Watch the video in the LEARN section of this week’s discussion.  Social media strategies can be a vital part of a marketer’s promotional plan.  This week you will write a 500-word blog for the hypothetical business that you created for this course.  The content will build on the message, only with more detail to engage your target audience.

• First, to increase the      “searchability” of your business, you will need to incorporate key words      into your blog.  A key word is a word(s) that your consumer will use      to search for a business.  Choose 5 specific key words that are      relevant to your business.  More specific and targeted key words will      help your consumer find you faster and more efficiently. Tell us what these      5 key words are.
• Second, choose a topic      that is relevant to your target audience that is engaging but NOT      SELLING.  What do they need to know?  What do they want to      know?  How can your blog provide value to your target customer?
• Third, start      writing.  Incorporate all 5 of your keywords in your blog.       Incorporate other quality information in your blog, remember to give      credit to the original author and include a link in your blog. Show your      thought leadership here to tell your customers something they may not already      know.  Remember that you are not selling. You are having a      conversation that should be interesting enough to encourage your target      customer to learn more about your hypothetical business.

My hypothetical business is a child care center that offers affordable prices, qualified professionals, healthy meals, and live streaming for parents to observe their child’s daily activities.

Example of what blog should look like:

Here is an example of a blog for my dog walking business.  Note that I used specific key words such as dog collar and not just collar.  A search is more specific and targeted with dog collar than collar.  Also note that I am writing to a specific person who is a new puppy parent and I am addressing information that is relevant to them.  Finally, I am not overtly selling anything.  That is frowned on in many forms of social media and is not engaging content. 

Key words

1. Dog collar
2. Leashes
3. Muzzles
4. Dog harness
5. Dog identification tags

Welcome to the world of pet parenting! Now that you have a new puppy in your household, you should be thinking about how to train your puppy and how to take your puppy on leisurely walks around your neighborhood. You may also be thinking about all of the supplies that you will need to properly care for your new furry bundle.

Let’s start with a dog collar. How do you know what type of dog collar is appropriate for your puppy? And how many dog collars will you need to purchase between puppyhood and adulthood?

You will need two dog collars. The dog collar that you will use for your puppy is probably much smaller and much lighter weight to accommodate the smaller size. When you put a dog collar on your furry friend, make sure that it is not too tight. You want to make sure that your dog is safe and secure, but not choking. If you can fit two fingers between the dog collar and your puppy’s neck, that is the right size.

As your dog grows, you will begin to see the dog collar getting tighter. At roughly nine months to one year of age, you will need to add another dog collar. At this point, you might consider adding dog identification tags on the dog collar itself or as an attachment to the collar.  This will allow you to keep your dog safe in case your dog accidentally gets away. According to the American Kennel Club (akc.org), you should include the name of your dog and a contact number that someone will immediately pick up in case your dog is lost.

If your dog can easily slip out of the dog collar or pulls when they are walking, you might want to look at a dog harness.  Think of this as a collar that goes around the front of your dog’s body with another strap around the belly of your dog’s body and then is attached at the top. It makes it a little easier to control your dog when you are walking and stops them from slipping out of a dog collar around their neck. I know my dog from time to time has been able to slip out of her collar and the dog harness prevents this from happening.

Ask you are walking your new furry bundle around the neighborhood, you might see other dog owners that have muzzles on their dogs.  While I am not a fan of muzzles, they do stop a dog from nipping at another dog or another human and stop them from barking. So, until your dog is properly trained, a muzzle might be a protective measure for both you and your neighbors.  The Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (ccpdt.org) can provide you with quite a bit of useful information if you choose to use a muzzle on your dog.

Finally, your dog will need a leash. As a puppy, your dog’s leash should be short, only about three to four feet. As you are training your dog to walk properly, you want to make sure that they do not have too much freedom to run around and get stuck in their own leash! They need to learn, and they will eventually with the right training and the right dog walker, to walk with you and not depend on their leash to pull you along the way.

I hope all of this information is helpful to you as you are beginning your journey into puppy parenting.  if you need more information or help with your dog walking, please feel free to visit my website at walkadog.com.