How to get links to B2B Websites?

can a blog help?

[le_gber]

I am toying with the idea of starting a 'business' blog on our website in order to generate:
1. influx of potential clients
2. hopefully good links to the site
3. regular new content to beat some established players with static sites.

In your experience, does having a 'business' blog help in terms of link building.

Also I wondered which software you would recommend? A blog only software (Movable Type, WordPress, Textpattern, dotClear) or more a 'community' software (drupal).

thanks

[Maxnpaddy]

In-house blogs won't help much with 'building links'. What they are useful for is shouting about 'What your company is doing next' - good for company in-house news.

Stand-alone blogs can work, and they did, when it was new. Blogs aren't 'new' anymore, and the more who churn them out, the worse it gets. It's like anything, the more who copy, the less 'wow' factor there is, until it crashes and burns.

[LostOne]

I agree with Max regarding same site blogs. I started one(seperate url) a few weeks ago for several reasons. One for a new site that needed some link text help with a local market. I've been conservative with it however, linking to a few individual products while also linking out to related content within the industry.

The second reason is because I love to write industry related articles and my industry is in the slow lane.. period! when it comes to blogs. A few were started but abondaned. It's wide open the way I look at it with the exception of one but it's a same site blog.

I went with Blogger, didn't know any better. I look at it this way; if it doesn't get any attention I consider it a safe place to save articles I can transfer to another site at a later date.

I wish they would start a bog forum here. I have all sorts of questions. I started a thread about it...then Martini said he moved it somewhere(wrong forum)....don't know where though.

[Jack_Hughes]

I've got a same site blog and it does bring in links if you create compelling posts.

There is a good argument for creating a blog on a separate domain.

A good example is Elastic Path & their Get Elastic blog.

The downside of a blog is the time it will leach from your day. To create compelling content is not something that can be done quickly.

Bringing in subscribers is also a very long term thing.

[nickg]

my tuppence on business blogs and link building...I have set up a big blog for my employer. we decided to make the tone honest and insightful and not go for a commercial bias.

the conseqences:
35% drop in the bounce rate
50% more traffic
100% more direct traffic (not referred from engines)
400% rise in conversion rates

and importantly a passport to getting better links. In essence, good content = more good links.

So my advice on the company blog is focus on what your hard core of customers love about you, dig into the subject deeply, put your $$$ into really good writers and watch the flow of love, conversions and links.

[martinibuster]

My view of the business blog is to help build mindshare. Links are good, but building mindshare is more important, imo. For that you'll need a blogger who understands your niche and has something interesting to say about it. Don't put up bs content. I'm not a fan of the approach where the blog is a pretext for chasing digg love. That's the short term approach.