Media release     April 26, 2006

Gold Coast businesses are missing out on the greatest and cheapest Internet marketing asset since websites came into fashion, a leading business coach said today.

Des Walsh, a Tweed Heads consultant, said companies of all types and sizes were passing up growth opportunities by failing to set up and operate “blogs” or “weblogs” – websites which include frequent information updates and the capacity for visitors to leave comments. 

Walsh, who describes himself as a blogging “evangelist”, is conducting a workshop this Friday, April 28, at the Meetings and Events Australia (MEA) national ‘!nnovate’ conference at the Gold Coast Convention Centre, as part of his mission to show Australian companies what blogging offers.

Blogging involves Internet technology which is so simple to use that the least technical business owner can interact personally, directly and immediately with customers as easily as sending an email.

“Some of the biggest Fortune 500 companies in the United States are dedicated bloggers, such as Boeing, Disney, FedEx, Microsoft, IBM, and Mitsubishi,” says Walsh, who established his own consulting business in 1987 and now coaches business owners by phone and online in Australia and internationally.

“Medium to smaller businesses are also discovering the benefits of blogging, like the Savile Row tailor in London. His blog has generated so much business worldwide that he has the business owner’s best dilemma: whether to cut back or expand.

“But Australian businesses do not seem to realise that whether you are the CEO of a multinational corporation or a solo entrepreneur, blogs can actually deliver on what was promised but not always delivered with the Internet boom of the 1990s – more immediate and effective contact and relationships with customers.”

Last year, Walsh set out to test for himself what he was telling others about blogging and business. In less than 12 months, traffic on his blog, Thinking Home Business, went from 30 visitors a day to more than 1000 a day.

“In ten years of Internet marketing using traditional websites I have never had that sort of traffic or the international recognition and business that have come with it,” he said.

“However, local businesses have been slow to pick up or adapt to blogging and grasp the benefits of this extremely efficient, low-cost technology.”

According to Walsh, you can have a functional, fully-supported, professional blog up and working in 15 minutes – with no setup fees and a running cost of less than the cost of a cup of coffee a week.

“Some people don’t believe me when I tell them how affordable and easy it is. Blogging must be the best-kept secret in modern marketing, but it’s a secret that every business should be discovering.”

Prompted by a fellow Gold Coast executive coach, Walsh last year started applying his coaching skills to help companies find their way into the world of blogging. He has since written 7 Step Business Blog, a plain English e-book for business owners.

He hopes his participation in the Meetings and Events Australia (MEA) national ‘!nnovate’ conference will switch participants on to blogging and show them how to make a global impact.

“There are already a number of recognised Australians who are leading bloggers in fields such as education, online journalism, political analysis, marketing, public relations and business forecasting,” he added.

Contact: Des Walsh
Business Coach & Blogging Evangelist
Tel: 07 5536 5658     International: +61 7 5536 5658
Mobile (cell): 0413 089 355    International: +61 413 089 355
Tel USA: (415)-922-4787
Email: deswalsh(@)gmail(dot)com
Blogs: Thinking Home Business -  7 Step Business Blog
Contributor: Business Blog Consulting