I’ve been so busy writing my social media marketing book (due out this spring) that I didn’t get around to blogging my web marketing predictions for 2009. Turns out there are several good predictions, none better than Online Marketing 2009 Predictions from Hubspot.

Peter Caputa of Hubspot makes some very compelling points. I won’t steal his thunder. You should read his post. I will however offer a complementary point of view.

Peter’s predictions revolve around the rapidly evolving changes in web marketing. He says:

• Business blogging will grow
• SEO consultants will deliver leads, not rankings
• Marketing software is a must

I agree with all three points with this to add…Effective marketing in 2009 is a paradigm shift.  I even argue it’s a mindset change. Even in a weak economy all businesses must continue to market. No one disagrees with that. The question is how do you make the most of your marketing budget in 2009?

In most industries buyers turn to the web to find products and services they need.  Marketers need to commit to a strategy that whole-heartedly allows them to be found on the web with effective engagement strategies.

Notice I didn’t say that marketers need to commit to being found in search engines with an effective conversion strategy. Marketers want qualified buyers coming to their doorstep.  To do this a whole-hearted strategy is needed of producing a lot of great content which can engage prospective buyers on the web no matter the platform - search engines, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, industry blogs, industry social networking sites, etc., etc.

Notice I said whole-heartedly, not half-hearted. Pete points out the cost of an SEO consultant is several thousands per month. That’s because an effective SEO strategy requires creating and optimizing a lot of content. It’s not just about optimizing for search engines. SEO in 2009 is about optimizing for the web. That takes a whole-hearted commitment, not a half-hearted commitment.

Software platforms like those mentioned by Pete are also important just like CRM and accounting software is important.  Measuring results requires tools and technologies coupled with smart strategies.

A whole-hearted commitment to ongoing content development for communities of people across the web is a must for effective web marketing success in 2009.

The only question this raises is should we change our company name to Find and Engage?

Bernie Borges
@berniebay

Tags: @berniebay, business blogging, Hubspot, marketing software, SEO consultants, Twitter

Business blogging is a hot topic.  I recently podcasted on the importance of having a blogging strategy.

Yesterday, Chris Brogan wrote a great post with 9 ways to promote your blog.  I agree with all his tips, especially sharing your best blog posts (not all your blog posts) with your network. 

But, I want to be direct about an observation many of us in the Internet marketing world experience.  Business blogging is getting harder.  Business blogging requires a big commitment.  Guys like Chris Brogan of CrossTech Media, Mike Volpe of Hubspot and Jeremiah Owyang of Forrester Research spend a lot of their time blogging because it’s a big part of their business.  And, not only do they have a lot of good content to share with us, they have developed a loyal following through their blogs.

What about the average business competing to sell widgets every day?   How do you develop a strong business blog with limited time for blogging?

I don’t know if my tip is the silver bullet….But, here it is.  Think “small.”  Forget what you’ve been taught about “thinking big.”  Think small! 

Target your blog for a narrow audience with a very narrow topic.  Don’t worry about what you can write about, unless you don’t have a subject matter expert (in which case don’t even consider this idea).  You’ll be surprised how much you can write about a narrow topic.

Most businesses have a well defined target market.  Pick a segment of your target market and start a blog on it.  Maybe it’s a very specific industry segment such as office furniture dealers.  Just write about office furniture dealers.  If you have more than one person in your company qualified to write about this narrow topic, that’s even better.

There are at least three advantages to a narrow approach to business blogging.

1. You don’t have to write very often.  If you write about once per week or so, that is sufficient.  Just be consistent and write good content for your target audience.  Don’t write every other month, then once a week, then every other month.  Your blog will go stale.

2. The probability of your blog being noticed is greater because it is so narrow.  In fact, if you get a little lucky, you may get a handful of people in your narrow niche that really embrace your blog and promote it for you to others in your niche.  If that happens, you’ll find out that your niche is bigger than you thought.

3. Less competition.  Tecnhorati is currently tracking 112 million blogs.  In your narrow niche you’ll only be competing with 10 of them.  Ok, I made up this (second) number.  My point is you’ll compete with a fewer number of blogs for mindshare in your narrow niche.

4. Promoting your blog will be easier.  Just refer to Chris Brogan’s list of 9 ways to promote your blog.  If you do just half the suggestions made by Chris, your blog has great potential to become popular and give your business great exposure and open new doors for your business.

I said there are three good reasons for a narrow niche blog strategy, but I gave you four reasons.  I thought the fourth reason might be added to Chris Brogan’s list for an even 10.

Send me a link to your niche blog.

Tags: business blogging, Chris Brogan, CrossTech Media, Forrester Research, Hubspot, Jeremiah Owyang, Mike Volpe