The Wax Blog

Whether you’re a writer or not, finding the time to sit down and write is hard, especially if you’re running your own business.  Finding  inspiration for writing can be even harder. If you aren’t a writer by trade, you do have the opportunity to decide exactly when and where you want to write for your blog – but there are some things that can help you prime the pump. (more…)

While your blog might be filled with helpful information, you’ve still got to sell yourself a little and tell your readers why they care about what you have to say. In recent weeks, we’ve talked a lot about over-selling, so you’re walking a fine line, but there are a few things you can do to make people take you seriously:

1.     Ask for a testimonial – you need to ensure that you present this in an appropriate way, and this is not something that will be suitable for all blogs/websites so proceed with caution. But the bottom line is having a testimonial placed on your site, written by someone else that tells readers why you rock, will go a lot farther than if you try to brag about your own accomplishments. When this isn’t appropriate, a simple biographical statement with a link to an ‘about me’ or testimonial page works too!

2.     Have someone else’s endorsement – if you have a column hosted by another blog or website, that’s a great way to show that you’ve got the endorsement of a credible business, person, or online publication.  Nothing even needs to be said, because as it stands, their reputation is riding on you so clearly they take heed of what you have to say and everyone else should too!

3.     Don’t be afraid to link to mentions of you – if you’ve been quoted in an article or mentioned in a post online, go ahead and link it in your blog with a brief introduction to it!

4.     Toss in some stats – people don’t know what kind of following you have when they can’t see the reports. Sometimes tossing in your Alexa ranking with a subtle banner on your site may be a good idea. If you’ve got a following, then it’s obvious to readers you’ve got some good things to say!

What else have you found helps enhance your credibility with your readers even before they start following you?

I love this post….the Wax blog is quite popular in the UK for some reason . Does our humor seem British? BH

Last year I wrote about a few things that you should consider when you’re using language to reach your target audience. Since this blog has a large international following, it’s a topic worth revisiting to learn how you can ensure that your blog appeals to your readers from the UK and other international destinations!

Here are a few things to consider whether you’re a US business trying to have more worldwide appeal, or you’re an international business trying to appeal to that core target audience: (more…)

Your call to action doesn't have to be LOUD

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about using a traditional marketing call to action in your blog, and many of the insightful comments lead me to put a little bit more thought into the subject. I’ll be honest, when I began writing that post, I wasn’t even contemplating use of a call to action in a new media way. I was thinking of it in a traditional marketing way; you know, where the end of a direct marketing campaign says “quick calls us because we’ll do good things for you and gives you free stuff” (and often sounds a little more like the furniture salesman who cornered me in the store the other day and said “hey, I’m not supposed to, but if you buy that couch today, I’ll throw in the $75 scotch guard for free” though I’d said I was only getting design ideas). Anyway, nothing against marketing professionals that use that kind of call to action, because there are some scenarios where it’s more than appropriate and necessary. But last week, what I was really getting into was whether or not that specific pitch was appropriate for a blog.

While the comments debated the subject, some saying “yes we use a call to action in our blog posts” I began to realize that the used car salesman approach is not the only thing that readers were thinking about. Bonnie nailed it with her comment that “I think it really depends on how the call is written. You can freely include them if you stay away from sounding like a stereotypical used car salesman.”

So, let’s look at some other ways that you could reasonably define a call to action with a new media twist. (more…)

Three weeks into the New Year, and I know that the idea of setting New Year’s resolutions has been beaten into the ground. So forgive me, because it’s time to look at making those commitments one more time, but this time with your blog. If you set realistic goals for your blog in 2011, you will accomplish them, which is more than can likely be set for your other new resolutions (gym, eating, time off the computer…need I say more?) So what should those blog goals be? (more…)

By Beth Graddon-Hodgson

not Beth's husband

Most businesses use blogging as a marketing tool, and that’s the way it should be; but people are uncertain exactly what that means. Do you use traditional rules of marketing when you’re writing your blog posts? Write for a target audience? Try to sell a product? Include a call to action?  Well, those are more questions than I can answer here, and I’ve answered many of them before. But to summarize, yes to be an effective marketing tool you do have to think as you would when writing marketing copy (identify your target audience, make statements that are appealing and capture interest,  and she some light on your business). But the similarities end there.