Getting Started

What is a blog? A blog is a regularly updated website or web page and can either be used for personal use or to fulfill a business need. Unlike a website, a blog (formerly known as weblog), needs to be updated regularly, and allows you to engage with your site visitors. (Blog Hubspot, n.d.)

Business blogging is one of the basic tenets of inbound marketing, and one of the best ways for businesses to gain greater online visibility. It drives traffic to company websites, aims to convert that traffic into leads, helps establish authority and drives long-term results. If you want to write great business blog content it requires a certain skill level to achieve those goals. There may never truly be a “perfect” blog post, but there are strategies you can use to make the ones you write stand out from the rest. (Lazuka, 2017, para. 1)

Writing great business blogs—like any other craft of writing—requires practice, practice, practice amid reading, reading, reading. Profound readers become the best writers. Understanding your audience and your topic cannot be overstated either.

In this assignment, you will write a blog for a specific industry selected by you, with preference for one that will best support your research and writing for the ADP.

 References

What is a blog? (n.d.). Blog Hubspot [Image]. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/blog-examples(new tab)

Lazuka, S. (2017, March 26). How to write the perfect business blog post. Entrepreneur. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/291903(new tab)

Upon successful completion of this assignment, you will be able to:

• Demonstrate the ability to write for industry and practitioner journals and websites.

Background Information

Blog Exploration

As you explore other blogs—ahead of completing your own—consider establishing a plan for how you will gather all the inspirational or downright “cool” ideas to be discovered on the websites. The list below will help jump start your own blog exploration checklist (aka ‘cool idea collector kit’):

• What is the writing style like on the blog — casual, formal, academic?
• What safety or blogging guidelines can you find on the blog?
• How are pages used for static information?
• Are the posts time specific or ‘evergreen’?
• What images and multimedia are being used?
• Is there are sidebar? What is its purpose?
• How has the text been formatted to make it easier to read — are there headings, bullet points, or colors?
• How does digital writing differ from analog with hyperlinks? (Morris, 2018, Blog Exploration)

References

Morris. (2018, September 24). 10 ways to introduce blogging to your students. Theedublogger. https://www.theedublogger.com/introduce-blogging/(new tab)

Instructions

1. Review the rubric to make sure you understand the criteria for earning your grade. Notice the point variation depending on the number of industry journal sources and blog sources identified in the initial post.
2. Read chapters 36–50 (pp. 103–120) in Everybody Writes.
3. Access and read How to Write a Successful Blog Post(new tab).
4. Download the BADM-700 and BADM-720 Blogs List(Word document).
5. Complete the following based on the industry selected:
   1. Locate 5–10 industry publications and or trade journals that are suitable for use in your doctoral research.
      1. All the industry publications or trade journals should have the same industry focus (e.g., aviation, education, marketing, HR management, information systems, healthcare, accounting)
      2. Review a sampling of the articles in the industry publications or trade journals to obtain a sense of current and relevant topics and trending data.
   2. Locate 3–5 blog sites producing blog content that is supportive of the selected industry and or your ADP research topic areas.
      1. Use the downloaded blog list and or blog sites identified elsewhere.
      2. Review a sampling of the blogs from the listed cites for content, format, tone, and style in anticipation of writing an industry blog for this assignment.
      3. Identify the focus of your industry blog, preferably one that is suitable for your ADP research.
      4. Locate supporting resources for added content, as applicable.
   3. Important Note: Keep in mind that the blog you write for this assignment will be used in a later workshop as the start for writing an industry article suitable for one of the identified trade or industry publications.
6. Develop and or revise an author tagline for use in your written publications.
7. Complete the written assignment per the guidelines for each of the following sections:
   1. Introduction – Provide a brief 1–2 paragraph introduction in the paper to identify (a) the purpose of blogs, (b) the industry selected for the blog writing (include name and NAICS Code), (c) the general focus of the ADP research interest, (d) specific topic addressed in the blog, and other details as appropriate.
   2. Industry Trade Journals – List your selection of 5–10 industry trade journals by name along with the URL addresses for the publications.
   3. Blog Cites – List the selected 3–5 blog sites by name along with the corresponding URL addresses.
   4. Blog – Write the blog in keeping with the general rules for blogging content and formatting as identified in How to Write a Successful Blog, and any specified rules for guest bloggers found on the selected blog site.
      1. The body of the blog should be 600–650 words in length.
      2. Format the blog similar to the examples found in your selected blog websites; best practices for blogging are always encouraged.
      3. Research how to write catchy headlines and blog titles that capture readers’ attention and draft a working title.
      4. Include a well-developed author tag line. Inclusion of a photo is optional.
      5. At least one graphic item (i.e., figure, table, photo, etc.) is required to be included.
8. Use single line space with double-spacing between paragraphs and graphics. Format per APA for all else.
9. Edit, edit, edit using Word spelling and Grammar checker, Grammarly, and other helpful means.
10. Submit your assignment as a Word document by the end of the workshop.