Ten Percent of Small Business Marketing Plans Include Blogs

One of my favorite people in the entire blogging world is Anita Campbell. We go way back. A couple of months ago she reported on an HP survey that said 10% of small business owners have included blogs in their marketing plans. And 16% plan to invest in blogs over the next 2 to 3 years. Anita noted that more women surveyed have incorporated business blogs into their marketing plans than men, which actually flies in the face of other such surveys. She had some advice for those of us who consult with small business regarding their online marketing needs:

• For businesses providing blogging software and blog-related services, targeting business bloggers could be an excellent niche.
• Web design firms need to incorporate weblogs into their offerings. Partnering with blog consultants could be a good marriage.
• SEO firms also figure in this mix. As the number of business blogs grows, it becomes harder to stand out. Search engine optimization (SEO) for blogs will become important just as it is for websites.
• [For] blog consultants it sounds like there will be plenty of work to go around. Small business owners will be looking for affordable help to set up blogs and learn the ropes.

That last little tidbit is of prime importance to me, since blog consulting is what I do. Small businesses, blogs aren't just a fad. They are here to stay and you would benefit by adding one as a marketing channel to enhance your online presence.