Many small and medium business owners I speak to tell me then know they should be blogging on their business website but admit they don’t actually understand why.
I’m passionate about online marketing and blog as a hobby, as well as for my business, so love passing on my knowledge and enthusiasm about the benefits of business blogging.
There are thousands of blog posts on the internet about this very topic, but most are filled with jargon that the less internet savvy business owners may find hard to comprehend. For this post, I’m sticking to easy-to-understand terms and I genuinely hope it gets you thinking positively about blogging. Are you ready? Ok, let’s go…
1. Shows the personality of your business and the people behind it
Chances are, there are many companies offering the same or similar services or products to you, so you need to stand out from your competitors. As you will already know, people don’t just look at the price of a service or product, they will also take into account whether they trust and like the business they are buying from. Your website doesn’t have the benefit of a smiley, chatty receptionist welcoming every customer who is able to answer all their questions and concerns. Instead, you can get across the personality of your brand, and the people behind it, on a blog. Sharing pictures of you and your staff, talking in a positive way about what you do and providing helpful information will help your website visitors to get an idea of whether they like you and whether they are willing to purchase from you.
2. Gives you something to shout out about on social media
Lots of business owners I work with know they should be using social media but feel they don’t have anything to talk about. If you blog, you have lots to talk about! You can be sharing your blog posts on your social media channels and inviting people to read it. Give people a reason to read your blog such as providing tips, local news, an enticing offer or an exciting giveaway. When posting about your blog on social media, include the URL (web address) of your blog post so that people can click it and get to your blog post. All the while you are promoting your blog on social media, you are also showcasing your personality and getting exposure- double whammy!
3. Attracts people to your website who may become your next customers
So, you’ve written a helpful blog post and you have used social media to shout out about it. People will see your Tweets and Facebook posts and will hopefully choose to read your blog post on your website. You now have a visitor on your website that may never have come to your website if it wasn’t for your blog post. By making your website easy to navigate and full of useful information, you will be encouraging these new website visitors to take a look at some of your other blog posts and, maybe, check out your services. Having read your blog post, they will have a good understanding of your brand’s personality and, having checked out the rest of your website, they may actually turn into a customer.
4. Demonstrates your expertise and knowledge of your market
I blog tips and information on social media and digital marketing to help small businesses, which I share on my social media channels. You may have found this blog post from seeing one of my messages on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. You will probably gather from reading this post that I know a lot about social media and blogging. If this is the case, my blog is doing its job; showing readers that I understand the market I operate in. Customers want to know that the business they are buying from truly understands the ins-and-outs of their own product or service they are selling. For example, if you were looking for someone to manage your social media or consult with you on content marketing for your business, you would want to make sure that I am the best person to do the job. Reading my blog is one way you may choose to assess my ability and knowledge.
5. Improves your website ranking in Search Engines (Google, Bing etc)
One of the most complicated and misunderstood elements of online marketing is Search Engine Optimisation. For many business owners, hearing the term ‘SEO’ causes their brain to disengage and go into sleep mode. I completely empathise if this sounds like you. It’s a technical minefield that boggles the brains of many, but I assure you it’s worth having a basic understanding of the benefits of SEO.
One good place to start is blogging for your business. Writing a blog is a way of adding additional content (words, information, pictures, stories, etc.) to your website on top of the information on your standard pages (homepage, about us page and contact us page and so on). In simple terms, having lots of relevant information helps Search Engines to understand exactly what you offer, so that they can list your websites in relevant search results. Ensuring your blog posts have significant and descriptive words and phrases, known as ‘keywords’, that are relevant to your business will improve the SEO of your website.
Blogging requires time-investment and creating a blog strategy will ensure you define objectives, keep on track and measure the success of your efforts. Before starting your business blog, research topics that are relevant to your business and always ensure everything you create will benefit your target audience, because, ultimately, they are the people you want to attract to your website and turn into customers. Once you have done your research, create a schedule for your blog to help you keep on top of it. Include topics that you will write about, when they will be posted on your website and how you plan to shout out about them on social media. Planning your blog will help to create regular posts and make sure your blog doesn’t fizzle out over time.
I love everything about blogging and helping businesses to get the most out from them. If you would like to start a blog but don’t have the time or would like help with your blogging strategy, I can help you. Click here to be taken to my contact page or Tweet me @SocialRocksUK.
If you’d like to read my personal blog, The Thrifty Magpies Nest, you can check it out by clicking here or by clicking the image above.
