He said think positive, look to things you are passionate about to overcome writers block. That is easier to say than do. I have to lay off two employees today because business is slow.  How can I even think about business blogging today?  Wait….that is the self-talk Ed was talking about.  He said it would prevent me from doing the right things to grow my business.  I am trying to talk myself out of working on the business.  I am not going to let this business slow-down be the end of me.  I’ll write an article as soon as I get to the office and before I tell Paul and Jose that I have to let them go.

8:20 am – Arrival at the office.

Look at my desk.  My goodness, that receptionist has been busy.  I only took one day off.  Why didn’t anyone call me about Mr Rhodes?

8:45 am

I need to write the business blog article, but I wanted to talk to Paul and Jose before 9am.

9:15 am

“Everyone, gather around for a minute.  We all know times are tough, but I had to let Paul and Jose go.”

I hate losing good people.  Paul and Jose were both good workers, but someone had to go otherwise I would not have made payroll next week.  All I need to do is get three or four more new accounts and I can hire them back.  I am going to write that article and new customers are going to find me.

10:25 am

“What do you mean the copy machine broke down?  I am trying to write a business…never mind, I’m coming.”

11:15 am

Darn, the article.  A little after eleven.  I’ll never finish before lunch.  I’ll wait and get a fresh start immediately after lunch.

12:42 pm

Ring, ring.  “Hello?  Yes Michael.  No I’m eating.  What?  Where are you?  I’ll be right there.”

2:55 pm

Ring, ring.  It’s the office.  “Hello?”

“Hi Bill.  Mr Rhodes called for you again.  He said nobody came by to fix the sprinkler system again today.”
“Call him back for me please and tell him I am on my way.  Thanks.”

4:30 pm

I am exhausted.  I would have sent Paul and Jose to fix the sprinklers, but tough economy means I’ve got to pick up the slack.  Oh, darn…  the article.  4:30… I’ve got the kids’ soccer game this afternoon.  I’ll outline my article at the game and slam it out tomorrow.

9:45 pm – conversation with Bill’s wife

“Ed said I would have very good reasons why I didn’t write an article.  All I did today was lay two people off and put out fires.”

“Well Bill,”  said Bill’s wife Mary, “How long did Ed say it would take to write an article?”

“He said at first it would take upwards of an hour, but over time I will get faster.  I’m just worried that if today is an example of how motivated I am, I may never get this business blogging thing off the ground.”

“Honey, you can only do what you can do.  Eventually marketing your business will be the most important thing on your plate and then you’ll take the necessary time.”

“You’re right!  The problem is me.  I’m not prioritizing writing high enough.  I’m letting all the distractions of work creep into my life because I don’t really want to write in the first place.  I would rather dig up a broken sprinkler pipe than market and build my business.  Maybe that is why I had to let Paul and Jose go.”

Ed Bejarana
BusinessBlogging.net
a division of Zenith Exhibits, Inc.

Bashful Bill initially struggled with blogging because he felt uncomfortable sharing his inner thoughts with the internet.  Bill’s new challenge, economically induced writers block, would require a new approach.  Business owners struggle with bills, sales, and employees; these mental processes eat away at one’s ability to engage, enlighten and/or encourage others.  Bill’s shyness added an extra level of stress which took him further away from business blogging.

Bill and I were meeting at a local Sushi restaurant, I figured meeting over lunch would help prepare Bill for what I would tell him.  After several rolls and some small talk, I launched into the problem at hand.

“Bill, tell me something new you’ve learned about your business this past year?”

My question caught Bill off guard, Bill replied, “I thought we were going to talk about my blog article?”

“We will Bill, but first, tell me something new about your industry or the way you are doing business.”

“Not much to say about the landscaping business, except business is down all over.  People are canceling contracts and I’m forced to layoff workers.  I guess I don’t understand your question.”

“Did you attend any trade shows this year Bill?”

“Uh…No.”

“Did you attend any seminars?”

“No.”

“Did you take any classes at the community college or the local Small Business Development Center?”

“No, what are you getting at?”

I ignored Bill’s question for now.  “Do you subscribe to any landscaping magazines?”

