or the appearance of the blog.  They will also remember the personalized, one-on-one worker-customer relationship the company provided and feel more obliged into purchasing again.
• Customers can provide even more direct feedback - There is no reason for modern companies not to have multiple ways of contacting the people who bought their products.  Leaving comments on blogs provides the owner the ability to receive feedback, respond to their feedback, and if possible, send more details through email.
• More professionalism – Both your company and visitors may view your blog as beneficial in understanding the company better, the direction that it is moving in, and the possible innovations coming down the road.
• Improved understanding of the company - When blogging about the company you/someone else formed, you’ll likely add facts about how the company began and where its roots are.  This will help you create a better understanding of the goals of the company and renew your focus to continue providing great services if you are the owner.

Negatives

• More time and effort – Blogging takes a lot of time, even if the posts aren’t in-depth.  If the blog isn’t a high priority on a personal or business-level, it’ll become neglected, leaving a major void in the company’s complete appearance.
• You won’t be spared from accusations – If something were to adversely affect the company as a result of your blog, the blame would be placed on you rather than another employee who didn’t have a blog.
• Lack of professionalism - Yes, the blog may look and appear professional to you, but customers may see it in a different way, a view that shows you want to express your thoughts in an unprofessional environment.

What are your thoughts about incorporating a personal blog in with a company you founded?