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From hair salons to flower shops, just about any small business can benefit from having a blog. Not only is it a great way to showcase your business, it also drives traffic to your website. But, in order to be successful, a small business blog should adhere to the latest best practices for blogging. I’ve gathered a few of my favorite tips to share with you:

• A blog should solve a problem or provide fresh insight in your industry. Share knowledge and keep the sales pitch to a minimum.
• Regardless of frequency, pick a schedule and stick with it. An editorial calendar helps with this. A good starting point is posting 2x per month, or every 2 weeks.
• Keep posts around or under 400 words.
• When possible, use high resolution, relevant photos to help enhance your content.
• Ensure readers can repost and share your blog with social media links.
• Include a “follow blog” field/button so readers can stay up to date.

Blogging is all about having a conversation, so in your posts, open the floor up for discussion by asking a question of your readers. If you read another blog that you love, post a link to it on your own. For example, I personally enjoy reading Writers in the Storm, which focuses on the craft of novel writing and writing in general.

If you’re a small business and want to start a blog, but don’t know where to start, I’m here to help! Drop me a line if you have any questions or would like to chat about an upcoming project.