Spring 2009
Build Your Own Buzz! By Liane Hu

Article Resources

Debbie Dusenberry
Curious Sofa
913.432.8969
CuriousSofa.com

Thompson Lange
Homescapes Carmel
831.624.6499
HomescapesCarmel.com

Sarah Morgan
MCS Public Relations
Bedminster, NJ
908.234.9900

Linda O'Boyle
Metro Home Style
315.420.2335
MetroHomeStyle.net

Stephen Quigley
Associate Professor of Public Relations
Boston University
617.353.3450

It started as an experiment. Retailer Debbie Dusenberry was tired of the hassle involved every time she wanted to update her store’s website. Following friends’ advice, the owner of Curious Sofa in Kansas City, KS, created a blog called “Curious Sofa Diaries.” Her first entry was simple enough: It gave readers a heads up about new merchandise in the store and also included observations from a recent furniture show she had attended. Over the three years since she has been blogging, Dusenberry’s blog has evolved into something much more—it has become a great marketing and sales tool for her store.

“Every time I add a new entry to my blog to advertise an event, a sale or new merchandise, we can see a difference in our sales. Sometimes it is greater than others and it can trickle in, but it still gets them here,” Dusenberry says, adding that her blog enjoys a cult-like following.

Dusenberry’s story, while exceptional, is not unique. Blogging could work for your store as well. If you do decide to create your own blog, host sites such as Blogspot and WordPress make it simple to start right away, just by creating a free account. The basic steps are outlined, and designated fields for headers, sidebars and body copy await whatever content you choose to contribute. Here are some points to remember before you dive in:

Find a voice

If you decide to try blogging yourself, target a specific audience. Dusenberry started blogging to let her customers know about store events and merchandise. “I keep my blog 95 percent shop-related,” says Dusenberry. “It’s rarely about my personal life.” Stephen Quigley is an associate professor at Boston University’s College of Communication who specializes in new media. He says that once your readers trust you, you earn a reputation as a ‘thought leader.’ “An authentic, passionate, personal voice is what makes a blog special and worth returning to,” Quigley says.

Humanize the store

In a marketplace like that of the gift shop industry, where competition is high among a large number of sellers, your unique voice can be the key to differentiating your store from the crowd. Thompson Lange, co-owner and buyer for Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA home furnishings store Homescapes Carmel, started blogging for that reason. “Blogs need to show the real person behind the merchandise,” says Lange. “The concept was to give my customers some work-related inside scoop on all the ridiculous situations I get myself into as I travel to find products for my store.”

Lange’s travels define the brand of Homescapes Carmel. One of his entries includes a humorous account of how he spent a week chasing down the briefcase he left at an airport in Shanghai containing his buying budget—$9,000 in cash. “[I] arrived in Tokyo with one credit card and $200 to my name,” Lange recalls. “But [by blogging about it], I’ve reinforced the idea that I travel the world to bring back unique items and that it isn’t always easy. The misadventures I blog about also humanize the store.”

To build strong relationships, Quigley advises making full use of the feedback and social networking capabilities of blogs. “People visit blogs because they want to engage and talk back. If you’re not interested in listening back, you should really do an ad. Blogs are a two-way communication strategy, and a long-term strategy. You probably won’t really see results in the short term, but you’ll be building relationships,” he says. In fact, Quigley strongly recommends that anyone interested in blogs should spend ample time—several weeks, at least—just reading blogs on topics about which he or she is passionate.

Develop listening skills

“Participate by listening first,” says Quigley. “Only after you have done that, should you start participating by commenting on blogs and recommending blogs to your friends. Even if you never get past that to start your own blog, that’s a huge asset because you’ll know what people are saying. If I am someone who is passionate about, say, Harry Potter dolls, and I buy and sell Harry Potter dolls, then I can learn a ton of stuff that is incredibly helpful simply by listening.”

Reach out

Sarah Morgan, director of client services at MCS Public Relations in Bedminster, NJ, points out that even if you do not have your own blog, you can investigate whether there are bloggers appropriate for pitching story ideas to. “Use technorati.com, blogsearch.google.com and blogcatalog.com to research who might be a good fit, blogs that are read by the sort of people you see come into your shop, and reach out to the person with a suggestion of a few especially cool gifts that you carry that they might want to talk about,” Morgan says. “If you have the money, offer to send samples. Most bloggers are honored that you appreciate their work and their opinion, and if you’ve researched them, you can probably tell what they’d really like.”

Transparency, always

If after reading others blogs, you decide to try commenting and blogging yourself, ethical behavior is increasingly a consideration. Blogging has transformed word-of-mouth in the 21st century. “Word-of-mouth is probably the single most important driver of business success today,” says Quigley. “What has changed is that it’s easier than ever to share opinions because of the Internet and blogging.” Unfortunately, the proliferation of bad practices on blogs is in part what spurred the formation of the Word of Mouth Marketing Association, a professional organization that has taken an official stance against stealth marketing—the creation of self-serving posts without full disclosure of one’s affiliations. By advocating transparency, WOMMA makes it clear that you should not have to fake your own hype to get attention; in the long run, this will only damage your credibility. As Quigley points out:

Avoid rants

Similarly, as your blog’s readership expands, it can be tempting to use your blog to blow off steam. But Linda O’Boyle, owner of Syracuse, NY lifestyle boutique Metro Home Style, warns against this kind of behavior. “When problems arise in the business, I think it is appropriate and helpful to other business owners to tell what happened and how you dealt with it—without being nasty to anyone involved,” she says. “For example, you are waiting for a key piece of your holiday display to come in, but the company can’t ship your order in time and the display will have to be totally reworked. Don’t trash the vendor who couldn’t deliver—that makes you look unprofessional. Instead, show how you were able to adjust and adapt on short notice to still present a winning display. Anyone in the world can read what you wrote, so don’t write something you don’t want spread to billions of people.”

Update regularly

For busy retailers like you, blogs can seem like a time-draining investment. Morgan finds that having a set schedule for blogging works best for her. “Maybe do it for an hour Sunday night,” she says. “Create a few posts, and then roll them out over the week. If a great idea comes to you, jot it down and save it for that time. That’s what I try to do. It’s much more difficult to try to write a full post whenever you have an idea.” Quigley adds that you develop a good following if you provide great content constantly.

Have fun

Blogs are increasingly flexible and customizable. You can even sell advertising on your blog, particularly for products that your store carries, and make your blog profitable on its own. However, a blog does not need all the bells and whistles to be successful—it simply needs authentic, engaging content. With blogging, you have the chance to stay abreast of trends and, possibly, develop your own unique voice to express and capitalize on your unique personality. As a blogger who herself just started in February ‘last year’, O’Boyle offers this advice: “Remember that you are blogging and not going for a Pulitzer Prize. Allow yourself some time to find your own personal style, and relax, have fun and enjoy the process!” Liane Hu is a 2009 graduate of Boston University’s College of Communication and College of Arts and Sciences. Born and raised in Hawaii, she currently resides in Boston and is pursuing a career in public relations and marketing. She has worked on campaigns and written for both corporate and non-profit clients in the travel and tourism, banking, community media, performing arts, visual arts, sports and health foods industries.

Liane Hu

Liane Hu is a 2009 graduate of Boston University's College of Communication and College of Arts and Sciences. Born and raised in Hawaii, she currently resides in Boston and is pursuing a career in public relations and marketing. She has worked on campaigns and written for both corporate and non-profit clients in the travel and tourism, banking, community media, performing arts, visual arts, sports and health foods industries.




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