A corporate blog is a fantastic way to position your business at the heart of topical debate, introduce you to new prospects as a thought leader and build relationships with existing customers, reassuring them you are on top of market developments. But blogging is a very different medium to print – or even electronic newsletters – with its own conventions and rules.

Before you consider launching a blog, therefore, it’s worth getting to grips with the seven golden rules of corporate blogging:

1. Blog with a purpose

Many people start a corporate blog because their competitors have one or they feel they should be out there in the blogosphere. However, a successful blog begins with a business case.

Decide exactly what your blog is hoping to achieve, whether it’s to keep people informed of developments in their industry; position certain individuals as the experts on the topic; provide a means to keep in contact with clients and prospects; or develop a reputation for thought leadership. This will provide a blueprint for every blog, and a useful sense check each time you publish.

2. Update regularly

Blogs are by their very nature topical, so readers will expect them to be updated regularly. Regular does not have to mean unsustainably frequent. Blogging does not need to be a daily activity, unless this suits your particular business case. A weekly or fortnightly update at the same time of the week will enable readers to form a pattern and know when to expect the next instalment.

3. Put it on an accelerated approvals path

Blogs will need to go through checks and approvals in the same way as any other corporate communications, but these cannot be allowed to hold up publication. The value in a blog is in its timely nature – consider the important checks and schedule them so that they can take place over as short a time period as possible, to avoid the risk of the blog being out of date by the time it is published.

4. Keep it short and sweet

Blogs don’t have to conform to specific word lengths, so in theory you can write as much as you like. This, however, is a dangerous approach. The best rule of thumb is to keep it as short as possible. Online attention spans are notoriously short, so if a blog is creeping over 600 words, you risk many readers failing to make it to the crucial call to action at the bottom. Get your point across; tell people what they need to know. Then stop. If you have more content to share, include a link for interested readers.

5. Focus on what the reader wants or needs to know

Most people read a blog with their finger poised over the mouse. If you stray too far from what readers need in order tell them about your expertise, they will click away. The balance comes back to the business case. It shouldn’t be a stated aim of the blog to promote products. There are excellent media for this, but the blog is not the right place for it.

6. Commit to comments

The fact that blogs are designed to be interactive and allow readers to comment strikes fear into the hearts of many organisations. But this interaction can be very positive, giving you valuable feedback, useful leads, and making readers feel more engaged with your company.

Comments can and should be moderated to remove anything offensive or wide of the mark. However, moderation should be a light touch. If someone has a valid alternative argument to yours, they should be allowed to air it reasonably. It will give you an important insight into the marketplace, and an opportunity to respond.

7. Consider the tone

Blogs are intended to be more personal than other corporate communications. The personality of the writer, their focus and concerns should all come across, and the style of writing may also be more informal. This may be outside the comfort zone of those used to writing for a corporate audience, so it’s worth addressing your style guide and working out how a blog will fit.