On November 7, 2013, a couple of hundred marketing professionals gathered at the Bloor Reference Library in downtown Toronto for the meshmarketing conference. A highlight of the day for me was definitely the closing keynote presentation by Jay Baer, author of Youtility and founder of Convince and Convert.

On his blog (and then again as a powerful introduction to his book), Jay writes about Geek Squad and their instructional YouTube videos. Robert Stephens, Geek Squad founder, was challenged with this question from an audience member:

Why was Geek Squad giving away the very thing they sell?

People sometimes ask me the same thing when I suggest they give their blog readers valuable information they can use to solve their problems.

Stephens explained, “Our best customers are the people that think they can do it themselves….eventually everybody will be out of their depth. They won’t be able to do it themselves, and at that point who will they call?”

The success of Geek Squad speaks for itself (they were acquired by Best Buy in 2002 and have since grown exponentially), and so does the remarkable turnaround story of River Pools and Spas.

In recounting his pool company’s blogging success story in the foreword of Youtility, Marcus Sheridan writes that when people were reading the self-serve information about pools on the company’s blog:

“They weren’t just self-educating, they were self-qualifying, too. By the time they contacted us for an in-person appointment, they were predisposed to working with us.”

Selling pools to homeowners is one thing, but what about companies that serve other businesses? Are B2B customers also looking for self-serve information?

Yes, absolutely! A couple of the presenters at meshmarketing mentioned a survey that found that, on average, by the time a B2B customer contacted a sales rep they had already completed 60% of their purchasing decision process.

That means they’ve been on your website, reading your blog posts, and looking for answers. So as you’re getting ready to publish your next blog post, check whether the information is self-serve or self-serving. Is it focused on a topic of interest to your ideal customer, or is it a diary entry about what’s most important to you? (There is a right way to use personal stories on a business blog.)

Here are some different types of self-serve blog posts to offer your customers and prospective customers

(Click the embedded links for examples.)

• A “how to” article that helps the reader solve a specific problem
• Tips and insights about a topic your ideal customer is interested in
• An interview with a related expert that helps the reader solve a specific problem
• A video demonstration about how to complete a task
• An infographic that makes it easier to understand a complex issue
• A review of a book, website or other resource that will be helpful to your ideal customer
• An example of how another person or business succeeded in the same situation that your ideal customer is facing

If you’re still feeling hesitant, Jay Baer has five great reasons to give away the recipe for your secret sauce. Remember: Your self-serve information can cement your credibility in the eyes of a prospective customer who needs the products or services you offer.

Whether your company is new to blogging or you’ve been blogging for years, chances are someone else is blogging about the same topics you are. While this may seem intimidating, finding your own way to say similar things will be the key to your blogging success.

Here are five ways to keep your company blog fresh and relevant, even when your topics have been covered again and again:

1. Infuse your posts with personality – There are customers out there who are the perfect match for your company’s particular approach, values, people and solutions. When you write posts that express who you are as a company and as individuals, those ideal customers can find you. Just as importantly, the ones who are better suited for someone else will stay away.
2. Talk to lots of beginners – It’s easy to convince yourself you know what “the market” wants and needs, but until you talk to real people and actually test your theories, you won’t know for sure. So instead of creating blog content from the perspective of what you think people understand and want to know more about, ask them – directly! Listen to their questions, and note how they describe the topics so you can use that same language.
3. Simplify your ideas – Talking to beginners also helps you see how complex and confusing the subject may seem to them. When you’re immersed in your industry day in and day out, you can forget that your prospective customers haven’t been there with you. Just because information is out there doesn’t mean they’ve seen it. If you can bring it to them in a clear, concise way that’s easy to understand, you’ll get and keep their attention. So forget what you know and help beginners get started on the topic.
4. Seek out related blogs – Instead of ignoring other blogs that cover your company’s topic, hoping they’ll go away, I recommend you look at them – often. As soon as you begin defining your own blogging strategy, start reading, bookmarking and subscribing to similar blogs. Notice what you like, what you don’t like, and what seems to be working well for them. Then continue to monitor the best blogs for content you can learn from, build on, and – yes! – share with your network. This may lead to guest post opportunities, expert interviews, exposure to each other’s audiences on social media, or a rich dialogue that could inspire a multitude of future posts.
5. Use case studies – When you illustrate the facts with examples from your own leadership team, employees, customers and vendors, you bring a personal and unique perspective to any topic. One of my clients who writes about federal contracting often cites examples from bids he and his company have worked on – both successfully and unsuccessfully. This brings credibility to his information and shows how his company employs the practices he blogs about.

