Administrative Professional Today

The administrative professional’s guide to accelerated career development. Administrative Professional Today offers practical advice on office efficiency, politics, communication skills, time management, supervisory problems and technology. The monthly issues and weekly electronic forum give special attention to the changing duties of administrative professionals in today’s business environment. Learn more about Administrative Professional Today and the two free reports you’ll get when you subscribe...

Blogs are spreading faster than kudzu in the business world, and for a reason: They help build relationships with customers, something every business and boss want to see.

Here’s how to write blog posts for your company, without spending too much time, according to Stephanie Lloyd, founder and CEO of Radiant Veracity.

Write a response to something you have read in a book, article or blog post. “I don’t comment on other people’s blogs very often but I do write blog posts in response to what I read and link back to it,” Lloyd says.

Do an e-mail interview with someone. “I do these a lot,” she says. “They’re easy to do for both the blogger and the interviewee and very popular with readers. I love the fact that unless you are a complete idiot this leaves very little room for misquoting someone.”

Answer people’s questions in a blog post. Whether it’s a question a colleague asks about office software or a question from customers, craft a response and post it.

Write about original ideas related to your field, to give your blog credibility—though, as Lloyd says, “not every single post needs to be one of these.”