Business blogging is no easy task. Blogging for a large brand or
corporate is even harder in terms of striking the right tone and
building an audience while keeping readers engaged.
For all of those in this situation, here are 40 of the best blogs from
around the world to provide some inspiration for your own corporate
blog.
Marriott On The Move
Bill Marriott founded and grew the hotel group into one of the largest
in the world, and his blog is one of the best around. He doesn’t always
write about the hotel business, but his content is interesting and
dynamic, and it raises brand awareness.
Amazon
It's not the best designed blog in the world, but it does get updated on
a regular basis, and it has great content and a large audience. The
blog mostly focuses on the technical side of the platform and its
various offerings.
Facebook
We would have to include a large social media site on the list, and
Facebook has a blog that it uses especially well. It shares the latest
updates to the site and keeps users apprised of privacy updates.
Probably the largest blog on the list.
Whole Foods
One of the world's best brands when it comes to health food, it has an
excellent blog that is well designed and packed with interesting
content. Food blogs have always been huge online, and this one fits into
that space nicely with tips and recipes, as well as company news.
Ice Cream Journal
This ice cream company makes reading its blog a massive pain, because as
soon as you open one of the posts, you are just dying to get your hands
on some of its ice cream. It also helps that the blog is colorful and
has lots of interesting content beyond information about the company's
products.
Delta Airlines
One of the biggest airlines in the world has been blogging for a while,
and it shares tons of information about itself and content that could be
useful for any traveler. You’ll hear about new services it’s offering
as well as tips on keeping children happy while flying.
Zappos
One retailer Zappos, which has built its entire culture around social
media and wonderful customer service, has a number of blogs. This is its
primary blog, in which it shares information about products and
services.
Red Cross
One of the biggest charities in the world has a wonderful blog that
shares the great work it does all over the world as well as highlighting
its other social media channels.
Garmin
The mapping company shares generously about its work, its charity
initiatives, and general information that might be useful to people
looking for the company's products. It's updated on a regular basis and
has a large audience.
Bigelow Tea
Who knew that tea could be so interesting? Bigelow Tea has a wonderful
blog filled with recipes, product info, serving suggestions, and lovely
photos of its products.
Patagonia
The clothing company puts a huge emphasis on travel and adventure on its
blog. It doesn’t feel as if you are on a corporate blog when you are
reading it; you get a sense of fun and enjoyment while reading.
comScore
It is an online company first and foremost, so you would expect it would
have a good online presence, but its blog is so original and features
such good content that it often pops up in the mainstream news.
BMW
One of the most well-known car brands in the world has been embracing
blogging for some time, and it has some stunning content to share. Its
blog is very much focused on cars and engineering, as you would expect.
Starbucks
One of the biggest American companies likes to soften its image on its
blog and show the work that goes into helping the people who grow the
coffee. Occasionally, it addresses political issues.
YouTube
The biggest video-sharing website in the world uses its blog not only to
announce new features on the site, but also to profile up and coming
content producers and to help share the love on the biggest and best
videos.
GE Reports
Because it's one of the world's biggest corporations, one with interests
in a variety of sectors, it's hard for GE to market itself, but the
company's blog is brilliant as it focuses on innovation and how its
products are making a difference globally.
EverNote
The Evernote team keeps its content varied through its use of multimedia
content. Along with the usual announcements, Evernote offers some
comprehensive posts which delve deep into the app's many uses.
Southwest Airlines
Though the company clearly focus on aviation, Southwest Airlines’
content is more diverse than you might assume. Covering any area that is
linked to travel (like an entire two-part series on roller coasters),
its posts are lighthearted and easy to read.
37 Signals
Software company 37 Signals blog "Signal Vs Noise" focuses on design and
usability, which highlights the company’s philosophy. Always
insightful, the blog manages to make what is sometimes a boring subject
intriguing.
Dell
Proving that more can be better, Dell has a vast number of blogs that it
links in one landing page to create a comprehensive resource. Dealing
with enterprise IT, customer tips, consumer service and education, new
articles are regularly posted so you’re always kept up to date.
