Blog Bank

Blogging can be a problem when you are busy. There simply isn't time to keep it going especially for a seasonal business - at the very time you need to talk about your product, service or event you are too busy making it all happen.

One answer to this is to start a blog bank during the quieter times.

If you have been in business a while you know the sort of things you might want to blog about in general terms. The trick is to create your blogs well in advance when you have some spare time on your hands. If you run a hotel you could create a blog on days out or visits to local events or festivals. For example a tourism business on the Isle of Wight could write blogs about Cowes Week, The Garlic Festival, The Pop Festival, Round the Island Race, etc, ready for the run up to the event. Stored as draft blogs so that when the time comes you have a ready made posting at the click of a button. The same can be done with seasons - '6 Gardens to visit in Spring', '5 Autumn Walks' or 'Best swimming beaches' for the high summer.

I appreciate that this isn't as straightforward for a business selling insurance or accountancy services for example, but most businesses have quieter periods when there is time to reflect and write for the future.

It's far better to blog regularly than in bursts and storing blogs as draft documents can help you achieve that regular output. Jotting down just the title of a blog in a document when an idea comes to you is a good way of prompting the thought later, when you have time to develop it, and store in the Blog Bank for when it's needed.

A Company PR Nightmare? Possibly not

We all know how important your company domain name is to your business . . . . well perhaps not all of us:

1. 'Who Represents' is a website where you can find the names of agents who represent celebrities - www.whorepresents.com
2. 'Experts Exchange' is a knowledge base where programmers can exchange advice and views - www.expertsexchange.com
3. Want to buy a colleague a pen for Christmas? Try 'Pen Island ' at: www.penisland.net
4. 'Therapist Finder' could be a handy directory. Check your local area at: www.therapistfinder.com
5. This one is still under construction, but I can't wait to see the Italian Power Generator company - www.powergenitalia.com
   

An honourable mention also goes to the designers at 'Speed of Art' which has to be worth a visit: www.speedofart.com

Although these company domains may seem to be a PR nightmare the last laugh could be on us because they are getting a lot of free publicity in what is a very competitive online world.

Google Places - Make sure you are listed

Yesterday I had a phone call from a company regarding my wife's website. She's a Garden Designer (www.chrisbarnesgardens.co.uk) and they were offering a very specific service - adding her website to Google Places. I have been on the Google Places bandwaggon for some years, but this is the first time I have been aware of a company offering a dedicated Google Places service.

Formally known as Google Local, Google Places is designed to put your website clearly in the local community and Google likes it very much. In the USA they are pouring resources into it and it's gaining in importance. If you run a business serving your local area you have to be on there. My wife's business does target the local area so she's already listed.


As can be seen from the listings the Google Places results take pole position - above the other organic listings - and there is also a map pinpointing the business locations. This isn't always the case, if you don't add a location keyword to your search Google Places listings won't appear.

So should you have your company listed? The answer is an emphatic 'Yes' - even if your market is national or worldwide. The reason being that it helps your PageRank, targets your local market and it's free. And if your business relies in any way on it's location Google Places is an absolute must. There's the opportunity to add photos and video, contact details, categorise your services and pinpoint your location on Google Maps.

You shouldn't need a specialist company to do this, your SEO agency should be adding and editing your Google Places entry as a matter of course.