Our MyST Blogsite generates highly qualified leads compared to other venues of online lead generation. One of the primary reasons is we have a trust factor, which we built (and continue to build) by providing dependable and accurate information through the blogsite. As a result, actions are more meaningful for business and the customer."
When Updata decided to expand their online presence to include a weblog, they needed a robust platform that would immediately reinforce the branding they'd mindfully developed for their website.
I recently spoke with Robin Dvorak, Marketing Director, for Updata and a MyST Blogsite® client. This post summarizes our discussion regarding Updata's motivations for starting a weblog and their reasons for choosing MyST.
Initially, Updata was looking for a simple way to publish documents online that could easily be found and accessed by interested parties. As they began to evaluate weblog platforms, they realized that their content could best be presented by four weblogs. Updata is comprised of two companies: Updata Advisors, merger and acquisition specialists, and Updata Partners, venture capitalists. Each company would benefit by having two weblogs. One weblog would be used by company leadership to express their thoughts and analysis of the marketplace, while the other would be used for re-published research, sector reviews, and quarterly newsletters. MyST Blogsite's ability to support multiple weblogs made it an obvious candidate for consideration.
While evaluating MyST, Robin realized that briefing channels would be just the thing for featuring Updata's portfolio companies. By pulling newsworthy content from each company's website, visitors to the Updata blogsite could read the latest news from each portfolio company without leaving the Updata domain.
Another key factor in Robin's decision making was ensuring that the branding of the new blogsite matched that established by the company's website. A polished image and sound reputation are paramount to success in the financial market and it was critical that the new blogsite show sophistication and robustness with nary a glitch upon its unveiling. MyST Blogsite's configurability and support staff helped significantly differentiate it from other blogging platforms.
Once up and running, the Updata blogsite out performed expectations with respect to search engine visibility. Robin found the SEO benefits of MyST Blogsite to be outstanding. She states that in addition to extra visibility, people have been able to find Updata more readily and the company has reached many people that they might not have otherwise. She makes frequent use of analytics reports that provide real-time tracking of visitors to the site. Among other things, these online reports tell who is visiting the Updata weblogs, which search engines and keywords brought them there, and the paths they took while visiting.
Robin sums up her experience with MyST Blogsite as follows:
"MyST Blogsite is a powerful blogging solution that provides us with the flexibility to manage multiple channels and sources of content across both our venture capital and investment banking businesses. We have been very happy with our blogsite’s ability to enhance the visibility of our news and research publications. The analytics tools and client support are excellent."
I spoke with a group of bloggers in Phoenix recently. What I found is that very few had any business from their blogs despite a lot of effort. I have 5 closings and 7 active buyers directly from [our MyST blogsite] in 2008. I know because I ask. One person told me they have been reading my blog for almost a year before they called me to buy a property."
