Let’s say you’re a new business owner looking to generate some extra revenue online. You understand that, before anyone will buy from you, there is a level of trust that needs to be established between a visitor and your business. You also understand that to grow your business online, you need to continue generating new traffic from search engines. One great way to accomplish both of these goals is through content marketing, which can be done by starting a business blog on your website. In this article, we will discuss why you should consider starting an online blog for your business, as well as share some of our top choices for great existing blogs to serve as inspiration for your posts.
Blog marketing is a content creation strategy that strives to establish customer loyalty through information provided through free online content that usually relates to your business and industry. A blog is a relatively inexpensive way to reach your target audience and provide information and industry updates, as well as draw in new business from search engines. Blogs used to be separate from business websites, but more recently it has become a great content marketing strategy as it can be frequently updated at a relatively low cost.
A business blog is also a great way to showcase all the places where you have been featured both on and offline, which can serve as great self promotion for your business.
Blogging is also a valuable way to draw in new leads, as well as keep current customers engaged on your website for longer periods of time. Updating your website with new content is actually a ranking signal on search engines as it shows your website provides a great user experience and is updated on a regular basis.
Your blog content should not be solely focused on self promotion, however, as it should serve as a way to build credibility for your business. To accomplish this, your blog content should be a combination of information, entertainment, and education.
The pros of a marketing blog include:
- Relatively inexpensive to start and update
- Easy to use- extensive technical background not necessary
- Builds brand awareness through information, education, and entertaining content
- Helps establish trust and credibility in your brand as a leader within your industry
- Is an easy way to engage your target audience
- Can help drive new traffic through improved search engine rankings
- Can help your business generate revenue through advertising and product promotion
While this brand recognition is great for your business, you want to make sure you capitalize on it by including certain features on your blog, or all your marketing efforts may go to waste.
A few key features of a great digital marketing blog include:
Call to Action Areas – By including areas within your online blog that encourage visitors to further engage with your business, you can easily identify new sales opportunities and keep them up to date through email communication. Some ways to include CTAs within an online blog include an ask to sign up for your newsletter for regular updates, or inclusion of a short business bio and contact information at the end of a blog post.
Highlights from Well-known Media Coverage – Your marketing blog is also a great space to promote your business, so be sure to include some promotional posts within your blog to help establish credibility with your online visitors. Some great examples for these types of posts include highlighting any awards received or promotion of your business from any well known media outlets.
Internal Linking – Internal linking within your posts are a great way to optimize your blog for search engines, which will help drive traffic to your website. You can internally link specific keywords within your blog posts to other relevant pages within your website. Doing this will help search engines identify what type of content your blog posts contain that will help them rank according to these specific keywords. Internal linking also helps with visitor engagement on your website, as clicking these links will bring them to other content and help them learn more about your business.
Contact information for your media/marketing team – You want to offer a way for your visitors or other businesses to get in touch with your marketing team in case there is a promotional opportunity such as an advertising or media coverage. Without this information, you might miss out on some promotional opportunities for your business so be sure to include contact information on your blog page.
Ability to Filter Blog Content by Topic and Date – When visitors come to your online blog, they might have interest in specific topics. By giving them the ability to search your blog for specific content, you can give them the opportunity to further engage with your website, which will build more trust in your brand. Your blog content should also be displayed in order of relevancy, with the newer posts appearing towards the top of the page.
Content that Informs, Educates, and Entertains your Target Audience – While inclusion of promotional content is important, it should not be the sole focus of your online blog. Blogs serve as a way to educate and entertain your audience about topics that are relevant to your business, which will help in establishing the trust and credibility necessary for making a purchasing decision in the future.
Inclusion of Visual Content such as Video or Imagery – Your blog posts should not solely be text based. For a better user experience, you will want to include other visual elements such as relevant imagery or online video as a way to make your blog posts more entertaining and informative.
Attention Grabbing Headline – Your headlines for your blog posts are especially important, as that is what will grab your visitors attention and cause them to click on a post. Make sure your blog headlines are straightforward yet attention grabbing through the right word choices that resonate with your target audience.
If you’re starting a digital marketing blog or looking for great examples of digital marketing blogs we’ve selected 17 of the best to follow:
