Does Your Business Need a Blog?
By 2020 eConsulting
According to DemandMetric, companies that blog produce about 67% more leads than companies that don't. In 2019, HubSpot noted that marketers who honed in on blogging got 13 times more ROI than companies that didn't.
Long gone are the days where blogs were just for angsty young adults journaling their thoughts and experiences. Blogs are a huge part of most businesses' content marketing strategy. According to DemandMetric, companies that blog produce about 67% more leads than companies that don't. In 2019, HubSpot noted that marketers who honed in on blogging got 13 times more ROI than companies that didn't. Here's how blogging could boost your business.
Build Trust and Authority.
Most people are very distrusting of advertising. When companies share their expertise about a product or service instead of hard-selling, potential customers are more likely to feel drawn in instead of pressured. Your company's blog can become the place people turn for information. Naturally, the next step is for them to buy from you once they are in the market for what you are offering.
Remain Relevant and Visible.
No matter what you are selling, chances are your potential clients have a ton of options. The choices can be extremely overwhelming. Having a blog keeps your name front-of-mind when potential customers are ready to purchase. Your brand will be the first place they turn if they keep seeing your blog on social media, in their email, and in web searches. Even if customers on your mailing list don't even read your blog, just seeing your business's name in their inbox will serve as a reminder of what you have to offer.
Expand Your Clientele.
Trying to rank on search engines is a moving target. But we know one metric search engines currently use is dwell time. Dwell time refers to how much time people spend on your page before going back to a search engine. Having an engaging and easy-to-read blog can increase users' dwell time on your website. A higher search engine ranking means more customers can find you.
Best Practices.
If you're going to have a blog, certain practices will help you accomplish your goals for it.
Add value to your target audience.
Keep in mind that your blog is for potential and existing customers, not for you. Are you trying to inform them? Entertain them? Trying to do both is a great strategy. Research what clients in your field want to know. Then make sure you are offering that with your blog.
Keep it simple.
Nobody likes reading a wall of text. Keep your sentences and paragraphs short. Add some nice visuals. Your blog may be jam-packed with great content, but nobody will know it if it's not visually appealing.
Be consistent.
In addition to having useful content, it's vital to keep a regular schedule. Once a week is a good starting point. This can be daunting, but try to work smarter, not harder. Repurpose content from your other channels: YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, etc.
Of course, there will be a learning curve. But starting a business blog only makes sense if you can do it consistently and well. Most blogs end up being abandoned. If at all possible, I recommend letting a pro handle it so you can focus on what you do best.
Sources: demandmetric.com & hubspot.com
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