If you’re a business that is resistant to opening up your own business blog, you’re not alone. Managers, owners, and even advertisers can be apprehensive about posting these short, industry-relevant pieces of content, from time constraints to a lack of resources and content creativity.
The benefits of business blogging far outweigh any perceived “disadvantages”. These can usually be worked around through scheduling or outsourcing the task to a third-party content provider.
Not only does blogging help your business become discovered by those searching for products and services like yours on a search engine. Blogging also allows you to:
- Connect with readers on a personal level
- Create a loyal community
- Establish yourself as an authority in your industry
- Boost your social proof
What does this translate into? More conversions for your company and potentially the best return on your marketing dollars when compared to any other advertising tool out there.
Getting Started: It Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated
Carve some time out of your busy schedule to source and contact a handful of content writing teams who will write your blog for you, or take that time to plan how you will put together your business blog.
Before your pen scratches the paper (or your fingers hit the keyboard), have a plan in place. This means:
Having a Primary Objective
Is your objective to acquire more leads? Are you trying to establish yourself as an expert in your field? Or are you stacking your email list?
Note that we didn’t say anything about pushing a sale. Blogs can be used to gently encourage a purchase or a contract signing. But your blog should ultimately be educational, entertaining, and engaging to your readership.
Sticking to a Consistent Blogging Schedule
Statistics show that generally the more often you blog, the better it is for your website and for retaining your readership. With that said, most small to medium-sized businesses do just fine blogging anywhere from one to three times a week.
Understanding How You Will “Sound”
This depends on both your character and your audience. A consulting company or legal firm may do well with a more academic or authoritative blogging voice, while an outdoor living supply company or pet food store will benefit from keeping the tone of their blogs casual and fun.
Offering Something That’s Unique
Check out other similar blogs for inspiration. But make sure that what you share is an insight that’s unique to you. Think about what you can add to conversations happening in your industry and take the time to ensure that your content is original and that it offers value to your audience.
Having a Strong Call-To-Action
The driving point behind any business blog is to inspire your readers to take action. The action you want them to take may differ from page to page, such as clicking on a link to a sales page, popping their email address in a newsletter opt-in box, or requesting a quote.
Business blogging is a cost-effective way to uncover brand new opportunities for your business. From lucrative benefits like increasing your chances of being found on search engines and generating more leads and customers, the only question you should be left with is, “Why haven’t I started yet?”
When you haven’t got time to write
If you are a manager, you probably don’t have time to write blog posts – your focus is on building your business in more tangible ways. However if you have staff, they can play a role.
You see, even if they are not born writers, they probably come across ideas for blog posts while performing their daily tasks. This is particularly so for front line staff, those who engage with the public either in person on via a customer service role. Simply by having them write down frequently asked questions, or tips that will help your customers in their homes or businesses (as relevant), and sending those ideas to a nominated person is a great start.
You may have a team member who can write – even if it hasn’t been blog posts. If they can write a business letter, they can write a blog post. Ask them if they would be willing to expand their role to include this. In challenging economic times, most will jump at the chance to have more variety in their roles.
Finally though, if you don’t have any ‘ideas people’ or a writer on your team, I invite you to contact me directly at [email protected] to see how I can help.
Kerry Finch
Leave a Reply