Social media giants, especially those pushing 20-second videos and image-focused posting, love to tell us that blogging is a thing of the past. ‘No one these days has the attention span,’ they say. ‘Stick to stories on social because blogging for your business is pointless,’ they insist. Notice, these are often the same self-titled digital pioneers who say websites are pointless. You know them - they’re the ones who are usually making money from you investing in social media, hosting your shop on someone else’s platform or selling you advertising. Don’t get me wrong, social media is great for business and search engine adverts can give you a massive boost, but be wary of those who tell you it’s all you have to do. We know blogs are still great for recipes and for how-to guides when we’re ready to throw the laptop out of the window. We’re often guided to them when we type questions into Google or ask which marketing platform/dishwasher/veg box is best, but can a blog really help your business grow? Or is blogging for your business pointless?
Blogging for your business is pointless - if you don’t have a point to make. It’s time-consuming, not all of us are gifted wordsmiths and it can seem impossible to been seen in the crowded world of the web. Many small businesses try hosting a blog on their website and abandon it when it fails to bring in a deluge of traffic. Blogging for your business can be a waste of time, if you don’t factor your blog into your business plan and have clear, defined goals you want to achieve from it.
That said, here are some of the great reasons to blog for your business:
Blogging For Your Brand
I’ve been working in marketing for 14 years and we’ve always talked about brand, but back then it didn’t mean much more than a decent logo and strapline. Now, consumers are buying into brand even more than they buy into the products and/or services. People want to invest in companies they love and so they have to get to know you. Blogging is a great opportunity for people to get to know your brand, your voice and your passion.
There are businesses that sell kids toys and then there are companies that believe in the power of imagination and are passionate about stimulating young minds. Who would you rather buy a wooden puzzle from?
If your business means more to you than making a profit then blogging can help you communicate that to the world. Good businesses get customers but great businesses inspire people!
Promoting Your Values
Personally, I only work with ethical businesses. When it comes to product-based brands I’m stubborn about writing for and designing websites only for those who operate sustainably. I’m self-employed so it’s really important to me that my work encompasses my values, even if that sometimes means turning away opportunities. What I’ve found though, is that having strong values means you attract those who mirror those values. This makes for better working relationships and a happy, fulfilling working life. If you, like me, have built your values into your business, don’t then stay quiet about it. Tell the world what you stand for and align yourself with brands that share these values.
Blogging for your business is a great way to promote your values and start attracting the attention of those who share them.
Let’s say you’re a yoga teacher who believes in body positivity. It’s not enough to think it, you have to champion it. So, write about ways in which you’ve learnt to love your body. Or why self-care shouldn’t be a luxury. Or how the idea of a ‘beach-ready body’ is toxic.
Your blog is a place where you can tell your potential customers why you’re different and why they should get behind you. Not everyone who shares your values will turn into customers but chances are that some will and here’s the key - those customers are going to be loyal.
Blogging For Search Engine Optimisation
Sometimes it can feel as if your website is a short person standing at a crowded bar on a Friday night waving your arms for attention and getting overlooked. It’s hard to get heard over all the noise. So, somehow you have to speak up, lean in and get noticed. The way that search engines work is they put the users first - that’s not you. That’s those searching for what they need. Put simply, the way sites like Google match users with the information they’re looking for is by scanning website pages for words that match their criteria. Hopefully, you’ll have your SEO set up to give your products and services the best chance of ranking for those looking for them. But, as I’ve said, it’s busy out there so it doesn’t hurt to have some extra content that can keyword match similar requests. Let’s say you’re selling eco-friendly Christmas decorations. You’re not the only one right? So those searching ‘eco-friendly Christmas decorations’ might see 50 listings before yours and no one visits 50 websites for Christmas decor, so you’re drowning. Also, a lot of people who are aiming for an eco-friendly Christmas don’t start by looking to buy products. So, they might be searching ‘eco-friendly Christmas ideas’ or type in ‘how can I make Christmas more sustainable’. See what we have there? We have a couple of great titles for blog articles. Now, you can bring in some traffic (if you get your SEO right). And, if you’re doing it right, you can transform that traffic into product orders. Blogging for SEO isn’t as technical as it sounds. Mostly it’s about knowing who your customers are and what they might be searching for. If you’re blogging for your business and confused by SEO, I offer one-to-one training - https://www.msmarketing.co.uk/bookings-checkout/online-seo-training?referral=service_list_widget
Content is Queen
I don’t offer Social Media Marketing as a service but I still get asked about it a lot and the most common question is ‘what do I post?’ If you don’t have a massive collection of products it can be difficult to gather content that’s going to get engagement. Having a blog means you have somewhere to send more passive followers to. Every article is a conversation starter and social media is all about starting conversations. So, having blog articles to share on social media is a great asset.
Posting new content to your website is also great for search engines, and not just for keywords. Search engines want to know you’re active and posting new content lets them know you’re still in business.
For service providers, in particular, LinkedIn is also a great place to share blogs. Although LinkedIn hates linking away from their website so, if your priority is LinkedIn traffic, it’s worth considering posting your article on their platform.
Being that blogs attract the attention of other businesses, search engine users, and social media users, blogging for your business is not pointless. Just make sure you know what the point of it is and do what all good writers do - write about what you’re passionate about. Otherwise, you won’t be authentic and - let’s be honest - you won’t get around to doing it.
If you found this helpful then that’s probably because I’m a Freelance Copywriter and I manage blogs for small businesses. Perhaps I could help with yours? Book a free consultation with me and let’s have a chat about whether blogging is right for your business.
