We’re often asked if blogging is really necessary. Especially from small to mid-size businesses that just don’t want to part with the time or resources to produce quality content on a regular basis. Our answer is almost always a resounding YES, no matter what you do—blogging makes a difference to your bottom line.
We consistently encourage our new clients to invest heavily in a content marketing strategy that begins with a company blog publication—hosted on their own business site. And here are the top 5 reasons why.
- It keeps you on your (industry) toes. Blogging regularly forces you to stay current with every new product, technology, community event, or relevant service in your industry. You become sharper, faster, and better at explaining things to consumers in ways that they will understand. You also build confidence, trust and loyalty in your following and before long you may just find yourself the authority in your field—leading to media interview requests and invitations to discussions as the resident “expert.”
- It supports your social media initiatives. Maintaining an active social media presence with access to unique and relevant content can be difficult if you don’t have a blog. Link sharing to other “experts” can be beneficial, but balance is key. If all you do is drop other links, then essentially you’re a salesman working at referring traffic to your competitors blog—which is exactly what they want you to do. Having relevant and regular content promotes valuable discussion that allows you to see the world through your consumers eyes, and also shows off the unique personality of your brand. These conversations provide a valuable opportunity for industry listening and can also lead to more focused future content. It gives your business a voice. A platform. A superhero status. (OK, that last bit may be a bit premature.)
- It brings on the inbound links. Now that you’re the source of content and not dropping the links of your competitors, others will begin to share your posts and reference your business as a resource. This begins an organic accumulation of inbound links as authors, journalists, bloggers, columnists (and your blog-less competitors) cite your content in their own online circles and content. This can generate a significant number of clicks back to your business. Referral traffic links are also helpful with underlying SEO.
- It tells the world that you’re alive and well. An active blog shows consumers that you believe in your brand and that it is well-loved and maintained. This builds brand loyalty from new traffic which increases your conversion rates. And according to Hubspot’s State of Inbound Report for 2014, “companies that blog are 13x more likely to generate a positive marketing ROI.” Enough said.
- Google will love you. It’s no surprise that a search engine company loves to see new content added on a regular basis. (They are the SEM experts after all.) And with every new blog post published, organic search visibility and increased site traffic for your business improves. Fresh and regular content is rewarded with better visibility. In terms of search engine ranking, regular blogging brings you closer to the top. And if your posts are timely and/or related to current news events—you may just find your business cited in trending searches. The SEM takes care of the SEO.
Creating a blog is easier than you may think—our team of developers do it every single day. Bring us your questions and find out how you can reap the benefits of a business blog for your brand.
