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Mack Collier, owner of The Viral Garden spoke on the subject of blogging for business.

(Coverage of the Small Business Marketing Unleashed conference continues at WebProNews Videos.  Keep an eye on WebProNews for more notes and videos from the event this week.)

Mack Collier

Collier said if you are writing a business blog, "You need to be aware of what the bloggers are saying about you in the blogosphere." You should focus on using your blog as a tool.

On receiving comments on your blog Collier said, "You've got to accept that people are going to leave you comments that you might not want. The conversation is going to happen whether you want it or not."

To create a great blog tie content into something readers want to learn. Develop a posting schedule and identify the best days for traffic and post on those days. Approve comments quickly and make a habit of replying to comments especially those that ask questions.

"If you're getting lots of comments, that's good because that means you're engaging the community," Collier said.

 As you begin to receive comments from frequent readers email and thank them. Also comment on their blog.

Have a picture of yourself and a bio on your blog, this will help to build trust.

In closing Collier said," The real power of blogging is that it gives you the ability to connect with people. It's not about the tools, it's about the conversations and connections these tools facilitate."

WebProNews Video anchor Abby Prince contributed to this report.