7 Ways to Get Internet Users to Talk About Your Business

A seemingly endless amount of information flows around the Internet daily, and that can be intimidating to a business owner, but the good news is that standing out doesn’t take a lot of effort.

So, if you want to create a Facebook or blog post that drives conversations by getting people to talk about your business, follow the lead from these community members:

1. Be the expert: Everyone at the Chamber knows Sunny Goodwin is the go-to person for any education-related information. She made sure to show her expertise on Patch and the Chamber’s blog.Think of a question people keep asking you and start writing.
2. Motivate people: Wellness coach Mickell Raddon gets people off their butts daily and showed folks why they should be working out as part of a group.You don’t have to be a trainer to do this; there are plenty of urgent matters in your industry to tell potential clients about.
3. Show your impact: Jon “J.P.” Peterson, of Surfin Fire surf school, got children with autism to ride their first waves. Patch covered the event and that story was later picked up by theinertia.com—a major surf blog.If you’re doing the right thing, make sure to let the right people know.
4. Highlight an employee: Camp Pendleton Public Affairs profiled a chaplain who retired after three decades of service.Every body has a story and a valued employee is a great person to write about.
5. Explain the Jargon: Panca Peruvian Rotisserie showed me the meanings of the exotic words on their menu.Every industry has colorful words that mean a lot to a few people. Find the most interesting one at your work and explain it in a fun way.
6. Tell how you got started: Rich Grimm of Tsunami Skydivers told the story of his first jump 30 years ago. Everyone likes a good story, so tell it.
7. Explain the news’ implications: Realtor Liz Saldana showed military homeowners what they should know about recent housing news. Write and publish quickly so you get traffic from those interested in the topic.Watch the news and figure out how you can add value to readers. Then start writing right away.

There are plenty of local publishing platforms in Oceanside, including the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce Blog and Patch.com.

Once you’re published, invite your friends, family and customers by email, Facebook and Twitter to read your post. Don’t forget to keep me in the loop.

Daniel Woolfolk is the Patch.com editor for Oceanside and Camp Pendleton. He is the author of the Blogger’s Workshop column. For questions about blogging or to get started on Patch, email him at daniel.woolfolk@patch.com.