This is a guest post by Marya Jan, she is a proud content creator for Open Colleges, an education provider with awesome business and writing courses. When she is not busy blogging for them, she can be found helping small business owners revamp their blog content at Writing Happiness.

I subscribe to many blogs.

While most of them are not business blogs per see, a minority of them do fall in this category.

Even when I haven’t actually purchased anything from the company – yet, I have chosen to subscribe. Even when they don’t post multiple times a day, I am still on their list.

What is it that makes these blogs different to vast majority of business blogs in the blogosphere? Why have they caught my attention? And not only mine, hundreds and thousands of other people are subscribing to them, getting on board.

The answer is so simple, yet it completely escapes most of the business bloggers out there.

I go to them because they provide highly useful content.

Blog posts that provide me with relevant, industry specific information; posts that link to other useful sites.

Unlike the ones who blog to promote their businesses, they don’t try to sell. And this is the number one reason why people care.

Your Business Blog is NOT a place to Publish Promotional Content.

Your business blog is NOT a place to advertise your products or services

You need to publish editorial content on your blog. Content that will make people’s lives easier in some way.

For example, let’s say you are a psychologist that specializes in depression. You can publish articles on a variety of topics help people deal with depression, talk about latest research and put out information that only you are qualified to talk about.

Perhaps publish some uncommon signs of dealing with depression. Or talk about how consulting a qualified psychologist is the right thing to do. (Although, you are not selling your services, but you are still saying what you believe to be true). Publish interviews of your industry leaders. Talk about break through information that has the potential to change lives.

You might be a company selling children’s clothes.

I might sign up to a blog because I have children, and of course I am always on the look out for unique clothes. But if I see that every time I visit your blog, you are pushing your new designs or product lines, I might stop visiting altogether.

You could instead talk about how to make your kids clothes last longer, what to do when your kids outgrow too quickly, what trends are in season and so on.

You know information that mums of young children will find useful.

Send Your Offers to Your List

You have a website. You have all your products and services there. If I need to look you’re your latest catalogue, I know where to find it.

I can see your promotional offers clearly on your site. This is not why I subscribe to your blog. I subscribe to get information that will help me in some way.

In case, you need to remind me about upcoming specials or subscriber only deals, I’d be delighted to hear from you.

If you do need to contact your subscribers, you can send out a regular newsletter to your list, or send them offers occasionally. Your blog is not the place to it.

Have a Voice

While you are a business blog, there is absolutely no need for you to be boring.

You are talking to people – living breathing human beings. You can be personal, engaging, highly useful and still appear professional.

In fact, you need for people to like you first. How about that? What a concept!

When they like you, they slowly begin to trust you.

And then, they are ready to do business with you.

Skip the industry jargon and technical language (unless you are a B2B blog). Talk to your readers in the language they understand. You do not impress them when you use highly industry specific knowledge. In fact, you might be driving them away because you are just not on the same page.

Get rid of the stock photos. Put up pics of real people that your prospective customers can relate to. Invest a little and get your hands on some high quality, photographs that won’t be found on every other site.

Just remember, all it requires a slight shift in your mind set.

Instead of thinking of your blog as yet another place to advertise and promote your products, you have to start thinking differently.

Get your head around the fact that people do not sign up to blogs to receive updates on company news. This is not why they are there.

And when you truly get that, you would unlock the potential of blogging.