Blogging for New Clients

Source: Journal of Accountancy

The word blog is a shortened form of Web log. It is different from a Web site in that it generally provides more specific coverage of a topic and is updated frequently. A blog is typically text dominated. It will often have links to complementary sites and will have more links than typical Web sites. Blogs are positioned more prominently in search engines than Web sites by virtue of their frequent updating.

You can use news feeds to inform clients and prospects when new material is added. Readers can then visit your blog to read the new information or use an RSS (Really Simple Syndication) newsreader to obtain the material automatically.

A blog can be used as a marketing vehicle for your firm by providing useful information to your clients and other users, and by establishing you or your firm as expert in one or more specialties. A good example is www.vanilla-accounting.com/blog/index.php

A blog can be integrated with your marketing plan and newsletter. It is important that you update the site frequently and that the information is accurate, correct, and useful.

It is relatively easy and inexpensive to set up a blog. Here is some information:

The following blog services are good for beginners:

v      Blogger (www.blogger.com)

v      TypePad (www.typepad.com)

v      Squarespace (www.squarespace.com)

These design companies create customized blogs:

v      Design 4 Results (www.design4results.com)

v      Sekimori Design (www.sekimori.com)

From Journal of Accountancy, June 2005. Click on the following link for the complete article:
http://www.aicpa.org/pubs/jofa/jun2005/lang.htm.