“You are the worst company on earth. I can’t imagine how you stay in business. Do your clients realize they’re getting taken to the cleaners? I should report you to the IRS/SEC/FTC/BBB.”
Oh, the horror of the words. But can they really be true?
When we don’t understand something, but hear a lot about it, we tend to tack on our own irrational fears to justify our choices not to move forward.
Take blogging for instance.
Blogs have been around since the early 2000s. And even though there are millions of blogs in existence, many small businesses still treat them like the plague.
- “I don’t need a blog, my business isn’t big enough.”
- “Blogging; I don’t have time for that.”
- “I don’t want a blog, can you imagine what people will write about me? The Internet’s a rough place and I don’t want to give anyone even more opportunity.”
Sometimes when we hear about things we don’t know, don’t really understand, we imagine things a lot worse than they truly are.
I have a cousin that didn’t fly on an airplane until her mid twenties. She couldn’t imagine it staying in the air, couldn’t fathom how she would make it from point A to point B. Until she flew. It wasn’t so bad after all.
We all have little irrational fears that prevent us from doing something that ultimately could bring a lot of benefit to our lives. But that little tiny voice way deep down inside yells “NO”. And we listen.
Dig Deeper>> How To Blog About Your Customers
So when someone mentions the concept of blogging, that little tiny voice wakes up from his slumber and cries “Don’t do it, you know the results will be horrible. People can comment on your blog, and will have the most horrible things to say.”
“You are the worst company on earth. I can’t imagine how you stay in business. Do your clients realize they’re getting taken to the cleaners? I should report you to the IRS/SEC/FTC/BBB.”
I’ve been blogging since its inception. I’ve written thousands of posts for me, for my clients, and for other sites online. I’ve received tens of thousands of comments based on all the writing I’ve done.
Here’s the thing. I’ve never received a comment as bad as I’ve written above. Yes, I’ve had my share of derogatory rants, foul language, and rude comments. Delete. Delete.
But out of the tens of thousands of comments I’ve received, I’m sure if I could add them all up, it would be in the double digits the amount of comments that were bad enough for me to delete. And the one’s I worried about effecting my reputation? Zero.
I use blogging because its one of the most effective marketing tools in existence today. It puts small companies on equal playing field as large companies. It gives you the ability to attract the clients you want and need, build relationships with people throughout your industry, and set yourself up as the expert to the people in your community.
All in one easy to use format.
And in fact, comments on your blog can be a great thing:
A negative comment can clue you in on to customer service changes that may need to be made. Just because you don’t have a blog to give them a resource to vent their frustration doesn’t mean they aren’t out there venting somewhere else. If its on your site, you can control it, you can be the first one to try and fix the situation.
A disagreeing comment can allow you to educate your readers in a new way. I’ve held many conversations on my blog, some by people with belief systems 180 degrees from mine. By going back and forth, I continued to voice my opinion, provide my expertise, and share my knowledge. For those prospects and clients that feel the way I do, I solidified our working relationship. For those that agree with the disagreeing poster, we would probably never form a relationship anyway.
And if its truly a horrible comment, just use the delete key. The Internet is a place where you can anonymously spew whatever you desire. Don’t take it personally. Keep your sight on the ultimate goal, which is to market your business and build stronger relationships with the people who truly wish to do business with you.