Gone are the days of a “set-it and forget-it” website. To truly engage your audience you need to know how to write a blog that speaks to them. Blogging is not just a trendy thing to do, it actually is good for your business! In fact, 81% of consumers trust advice and information that they read in blogs. Small businesses generate 126% more leads by having a blog and keeping its content up-to-date. If you’re not blogging now, you’re missing out. Why? Because 77% of internet users read blogs on a daily basis!

1. Select your platform

Prior to starting your blog, you must first decide which blogging platform you would like to use.  Some free options include: WordPress, Blogger, and Tumblr. However, if you do not care for any of these, you can always search for other blogging platforms via Google search. If you are a business, you should consider hosting a blog within your website in addition to an outside blog site. Through your external blog, you can create inbound links that drive traffic to your company’s website and in turn means free advertising!

*Note: In order to brand yourself, it’s highly recommended that you purchase a personalized URL. Otherwise you’re just giving the credit back to WordPress, Blogger, Tumblr or the like.

2. Decide on a theme

The next is choosing a theme for your commercial real estate blog. Some bloggers like to talk about the industry, others focus on common problems that clients have. One great way to write about solutions to the problems that your customers have  is to predict the questions your prospects are Googling.  

3. Pick your design template

Now that you have your theme, it’s time to think about the layout and color scheme of your website. Do you want it to be clean? Simple? Elegant? Fun? Creative? Whatever you choose keep your readers in mind, and make sure that there is a synergy between your design and theme.

4. Create a content calendar

Once all of this preparation is complete, it’s time to create an editorial calendar. You’ll want to begin by mapping out at least 3 to 6 months at a time. Then, make notes on the calendar for each day you want to post content. Most importantly, stick to the calendar! Make sure that you create an editorial calendar that is reasonable for your schedule. Do not overwhelm yourself – it will be hard to stick to your goals if you over commit and in turn will discourage you from writing future content. However, you should challenge yourself — don’t schedule just one blog a month. Once you get into the groove, you will see that you can post more often and the boost in SEO, engagement, and traffic will make it worthwhile.

• Fun Fact: Sites that posts blogs everyday generate 4x more leads than those that post weekly or less.

5. Write away!

Finally, now that you’ve established your blog site, designed your theme and layout, and developed a calendar, it’s time to put fingers to keyboard and write your first CRE blog. At first, keep it simple. If you’re not sure how to get started, read through a few established blogger sites. Get a feel for the voice you want your blog to have. But most of all, have fun! People will enjoy reading your work if you enjoy writing it!