Gone are the days when simply having a website of your company was enough to make your presence registered in the World Wide Web. The new mantra for online presence is: "If you've got a business, you better have a blog."

Your business needs a blog. Not because it's "the thing" to do but because not having a blog is bad for business. You're ignoring a very lucrative avenue of income and failing to realize the benefits that you can reap through a simple, inexpensive blog.

By having a blog for your business, you're giving a human face to your company. Your customers and target audience relate to you better. It has the potential to form loyalty among your customers and readers. By marketing your blog through social media and other means, you'll be reaching a market that you might not have by traditional means of marketing. Online marketing is also cheaper and a lot more targeted. Keep in mind too that if your blog is a sub-directory of your main site then blogging is the perfect way to keep your site content fresh and increase your search engine optimization.

Keep in mind though that a business blog should be about your business. The key is to not make it overly promotional. Readers are turned off by a blog that just keeps pushing its products and services at its readers. A blog that attracts and retains readers is educational, personal, informative and fun.