Last Wednesday I wrote a post on whether businesses should start writing blogs. Now, should you decide to start writing blogs for your business, I am compiling a list of tips on how to get started with one and consistently keep these tips in mind when updating blogs in the future.

1. Write about topics you are passionate about For a business blogger, this almost always means writing a lot of things related to your products, services, things your audience may not know yet. This is important first step to impress visitors.
2. Think about readers while composing your article Readers expect to get something out of the blog they are reading. Needless to say blogs require informative content.
3. Prove your story is accurate, if necessary You can do so by citing authoritative content across the web and link to them. Entries about your personal opinion may not require as much, though.
4. Be direct and write short content if possible Get to the point and don't write long blogs if a shorter equivalent is good enough. Visitors are perpetually busy and want to accomplish things online in shorter time. That could include reading our blog entries. Also, developing long blogs take time and that means giving up other tasks to finish it.
5. Check for spelling and grammar mistakes Spend time to review the site for spelling and grammar mistakes and fix them before publishing the blog. This helps establish our reputation online as professionals. No one wants to work with a translation company that writes blogs riddled with typos.
6. Think about compelling titles Make titles attractive enough without misleading readers. I often see blogs with short titles that don't provide hint on what the blog content is all about: "Wonderful day", "Best food ever", "Daydreaming".. You know what I mean. Think about "Why You Should Not Shop on Fridays", "45 Unforgettable Attractions in Kowloon" and similar types of titles.
7. Use bullet points Using bullet points help visitors read lists better than when presented in paragraphs. Hopefully you'd agree while reading this blog entry I am writing.
8. Use the language of your target audience If you are managing a blog about camera gadgets and expect visitors to be either newbies or hardcore photography enthusiasts, strike a balance between the two types of audience. You don't want to put off newcomers with a steady barrage of technical terms only the pros know.
9. Write personalized content As blogs are more casual means of conveying information, it is okay to use first person conversation. "I had to browse through an endless array of old CDs and I came across this old Duran Duran album". Or common expressions we use daily. "Trust me, I have done this a million times".
10. Use keywords people might use to look for your content There may be people looking for your topic but are unaware of your blog's existence. By using targeted keywords in your blog entry, you encourage search engines to consider ranking your blog post for related keywords.

I hope this helps in getting you started in writing your first blog entry. Let me know how it went and of course you can send your feedback through the comment field below. Photo credit: *ian*