“Yes, I read Landscape Architecture, but I thought we were going to meet and discuss my article about cutting home landscaping costs?  I’ve spent a lot of time on this article and feel I just need your help getting started.”

“Bill, sometimes we, as business owners, must see our problems with different eyes in order to understand a way through the situation.  Continuing education is one way to gain a new perspective on business life.  Recessions are a natural part of business and if we fail to seek mental stimulation to keep our thoughts moving in a positive direction, we’ll only have business struggles to ponder.  Our worries will keep us from doing that which builds our business and so begins a downward business spiral.”

I continued, “With that in mind, can you tell me about one of the articles from a past issue of Landscape Architecture that peeked your interest?”

Bill proceeded to tell me about Treeconomics and while the details were mostly a blur, I could hear Bill’s passion for the topic.  When Bill concluded I said, “Now put yourself in the shoes of your readers.  Which story would you rather read, one dripping with worry or one with passion and positive feelings?”

The look on Bill’s face told me he understood.  “You mean my troubles writing are because the tone is negative?”

“Yes.  Negative thought be gets negative results.  When you are faced with an economically induced writers block, the solution is to turn to your passion.  That which you are passionate about will always get you writing again.  You can come back to your current story, but don’t get so focused on one subject that you avoid publication all together.  Your readers are taking a break from life to read your thoughts, reward them with your passion for your profession.”

Ed Bejarana

For more information about how business blogging can help you and your business, please visit our companion website BusinessBlogging.net or call us at (503) 709-1454.

Simple Sally wanted to start her own business blog but was very concerned with the process being too difficult.  While Sally is an engineer and fully capable of mastering complex tasks, she believes creative writing is an art that only the most talented can master.  I helped Sally see the possibility of  blogging to help her formulate new ideas, promote her and her business and keep her current clients up to date with her business and personal activities.

Two days after our initial blog instruction meeting Sally called.  “I’ve got a problem and need to meet with you today for about 20 minutes.”

Simple Sally and I met for coffee at the MoonBuck’s Coffee house.  When struggling with a new concept, sitting peacefully and enjoying a double chocolate mocha with a butter croissant helps put everything back into perspective.

When I arrived at MoonBuck’s, Sally was at a table, but she looked out of sorts.  Sally  designs gears for large industrial shredders.  She usually dresses in blue-jean casual but today wore white heels and a sundress.

I greeted Sally and she jumped right into her troubles.  “You said I could write blog articles.  You said it would be easy.  This blogging thing is ANYTHING but simple.”

I knew Simple Sally liked to keep things neat and straightforward so I documented things  such that it was easier to blog correctly.

“Let’s start at the beginning and figure out a way to fix things.  Why don’t you make a list of five things I’ve told you about business blogging while I go buy us a couple of mochas?”

Coffee shops have always been my favorite meeting place for developing new ideas.  The environment is usually calm and the aroma helps stimulate creative thinking.

While standing in line waiting to order, I pondered Sally’s dilemma.  So far she had not given me very much to work with.  I needed to dig down to the root cause issue that was preventing her from being able to write her blog article.

“What can I get for you?” asked the young girl behind the counter.

“Two double tall chocolate problem solvers please.”

The girl giggled.

After paying for the drinks I turned and headed to the table.   Sally was sitting there with a blank sheet of paper and a puzzled stare into space.

“Here is your double tall problem solver.  How are we doing with the list?”

“About as good as I am writing my first article.”  With those words Sally turned the blank sheet of paper towards me and pushed it across the table.

“You really look nice today Sally, are you meeting clients later?”

“No, I have the day off and my boyfriend and I are going out later for dinner and a show.  I had some extra time while he was working in the yard and decided to write my article before I got into the office tomorrow.”

With that announcement I took a cautious swing of my chocolate mocha.  “Sally, the problem isn’t the process, the problem is timing.  You are trying to do business on your day off.  Name one business thing you do well while preparing for a date with your boyfriend.  You are in time-off mode but you are tying to perform an important business development task.  Writing a business blog article is about building relationships with strangers.  You can not possibly be successful if you only give the process part of your heart.”

