Developing a blog is likely one of the best ways a Virtual Assistant can utilise their free time. It’s the first thing most people will see of your business, so there’s absolutely no margin for error. Attempting to make it complicated or overly complex is a waste of time. Right now, you don’t really require a computer expert to get the job done for you, because everything you need is readily accessible, much of it available at no charge.
The one thing that I would suggest, if this is going to be your main web presence as a Virtual Assistant, then you should have your own Hosting Package and a domain name that mirrors your business name, or as near as you can get it. The process that you need to go through when starting your blog is:
Initially, before you start, here is an important warning: Keep your site clean and simple, clarity is everything! Make sure that the site is simple for your users to navigate, so that they can easily find what they’re searching for. Whilst in technological terms it may be state of the art, your blog still needs to appear stylish.
1. The first thing to do is to pursue some keyword research around the topics you are going to talk about on your blog. From this you can identify the most optimised names for the blog. From this you can identify the most optimised names for the blog.
2. Your next step is to research the blog platform that you are going to use. There are a wide variety of options available, provided by suppliers such as WordPress.org – the Moveable Type for the self hosted option, or the likes of WordPress.com, Typepad, Blogger, Blogspot or Blogsmith for hosted platforms. The things you really need to make sure that you do are:
* Use a platform that is widely support by a very active community.
* Use something that is portable, and always keep a back up should anything go wrong.
3. Once you have chosen the platform, sign up using one of the optimised names that you chose for the blog, or install the site onto your own domain.
4. Choose the template that you want to use, and make sure that:
* It ‘s appropriate to your topic.
* You fully customise it with headers, pictures, buttons and so on to make your blog stand out.
* The end result suits your style and brand.
5. Once you’ve finished this check out what else you’re able to add to your site, i.e. popular widgets and plug-ins.
6. When you’re pleased with the overall style, you should add some new posts to get an idea of how the blog will look once users begin to utilise it. Once you’ve verified all is well, make any adjustments necessary to improve the style and visible structure.
7. When you are happy with the overall look you can then publish your blog.
Maintaining your blog can be a bit of a challenge as you really need to post at least once a week, two or three quality posts would be better. You need to be providing something that visitors will want to come back for – and encourage these users to sign up to your feed.
Remember that this is an online business blog and you’re displaying your corporate image, so keep the discussions agreeable, as you want to put forth your individuality while still remaining completely professional. Don’t mix business with pleasure on your site, and as you don’t want to alienate anyone, try to keep away from any kind of controversial topics.
Michelle Dale is The Managing Director of Virtual Miss Friday, a cutting edge Executive Virtual Assistant Service which assists organisations and enterprising individuals with every detail of their entrepreneurial aspirations. Do you want to peruse some further information on these incredible online business building success strategies? Enter the Campaign for FREE Virtual Assistance as soon as possible!
Related Story:
