We live in the times of social networking, and probably the precursor to the modern social networking craze is blogging. Blogging has been there for a long time now, but the fact that it still remains and that corporate entities are still using it for their promotion and other purposes speaks volumes of its effectiveness. Today, businesses that do not have their own blog are considered decrepit. There are many benefits of having your own blog, and least of them is that you can reach out to a wider global audience.

A blog, very simply defined, is a chronological album of entries made by the author of the blog and subsequent visitors. You can blog about anything - you can speak about your business, your travel, your cooking adventures and even about how you combated with an ugly zit on your face. There are all kinds of blogs floating around there. Your blog could be your personal diary, a way to record things you want people to know and a way to emphasize your are, after all, human with emotions and expressions. This creative outlet is a very significant benefit of having your own blog.

But if the blog is for promoting a business, then that's a wholly different ballgame, and it has zillion benefits of its own. Business blogs are very important instruments of brand recognition and promotion. Let us understand why.

With a blog, you are able to express the main features of your product in a very subtle way. Most bloggers will not speak about the product directly, but they will write an informative article about it. Like, if you are selling upholstery, you might write a blog about how to choose the best cushion covers. Something like that. People who want to learn about this will visit your blog. If your blog is good enough, they will want to know more such things.

Within the blog, you can post the URL of your business website. Ideally, this is present at the bottom of the blog, but of course it can be wedged anywhere in between. Some smart bloggers use text links too. Whoever wants more information can click on this text link or the URL and visit your website. That way you get your traffic. This is not any ordinary traffic too - it is targeted traffic who have reached your blog in the first place because they were searching for related information. It becomes very simple to convince such people to become your customers.

But there's much more to this. A blog is a way in which you can interact with your customers or potential customers. You can invite them to ask you more about the product, and you can very easily dispense them with information. If there is some negative talk about your product, a blog is the best channel where you can provide your explanations. A blog helps you keep in constant touch with people who are interested in the kinds of product you are selling - it is the best place to build your customer base.

Of course, there are a lot of frills attached. You have to work hard at making your blog search engine optimized so that the search engines pick it, otherwise you will get no traffic. You have to keep your blog updated, because there is nothing more devastating for the promotion of a business than a blog that's allowed to stagnate.

A lively business blog, on the other hand, could be the best instrument at promoting a business and bringing in targeted traffic. Blogging should be quite high on any online entrepreneur's list.

Copyright (c) 2008 Colin Meunier