In the interest of full disclosure, I need to tell you I have only been blogging for about 8 months.

However, if you’re in the mood for one of those list posts that is quick reading and good general info to squirrel away in your file labeled “Blog,” then read on.

4 Reasons Not to Blog (at least not yet)
1. If you haven’t chosen a target market for your coaching business.
(How do you know who to write to?)

2. If you don’t know your market very well.
(How do you know what to write?)

3. If you haven’t exercised your writing muscle recently or frequently.
(Doing a blog when you’re out of writing shape is almost as painful as doing a marathon when you’re out of running shape.)

4. If you are already overwhelmed by all you have to do for your coaching business.
(Unless you are a masochist of course.)

6 Reasons to Blog

1. It builds your email list.

2. It builds awareness of you and your coaching business.

3. It builds your credibility and expertise.

4. It builds your know-like-trust factor with potential clients.

5. It builds interest in your programs, products, services, and events.

6. It keeps you in front of your target market on a consistent basis.

4 Things to Do Before You Begin to Blog

1. Read other blogs – both coaching and non-coaching. Figure out what you like, what you don’t like, and why. Subscribe to at least 3 blogs.

2. Be sure you know who you are writing your blog to and for; why you are doing it; what you want to write about; and the style, format, tone, etc. you want for your blog.

3. Develop an editorial calendar that outlines what you’re writing about and when in your blog. Be sure your posts coincide with and support your business and marketing goals and activities.

For example, if you’re going to be giving a teleclass, plan to write and publish one or two “teaser” posts ahead of time about the subject of your teleclass . Be sure to mention your upcoming class at the end of each post and provide a link to the registration page.

4. Build up a blog post inventory of two to three months of publishing.

5 Components of Your Blog Strategy

1. Frequency of posting – Many people suggest every week, but I think that’s a bit ambitious in the beginning. It’s better to post every other week and do it consistently than aim for every week and miss a deadline occasionally. Readers appreciate and expect consistency.

2. Length of post – This certainly can and will vary, depending on the subject matter of the post. However, choose an average blog post length to shoot for. Mine is 500-700 words. Yours will depend on what your market prefers to read and what you prefer to write. (This post is 801 words long, but I’m not cutting it back because it is a list post and therefore quick and easy for you to read.)

3. Where will your blog posts be published besides your site? Your Facebook page? LinkedIn? Organizations to which you belong? Your ezine? What about doing the occasional guest blog for publishing on someone else’s sight? (A great way to build your list as long as you are still writing to your target market.)

4. Subject matter – See below for ideas.

5. Repurposing – How will you repurpose your blog posts? Perhaps you will tweak them and submit them to article sites. Or maybe you are planning to bundle them together for an e-book. If you want to write smarter, not harder, then repurposing is definitely the way to go.

6 Things to Blog About (Remember your audience and purpose for blogging)

1. Solutions to your target market’s most pressing problems.

2. Information your market is looking for. (Filter other people’s content for them. This is a very useful service to perform and exactly what I’m doing for you right now.)

3. Answers to the questions your clients most often ask.

4. Your personal life and experiences, but be careful. A little goes a long way on a business blog.

5. Topical issues that interest and/or affect your market.

6. When you’re really stuck for something to blog about, ask someone to be a guest blogger on your site.

And there you have it – 24 nuggets of information to squirrel away in your file marked “Blog.”

(This blog post started out life as an outline of a presentation for a telesummit. It is also forming the basis for a workshop I will be putting together for coaches about blogging. See how great repurposing works?)

Author's Bio: 

Carol Hess (www.tamethewritingmonster.com), the Coach’s Writing Partner, shows coaches how to harness the power of writing to gain clients, credibility, and confidence. She shows you how to write smarter, not harder for the coach who wants to write less, stress less, and coach more. Get Carol’s new report, “15 Foolproof Ways to Bust Through Writer’s Block,” at http://www.tamethewritingmonster.com.