While recent studies suggest business blogging has slowed, my experience shows it’s still one of the best ways your mHealth business can effectively create a central hub for your social media efforts. Your business blog can connect your staff, customers and potential customers with all your social platforms in one place. Use your blog to encourage social sharing through links to your website, Facebook page, Twitter account, Pinterest posts and all your social media. The key is to actively monitor your blog and respond to your customers quickly and professionally.
Here are some effective blog strategies I’ve condensed from an article by Heidi Cohen:
Create a Better mHealth Business Blog
Provide visual eye candy
Think beyond text. Blogs distribute photographs, video and PDFs. Make images sharable so readers use them on photo-friendly social media websites, such as Pinterest.
Answer customer questions
Prospects don’t buy until all of their questions are answered. Blogs remove sales objections and hurdles. Source questions from your customer-service department, and include a way for prospects to submit questions to your blog.
Aid sales by putting products in context
Write blog posts about how to use your product or supply instructions, recipes or patterns that show and tell customers, rather than sell them. Incorporate links to a specific product page or a tailored landing page with a contextually relevant call to action.
Help customers post-purchase
Use this opportunity to encourage customers to buy additional, related products. Alternatively, take advantage of this opportunity to engage as fans by showcasing their work.
Support social media with owned media
Use your blog as the hub of your social media strategy. Distribute the content to your social media presence. Consider the timing of your social sharing to maximize results and enlist readers to share content through social sharing buttons.
Improve search optimization cost effectively
By their structure, blogs support search optimization if integrated into your website. They contain keyword-rich content. Further, they include links to other parts of your blog and website. Make sure each post is focused on a specific keyword phrase or two.
Provide 24/7 content distribution
Blogs can distribute your content more broadly through RSS and email. Additionally, they build your social media following so you’re prepared for a public relations flare-up. Build your blogging presence before you need it. It takes time for a business to get a sizable blog following.
I encourage my clients to start a business blog and use it as a cornerstone in their social media strategies. You may need a little help to get your blog started, but once your mHealth blog is in place, try the tips above to make it even more effective. If you already have a business blog, do you have any tips to add to this list?
