By now, you’ve probably felt the need to start blogging because everyone is doing it and experts say it’s good for business. But if you’ve dipped your toe in only to discover that blogging can be quite a bit of work (especially if you’re not much of a writer), you might be asking yourself, “Remind me again why this is good for business?”
Here’s why …
Google Likes Fresh Content
Simply put, a blog improves search visibility for your website because the continuous stream of fresh content (assuming you’re posting regularly) attracts search engines. Compare this against your home page content, for instance, that (in most cases) probably hasn’t changed much in years.
Fresh content and keywords = more visitors to your blog and website
Tip: It’s a good idea to keep your company’s keywords in mind and try to incorporate them in your blog content as much as practical.
Your Personality and Thought Leadership Shine Through
A blog allows you to express your unique voice, personality, and thought leadership. In a lot of cases, this is a refreshing change from the more stoic corporate tone or product/service-oriented verbiage on your website. Engaging blog entries give your company a distinct character, unique voice, and competitive advantage.
Tip: A blog isn’t the place to post content that’s recycled from a brochure or another page on your website. Provide your unique perspective … and don’t “pitch” with every blog entry. Too many blogs are dominated by Sage product promos and boring corporate news.
It’s Dynamic and Engaging
Like most small businesses, you probably have customers and prospects that have visited your website once and haven’t been back since. And why would they? Once they found the info they needed, there was no reason to come back. But if you set up a blog that has Personality, demonstrates Thought Leadership, and is easy to stumble across on Google, you’ll get more traffic to your website and more repeat visitors. They may even subscribe to your blog’s RSS feed to keep tabs on your newest blog postings.
Another benefit is the ability for your readers to provide feedback/comments, creating a two-way dialogue that provides valuable information about the issues that are important to your customers and prospects.
Web pages = static with few repeat visitors
Blog = dynamic, two-way “conversations”
What was once just an online diary for personal use has become a critically important B2B marketing tool. But it takes time for your blog to get noticed, be indexed on search engines, and create buzz … so be patient and stay the course. As with ANY marketing initiative, consistency is perhaps the MOST important ingredient for success.
C’mon Let’s Hear Your Feedback
What’s YOUR experience … is blogging worthwhile or a waste of time?
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