This is our 3rd week of our Social Media series in August and I know that all of you love it as much as I do. Today, my friend Jennifer Herndon is talking to you about why a blog would benefit you, especially it you are interested in making an income.

She loves to motivate people to go all out on the potential that is on the inside of you. Every time I read one of her blogposts, I am impressed and always feel I have to take some action. I hope you feel the same.

I know you will like her; she is very upfront with you and I know she will show you what to do as a newbie in blogging and even as a professional blogger; enjoy her post as much as I did.

Here is Jennifer:

3 Big Reasons Your Online Business Needs a Blog

 by Jennifer Herndon

You can build an online business through social media these days. I love that fact. It really levels the playing field. No longer do you have to be rich enough to rent an office, tech savvy enough to program a computer, or fresh on the heels of a degree from the Harvard School of Business.

All you need to know is how to do social media right. That doesn’t sound too hard. Signing up for accounts with Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, and Pinterest takes a total of about 30 minutes. And you’re in business, right?

Wrong. Yet I hear it often. People I meet on social media tell me they have an online business. But when I go to trade websites with them, it’s “well I don’t have a website yet.” And most of them have no realistic plan to get one.

Because they are building their business with social media. Which is great. But, you are making a huge mistake if your blog is not at the heart of your social media strategy. (I’ll use blog and website to mean the same thing here because in the beginning, there doesn’t need to be much on your website other than your blog.)

Your blog is in fact the motherload of your social media marketing. Why? Here are the top 3 reasons:

1. Your Blog Makes You an Expert

Yes, you can put out some wonderful nuggets of wisdom on Facebook, Twitter and the rest. But people go to these traditional social media platforms for bites of information. Social media moves quickly. They aren’t going to “pull up a chair and stay awhile” while you try to educate them on your market.

Even though Facebook and Google+ allow for blog-length posts these days, that’s not what your readers are going there for. (There are some exceptions to this when it comes to Google+).

The place to teach the masses is at your blog. Your audience expects to come there and be educated through articles containing 1000+ words, as opposed to 140 characters. And, it is in the consistent reading of your blog content that your market sees that you do know what you’re talking about.

It is your blog that’s going to establish you as the “go to” expert in your market, not the witty quote you just posted on Twitter.

2. Your Blog is Where the Money’s At

I hope the purpose of your online business is to serve others. But let’s face it, this is your business. It needs to be profitable.

Your social media networks are where relationships are built. Your blog is where the money is made. You aren’t going to build a million dollar business tweeting and posting about your products and services. You can however, build a million dollar business using social media to drive people to your website.

Once at your website, what do they find? An opt-in box, where they give you their email address in exchange for a valuable freebie from you. Now they’re on your email list and you can sell to them. Email marking works for making sales. Social media works for building the relationship necessary for people to see that they want to be on your email list because you have valuable things to offer.

3. Your Blog is Your Story

A huge part of the reason people buy from you is that they like you. And they like you because they remember you. There’s a whole lot of noise on social media, and you have to figure out a way to shine, or you’ll never catch your intended audience’s eyes.

And the place you can really shine is on your blog. Because your blog is yours. I know you paid a lot of money for that Facebook cover photo and custom Twitter background. But, do you realize most people see those once, if at all? Your audience is seeing your posts in their stream, looking the same as everyone else’s posts.

And what you are putting out on Twitter and Facebook and all the others is disappearing almost as fast as you post it. Finding it again takes some work.

Not so with your blog. YOU own your blog. And you have the power to customize it however you want. You can put the pictures of your family, tell the stories of your past, and display client testimonials as your successes. And it’s all right there for your reader to see.  All in one place, all designed by you, and all permanent. It’s like a virtual book about you. And it includes the stories people are going to remember. The things that make people like and trust you. The reasons people buy from you.

So, Get to Blogging

Your blog is the home of your online business. It’s as necessary as a building is to any offline business. Trying to run an online business using social media without including blogging as part of your strategy is akin to a dentist setting up his chair on a street corner. Don’t do it.

I’d love to hear your thoughts. If you don’t have a blog, will you be setting one up today? If you are blogging, how important is it to your online business?

Jennifer has two passions ~ raising her children, and helping entrepreneurs grow profitable online businesses.  She has been enjoying the time freedom and financial benefits of being a work from home entrepreneur for over 14 years.

As a single mom of three awesome kids (ages 4, 5 and 7), Jennifer relates to the challenges of being a full time parent and small business owner.  Jennifer specializes in working with offline experts to build a strong online presence. Her programs combine mindset with method to produce lasting results for your business.