Blogging used to be just entertainment for family and friends. Not so anymore. That’s because business owners have discovered something we already knew: the power of blogging to create buzz, promote products, and generate cash. Once people start reading your blog, it pays dividends, sometimes in surprising ways.

Creating a blog on your company website is an excellent way to build business buzz with your readers, clientele, and the mainstream public. The blog joelonsoftware.com is a good example of a business blog that serves the dual purpose of educating its audience on software, management and business topics, as well as driving traffic to the company, fogcreek.com.

Blogs are simple to set up and use. Very little technical know-how is needed to get started. There are many free and do-it-yourself programs and websites, like blogger.com, wordpress.com and vox.com. If you want to customize your blog to look exactly like your website, you might consider using a professional or business-class package from typepad.com ($179 - $1,079 per year).

Post your blogs two to three times a week. Search engines like Google automatically give newer blogs a higher rank. Frequent posts draw more new visitors to your site and descriptive headlines catch the attention of search engines.

Writing style should be authentic, written by the real people not by fictional characters or by ghostwriters. Consider balancing the focus between company updates and resources or info for the customer.

Include live links to helpful resources or relevant articles. Post pictures or videos as well.

Keep it easy to read. Don’t overdo it with links and keep the entire post on a single page. In general, posts max out at 500 – 750 words and are written a lot like friendly update emails.

Pick a name for your blog that is unusual and memorable. Many of the most popular blogs have funky names like engadget.com, boingboing.net, and gizmodo.com. Make sure there is a clear tie-in to your company by having your logo near the title or by choosing a related name.

Customize how your blog looks by adding “About Me,” “Related Sites,” and “Archive” sections. Most blogging packages have great online help sections that give all the instructions you need. Publicize your blog by asking your current customers, contacts, and supporters to subscribe to your blog’s RSS feed.

Once your blog is open for business, you can start writing about yourself, your company’s history, its philosophy, and just about anything else you think your customers might be interested in. For example: sabreyachtsblog.com gave a week-by-week description of building a boat. Rampantgames.com reviews independently created video games. Flyteblog.com is loaded with tips and tricks for maximizing web-marketing success.

Sources: goliath.ecnext.com; jsonline.com; masternewmedia.org; businesslogs.com; technorati.com; politicsandtechnology.com; problogger.net