Needless to say, they had not heard much more about blogging than it involved discussing what the writer had for lunch.
I was telling them about the concept of business blogs and how a business can help itself with customer service, public relations, marketing, and search engine optimization (as in this blog's description!) by using a blog.
Somewhat convinced, they had some other concerns.
Time and post writing quality.
They felt that the time and effort to write blog posts was better spent on other work. The actual writing of the blog should be subcontracted out to professional writers, they thought.
Their logic was based on the premise that not everyone writes well and not everyone has the time to do it. Like many aspects of business, the job is better left to others. Simply pay the writers to create regular top notch blog content and post it.
The idea might not be for everyone. Many business people will certainly prefer to write their own posts. After all, one of the purposes of a business blog is to add your personal voice to your company. The business blogger places a human face on what could be a faceless bureaucracy.
On the other hand, hiring bloggers to do the actual writing and posting might have benefits as well.
First of all, it would put some revenue into the pockets of the many good bloggers out there. Earning money, for for their thoughts and writing, is a constant source of concern for many bloggers. Being hired to write specific articles, to post on company business blogs, would help ease that concern.
For those bloggers, who would consider such a concept to be selling out, keep in mind that the writing would be simply another freelance job. The job is to write the article, as with any publication, whether on the internet or offline.
For the companies using the purchased posts, their time is saved and the company would have a business blog. Perhaps without hiring freelance writers, the organization would not have a business blog at all.
Of course such an arrangement is not for every business blog or for every writer. It all depends on individual circumstances.
Just like anything else.
The possibility of a win-win situation exists for both the business and the freelancer. The business gets the benefit of a professionally written business blog. The freelance writer gains some cash and some highly marketable writing credits.
The idea may have some merit, after all.
