There are a lot of contractors who write a blog as a way to communicate information to their customers; many of which do a wonderful job at relaying their knowledge on a sometimes complex subject in a way that is easily understood by the nonprofessional. Knowing your audience is a key piece to the online marketing tool we have all become familiar with.
Blogging about what you do or the services your company offers can be very helpful to your existing and potential customers alike. Choosing a timely subject and getting the information online for all to read at their own leisure can turn your knowledge into profits if you handle it properly. All too often I see contractors writing almost technical documents about plumbing, heating or cooling problems with the intended audience being their customers; people who might not be interested in exactly how a heat pump works but rather the benefits it may offer over them when compared to their existing heat plant.
Writing over the head of your audience can definitely have a negative effect, steering your customers away rather than drawing them in closer. I assure you no matter how much you might impress them with your knowledge of a particular subject the message you ware trying to convey will be quickly lost of you don’t keep it on a more basic level.
No matter what the writing project, you should plan to write to someone—that is, you should target an audience for your blog. Audience analysis is crucial to understanding what should go into each piece of writing. You should consider your audience’s needs in your research; your content; the background information you provide; your tone, style, and wording; and the frequency with which you define terminology. Analyzing your audience will help you make the necessary decisions about what you will write.
In addition to knowing who your audience is, you need to understand your purpose for writing. You’ve got a specific reason for writing, the purpose includes what you intend to accomplish in the writing and how you want the reader to use the information. Purpose bridges the gap between audience and content, linking them directly to you, the contractor.
Profiling your audience is the next step. This includes identifying who your audience is, their needs and how you may provide information that can be beneficial to them without turning them away. After all, turning them away is exactly the opposite of your original intention of building a relationship or gaining a new client.
For example, the audience profile will tell you the following:
- how much information to convey
- what kinds and levels of details to include
- what concepts to emphasize
- what words, tone, and style to use to communicate with your audience
Putting all of this information together on your end provides a formula for a successful blog post to link to your website and social media. If your audience profile identifies a growing number of younger adults just now entering the market of home ownership, then you may consider topics based more on the smaller services such you offer; such as annual maintenance and its importance to the wellbeing of their new big investment. You don’t have to reference the latest internet fad to hit YouTube but, marketing to them should definitely include a heavy dose of social media. All of this is drawn from your profile and added to your already vast knowledge of customer relations.
One last thing; keep it short. Keeping it simple and easy to understand is one thing but going on and on is just as much an offense. If you’ve got tons more to say on the subject, and I’m sure you do, include in your writing that you’re more than willing to discuss the topic in more detail if they want to do so. Just don’t try to jam all your years of experience into one post, they bind books for that so if you feel the urge, by all means call a publisher but for now just limit it to 300-600 words. That’s plenty of space to get the point across.
Eric Aune
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