Get this: In a recent report, 92% of businesses said blog content was one of their most valuable business assets. The same survey found that brands with a regularly updated blog got 67% more leads than businesses without one. How’s that for bang for your buck?
Until now you might have pumped all your marketing budget into social media (keep reading to discover why that’s not a good idea) or assumed there was simply no need to publish blog content on your site at all.
But, listen up, blog content is a valuable, essential, and effective marketing tool for many reasons and when used correctly it can revolutionize the way you attract new customers, close sales, and communicate with your audience. Ready to discover the benefits of blogging? Great, let’s dig in…
But first, what is SEO?
I’ll be mentioning SEO throughout this blog. Put simply, SEO stands for search engine optimisation and it refers to how well your brand ranks on search engines (such as Google) when your potential clients and customers search words related to your business online. SEO is highly competitive and it depends on how well you’ve optimised the pages on your website and how effectively you’ve included keywords that your audience is already searching for.
Everyone is trying to nab their spot on the first page of Google and creating SEO blog content drastically improves your chances of getting seen. Need more convincing? Read on…
6 Benefits Of Publishing Blog Content
It makes you more discoverable
Do you ever feel like it’s impossible to keep up with the big brands, and wonder how you’ll ever make your brand visible when there are businesses in your niche with millions of followers? SEO blogs are the key to improving your online visibility.
Ask yourself this: when hunting for a new product or service online, how often do you click on the second page of search results? Probably not very often, right? We automatically gravitate towards the web pages that appear first – and there’s only one way to nab those top spots and get your brand in front of your ideal customer: good SEO. That can be achieved with blog content.
It helps you stand out as an authority in your niche
Take heed: according to research, 82% of people will not buy from a brand they don’t trust and 62% of shoppers choose products and services based on a brand’s reputation. Blog content is a solid way to build trust in your brand and create a reputation for yourself as an authority in your niche. In fact, blogs are rated as the 5th most trusted source for online information in terms of accuracy.
Blog articles give you an opportunity to showcase your expertise and establish an authentic connection with your audience. Consider this: Who do you think a customer is more likely to buy from: A brand that rarely communicates with them or a company that regularly writes thoughtful articles that address their needs and concerns? No surprise, it’s the latter.
Keeps your audience updated about your offerings
Do you know what’s really neat about creating a blog for your business? It gives you an opportunity to plug your products and services in a way that feels really natural and authentic to people who are already engaging with your brand. Publishing a blog about the power of positive thinking? Don’t forget to mention your new range of motivational wall prints!
When someone conducts a search online, they are already seeking a solution to a problem. Now imagine how much more likely they are to sign up for your latest service or click ‘purchase’ on your newest product when they land on your blog post. The solution is right there in front of them in black and white.
What’s more, you can include a call to action and use your blog for any number of purposes: such as building your email database, asking people to follow you online, or encouraging them to sign up for your latest service offering.
You own the content
Imagine Instagram – or any of the other social media platforms, for that matter – crashed tomorrow and never returned. All of your followers and your carefully curated content that you’ve put so much time, energy and budget into, would be lost forever.
While crafting a strong social media presence is imperative to your brand’s success, it’s unwise to put all your metaphorical eggs in one basket, particularly when social media platforms (think MySpace and Bebo) have disappeared before. When you host a blog on your website, you’re in control. You own that content, and it will always be there unless you choose to remove it.
It gives your audience a reason to visit your website
When was the last time you typed a website’s URL into the search bar? Chances are this isn’t something you do very often. For the most part, we ‘stumble’ upon websites when we’re hunting for a specific product or looking for the answer to a particular query.
The more blogs you publish on your website, the more reason people have to visit your website. Almost nobody is typing [yourwebsite].com into Google and landing on your page. They’re finding your website on Google by searching for relevant content or being directed there from your social channels when you share a link.
Put simply, blog content ensures more people visit your site. And you know what that means? Yep, more opportunities to make a sale.
It builds your profile on social media
Get this: every time you publish a blog post, you are creating something that your followers can easily share on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. If your content is useful and includes lots of value for the reader, they might like to share it with others too, and that means even more people will discover your brand.
Blog posts can be a really handy way of improving your social media content as well. Struggling to find ideas for your Facebook feed or not sure what to post on Instagram stories? Simple: you can link to your recently published blog posts or even repurpose them by pulling quotes and creating engaging captions and graphics. It’s a surefire way to ensure your brand is always in your target audience’s eye line.
Want to take the stress of copy and content creation off your already over-flowing plate and win back some of your free time and peace of mind?
