I like Tumblr; I'm always recommending it to friends and clients. Although it isn't a fit for every business, it does have good qualities, which we cannot ignore. Tumblr is a blogging platform, a website CMS (way easier to use than WordPress) and a social network. With Tumblr, you can also have your custom domain (your business web address) and the best part, it is free. All of this makes it the perfect platform for a small business to host their website, blog or both.
There excellent opportunities on Tumblr, here are some good posts on how to do business with Tumblr.
Tumblr is a social network with a blogging platform, and it has great potential for marketers, but for this post, I'll try to make my case for the benefits of a website platform.
1_ Price; it is free
Can't beat that price, but will it stay this cheap once Yahoo sells it. That's anybody guess, for now, and the near future it will remain like this. Tumblr also has an advertising revenue model, although it doesn't have the Facebook suite of features, Tumblr does have the reach of 420 million active users. Also, they own a lot of data; from visitors and accounts. Data is what Google and Facebook transform into revenue and Tumblr can do it as well.
2_ Your Website
You can host your site, blog or both. Also, since it is pretty simple to setup a new account, it is ideal for marketing campaigns support with quick build microsites. Best of all you can use your domain and not have to use the tumblr.com domain.
You have to keep in mind that Tumblr is a blogging tool that supports complementary pages to your blog. When thinking of using Tumblr for your business website, remember the blog part is always at the front. Having the blog this prominent can be a good thing; it creates an incentive to keep coming up with new fresh content. And new fresh content is what Google likes.
A couple of useful posts to get you going with a Tumblr website:
3_ Design
Tumblr has Themes; you can pick from the hundreds of Themes available and some of them are even free. If you choose a Theme that is close to your brand, you can modify the code to get it just right. Mind you, programming (HTML) knowledge is required when editing the Theme code.
Being able to modify the code also means you can start from scratch and have a unique look and feel for your site. Tumblr offers help on how to get started building your Theme; How to create a custom HTML theme.
Before you learn HTML and Tumblr's programmatic framework take a look at what's already available; tumblr.com/themes.
Developers and design studios create the Themes; I'm sure if you contact them they will be able to help you with your own. For the right price.
A couple of useful links on designing for Tumblr:
4_ (Bonus) Post whatever you want
As mention above, Tumblr is a blogging platform and having fresh periodical content helps your SEO. What can you post? Just about everything. By default, you have the option to Text, Pictures, Links, Video, Audio, etc. You can also connect your Instagram or Facebook account to share the same content on multiple platforms. The automation tool IFTTT (https://ifttt.com), supports Tumblr. Hence, more options for you on what you can post on Tumblr from your other social media accounts.
Summary
For the small business with few resources Tumblr makes a lot of sense. A robust blogging platform, which allows you to showcase the best your company can offer without the help of a development team or agency.
A few examples of the many brands on Tumblr
Nestlé
IBM
Universal Music
J Crew
The Economist
If you have any questions on setting your website on Tumblr, don't hesitate to ask. Use the comments or the contact form.
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