Don’t Succumb To Blogger’s Block

Many start out blogging for business, but the fact is, far fewer are keeping up with their blog – alas, they’ve succumbed to "blogger’s block".  Even with the best of intentions, many business owners find themselves unable to keep up with regular blogging while also keeping up with the many demands of their own business.

Let’s face it: even for the most skillful of writers, blogging for business takes work, a lot of it.  Tip Talks president Bob Chenoweth lists mistakes that can wreck business communications, including:
 

• Not knowing your audience
• Not charting your course
• Not using creativity
• Not using design elements

It’s obvious avoiding these mistakes takes time, and time is at a premium with business owners.

In Business Blogging – Barrel Through Writer’s Block, Tinu AbayomiPaul, has some helpful suggestions that bear revisiting when writer’s block sets in:

1. Talk about what you’ve already talked about (give it a new spin).
2. Talk about what someone else is talking about (read other bloggers, magazine articles, etc., give that person credit and then add your own spin). In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m doing some of those things in this very blog post, bringing in ideas from other writers and adding my own spin.
   
3. Have yourself a good rant. (AbayomiPaul warns against getting unfocused or unprofessional in tone.)
4. Feature someone, something, or somewhere in a blog post.

One of the blogs I follow is Web Ink Now, by David Meerman Scott. His latest ebook talks about introducing conflict in writing. The object is to avoid what he calls "classic propaganda-driven marketing cr-p", that tells readers "Here’s our product. It’s great.  Here are customers who say it is great.  Now buy some of our product." Make blog posts thought-provoking, is the idea.

So there you have it:  a bunch of good remedies for blogger’s block.  Still blocked, you say?  I believe I hear my a professional ghost blogger entrance line….