It’s been said a thousand times, but it bears repeating – blogs are the new resume, and your google results are just as important, if not more so, as your business card.  A great blog can be a huge advantage when it comes to getting customers, jobs, and clients.

Blogs also make you easy to bookmark and refer to others.  Encourage readers to sign up for your RSS feed or subscribe to your blog – if you’re in their inbox, you and your blog will “stick” in their minds, and used properly, blogs can be an excellent stickiness tool.

Do you have your blog on your business card?  How about in your email signature line? (if you don’t, go do that as soon as you’re finished reading this post) Have you claimed it on Technorati and do you have it listed in your profile on any other social media or networking sites?  All are good ways to promote your blog, your business, and your brand.

Other important things to do when starting a blog is to post a short bio and perhaps a photo on the About page.  Yes, this seems obvious, but it’s a simple way to let readers know who you are and what you do.  It can also be used an online portfolio of sorts if you provide links to other sites that you have profiles on or where your work appears (a good idea for creatives of all kinds).  Other potential useful pages to build include a press section (if you, your work, or your products ever been mentioned online or in print) and a photo gallery.

In addition, be sure to include a contact page so people can email you with just one click. Make it easy for them to contact you and they will.