At the time of writing this blog, I’ve only been working at the agency for a couple of days. Rather than breaking me in gently, they have shown no mercy and thrown me in at the deep end, tasking me with creating a literary masterpiece to go live in only my second week. What could possibly go wrong?
So, what to blog about? Do I dive in with something techy and heavy, wading through the mire of social media trends and AI overlords, or opt for something easier on the mind, such as the diary of an Account Manager? Or the fine art of procrastination? Decisions, decisions…
Fortunately, this is not my first rodeo. I’ve been knee-deep in the dark arts of PR and marketing for almost 20 years, having fully completed my ‘poacher turned gamekeeper’ story arc, successfully transitioning from journalist to masked vigilante digital marketer. However, this is not a self-aggrandising piece of propaganda – it’s a clumsy segue into what I’ve learned about blog writing through the ages. Yes, I’m writing a blog about writing a blog (ooh, how meta…)
Right, let’s get down to business. Let’s get blogged down.
Why blog?
Put simply, a blog is defined as “a regularly updated website or web page, and can either be used for personal use or to fulfil a business need.” In 2022, it was reported there were over 600 million blogs in existence, so they’ve clearly got staying power.
After all, blogs enable individuals and businesses to develop a strong online presence, as well as establish themselves as experts in their industries or sectors. Then there’s the small advantage of attracting more leads via their websites. A quick stat attack backs this up: DemandMetric reports B2B marketers who use blogs receive 67% more leads than those who don’t, while HubSpot points out that blogging companies get 55% more website visitors compared to their blogless rivals.
Blogging remains a tremendous marketing tool for businesses that’s equally as powerful and effective as social media, mailshots and e-newsletters. However, if it isn’t something you or your company have invested much time in, let’s consider a few key elements and their advantages:
Read all about it
If you’ve been enticed by all the benefits a blog has to offer but aren’t sure what to actually write about, why not start with some company news? Businesses should be sharing stories about successful projects, products, awards and achievements with customers – and a blog is the perfect channel through which to do this. Doing so helps to humanise a brand, without coming across as a hard sell.
Become the respected voice of authority
Creating useful content and/or articles for your target audience on a regular basis will help cement your position as an industry leader in their eyes – and ideally, leave them wanting more. Blogs can provide answers to customers’ questions, as well as educate them via infographics, videos, lists and ‘how-to’ guides. In turn, this increases the audience’s trust, thereby aiding customer retention.
Everything has a (re)purpose
There’s plenty of mileage to be gained from a blog post. At the very least, links to the blog should be posted on a company’s social media pages, so any visitors to your Facebook, X/Twitter or LinkedIn pages have a reason to click through to your website. Doing so strengthens your social reach while attracting new website traffic – and potential leads. Plus, what’s the point in creating great blog content and then refusing to shout about it?
The missing link
Similarly, if you can get other companies – particularly those your audience views as industry leaders – to link to your blog, this shows third-party confidence in your expertise. Again, this helps in establishing authority, while from an SEO perspective, it shows Google you’re a trustworthy force to be reckoned with. Indeed, building your domain authority in this way can only help improve your discoverability in search engines. (Coincidentally, you can check out another blog about links and backlinks here.)
Leading the way
Once your blog is up and running, be sure to take full advantage of all the lovely traffic it is generating for your site. After all, every visitor is a potential customer, so make sure your blog posts include a call-to-action (this could be a fact sheet download, webinar sign-up or e-newsletter subscription, for example) ideally linked to a data capture form. This results in potential leads for your sales team, as well as the creation of a database for future digital marketing activities.
Do pay attention, 007
Got all that? I only ask because, unfortunately, research has revealed human beings are now lagging behind the goldfish in their ability to focus on a task or object. The average human has an attention span of just 8.25 seconds according to recent studies – 4.25 seconds less than in 2000. (The goldfish’s is a whopping 9 seconds in comparison, before you ask.) Bearing this in mind, ensuring your blog is interesting, informative and maintains the reader’s attention is vital to its success.
Blogs have so many advantages it’s impossible to cover them all in depth in one post, but hopefully, you’ve got a flavour of how they can help boost your online presence, drive traffic to your website and help create valuable leads.
Oh, and just so I make sure I practise what I preach… If you need assistance with blogging – or any other digital marketing matters – get in touch to find out how Browser Media can help.
