Whether or not your boss realizes it yet, he or she wants a business blog as part of your company’s content marketing strategy. Oftentimes, the higher-ups are reluctant to spend money on anything, even if it means making money. As an online marketer, it is your job to convince your boss of the numerous benefits of having a business blog. Before you march into his or her office, keep these seven items in mind:
- Your blog will aid your SEO efforts. Blogs are search-friendly, and if you publish the right kind of posts, they can bring new traffic to your website through search engines. Google also uses your analytics data to determine your SERPs – if lots of users find the information on your blog valuable, it could affect your rank for the better.
- If your blog is helping your business to become more visible online, that means it is directly generating more sales leads. And it can only continue to help from there: not only does it bring more traffic to your website, but a well-written blog post can answer questions and alleviate concerns of customers. For example, part of your content marketing strategy might be to review your frequently asked questions and dedicate a blog post to each one. More in-depth answers to questions about products easily lead to more purchases and more revenue for you.
- More than half of all Internet users read a blog at least monthly. With the inception of Pinterest, blogging has become more and more popular among readers. Mobile devices are also becoming more common, which makes reading blog posts outside of the home even easier. On the other hand, all of our time on the Internet has made us callous towards blatant advertising. Blog posts are a great way to get potential customers to your website without the unattractive advertising.
- Business blogs aren’t as difficult as they seem. You can integrate a content management system, such as WordPress, into your business’s website. This saves you the pain and hassle of having to create your own blogging platform in your website. With a content management system, readers can easily travel from your homepage to your blog and back without ever leaving your domains. CMSs also have a wide variety of themes to choose from so you can pick one that matches the rest of your website without much fuss. If you do want to use your unique look, a web designer can use his or her own creation on a CMS.
- Blogs are actually more effective than social media. If your boss is more convinced of the need for social media, show him or her Hubspot’s findings on how critical blogs are: they are reported to be more effective than LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. Blogs also give you more control than social media ever will – you are not subject to the whims of the hotshots who are more interested in making money than user experience. However, you don’t need to keep your marketing strategy for your blog and your social media separate: share your blog posts on social media.
- Blogs posts aren’t limited to text. In fact, rich media is recommended both to attract traffic and to appease your SEO. Your audience can only take so much text at once, so create infographics, pictures, and videos either to divvy up your text or as stand-alone posts.
- Blogging has a higher ROI than traditional advertising. Having a business blog is one of the cheapest actions you can take to help boost your business. CMSs do not charge you for their services (though premium options exist, like paid themes). You will need marketers to publish new posts regularly, but how often and how much is up to each business’s needs and abilities. However, the minimal costs are nothing compared to how expensive most forms of traditional advertising can be. It helps that your audience is already online and looking for informative blogs to read – why not make that blog yours?
For some tips on how to make your local business blog stand out, check out “6 Tips to Make Your Local Business Blog Shine.”
Sources:
Cohen, Heidi. “7 Tips for Making Your Blog a Content Marketing Magnet.” http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/7-tips-for-making-your-blog-a-content-marketing-magnet/. (7 April 2014).
Paley, Scott. “8 Ways To Convince Your Boss To Invest In Content Marketing.” http://blog.abstractedge.com/8-ways-to-convince-your-boss-to-invest-in-content-marketing/#v. (7 April 2014).