It seems like everybody wants a blog these days, but is a blog really necessary for a company? Here are some things to ask yourself before blogging for your business.

1. Do you have time to blog? Blogging is a time consuming process because people who read blogs expect a certain amount of fresh content on a regular basis - at a minimum, weekly - preferably several times a week.

2. Do you have anything interesting to say? Blogs about your company and your products may sound interesting to you, but people rarely tune into a “commercial” blog unless there is additional information of real value.

3. Do you have strong opinions? The most successful blogs are the ones with strong voices, personalities and opinions. If you want to be non-controversial at all times, maybe a blog isn’t your optimal marketing tool

4. Are you good at getting a conversation going and engaging an audience? Blogging isn’t just publishing posts. A blog becomes a defacto online community and needs the same kind of attention that a message board or forum needs to keep it vibrant and on track. Yes, you can shut off the comments feature on your blog, however, you lose out on a potentially valuable aspect of blogging for business in the first place - an engaged audience of customers and potential customers.

5. Do you have a company policy on blogging? If you are a company of one, you still need some guidelines that you will follow as you blog for your business. What will you do if someone posts a nasty comment about you or your company, for example? Knowing in advance how you will handle situations that might come up saves you a lot of confusion later.

6. Do you have a thick skin? Once you open up the conversation in a blog and allow others to comment, you may hear things you don’t like from unhappy customers or people who disagree with your point of view. Can you take it without taking it personally?

7. Can you afford to pay someone to blog for you? Some people do hire professional bloggers or pro-bloggers to craft blog posts and keep the ideas and conversations flowing. Pro-bloggers are usually paid anywhere from $10 to $50 per post depending on their reputation, the frequency of posting, the amount of research required and the complexity of the topic.

There are many ways to develop compelling, valuable, conversation-starting blog posts, and I’ll talk about those in the near future. Right now, review your answers to the questions above and unless you answered “Yes” to most or all of them, a blog just might not be for you.