By: Tim Haas Owner/Web Developer Haas Consulting Marketing & Web Development Services View Our Webpage

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We are a full service Marketing Firm. From creating a marketing plan to layout, design, and seamless execution, our goal is to help you make the most out of your marketing!

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Welcome to our new and current subscribers! This newsletter is published monthly by Haas Consulting. It is here to be a source of information for anyone who would like to learn about webpages, marketing, and other business related topics.

Please feel free to email us with topics you would like to learn more about. You may view past issues at www.thaas.info/articles.php. Enjoy!

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10 Items to Cover When Blogging for Your Business!

Many business owners are challenged when it comes to blogging. Using a company blog to market or for public relations can be effective, but the question is how do you go about doing it?

Here is a checklist on setting up a blog for your business.

1. Choose a Unique Template: A clean layout that is easy to read and gives the largest amount of space to the post area is a must. It doesn't really matter if you choose a single, double, or triple column layout, as long as you accomplish this.
   
2. Select Your Writers: You do not have to be the writer for the blog, and you are not limited to using a single writer. In fact, it is better to have several writers. That way they can break the work load up and your blog will benefit from multiple personalities and viewpoints.
   
   One thing you will want to do is assign writers who are literate and really enjoy blogging.
   
3. Pay Attention to Marketing: Make sure you place your contact information where visitors can easily find it. Include photos of your bloggers and use photos of your employees within your posts.
   
4. Blog for the Readers: This is an area where huge mistakes can be made. Always position the content of your blog to benefit the reader.
   
   This means that you don't use your blog as an online ad. Think about why people will read your blog. What do they want to find or learn about? If you own a car repair shop, you may blog about how to properly wash a car; what is the difference between liquid and paste car wax?
   
   Use the blog to become an expert and a regular source for quality information. Plenty of marketing will find its way into your blog naturally, don't force it.
   
5. Reply Promptly and be Courteous: Thank your readers for their comments. YOU WANT THEIR PARTICIPATION! It will help you create better content and become the expert. It also helps you understand your customers, which will help you increase your sales.
   
   Make sure you reply to questions promptly, people ask because they want to know . . . and usually they want to know right now!
   
6. Maintain a Regular Schedule: Try to post two new strings every week at a minimum, three or four would be better . . . but 2 will work.
   
   It is important to spread them out throughout the week. Don't put your new posts out first thing Monday morning and think you can forget about it until next Monday. In fact, the highest traffic days for blogs is on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Try to post one each of those days.
   
7. Create Interaction: Follow them home . . . so to speak. Don't show up at their front door, that would be just a little creepy. But, you can follow links to their blogs and participate there. They want people to use their blogs.
   
   You may also come across them within social networks like Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn. The more interaction you are able to create, the more people you may be able to attract to your own blog.
   
8. Don't be afraid to link out: The concept is to be the expert. This will require you to link out to other sources of information on occasion. Any good source of information will do that.
   
   This doesn't mean that you need to link to your competitors. Link to supporting websites. Say for example you are a landscaping contractor. You could link to a website that provides information on lawn mowers, weed-wackers, or other lawn care equipment. After all once you have installed the rock garden with the pond, deck and patio and placed all the new sod down . . . they are going to want to mow the lawn and trim weeds to keep their new yard looking good.
   
9. Put the Spotlight on Your Customers: Encourage your clients to post to your blog and include their photos. Let them write a post. It would be an ideal place for testimonials from happy clients.
   
10. Help Spread the Word: Make sure that you make it easy for your readers to subscribe to your blog. As subscribers they will receive updated content when it is posted. This will help create customer loyalty.

Blogging is an excellent way to use the web to market your business. You just need to make sure you do it correctly. It does take work and time, but anything worthwhile will.

Follow these tips and blog away!

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Tip of the Month!

Measure the effectiveness of your marketing in conversions not views. If you have a million people viewing your ads and only one of them buys from you, it is a waste of money!

You may be better off advertising in ways that get in front of people less, but is targeted. Targeted traffic will produce more conversions.

This concept is not limited to online marketing, it applies to all your marketing including newspaper, radio, yellow page ads and all other forms of marketing!

Bumpkers.com  A new concept in bumper stickers! Present novelty awards for those moments in life that tend to be embarrassing. Rub it in a little! Each Bumpker Award comes with an award certificate and bumper sticker. Select from their inventory or have one customized!

Additional Links of Interest *

19 Things that take a lifetime to figure out!  This is a page that lists things that take people a lifetime to figure out, relatively short list all things considered. The link at the bottom of the page takes you to the main website called Silly Things.

Everything USB  This website is about everything USB. You would be surprised to see just what you can plug into the USB port on your computer!

* By providing these links we are not endorsing the services or products being offered. We are only offering links to other websites that may be of interest to you

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