When Andy and Marianna asked me to be a guest blogger on Results Revolution I was super psyched, but also a little nervous! I’m just a small business owner that likes to blog – not an expert on blogging! But then I think that was the point – right guys? If I can do it, you can definitely do it!
First, let me introduce myself. My name is Mandy, and I own Swagger Gifts in Cary, NC. I have been blogging for my gift shop since February 2008. I love to blog, and I do the best I can. But I KNOW I’m not the best blogger out there. I think when I finally realized that, I actually became a better blogger! The fear of “am I doing this right?” is gone, because there is no right or wrong! I know there are a bunch of people out there giving advice on blogging – and I try really hard to follow some of it – but the best advice I received was – JUST DO IT! And in turn it is the advice I am handing out to you today!
Creating your blog (which you can do for FREE – just Google “free blogs”) and then writing a post are the first two steps. I promise it is easy and basically painless! Then commit yourself to the blog. It only works if you are consistent!
Marianna asked me to answer two questions for you:
- How often do I blog? Of course my goal is to blog every day, but sometimes I can only make it happen twice a week (you know all the other stuff that comes with owning a small business gets “in the way”). However I do strive for twice a week – remember consistency is key – it gets your readers in the habit of coming to see what is going on at your business and the search engines love it!
- What type of content do I put on my blog? I guess “a little bit of everything” would be the answer here!
One thing that we do to get people visiting the Swagger Gifts’ blog on a regular basis is to do a weekly giveaway. It is a lot of fun to interact with our customers in this way and it showcases a specific item that generally customers come in and purchase (which of course is the goal!). Our blog also feeds into our Facebook page, so people will share the giveaway on their pages which also increases our “fan” numbers (more people to market to – yeah!). The weekly giveaway has been very beneficial financially for Swagger Gifts!
I also blog about “new stuff” that has come into the store. I have done posts on 23 boxes just arrived to Hot New Trends to Baby Gifts under $40. I think pictures are worth a thousands words, so I always attach a picture to our posts! One of our most popular posts was about how a new oversized flower could be used in the Front Door Idea blog post. I know it was popular because the flowers sold out almost immediately, and we had a “people to call” list waiting when our next shipment came in. Most people said they saw it on Facebook!
Blogging about community events and charity events that we are doing in the store or ones that our customers are involved in is great for goodwill! It also shows that you are involved with the local community!
A while ago, Marianna wrote a blog post about sharing “Behind the Scenes” info with your customers. I have posted Behind the Scenes info a couple times and our customers seem to love it! We live in such a “social” society that people love reading about what your life as a business owner is really like! I should do this more often – thanks Marianna for the tip!
This also leads me to writing about going to tradeshows or other places you visit for your type of business. I have been writing about our market trips for two years now and our “sneak peak” blog posts get customers excited and coming into the store asking “when is so and so going to arrive!”
There are so many other things to post about, and I would love to hear what you do on your blog to generate traffic for your business! Please comment below – I’m sure all of us who read the Results Revolution blog would love some new ideas!
For those of you who don’t have a blog (yet) – go out there and start one! Then come back here and comment on how easy it was!
Thanks for reading and for sharing your tips below!
Mandy
great post as usual!
Great journey and experience!
This is a very informative post, thank you. i first came across you’re blog looking for gift ideas but continued reading about setting up blogs, great stuff, please do more, I’ll be back.
I like the idea behind this article. You’ve taken the idea of making your business and marketing as personable as you can. It’s much like visiting with an old friend.
I would have to give you a “thumbs up” for a job very well done.
Keep sharing those great ideas!
Thanks so much, Bob! That’s a great compliment to us because we do want to be personable and make local marketing doable and achievable. Thanks for reading – and please comment often – we love hearing from our readers!
Thanks for reading! Please come back often, let us know what information we can help you with – and be sure to leave your comments behind. We appreciate you!
Best you should change the blog subject title Blog Post Ideas for a Retail Gift Shop | Results Revolution to more better for your blog post you create. I enjoyed the the writing withal.
this blog shows that each blog has a purpose. and this one relates blog and business. and its great!
Great stuff. So much value in understanding the personal, more “intimate” side of marketing. I think if more retailers understood the value of getting “personal” in their marketing, overall advertising and marketing would improve so much. Thanks for posting.
currently I am working for the company which is in the business of online gift (especially personalized) . so this post is really valuable for me. I got many ideas and I’ll implement in my blogging. thanks for sharing and keep up the good work…cheers -Catherine Brooks
I’m glad it was helpful! Would love for you to share some of your posts or tips that you use anytime!
I actually see blogging as somewhat like maintaining a weekly show or something.. the idea of blogging about interesting things and having other people interested about it.. then when they like what you’re doing they become “regulars” – they’re like your “fans” in your “weekly show” called your blog
Wanted to say how much I agree with having a blog on your business site. Blogs are great for bringing in traffic, even those unsuspecting. I also agree with your need for locality. Being from Austin, TX, anything local is strongly supported!
There’s no perfect answer to this question. For me, it’s what your target audience’s need. That will also dictate on how you will make your whole site. It can be formal, humorous, glamorous, everything will depend on what you are trying to sell and what your customers prefer to see when browsing your site.
Wholesale Dollar Merchandise
http://www.jcsaleswholesale.com
I agree with everyone else about the significance a blog can have that goes a long with your website. Not only does it engage more with your customers/viewers, but it could help with PPC and SEO. I learned a lot of these kinds of strategies through an internet marketing service called Majon International that helped me understand the impact of social media marketing. Thanks for the advice and tips!
I am, without a doubt, the world’s worst blogger but, this gave me a few ideas for how to get better
. Thanks for sharing!
Om Shanti,
Hafapea
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