Sign in
Courtesy navigation
Blog posts tagged target audience
Why you need to blog for your readers first and search engines second
October 19, 2010
Blogging has many benefits. It will help you build relationships with your clients and prospective clients. It enables you to demonstrate your expertise and helps you gain immediate feedback on an idea. And done correctly, you’ll also gain targeted leads. Oh, and the traffic you receive from your fabulous content will also help you in the search rankings.
There’s a reason I added SEO (search engine optimisation) as an afterthought – it’s because it should be when it comes to blogging. SEO is a nice outcome from a good blog – not the reason for its being.
At a recent blogging workshop I ran, a large chunk of our audience was motivated to blog because of the perceived SEO benefits. They felt that if they could manipulate their blog to bring them in thousands of visitors, that would have a positive impact on their website. I’m delighted to report that by the end of the day they all felt different.
Your blog will receive thousands of visitors if the content is great, if it looks good and you post regularly. You’ll build up a following of loyal readers who will recommend your blog to their friends and where it features in the search engines will be but a distant memory. You’ll be generating enough business from the blog that it won’t matter.
Recently, I stumbled upon a blog that had clearly been contrived to provide search traffic for the writer’s business. It was an imagery-based website and the images were gorgeous. Sadly, I felt a little “used” because the writer clearly wasn’t writing for my benefit, she was writing for the search engines. She’d clearly handpicked a couple of search terms (and no, I won’t tell you what they are). Every blog title was pumped full of these keywords. And scrolling down the list I could see this wasn’t a one off, this was a search engine optimisation onslaught.
Imagine this blog, full of lovely images but pumped full of keywords that mean very little in relation to the post they’re describing. How would you feel as you were reading it? Like a valued reader who just had to return to see what said company had been up to or a little used and worthless that the point of the blog was simply to scramble the website up the search rankings?
There’s an art to using your blog to gain traffic and pumping your titles and posts full of “clever” keywords. I’m not suggesting that it won’t work from an SEO point of view – I’m sure it does. But my point is that this isn’t a blog.
A blog is your chance to journal what’s going on in your world. It enables you to showcase your expertise, build relationships and generate profitable business. Make the most of the opportunity: if you don’t, your competitors certainly will.
Fiona Humberstone, Flourish design & marketing
Seven PR tips for small businesses
September 30, 2010
PR is essentially about developing your business by raising its media profile. For a small business, effective PR can be the difference between success and failure. At HearingDirect.com we recognise the value PR brings to our business. Here are our top tips for generating PR coverage:
1 Know your audience
Who is your product/service aimed at? Successful PR works because you reach the right audience with a clear message that is relevant to them.
2 Target specific media
Knowing and understanding the media outlets your target audience consumes will help you target your audience. This will enable you to get an idea for the types of stories you need to pitch to maximise coverage.
3 Offer something new
Your story must tell your audience something they haven’t heard before and fit the profile of your target publication. For example, a local newspaper is more likely to cover a human-interest story, while a trade publication is more likely to focus on industry issues. In both cases, however, editors want a relevant, interesting “hook” to the story. Make sure you have created a good plan with a clear message.
4 Devise a clear and succinct message
Many journalists/editors are too busy to read all of the emails they receive, so always identify the right person you need to speak to and call them before sending your story. Always call them at the beginning of the day. When speaking to them, and in the follow up email, your message should be clear and concise – you should be able to sum it up in a few sentences. If it sounds too complicated, it’s likely to put people off. Anticipate and clearly label all materials editors need, explaining why your story is worth covering. Mark the email you send with the words “Press Release”.
5 Provide good images
A good photograph can be the difference between a story being published or not, because editors like to illustrate stories with images that draw in readers. However, nothing is more amateur than using passport or home photos for publicity shots. Spend a couple of hundred pounds getting some professional single and group shots of your staff. Buy the copyright to the images and make sure they’re supplied on disk. This means you can offer journalists high-quality photos via email at no cost.
6 Build good relationships with the media
You need to build good relationships with journalists because this is the basis of your interaction with the media. These take time to develop and should be viewed as a long-term investment.
7 Remember these important points
Everything you say to a journalist is ‘on the record’ and can be referenced unless you are specifically promised otherwise in advance. Journalists don’t have to show you their story before it goes to print. Always ask a journalist what their deadline is and send them everything they need within that timescale and be aware your story may not appear in the next issue – or even at all.
Digital hearing aid sellers HearingDirect.com was recently voted the UK’s 59th most promising start-up for 2010.
Do you have a brand people can fall in love with?
September 12, 2009
Seth Godin talks about how people have to decide whether they're going to create a brand that people fall in love with, or one that's just less annoying. Personally, I'd plump for the former.
Brands that people can fall in love with are more resilient. People who are truly in love with a brand will buy more, more often and they'll forgive more easily when you make a mistake. People who are in love with a brand will remain more loyal and become more profitable customers.
Great brands that people can fall in love with are Ikea (annoying, but their loyal clients love them!), Virgin, and (of course!) printing.com. All of these brands have identities that are bigger than their logos. They have strong visual identities, but the brand also comes across in the 'voice' and the service that's on offer.
So how can you create a brand that people can fall in love with?
- Think carefully about what makes you unique and how that resonates with your target audience
- Create a compelling brand promise that you know you can deliver
- Create a strong visual identity that communicates your brand powerfully
- Make sure you deliver outstanding service
You can download your free 'Brand Profitably' article which will give you plenty of tips and insights into creating a brand people can fall in love with.
Starting a new business - free advice, tools and resources | Start Up Donut
Copyright © 2009-2012
