Blogging for Residential Cleaning Companies
If you spend anytime on the internet, you've probably come across many blog sites. Teenagers, stay-at-home moms, news agencies, and CEO's of major corporations are all jumping on the blog bandwagon. Find out why your residential cleaning business would benefit from having your very own blog.
What is a Blog?
The term "blog" is short for web log, which is an online journal that has the newest entries on the top of the page. Blogs are made up of individual posts that contain tips, news items, photos, articles, and even videos that tell the readers more about the blogger or the topic they're writing about.
You can create your blog with special software that makes blogging easy for even the not-so-web-savvy user. Add your blog to your existing web site, or you if you are not the technology-minded, you can create one on a site that specializes in blog hosting and pre-made blogs.
Why Do I Need a Blog?
There are several good reasons a wise cleaning business owner would start a blog.
1. Blogging helps your readers see you as an authority or expert in the field. If you provide lots of good content, they will know where to go when they have a question about residential cleaning. Watch out though, because customers can also find out how little a business owner knows if they do not add useful, well-written information!
2. Blogging allows you to build a bond with your customers so they learn to know, like, and trust you. As they learn to trust you, they will be more comfortable hiring you to clean their home. This is also called relationship marketing and is an important step in increasing your sales. Keeping your current customers is a lot less expensive than trying to get new ones.
3. You have the ability to let your customers know about added services quickly and easily. You can introduce new staff members, inform them of any policy changes, and even tell them about upcoming specials and discounts.
4. Potential customers often use the internet to find local companies. Blogging gets your name out onto the internet and helps you rank higher in the search engines. The continual stream of new content takes a higher priority than websites where the pages always stay the same.
5. Blogs can take the place of a formal website, but that is a discussion for another article.
How Do I Make a Blog?
You can sign up for a free blog at www.blogger.com or at www.wordpress.com. You can get a blog with more features available at www.typepad.com but you will have to pay a fee, starting out at $4.95 per month. These blogs are the easiest to set up because you do not have to worry about installing any software. There are not as many features to choose from, but you can set up a very nice blog quickly without having to worry about the technical side of things.
If you want to have more control over the look and feel of your blog, you can set one up on your own website. Usually this can be done through the control panel of your domain or by going to www.wordpress.org to download the program to your computer. Work is needed to get things running smoothly, but if you want to be able to use features like personalized themes, widgets, and plug-ins, this is the way to go. If you are not familiar with these terms, go with the first choice above!
Now What Do I Do With My Blog?
Here are some helpful tips that will make starting your blog easier:
Keep your customers in mind and write posts that will be helpful to them and show that you care about them. This is not a good place to just brag about yourself or your company.
Write using short paragraphs and skip a line between them. If there are too many words without any white space, people may feel overwhelmed at so much to look at and leave your site.
Add new content as often as you can, but be consistent so people know when to expect a new post from you. Make it a goal to post new content at least once a week. You might want to add a sign up box to your blog to encourage readers to subscribe to updates.
Ask questions and encourage comments from your readers. Be sure to answer any comments posted on your blog. Interact with your readers. If you receive a complaint, address it publicly, even if you have to take a loss to make things right. This will speak volumes about your company and your integrity.
Remember, blogging can be very enjoyable, but pace yourself so you don't get caught up in posting and forget about the work at hand!
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Jean Hanson helps owners of residential cleaning companies build a more profitable and successful cleaning business through her online community at MyHouseCleaningBiz.com. Read inspirational cleaning success stories at http://www.cleaning-success.com, and sign up for House Cleaning Profit Tips at //www.myhousecleaningbiz.com.
