Six tips to stand out in the business blogging world

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When it comes to blogging, many people may believe this is simply a space to unleash all your innermost thoughts on the world.

And, in some cases, they would be right.

However, blogs can also play an effective and engaging role in the business world too.

Rather than sending out a press release to the masses, a blog allows businesses and their staff, to engage with their clients in a far more intimate and relatable way.

It enables those at the heart of the organisation to share their unique perspective and underline their expertise as only they can.

But, this isn’t news to many businesses. Many managers and team members are seasoned blog masters who have cleverly utilised this skill to their advantage for years. So, how can you make your blog stand out from all the online noise?

Here are our five top tips to creating a blog that demands to be seen and heard…

Unleash your expertise

When it comes to blogging, the first step is, obviously, deciding what you want to say.

In terms of business, this might be to share your expertise in mergers and acquisitions, make science more relatable, or bring legal matters to the fore in an engaging way.

Whatever it is, you’ll be starting your blog with a purpose – but so will millions of others.

So, what makes your blog speak for itself?

You! Your voice and expertise are what sets your blog apart.

Don’t be afraid to share your expert knowledge, experience, and advice, and highlight what you, and ultimately your business, have to offer.

If you spot a news topic you can add your own perspective on, why not blog about it? If it adds to the ongoing social or news commentary – even better!

Ultimately, the online world of news and social media is fast-moving, and an online audience is always on the hunt for the latest, most unique, and most interesting topic.

By drawing on your unique industry expertise, and offering a new opinion, this is exactly what you’re providing.

Relating to your audience

Knowing your audience is probably one of the most important aspects of blogging.

Identifying who you are speaking to, and what they will be interested in, is certain to make your blog soar.

As we previously mentioned, if you are targeting businesses in your sector, add to the discussion and unleash your expertise, this is your time to shine!

If you think something is newsworthy and interesting – chances are, your industry colleagues will too!

However, if you are targeting a non-specialist audience, such as potential clients, it’s time to get your research hat on, delve into what interests them, any newsworthy topics which are hitting the headlines, and speak to them in clear and understandable language.

Lost in translation

It can be easy to adopt jargon we use daily, however with a person outside your industry, this might be quickly lost in translation.

For example, using industry jargon or technical language might be fine if you are appealing to someone from a specialist financial/legal/ intellectual property or similar audience, who know their corporate finance from their copyright law.

However, if you are attempting to relate to a younger audience, such as graduates, or even prospective employees – then bombarding them with specialist terms might miss the mark.

Tailoring your message and tone of voice to your audience is guaranteed to speak to them on a more relatable level, and set your blog apart.

A picture is worth a thousand words

And when it comes to blogging it’s definitely worth remembering this!

It can be all too tempting to reel off paragraphs of information to your audience, particularly if it’s something you are passionate about.

However, excessive information presented in a wall of words can easily become overwhelming and detract the reader.

So, why not introduce an image or two?

If you have any images relating to your topic add them in, this will break up the text and make it more visually appealing. Equally videos, graphics, and Gifs can also add an engaging and fun element to your blog.

Remember to try and use good quality images, and if you’ve downloaded them from online ensure you have permission to use the image.

Break it up

A wall of words can be both daunting and off-putting.

So why not use a few headings to break it up?

It’s a simple and effective tool which helps to divide your writing into easily readable sections and make the blog more appealing to your audience.

Make sure each heading clearly relates to the section it is introducing and is not too vague.

One man and his blog

The title of your blog is your first chance to grab a reader’s attention – so get it right!

An interesting, funny, witty, or thought-provoking headline is more likely to demand the audience’s attention and tempt them to read on.

While a standard headline explaining the blog’s content is fine, it’s highly unlikely to stand out from the crowd.

A top tip is to write your headline after completing the blog, and you’ve got a gist of what the piece entails. This will enable you to write an informed and interesting title that will command attention.

Unlike a news article, the blog headline doesn’t need to be explanatory, it can instead be interesting and intriguing but remember it also must relate to the blog topic.

When getting creative, just ensure this is right for the tone of the article. If you’re writing about a sensitive subject be particularly careful with your headline.

If in doubt, do a bit of research into other industry blogs to get a more realistic perspective on what is effective.