But there's something else besides: blogging offers real benefits for Inward Investment Managers as individual professionals, and we'll explain why.
Why Blogging's Good for Your Location, and Your Investment Promotion Agency...
Lots of us know by now that blogging can be good for business - including the business of inward investment attraction. Done correctly (notably by informing, not 'selling') it can project your location's solutions for expanding businesses, establish you and your agency as trusted sources of knowledge and expertise, and boost your location's online profile massively. Search engines reward regular content publishers with higher search rankings; business social media thrives on high-quality, original, informative content.
In summary, blogging can be a highly effective, and cost-effective, means of attracting and engaging more expanding businesses online, as a basis for landing more inward investments.
The Value of Strategic 'Content Marketing'...
For the best results attracting investing businesses online, Investment Promotion Agencies really need an over-arching Content Marketing Strategy - a structured approach to creating, publishing and sharing 'blog' content that's valuable and relevant to businesses searching for their optimal locations. The strategy should include a publishing and distribution plan, and utilise multiple 'content formats' (e.g. video, text, data visualisations or infographics) that target businesses at different stages in the location evaluation process.
...the Value of Improvised Inward Investment Manager's Blogs...
But an Inward Investment Manager's personal blogs can be hugely valuable additions to an Investment Promotion Agency's strategic Content Marketing campaign. They can be bang up to date (for example, highlighting new data demonstrating specific advantages of your location). And they can demonstrate the Inward Investment Manager's personal knowledge of, and passion for, their location - establishing them as the go-to person for the location solutions businesses are searching for.
...and Why Blogging Is Good for You - the Inward Investment Manager...
But there's something else that happens when an Inward Investment Manager writes a high-quality blog post (as some are now doing). To write a post that you can publish with confidence, you need to research your subject and analyse information and data - inevitably developing your 'product knowledge' - of your location, your priority industry sectors, or the international business environment - in the process.
Blogging is, as such, an incredibly effective way of staying on top of your game, continually updating your professional knowledge, and building your value as an inward investment and economic development professional. It offers the potential to establish you as an expert in your field, with all the potential that implies for your career development.
So, thanks to all the Inward Investment Bloggers out there for their research, insights and high-quality posts. And to those who haven't yet published: why not have a go? You may be surprised just how much blogging can benefit your location, your Investment Promotion Agency, and you...
Work with Clarity to develop your winning Inward Investment Content Marketing Strategy
Author:
Nick Smillie
MD, Clarity-Inward Investment Marketing
