When you decide to set-up a Business Blog, there is one aspect which is often overlooked in the excitement (yes, excitement!) of creating your new marketing and communications tool. This is the planning phase - a critical element if you want to create a successful blog and something which you need to spend time on before diving in and writing your first post.

As you plan your blog, you should identify what you are looking to achieve with it and who you are writing for. The answers to these questions will allow you to be much more focused when it comes to the content of your posts and will make sure that you are writing in line with the requirements of those who will be reading them.

To do this, you need to have answered three key questions:

1. What do you want your blog to do for your company?

It's important to be very clear about why you want to start the Business Blog. Are you looking to position yourself as an expert in your field, to use it as the focal point for a network of contacts for your company or perhaps to promote a particular service / product using 'educational marketing' as part of a soft sell approach. Perhaps it will have an internal communications focus, either for the company as a whole or specific teams within it, or you may intend to have it as a development area for a new product where developers and partners contribute and in the process create a group of evangelists for it, or . These are all great goals for your blog (or blogs), however, you should identify and focus on the one that you want to achieve if you want to make it really successful.

2. Who do you want to read your Blog?

In the same way that target groups with your products or services, you need to decide who is the target audience for your Business Blog and consequently who you are writing for. This will influence the content of your posts and also the way in which you write them - two elements which will effect how your readers view you and your business. You might be looking to demonstrate your in depth knowledge of your niche to prospective partners, create an interactive relationship with clients or motivate internal staff. Each will require a different approach to both what you write and how you present it.

3. What results are you looking for?

You should also be clear as to what results you want to achieve with the Business Blog. While a blog is certainly not a direct sales tool, there are nevertheless many ways in which you can measure its direct effectiveness. These might include number of visitors, subscribers to your RSS feed, sign ups to a newsletter, contacts initiated or clients achieved through a contact form on your Blog etc. By identifying the results you want, you will be able to measure how successful you have been and make changes accordingly.

By spending time on this part of the set up of your Business Blog, you will reap the rewards later. You will ensure that the blog maintains its focus in terms of its content and, as a consequence, provide your readers with what they are looking for and you with a successful blog for your business.