Tom Johansmeyer is the Senior Content Director at enter:marketing. He also blogs for Cigar Reader, of which he is co-founder, Gadling, and Luxist.
Sometimes, I have to rediscover my blogs I like. It sounds crazy, right? I have about a dozen that I hit every morning as part of my daily routine, but there are many others I enjoy. They just don’t get the same priority as my morning favorites, and inevitably, I forget to go back … until something reminds me. Most corporate bloggers may not realize it, but “forgotten blog syndrome” is one of the principal challenges they face.
It’s tough for a corporate blog to become one of a reader’s usual destinations. Corporate blogs compete with trade publications, mainstream news outlets and, of course, the time constraints of professional life. So, it’s imperative that a corporate blog have a plan for keeping its profile elevated in order to make sure visitors continue to return. If readers are reminded often enough, and respond with mouse-clicks, a corporate blog will “graduate” to must-read status.
So, how do you cure forgotten blog syndrome and remind readers to check out your content? Here are four tips to get you started:
1. It’s all about status
Use regular Facebook and Twitter status updates to engage your target market with your corporate blog content. These people may not remember to visit your blog every day, but a well-placed, well-timed status update can be sufficient to win a click-through.
2. Push for blog pickups
Through PR efforts, relationships with other blogs and organic interaction, get other blogs and online publications to cite, link back to or reblog your corporate blog posts. Trade publications and trade blogs are particularly useful for this.
3. Talk, and get other people to do so
Even online, word of mouth remains a powerful way to generate interest and enthusiasm. Your employees should remind clients, prospects and partners about your corporate blog. Reference it at lunches, meetings and conferences. Never stop selling your corporate blog!
4. Jump onto trends
If an issue is gaining momentum in your marketplace, blog about it – a lot. Chances are the readers you want to attract will be following the issue. Thus, they’ll be drawn to relevant status updates and likely will be conducting searches on key expressions related to it. Hitch your blog to a trend, and it’s more likely to be found.
The goal of these reminder efforts is not just to reengage sufferers of forgotten blog syndrome but eventually to get them to come directly to your corporate blog every day. Use the reminder tactics above to convert an occasional reader into a regular visitor … and a regular visitor into a vocal advocate.
