To clarify things from the start, let’s define what a business blog actually is.
First and foremost – it’s a post ‘that’s about a particular subject matter related to your business’. Thank you for the explanation Hubspot.
And how does business blogging differ from regular blogging?
Hubspot clarifies this rather beautifully. You see, unlike a personal blog, your business blog is ‘neither 1) a hobby, like many people’s personal blogs, nor 2) the primary way your business makes money’.
Further, ‘a business blog is a marketing channel (just like social media, direct mail, email marketing, etc.) that helps support business growth. It does that by driving traffic to your website and providing opportunities for that traffic to convert in some way’. Again. Thank you Hubspot.
But what are the intrinsic benefits – those idiosyncratic components – of business blogging that makes it such an effective marketing tool?
Here goes.
1. It gets traffic back to your website.
You want more people to find your website? Yes? Well, then know that blogging is absolutely crucial. You see, unless people already know who you are, chances that they’re typing in the name of your business on any search engine is pretty low.
So you’re probably thinking that’s okay, I’ll just pay for the traffic. But you know what happens when you stop paying? Your traffic dries up just as quick.
Step in business blogging. You see, each blog you do becomes an additional indexed page on your website which increases your chances of being seen on search engines thereby driving organically generated search traffic back to your site.
In addition, blogs make for great shareable content on social media networks which helps you in gaining exposure to new audiences that may have never heard of you before.
2. It generates leads
By increasing traffic, you are upping your chances of converting that traffic into leads.
And how do you achieve this? Well, as the wise folk at Hubspot explain quite eloquently, ‘just add a lead-generating call-to-action to every blog post. Often, these calls-to-action lead to things like free ebooks, free whitepapers, free fact sheets, free webinars, free trials … basically, any content asset for which someone would be willing to exchange their information’.
3. You earn a name for yourself
Consistently blogging about the stuff you know well, the stuff you’re an expert on, will help you eventually establish yourself as an authority in your field to the people who matter most – your target audience who are ultimately your target customers.
When you are answering the questions that people are asking through your blogs, you are more likely to earn their confidence and trust. In time, this will hopefully impact their purchasing behaviour enough that they start buying from you as well.
4. It has long term reward
What do we mean? Well, it’s pretty simple. A blog you post today may still drive traffic and generate leads in months to come. Basically, what you do today can still bring about results in years to come.
But just remember that this comes with how consistent you are in creating those blogs and the frequency with which you post them.
These types of blogs are called compounding blog posts and you can find out more about how they drive traffic right here.
5. It’s great for consumer engagement
Through blogging you’re creating an online persona that your target audience will hopefully be drawn to. Here’s the thing though. At some point, that audience will want to engage, enter into conversation, start a dialogue. And that’s phenomenal!
You want that. Because any business that is capable of establishing rapport with their customers is far more likely to eventually turn those customers into paying consumers – which is ultimately what you are striving for.