Time for me to be honest, I sometimes get hung up on what to blog about for my own business. I think it is something that many business professionals struggle with. In an attempt to come up with something unique, fresh and thought-provoking, the feature topic is often times over analyzed.

We all know that most people read blogs because they are looking for tips, opinions, or answers to a problem they are up against. They want to read something that is written by someone that has experience and passion about the topic.

But we also know that people are participating in blogs and other forms of social media because they are looking for interaction, engagement and ways of sharing their own expertise.

So the next time you get hit with writer’s block, why not turn your questions into topics.

If you come across a business problem and have difficulty finding resolution, you can do 1 of 2 things.

1. Turn your experience of finding the answer into a blog post.
2. Or simply post that you have a question and are interested in other professional’s expertise and opinion.

Either way, it may prompt dialog between you and colleagues, as well as potential clients, resulting in great networking potential. Not to mention some traffic for your site!

Tomorrow is September 1st and the “back to school” messages are everywhere. Here in Florida, many of the schools resume in mid-August, so my kids have been back in the groove for a couple of weeks now. And the homework they have been brining home looks very much like it did last Spring; similar exercises, math problems etc. Their teachers have them going back to the basics, re-doing, re-reading, so that they can refresh their skills and further develop them.

Every year it serves as a powerful reminder for me.

So staying true to that reminder, I have been doing a lot of reading this week about copywriting and marketing, a back to basics kind of thing. And in doing so, I came across my books and teachings from some of the true copywriting greats. (Still amazed at how Dan Kennedy is a true genius when it comes to using words to sell.)

Sometimes, no matter how advanced or experienced you are in your professional career (and especially if you are on the newer end), you need to take the time and just absorb. Soak it all in. Read, read and read some more.

You never know what nugget of information will lead to a whole new niche or approach – even a nugget you may have read years ago and are just re-visiting now.

As I re-read some books I read in past years, I was somewhat surprised by my own highlights, notes and underlines – entirely different parts than what I would pay attention to or what would speak to me now.

Here is a sampling of what I learned (or re-learned )from my most recent foray into the Land of Copywriting Masters:

• AIDA: Attention, Interest, Desire, Action
• You must be aware of and not afraid to address or bring up any and all issues, flaws, questions and objections to your service offering or product.
• Your service may be one that “anyone” or “everyone” in business can or will use, but anyone and everyone do not a target make. Try to speak to and please anyone and everyone, and no one will be your customer.
• Do the legwork before you write, then write without editing, then edit and strategize.
• No one is sitting around waiting for your copy – they are, however, sitting around waiting for their problem to be solved.

Blogging can really promote your business.

But before you worry too much about promoting your products or services, you should first focus your blog writing on bringing value to your readers. That means making an effort to share valuable information your readers can use whether they choose to make a purchase from you or not.

Add value: solve a problem
A blog is the perfect platform to establish yourself as an authority in your industry. If your business is landscaping and lawn care and you write a blog post titled “How to Get a Perfect Yard with Acme Weed Killer,” you are clearly putting your needs before your readers’.

Put more effort into establishing trust and becoming the go to person in your industry. Your readers would respond much better to a post titled, “10 Tips for Getting Rid of Weeds for Good.” This title sounds like it would have information any homeowner would be interested in learning.

Become an expert
Customers may not care much about Acme Weed Killer and what it claims to do, but they do care about their own yards and would welcome helpful lawn care tips. That adds value to the information you’re providing through your blog writing.

Focus your blog writing on bringing value to your readers instead of promoting your business and what you’re selling. You will build a community of loyal followers who will do business with you based on your expert advice and the information you share.

Blog writing is a great way for businesses to connect with their customer base and promote their business.

You can establish yourself as an expert in your particular industry and build a loyal community of readers that will request your advice and provide feedback about your business and the products/services your provide.

Successful blog writing requires a basic understanding of writing for the web and engaging your readers:

• Write less
Add as much information as possible using the least amount of words. Strive for writing around 150-250 words.

Less than this doesn’t give you room to say much and more than this can result in an easily forgotten, long-winded post.

Remember that most people scan the information presented online instead of reading all the details. Keeping your posts short and to the point makes the information you share easy to digest.

• Use catchy headlines and sub-headlines
The Headlines and sub headlines in blog writing are what grab a reader’s attention and make them want to read more. They also make it easy for readers to scan your post for information that stands out.

The titles of the headlines and sub headlines give readers an idea of what the content that follows contains. They can go back to read the paragraph in its entirety to get more information.

• Use bullet points
Bullet points are great for listing important information. They make your content easy to read and scan. They can also help highlight important information that might otherwise be hidden in a paragraph.

• Maintain consistency
Write your blog posts in a consistent tone and style. If you are writing in third person, remain in third person throughout your post.

• Optimize keywords
Learn basic SEO techniques by infusing your posts with popular keywords so that it gets picked up by the search engines.

Don’t go overboard and overstuff your post with a keyword phrase. The search engines will consider it spam and your blog writing will sound awkward. Keep the tone of your writing natural and conversational, as if you were talking to a friend.