Adaptive Path
The San Francisco design company focuses on the technical side of
things, covering design and development. Keeping a personal touch and
making sure most of its employees contribute to the blog means that you
will get something different every time.
eBay
The online seller keeps the blog mainly corporate, highlighting main
events, items for sale, and regular news updates. Also, the blog
provides handy tips and tricks to using the site as well as a
behind-the-scenes look at how the company works.
Disqus
This is the only blog on this list that hasn’t been updated in the past
month, but that is a rare instance for Disqus, an online comment system,
which usually updates the blog every week with insights into Web
traffic, creating conversation, and product updates.
Google
It was inevitable that the search giant would be featured here, and
although Google has numerous blogs dedicated to its many products, its
main blog tends to feature the best content from these sections.
Fresh Books
With a nice, clean interface, Fresh Books blog is uncomplicated, and
it’s all the better for it. On top of that, the company offers lots of
tips and insights into the world of business and enterprise.
Oracle Apps Lab
If you’re interested in the Internet of Things and are intrigued by
technology, Oracle’s Apps Labs will provide you with a wealth of
content.
Adobe
Like Dell, Adobe makes great use of its employee blogs, allowing them to
post tutorials, guides, and other bits and pieces that help enrich the
experience. Another important part is that they’re not required to
reference Adobe products in their posts, meaning the reader gets more
value.
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Playstation
Playstation’s blog is full of multimedia content and exclusives. Also,
it encourages its community to get involved, meaning that you’re
guaranteed hearty comments and discussion for even the most minor news
update.
DropBox
Dropbox’s easy-going design (helped by the pencil-colored banner) is
reflective of how it treats its blog. Easy to take in and clean, the
blog for this popular cloud storage company will always catch your eye.
The majority of its content is product related, but it also posts fun
updates to help mix things up.
Flickr
Not every blog has to be brimming with text; some can be simple and to
the point. The Flickr photo-sharing community's blog publishes the day's
best photos, which follow a certain theme. That’s not to say team
members never write anything, but for the most part, it’s the images
that do the talking.
Lulu
The self-publishing company provides plenty of resources for budding
authors, as well as insights into the world of publishing. Covering
eBooks, author interviews, and advice on a number of publishing topics,
Lulu has one of the most astute blogs you will find.
General Motors
General Motors may focus on its cars, and its headings do suggest that
the blog is really a way of advertising new products, but delve a little
deeper and you’ll find its content is more than that. Many posts
explore the design choices behind each car, but the blog also throws in
other intriguing topics, such as electric energy and robotics.
Wegmans
Through a combination of food images and tasty content, Wegmans is
focused on providing info and tips that will help enrich your cooking
experience. It also deviates from the usual recipe posts by dedicating
time on topics such as organic foods and school lunches.
ManpowerGroup
Employment services company Manpower provides useful content relating to
employment by engaging and educating its visitors. The site has other
blogging sections, such as contemporary working and career coaching.
Cisco
Featuring intelligent posts and great use of multimedia features,
Cisco’s blog should also be noted for its accessibility; its commenting
and rating system is complemented by its concise design.
IBM
IBM encourages its staffers to contribute their own thoughts and ideas,
even if they go against the company’s views or position. This freedom
ensures that the information provided on its blog is always honest,
relevant, and ultimately unaffected by corporate meddling.
Caterpillar
Showing that any company can blog if it has the right aim, Caterpillar’s
construction-focused blog is a fantastic example of how you can engage
with your target audience. With advice, how-to guides, and regular
discussion, it uses its community to solve any problems that may arise
for its customers.
Kodak
Kodak’s blog follows the same principal as Flickr’s, and though the blog
has a photo of the day post, it shines when it uses images to tell
stories. This gives the blog a personal feel and gets across the message
that Kodak is a brand that wants to share all your moments.
Infusionsoft
The sales and marketing site provides a wide range of guides and posts relating to online issues and growing your business.
Breaking Point
Cybersecurity doesn’t sound like the sexiest of topics, but if you have a
working knowledge of it, you will find a company blog that shows off
its expertise by going into as much detail as possible.
Niall Harbison and Lauren Fisher are the founders of Simply Zesty, where a version of this story first appeared.