Blogging is a powerful tool for attracting new customers who are a good fit for your company. By incorporating your personality, interacting with beginners to your topic, simplifying your content, reading related blogs, and using your own relevant case studies, you’ll find your company’s unique blogging voice and the inspiration to keep singing.

For another look at this topic, check out What Once Was Old is New Again from the Content Mastery Guide archives.

Many people starting a company blog are concerned about comments. Three things usually come up, and are easy to address. What a relief!

1. Spam: You will be inundated by spam comments

In an effort to get traffic back to their own sites, unscrupulous people and the automated robots who work for them post comments to blogs 24/7. First and foremost, have your web developer install a tool that will block spam comments. Next, consider whether you want to moderate all comments that are posted so nothing winds up on your site that will reflect badly on your business.

If you choose to moderate your comments, decide who in your company can commit to a quick response time. You want people who leave legitimate comments to feel they are being heard and valued. You can also use an outsourced blog management service for this and other tasks.

Comment notifications can be sent by email, and WordPress even has apps for iOS (Apple) and Android that allow you to quickly moderate comments from wherever you are.

Not all unwanted comments are necessarily spam. If you feel a comment is too generic or just an empty compliment (both signs of someone just looking for a link), you can remove it from your site. You never have to approve or display comments just so there are comments on your blog. Think quality rather than quantity. This leads nicely into the next comment concern.

2. Volume: There will be too many comments to keep up with, or none at all

It takes time and effort to build a community of blog readers. Depending on how carefully you’ve planned your blog, how much you’re promoting it through social media and email, and the size of your network, there may not be very many visitors at the start.

Also, your visitors may simply not want to post public comments, no matter how much they’ve enjoyed your material. This is nothing to worry about. After all, do you want a lot of comments or a lot of calls from prospective customers?

Some people will send feedback in other ways, such as by email, social media comments, or sharing your post with their own social networks.

It’s not likely you’ll need to worry about a high volume of comments, at least for awhile. If you do find you’re spending too much time responding to or moderating comments, consider outsourcing the task.

Whatever you do, make sure that irrelevant or spam comments are removed promptly, and that genuine comments get a thoughtful response. “Thanks for your comment,” is a good start, and then try to build on something specific they said.

3. Critics: People will criticize you and your company

We know intellectually that it’s impossible to be adored by everyone on the planet, yet we can still be absolutely tormented by negative feedback. Even a thoughtful and sincere remark can be threatening if it disagrees with our own statements.

Critical comments can feel like a personal attack for whoever wrote a particular post, but they can also be worrisome to the marketing manager and/or business owner. Will this “bad press” have a negative impact on your company’s credibility?

Sometimes an inflammatory comment needs to be ignored or deleted, but often it can be an opportunity to reiterate your point of view while still showing the commenter – and the rest of the world – that you care about other people’s opinions.

Tip: Whether they say it on your own blog, on a review site, or their own site, if people are unhappy with your company they will make their feelings known. Use an online monitoring tool such as Talkwalker to stay on top of your company’s online reputation.

As WordPress and blogging expert Lorelle VanFossen says, “It’s your blog. You choose what is on it.” She also says that you have a responsibility for what appears on your blog, and that if you care about your readers, you’ll clear away the comment clutter.

Spam comments should be removed immediately (or never posted), but so should any comments you feel detract from the conversation you are trying to have with your community. Ultimately, the most important thing is to keep posting well-written and relevant blog posts that will get people talking!