Blogging is a great way to build your brand. A blog is not just the regular posting of articles. It is a powerful way to give your brand a voice, personality and position it as an expert voice within your industry. Your blog is a way to start a conversation with your followers, and your brand is what you would like your followers to be talking about, so it follows that a blog is the perfect brand marketing tool. When you are writing a blog, keep your brand foremost in your mind. This is not just the theme of your industry, but what your company represents, how you want it to be perceived and the position it has in the market. Being consistent with your tone, register and voice will strengthen your brand. Over time, your readers will learn to recognise the ‘voice’ that is speaking to them. As a result, they will pay attention to it, and they will listen and value it. This is the art of effective marketing and brand building, and it is why a blog is the perfect medium to do it. A strong, distinctive voice does not mean preaching or teaching your audience, it means being conversational and knowledgeable without being condescending. No one like a know it all, and sometimes it is just as affective to ask your readers what they think. Not all your articles should be about what you know. Think about your blog as a way to have a chat, write a diary and start an interesting conversation. The look of your blog is also important to the brand image. Make sure it matches your company colours and logo. This will make your blog easy to recognise and it will link it directly to your website and your company. Use images on each blog post too. This makes your blog more accessible and attractive for sharing on social media sites like Facebook and Pinterest. Also, images are a great way of actually showing your readers what you are selling. Blogging is about sharing. Don’t do a blog if all you are trying to do is create keywords and backlinks on content. Create a blog because you have something to say and something to share, something that only YOUR brand can say. What do you think? Tell us about your blogs. What do you right about and how has your blog helped you build your brand?