Does your company blog position you as knowledgeable in your sector?

There are lots of different types of blog and blogging. There’s personal blogs that read a lot like diaries, blogs that comment on a mix of current affairs, insightful blogs that teach us something... I could go on. But all blogs have something in common – they pretty much stick to a theme or a purpose. This blog is themed around the stuff I stick up on Twitter or read on Twitter which I can’t contain to 140 characters which is why it has a lot of stuff about marketing, digital marketing, employment law and the digital age and cake baking. Why that weird mix? Well, it’s a pretty good snapshot of who I follow on Twitter and what I talk about. However, the company blog I manage for Silver Lining talks about unified communications, cloud computing, business continuity and telephony issues. Why? Because that’s what the company does and wants to position itself as knowledgeable in.

There are some great company blogs out there which mix the company’s personality with informative, insightful, current and industry specific commentary. For example SimplyZesty – their whole agency website is pretty much a blog. It’s not just a small section or page on the website it truly is the website. It’s not overtly salesy – it’s “info rich” and that makes me trust them. They don’t go off piste – they keep all the zaney personality, office banter and games stuff to their Facebook page instead.

Another company blog I like is the one from Propellernet. Now this is a really funky, fun, young agency in Brighton and it really shines through in their blog. Literally as it’s dominated by sunshine yellow. All the posts are geared to news and advice, industry insights, latest shows and exhibitions etc much like SimplyZesty but there is perhaps a little more of a sales pitch in there and a pinch more zing with those wacky/fun profile pictures! It’s a great blog and one I regularly refer to.

Finally, my other top industry blog that I read regularly is that off Koozai’s. Again its remit is well defined, informative and doesn’t stray from its path (often). They mix in a few news stories about awards the company has won but mostly they promote what they believe in – great SEO and PPC marketing. Funnily enough this is what the company also wins awards for. Posts about free tools, black and white hat techniques, local marketing shows and exhibitions... Can you see a running theme here?

SimplyZesty, Propellernet and Koozai are all businesses – marketing agencies looking for new clients and positioning themselves as really really knowledgeable. They’re all award winning. And I bet they don’t have any problem finding new clients and business. I’d happily visit the blogs of these companies than say Mashable, TechCrunch and Marketing Donut for all the news and latest industry insights I need because for these guys it’s not media churn – they have to be at the top of their game and the most knowledgeable to get results for their customers.

So, next time you look at your company blog and write a post have a think:

1. Does my blog/post talk about my company’s services/products/industry?
2. Does my blog/post position my company as knowledgeable/expert in my industry sector?
3. Do these posts help my clients or future clients?
4. Can people outside of my organisation engage with my posts? Do they understand the in jokes and colloquialisms?
5. Has my blog/post turned into an internal staff message board?