As a busy business owner, you’re probably wondering if implementing a blog on your website is actually going to be worth the time and effort? The short answer “hell yeah”! 

Blogging is an inexpensive way for small businesses to drive more traffic to their website, enhance inbound marketing efforts and attract more customers. It’s because of that, I honestly believe consistent blogging is one of the most effective ways to build brand awareness and provide relevant and useful content to your target audience.

Is blogging still relevant in 2020?

Seeing as you’re reading one right now, I think it’s safe to say “yes, it’s very relevant still”. According to Hubspot, more than 75% of internet users say they read blogs on a regular basis. The old school days of following your favourite blogs on Bloglovin may have gone, but people are still using Google every single day to answer questions and seek advice on subjects. 

Still not 100% convinced? Here are seven benefits of having a blog.

1. Local organic rankings on search engines

We’ve all noticed that whenever we make a search query in Google, the paid Ads are always the first result we see. So, if your business is a local pizza shop and someone searches “pizza takeaway in [insert location here]”, the first result is probably going to be Dominos. So, how can a small business compete with the big boys and their huge marketing budgets? You need to bring something to the table that they don’t have: personality! 

A blog can help showcase your personality, put a face to the name and build on the know, like and trust factor. Publishing regular posts that use both keywords your ideal client would use, as well as ones you’ve researched yourself will help you move up the search engine results page (SERP). 

2. Boost your search engine optimisation (SEO)

Writing a blog enables you to write posts that rank your site for particular keywords. Let’s use our pizza shop example again – because who doesn’t love pizza? You probably already rank for keywords such as “pizza [location]” or “takeaway [location]”. 

If you were to write a blog post on “The best stuffed-crust pizza in [location]” or “Meet John: the fastest delivery driver in [location]”, it opens you up to new audiences who might be just searching for a quick meal. 

3. Become an industry expert

The more you write about a subject, the more of an authority you become about it. Becoming an authority in your niche helps build brand awareness and keeps people coming back to your website for more. Mark your company as a master of its craft by posting engaging, informative, and well-researched blog posts.

I’d recommend using a mix of evergreen (content that stays relevant for a long period of time) and current content. Choose topics that really help customers and encourage them to speak. 

4. Form part of your sales funnel

A lot of businesses use blogs for the SEO benefits we’ve already covered, but they’re missing a trick! Which is a shame because a blog can actually form a fundamental part of your sales funnel. The people who come to your blog represent a captive audience who are interested in what you have to say. And that means they’re ripe for conversion. 

By using carefully crafted calls to action (CTAs) within your posts you can influence readers to:

• Sign up for your email list
• Purchase your products
• Book a consultation
• Share your content

5. Generating backlinks 

The more valuable content you create on your blog, the more likely you are to get picked up by other websites and blogs. When another site links to your page, its signals to search engines that they’re vouching for your content. These digital recommendations help increase your website authority which in turn, improves the ranking and visibility of your site.

6. Have plenty of content to share

You might not have a blog, but I bet you’re on social media? Whenever I’m struggling for content ideas to post on social media, I always come to my blog first. Having a blog is like having your own little (or big) content bank that you can use over and over and again. 

It also works both ways. By directly quoting your blog content on your social media, you’re encouraging followers to read more on your website. The more traffic to your website, the more likely you are to convert them into a sale.

Here are some ideas of what you could turn in to a social media post:

• Turn snippets of the blog into captions
• Create infographics for your highest performing posts
• Quote yourself using an eye-catching image
• Turn a tutorial into a visual post such as an Instagram Reel or a Facebook Live

For some more ideas on how to repurpose your content, check out this post here.

7. Improve customer service/ experience

Do you find customers will often ask the same questions? If so, write a blog answering all of your most asked questions, misconceptions or even a tutorial on how to use your product. Having the content readily available on your blog will ultimately save you time by not having to answer customer queries.

A blog is also a great opportunity for you to connect with your existing and potential customers in a different way. By engaging with your audience through your blog you will not only get to know your audience better, but you will also increase your online reach and commitment to your brand.

Use the comments function to find out more about your audience. When they leave a comment, keep the conversation going by asking questions. 

And there we have it, seven benefits of blogging for your business. If you want to increase your online exposure, while establishing yourself as an expert in your industry, then you will definitely want to take advantage of blogging as part of your digital marketing strategy. 

Need help crafting search engine optimised blog posts? Get in touch with me here to find out more about my services.