Ask a Question to Get an Answer

A business blog can be an incredibly valuable internet marketing tool when used properly.  If you invest the time and effort necessary to get your community of readers involved in each and every post you could see dramatic results from this inexpensive piece of your marketing puzzle.  Getting your business blog to the point where it has become a hotbed of stimulating conversation will require more than just reporting industry news though.

Comments on blog posts are a great way to learn what your readers and prospects are thinking and to learn additional information on a topic that you thought you knew everything about.  In order to get the comments section of your business blog cooking and to ultimately draw in more readers, sometimes you’ve got to physically ask your readers a question.

If your readers really feel as though you are talking to them, they’ll be more likely to actively participate in the conversation.  Try addressing a particular question with your best answer or answers in a blog post, then finish the post by asking readers how they would address a similar issue or come up with a “ten best list” and directly ask readers what points they would add to your list.

There are a lot of people out there that rank a blog’s merit by the activity of the comments on the posts, but not everyone is willing to dive right in without the proper provocation.  Once you’ve gotten a few comments, it’s important to keep the dialogue going by responding when necessary or complimenting commenters for particularly strong points.  You can dramatically increase the effectiveness of a single blog post by turning it into an active conversation and that will ultimately make every second that you’ve invested worth while.