In this issue...

What is a Blog and How Can It Help My Business
Businesses large and small are being confronted with a new communications paradigm known most familiarly as the Web 2.0. It used to be individuals were primarily consumers of information. With the advent of new forms of media such as blogs, Internet video and social networks, that is no longer the case.

Featured Partner: MPC Studios
Located in the southernmost tip of Texas, MPC Studios is one of Bizzuka's newest partners.

User Friendly Thinking is Now Live
We've been talking about this for weeks (ok, months) and now promise has translated into reality. The new User Friendly Thinking blog site is now live.

Thanksgiving Wish
We close with something a little personal...and which has nothing whatsoever to do with turkey.

What is a Blog and How Can It Help My Clients?

What is a Blog?

From a technical standpoint, a blog is really just an easy-to-use web-based content management system. It is software that allows people with little or no technical background to update and maintain content. The activity of updating a blog is known as "blogging," while someone who keeps a blog is a "blogger." Entries written to the blog, called posts, are arranged in reverse chronological order with the most recent additions featured at the top of the page.

But what makes a blog such a unique publishing format, different from a typical website, message board, or email application, is its balanced combination of technology and personality.

Technically speaking, a blog could be used for any kind of information update, whether it is a press release, product update, news or more personal commentary. Let's face it - the application doesn't care what kind of content is put into its form fields.

What differentiates a blog from other forms of content publishing is the style in which a blog post is written. Blogs beg to be written in an informal, punchy and - shall we say - "authentic" voice, something Internet pioneer Doc Searls called an "email to everyone." A well-written blog reflects the passions, bias, thoughts and judgments of the writer. It has heart as well as substance.

However, personality and style alone are not enough to fully convey the power of blogs. We have to go back to the technology side to complete the picture.

Blog technology provides an ability to do something no other content management medium does, at least not as well: stimulate conversation. Blog readers have the ability to comment on what you have written and have those comments appear on the site. They can ask questions, state opinions, tell stories or relate their particular point-of-view. You can respond, either on the blog through a comment of your own or via an email. Blogs enable dialogue between you and a customer or prospect, making the cultivation of a long-term relationship more plausible.

My favorite definition comes from a Realtor friend of mine, who says, "Blogs are simply living, breathing Internet sites...upscale chatrooms...constantly growing newsletters. They invite interaction and get people involved. They create energy and synergy. They live and breath and grow and take on a life of their own."

Pretty good definition, wouldn't you agree?

How can a blog benefit my clients?

For years, I've advocated the use of blogs as a business communication and marketing tool. In this post I want to outline the top ten reasons why it's a good great idea.

Search Engine Marketing. Blogs give you an increased presence on major search engines. The technology is a magnet for search engines like Yahoo! and Google. A well-written, routinely updated, keyword-oriented blog can enhance your chances of garnering high rankings on search engine return pages. Why is this? Google, in particular, indexes sites based on content -- the text on your site.

The words comprising the content on your site, whether it is on the home page or in the blog, are like currency to search engines. The more times a certain word or phrase, or a combination of words and phrases, is used on your Web site, the more likely Google, for example, will index your site highly based on that word or phrase. The reasoning is simple; Google ranks pages based on keywords by relevance.

Direct Communications. Blogs provide a way for business owners to speak directly, openly and honestly with your customer.

Relationship Marketing. Blogs allow you to build personal, long-lasting relationships with yourcustomers that foster trust. One person put it this way: "A blog is acontinual tour with a guide you get to know."

Brand Building. Blogs serve as another channel on which to promote your brand and your products.

Competitive Differentiation. Because blogs give you the opportunity to tell your story over and over again in a manner considered hip within the interactive community, they help set you apart from the competition.

Position You as Expert. Blogs enable you to articulate your viewpoints, knowledge and expertise on matters pertaining to your industry.

Media & Public Relations. Blogs are excellent PR tools. The media calls you, not your competition.

Exploit Marketable Niches. Blogs help you fill your particular industry niche.

Lead Generation. Blogs can have bearing on your ROI

Internal Communications. Blogs can be used inside the enterprise as a tool for internal communications and project management. Some of the largest companies in the world are using them for just this purpose.

And a couple extra...

Reputation Management. Blogs help you manage your online reputation.

Low Cost. Blogs are inexpensive to set up, operate and maintain. Ongoing marketing costs are minimal. They do require an investment of time in terms of blog posting, but it can pay big returns for the time spent.

There you are, the top ten (plus two) reasons to use a blog for business communications and marketing.

If you'd like to learn more about how to use a blog or other forms of social media with your clients, contact Bizzuka Internet Marketing Specialist, Brian Bille.

Featured Partner: MPC Studios

MPC Studios, Inc. is a custom website design and website development company headquartered in Harlingen, Texas (that's way down in the southern tip of Texas, in the lower Rio Grande Valley)...and they are one of Bizzuka's newest partners.

MPC Studios provides strictly Web-based services which include Web design, programming, security, hosting, marketing, maintenance, e-mail and, last but certainly not least, content management.

Want to learn more about becoming a Bizzuka reseller partner? Let us know. Want a good recipe for Crawfish Etouffee. We can help you there as well.

User Friendly Thinking is Now Live!

It seems like we've been talking about it forever. Finally, the day has arrived when Bizzuka has rolled out its very first, very own blog site called User Friendly Thinking.

The site focuses on four topic areas: Web design/usability, Web development, Web content management and Web marketing.

If that sounds a lot like the kinds of things Bizzuka does, well, that's because it is. Those are topics we know something about, so it made sense to focus on them with this new blog.

Initially, the posts will be written by Bizzuka staffers, but in the not to distant future we will invite others to join us.

Even though the site is about topics of interest to Bizzuka and is being written by Bizzukans, the site is not Bizzuka-centric in terms of content. We focus on the topics, not Bizzuka.

Please, take a moment and check out the site, leave a comment and subscribe to an RSS feed or two. And let us know if there are topics you'd like to see covered.

Thanksgiving Wish

On a personal note, we want to extend a Thanksgiving wish to each of our partners. In this time when economic futures seem dismal, it's our hope you will take stock of the many blessings you enjoy.

We extend a special heartfelt thanks to those of you we have had the pleasure to work with this year. We're very grateful to you all, and not just at Thanksgiving. Be blessed.

Best regards, the Bizzuka Team!

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