Businesses are under-utilizing blogs

Companies aren’t convinced that blogging is good for business and the number using them as part of their marketing mix is very low compared to traditional online tools.

by Helen Leggatt

According to WebTrends’ recent survey, called “Marketing in the Dark”, just 5 percent of U.K. businesses use blogging as an online marketing tool. In the U.S., businesses are also avoiding the use of blogs, despite their known value in achieving sales and marketing objectives.

Research undertaken by eMarketer just over a year ago found that just 2 percent of the Forbes 200 Best Small Companies had a blog.

“With the power to publish, share and influence, this new consumer movement is impacting every aspect of the business world,” said Nick Sharp, VP and general manager EMEA, WebTrends. “Some experts predict that businesses that are not blogging now, may not exist in a couple of year’s time.”

Indeed, today’s teens are familiar with blogs and many produce or visit blogs regularly. A recent survey of British teens, commissioned by Logicalis, found that over a third (35 percent) had written their own blog and almost half (47 percent) had read someone else’s.