Post updated, April 2023.
Blog for business. Seriously? Who the hell is going to read that shit?
You might be thinking that, I get it, before I knew how to blog, I felt the same. But plenty of people will read a business blog if it’s worth reading.
“Actually Sarah, I have someone writing my business blog for me.”
Oh, do you? Who, your mum? Your mate’s BF? If you do have someone legit writing your blog (your mum or whatever) then great, this probably isn’t for you. But maybe what you’re really doing is typing some guff around a few stock images once a year, if you are, that isn’t blogging, that’s shocking (such LOLs).
Whether you’ve begun a half-arsed blog or have yet to start a blog (half-arsed or otherwise) stop right now and read why it’s ruddy important.
1. It’s great for web traffic.
Adding consistent quality content will increase visits to your website.
I’m talking about the organic, free visits—correction, the traffic you’ve not directly paid for. But I’m also talking about the traffic that involves you pointing prospects to useful information you’ve published. What is quality content? Well, that depends on who you’re writing for and what their interests are. Once you figure that out you can research keywords and phrases that centre your blog posts around certain topics.
If you want more info on blogging with SEO in mind, click here.
2. It’s a stage in your buying process.
We’re all internet users and we’re all looking online for products and services. But we’re also looking to be educated.
We all search the web with informational intent. And blog posts nearly always have the answers. Don’t believe me? Next time you google to learn something, see where the answer comes from, it’s nearly always from a blog. The idea is to create the kind of blog that provides sexy, searchable stuff. You need your audience to find those lovingly crafted posts.
3. It talks to your client base.
You know what your clients need. You know what things they’re going to be asking. And if you don’t, you absolutely should. Knowing your audience is marketing 101.
Once you understand who you’re selling to, research some more.
Think about the things they want to know that surrounds your industry. What solutions do they need that a blog post could provide? How will your blog speak directly to them and help with the burning questions they have?
4. It showcases your knowledge.
This is especially important for businesses flogging services.
If you can clearly demonstrate how good you are, your prospects will be in no doubt of your expertise. They will gaze upon you glassy-eyed wondering where the hell you’ve been all their lives. My blog is my portfolio. I work hard creating at amassing useful (and hilarious) content for business owners. If potential clients are still not convinced, I’m not the content person for them.
But my blog isn’t a ‘how to’ on becoming a content writer. It is not a comprehensive guide.
And there’s a reason for that: I don’t want to reveal my methods. One purpose of blogging, for me at least, is to tease the audience just enough to get them started. It gives them the push to make some initial improvements.
But folks who struggle to write their own content, will only be able to go so far. And when that happens, they know where to turn—me. The truth is, freelancers, certainly in the early days of their freelancing, can’t afford to outsource. So my blog helps them until they can afford to. Small/medium business types don’t have the time to write content but they usually have more cash to hire contractors. For those folks, my blog convinces them that I’m a safe pair of hands. So I’m kinda killing two clients with one stone.
5. It builds trust.
Trust is a must! And again, it hits harder for the business that sells services.
There’s a little SEO principle called E-E-A-T and that stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness.
We’ve covered expertise so let’s take a look at the other three:
Professional experience is what you gain over time and it’s something you display as part of your expertise. But experience can also be your lived experience of a situation or circumstance—and that can prove invaluable to those reading your blog. Humans like to be understood and when they feel like you do, they’re pretty receptive.
Authority is what you get when you demonstrate your experience and expertise. Not only will prospects feel the weight of your abilities but your peers will also. Imagine how powerful it is to be regarded as someone who knows their stuff by others doing a similar job. That my friends will lead to trust. People will rest easy in the knowledge that you’ll get the job done.
6. It can be repurposed.
Blog posts are often long and they have plenty of useful information that can be used elsewhere.
Just one article will inspire so many shorter social media posts. You can dine out on that content for years (if it’s evergreen, obvs). Think about creating different kinds of content with them. Email marketing, podcasts, videos, and infographics can all be born from a blog. Squeeze the most out of your writing.
Last thing to remember when you blog for business.
Publishing your blogs isn’t the end of the road.
It’s actually the start. All published content requires promotion. Repurposing is a big part of that. Shout about your blog, be proud of the content you’re producing—your people need to hear about it.
Yeah, this shit takes time. But if you decide to get serious about blogging, the long term benefits will be immense.
The more relevant blog content you create, the more that snowball grows. And if like a good little blogger, you get busy promoting and sharing what you write, others will share it and refer back to it.
A blog for business is exciting stuff (no, seriously, it is).
Do you have a terrible business blog? Thinking of starting one? Hit the button.
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