Launching a blog can seem like an overwhelming task. Getting started is half the battle. At Communiqué, we have helped several businesses and nonprofit organizations create, launch and manage their blogs.

For clients looking to launch a blog for the first time, we have developed a blogging toolkit that we customize for their particular needs. This toolkit assembles all the information that an organization will need to blog successfully.

Using our toolkit, we do the following:

• Identify your main objectives. In order to launch a successful blog, it is helpful to identify what you are trying to accomplish. You need to answer the question, “Why am I doing this?” Are you trying to change behavior, inform a key audience or entertain?
• Identify your key audiences. Ultimately, you want your blog to be read. Before creating the content, it is critical to identify who your readers will be and understand what motivates and/or resonates with them. Then, filter all content through the eyes of your audience by asking how it will be helpful to them.
• Name your blog. This step seems obvious, but selecting a memorable and meaningful blog name can help give your blog recognition. The name should be relevant and not misleading.
• Identify success measurements. You can determine the success of your blog in a variety of ways. Identify how you or your company will determine the success by measuring variables such as the duration of page stay, unique visits or increased site traffic. It is helpful to set achievable benchmarks on a quarterly or semi-annual basis to measure growth.
• Determine roles and responsibilities. Empower members of your team or company to help with the development of the blog content. This will help everyone feel included and ensure the blog can function consistently. This will alleviate pressure on one individual as team members take ownership in content development.
• Develop a publishing schedule. Your readers need to know what they can expect from your blog. The best way to achieve this is by committing to a schedule and delivering. If you can blog once a week, we’ll help you set up a process that will best accommodate this goal.
• Build a strong pipeline of content. We recommend you develop an editorial calendar and have a handful of blog posts ready for publication before you launch your blog. This will also help to ensure content is posted consistently and on time.
• Establish clear deadlines. Let contributors know when their blog posts are due for review. To ensure there is clarity about deadlines, we recommend scheduling calendar updates to provide reminders when draft posts are due to reviewers.
• Identify a process for managing comments. It will be important that you read comments and respond to them in a timely manner. We can help you think through the process for this.

As part of the blogging toolkit, Communiqué PR will also provide your team with ideas for search engine optimization, guidelines for developing content, a checklist for reviewers to use, and ideas for standard features that should be included when developing your sites.

If you’d like more information on the benefits of blogging, please check out the links below or give us a call. As you can tell from our site, we are passionate about blogging!

• Blogs: The Pillars of B2B Social Media Strategies
• When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Blogging
• Leveraging the Blogosphere: Insights from CPR