Truth 37. Blogging and social media are powerful business tools

Blogging has transformed our world. The blogosphere is where we’re likely to go for information, ideas, and advice in every situation, from how to paint the living room to how to find the best hotel in Timbuktu and what to do when we’re there. Today, many people trust bloggers more than they do traditional authorities. Information and ideas have become “democratized” and interactive. We can all be part of the conversation with unbelievable ease, using software and services that are free or inexpensive.

For corporations, blogs have become must-have vehicles for selling products and services on a more personal level, and many encourage employees to blog about the company. For professionals such as lawyers, accountants, and consultants, blogs may be the best way ever invented to establish themselves as authorities, reach clients and prospects directly, personalize relationships, and become known in their communities of choice.

Blogging has changed the political landscape, too. Blogs can and do bring down politicians, generate controversy, expose injustice and corruption, find contradictions and discrepancies, and reveal facts that at times seem inappropriate for public consumption.

The exploding use of social media extends the blogging revolution. Some experts predict that e-mail will soon be another has-been communication form and that Web sites will morph into blogs.

This means that when you blog, you’re competing against thousands with the same interests and self-interest, so doing it well can make a big difference. The concept of “build it and they will come” can really work. Provide something of real value, and you’ll be found.

Here are some points that apply to social media as well as personal and business blogging.

Remember that when you use these media, even when privacy options are available, you can’t really keep your professional and personal worlds separate. They have merged. A prospective client or employer will check you out on Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn and also look at your postings. And, like e-mails, blog postings never, ever go away: They are archived and can be redistributed endlessly.

Remember also that using these media effectively can be very time-consuming. If you want to build a good blog with a following, rather than just post opinions on controversial topics, you need a steady stream of good material that makes a genuine contribution. Here’s how to do it.

Know what you want to accomplish—Promote yourself? Sell a product or service? Share special knowledge or expertise related to your company, profession, or hobby? Or are you seeking to express your opinions and connect with kindred spirits? All such goals are legitimate, but when you define your own, you can be successful. However, keep in mind that blogs and social media postings don’t work when they’re blatantly promotional.

Know your audience—Define whom you must reach to accomplish your goals. That will tell you what focus might work, what you can offer that will be of real value to your audience, best content choices, and perhaps the right technical level for your material. It’s becoming increasingly easy to pinpoint the groups you’re interested in through free online services.

Brainstorm content based on goal and audience—A fairly tight focus can work very well so you or your company is identified with something specific that sets the site apart from most others. Specialized knowledge is what drives the Internet. Tie your subject into your own best knowledge base and passion.

What special expertise do you have? Is there an information niche you could fill? For example, a former Wall Street analyst set up a blog that posts financial filings with the government, and it quickly became an essential resource for reporters. An automotive industry executive blogs on developing a new generation of cars, in deep technical detail, and this site attracts thousands of auto groupies.

Links are content, too—Remember that in the blogging world, providing resources that readers can access with a click is valued for its own sake. If you like reviewing scads of materials and can put them into perspective, that’s a service. Building up your links is also the way to get read by more people and move up on the search engine lists.

Listen, learn, share—Social media and the blogosphere offer amazing opportunities to monitor the networks and communities you’re interested in, socially, professionally, and commercially. So listen to the online conversations and comment only when you’ve absorbed the protocols of the specific medium and when you have something of value to give. Do your homework and research. Have the patience to build your credibility, and relationships, gradually over time.

Don’t assume that only your friends will read what you write on a blog or social media site—Think of all the students who’ve hurt their chances of college admission by posting questionable pictures on a site, or by telling unsavory anecdotes about themselves. Not to mention job applicants who are totally surprised when an employment manager looks up their Facebook pages and finds something offensive.

During a major trial recently, a key witness was similarly astounded when her blog posts, in which she described her ability to lie and the money she might get from false testimony, were entered into evidence. But blogging isn’t a real-life thing, she protested. Wrong: In today’s world, blogging is as real as it gets.

The principle holds for microblogs like Twitter, too, which gives people the chance to post very short comments of up to 140 characters. (See Truth 40 on writing for microblogs.) Most people think these mini-postings are as casual as you can get. But just ask a PR executive who tweeted about a city where he gave a major presentation to a client based there. His negative comment about the place was relayed to top executives at both the client’s company and his own. Not a good career move.