I turned the blank sheet of paper back towards Sally.  “Why don’t you write that one at the top?”  Sally picked up her pencil and began to write.

“How do you feel now?  Do you think you can go back to your office tomorrow and get writing?

Simple Sally smiled and said, “Sure.”

Names and jobs of the characters in this story have been changed so that I can be silly!  The blogging principles contained with-in this article are designed to help you use blogging to reach new clients and grow your business.  If you would like to learn more about BusinessBlogging.net and Zenith Exhibits, Inc. Please give us a call (503) 709-1454 or visit one of our websites.

Ed Bejarana
Zenith Exhibits, Inc. &
BusinessBlogging.net

The East Portland Chamber of Commerce offers business blogging opportunities to all of its’ members. Business blogging, using a pull marketing strategy, yield higher click returns and more qualified prospects than traditional bulk eMail blasts (otherwise known as SPAM).

I ask all my clients the same question when describing business blogging…if given enough time to build a relationship (even a friendship) with a prospect would you have a greater chance of earning their business? The answer is always of course; but why then do we turn to blind eMail blasts that clog people’s eMail boxes and frustrate the consumer?

E-Blasts do have a positive return otherwise millions of companies wouldn’t do it, but it uses a less effective marketing strategy. Business blogging is all about introducing the reader to YOU. Not your company, not your great products or services, but consumers today are more interested in who YOU are, what you stand for or believe in. Consumers want proof that you are worth their time and investment. Currently there is no better way to tell your story than business blogging.

Why does business blogging work?

Without getting too technical, search engines love blog site posting structure; but not all blog articles are a like. Search engines are in the business is giving searchers what they are searching for. If a searcher can not find what they want on the first page with-in a few searches, they will move to another search engine. In the internet world, there is no such thing as brand loyalty.

From a product or service based search, blogs are NOT a good vehicle for advertising. Search engines already filter out sales pitches int he blog world. Blogging is about news or stories of interest to the reader. Here is the technical part… Associating “you” with a “topic” (i.e. why you do what you do) will cross reference your “website” and “what you do”. Using keyword placement with-in your story and correct website linking in your article, the search engines will build a link profile for the relevancy of select key words. Put another way, the search engines will see both your main website and the article and see if the article is a duplication of the website or new information that adds to the value of the original keyword.

With a higher value placed on the keyword combination, search engines will rank the blog article higher than your main website because the information contained with-in the article is back ground information supporting your authority on the key word combination. For search engines, the more important the data is rank, the higher on the search result list the link will be placed.

So how is this better than sending out a million eMails on a daily bases?

Because fewer consumers looking specifically for your keywords will translate into higher click over percentages and fewer SPAM complaints. Put another way, business blogging becomes the equivalent of relationship based selling.

For more information about how to participate in the East Portland Chamber blog, please visit one of our Chamber events or you can eMail me directly.

Ed Bejarana
East Portland Chamber of Commerce Blog Editor

Business Blogging is a relatively new term, but the concept has been around for more than a few years. Write blog articles about subjects consumers would be interested in reading and search engines will give you good page listings. What isn’t clear is how to build your article and how comment on articles already online to maximize search engine marketing for your own website.

The East Portland Chamber of Commerce has embraced Business Blogging as a benefit of membership in the chamber, but the publication schedule is limited. How do you get blog articles posted if the schedule is already full? Simple, write constructive comments to an already existing article and make sure to include a link back to your website.

When commenting on an article already posted on this blog site, you must follow the same guidelines for the creation of any article, with one additional requirement. When commenting, you must keep the same subject matter and add to the story with relevant input. Adding “me too” or “great idea” to the comments of an article will NOT help your internet marketing.

Focus on one aspect of the blog article when commenting and build or expand on the theme. If you have a different conclusion than the original author, remember to be clear and concise and refrain from making the correction feel like a personal attack. The best general rule for commenting is, “if you don’t have something good to say, it may be better to not say anything.”

In order to comment on our site, you must register as a user on the blog site as well as be a member of the East Portland Chamber of Commerce. If you have any questions about the registration process, please eMail me directly.