Everyone seems to have a blog these days. From the mum next door to the local plumbing business, everyone’s blogging. But what does it actually do for your business? Is it worth investing the time into blogging on a regular basis?
In my honest opinion, it’s definitely worth it. Blogging has many benefits, some of which I cover below.
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
If you want people to find your website, you need it to show up in search engine results. And that can be tricky.
One of the best things you can do to improve your chances of ranking high on Google search results is to start a blog. A blog that’s updated regularly, with well written blog posts about topics that are relevant to your audience, makes a huge difference to how your overall website performs in search engines.
A blog keeps people on your website for longer, gives you opportunities for internal linking (inserting links to other content on your site) and gives other sites a reason to link back to your site.
Building your brand
Think about your audience – who are your target market? What are your customers interested in, and what would they like to hear from you? Advice, recommendations, news?
Tone is incredibly important. Whether you’re loud, strong, quiet, a storyteller, a tradesman, a food reviewer or anything else – you need to find your online voice.
Pay attention to which social media platforms your traffic and comments are coming from, and research your audience and what they want from your business. If your customers, or potential customers, know that they can get more information from you via your blog, then they will seek that out.
Content creation
Any content you create for your blog can also be used for other purposes. For example, you could create a free ebook to give away and use the content for several blog posts and also social media posts. It’s important that any content you create can be used in multiple ways. Make your content work harder for you.
Word of mouth
One popular blog post can go viral and broaden your reach immeasurably. Choose the right topic and you’ll get access to a new audience, who may become your customers. Word of mouth recommendations are the best marketing you can get. If one blog post gets people talking positively about your business, the effort to create that post is more than worth it.
Get to know your target market
Blog posts with a comment facility activated allow you to converse with your customers. Of course this can be both positive and negative, but you always have the option to moderate blog comments. Authentic conversations can be jump-started by a blog post and allow you to find out about the issues your target market is experiencing.
A creative outlet
A blog doesn’t only have business benefits – it can also be a great medium for you to express yourself. For example, if you own a beauty business and your passion is makeup, what better way to communicate your knowledge and passion than with a regular blog?
Blogs have so many benefits, and creating one on your website is a must. Once you’re posting regularly, read this post about how to get your blog posts seen by people. And reach out if you want to chat.