Online PR strategy crucial to Welsh business

A weekend with other communications professionals underlined the need for Welsh business to health-check its online PR and marketing activity.

Our Cardiff gathering, Writing for the Web, explored the wide issue of driving traffic to web-based shop windows and keeping it there.

Delegates included Wales-based PR and marketing folk, journalists and lecturers from locations between Carmarthen and Usk.

Organisations represented ranged from union giant Unison to sole trader Grey Pebble Productions and from the National Union of Journalists to cycle business Wheelies and the University of Glamorgan.

Passionate exponent

Our guide was Simon Williams, a passionate exponent of good web practice.

We all took much from his guidance. My own focus was on developing skills to help push client websites ever higher in Google searches.

Action points being passed on to Effective Communication clients include:

• get busy on the web in a way that directly relates to customers - blog, contribute to forums and use social media, in all cases using links and key words widely and wisely;
• take a fresh look at your website - ensure it appeals to punters, guides them smoothly and enables them to find what they want;
• ensure that your online content is good quality - don't compromise.

A strong, well considered online strategy can enhance the profile - and profits - of every business. Hands up who's got one!

Blogs in demand at the Evening Post

The long gone days of early summer saw South Wales Evening Post digital publisher Abigail Edge issue an invitation for readers to channel their blogs through the newspaper's website.
It's not a bad idea for those bloggers worried about how they'd otherwise promote their toils.
However, there seems to have been slow interest. Today's www.thisissouthwales.co.uk blogs signpost leads to just three platforms - the Post itself, the National Botanic Garden of Wales and this autumn's Neath Food Festival.
The latest garden post was penned by work placement students Sarah Trinder (University of York) and Charlie Long (Durham University). It reveals how they're getting a kick out of helping the professionals to DNA barcode more than 1,100 species of Welsh flora.
The foodie blog reveals that Neath's second annual food extravaganza already has 44 exhibitors signed up. I'm glad to see that backers include the Neath Abbey-based Bay Radio.
That's a shame because the Post, as southwest Wales's dominant print media, has great online possibilities.
To all bloggers, I say: "Give the Post a go."
To the Post, I say: "Promote your blogs in the paper - potential bloggers need encouragement."