A guide to business blog benefits using non-marketing language.

Anytime I talk to new clients, friends and family – who aren’t marketers – about blogging for business is always an interesting conversation. And by interesting I mean painful. And by painful I mean it always goes something like this…

 

A typical conversation about business blogs with non-marketers:

Right when I think they understand what blogging is, they all seem to start looking a certain way: they press their lips together, squint their eyes a bit and slowly nod their heads, as if solving a complicated math equation in their mind or trying to recall what they forgot to include on a grocery list.

But I get it. Not everyone is a marketer, and only a fraction of marketers are actual writers and copywriters that focus on writing blogs. At least in my circles. So, I happen to like those discussions, because they make me feel as if I’m doing something that’s ground-breaking in marketing. In reality, business blogs aren’t ground-breaking and they aren’t new. But they are powerful.

Business blogs have been around for years. HubSpot dates the origin of blog writing back to 1994, but, in reality, it was much later that it has really taken off as an essential marketing practice.

 

SO WHY SHOULD YOU WRITE BUSINESS BLOGS FOR YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE

You want a short answer or a long answer?

Short answer.

Because your clients expect you to.

Long answer.

Writing and posting regular, relevant and interesting blogs for your audience is a powerful strategy to promote and grow your business online. Whatever business you are in, product-based or service-based, you’re missing out if you aren’t producing content – business blogs. Let’s take a look some of the biggest reasons why every business should have a blog on their website. Even if that’s the only type of online marketing that you do.

 

BUSINESS BLOGS HELP YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE SHOW UP IN SEARCH ENGINES (A.K.A. GOOGLE)

Let’s say you are a local business in Toronto, supplying air duct cleaning service to homeowners all over the GTA. And let’s say I just had a minor renovation project and decide that it might be time to get ducts cleaned in my home. Knowing very little about the air duct cleaning service and the available providers in my area, the VERY FIRST THING I’ll do is consult Google. Right on my phone.

I’ll type in something along the lines of:

About air duct cleaning

or

Which air duct cleaning is best in Toronto

or

What to know about air duct cleaning

People research before they buy. As many as 89% of people research and read blogs before buying anything. In fact 47% of buyers viewed at least 3-5 pieces of content before reaching out to a company.

 

So what does that mean?

If you are an air duct cleaning provider, you need to appear at the top of search results in Google, once your prospective customer has typed in their query. And the search results should include an article – a blog that will answer the customer’s question they typed in.

Below are the first 8 search results that appeared in Google, when I typed in what to know about air duct cleaning. And that’s exactly what I was looking for! I want to understand the basics about the cleaning process and who is the best provider in my area before booking.

Three of these search results are blogs from air duct cleaning service. I’m more likely to read articles from these service providers rather than click on their websites if they simply appeared as a list of companies, providing an air duct cleaning service. So, business blogs increase the number of indexed pages on your website, which helps boost search engine rankings and drive more traffic to your site.

NOW IN PLAIN ENGLISH: the more you produce quality consistent articles/business blogs about your services, products or your industry, the more you increase your chances to show up at the top of Google search results of your prospective customers. That’s because Google and other search engines trust and reward businesses that produce fresh, relevant and educational content and meeting the needs of online searchers.

 

BUSINESS BLOGS GAIN TRUST OF YOUR CUSTOMERS AND BUILD AUTHORITY OF YOUR BRAND

As we already established, people research online before they commit to a purchase of a product or service. 81% of online consumers consider blogs as trusted sources of information and advice.

Why?

Because of their nature. Blogs tend to be more personal, conversational, and informal. Unlike other pages of your website, which are most likely a lot more business-like, the style of business blog pages is usually more relaxed.

Having a blog on your website is your opportunity to let your audience get to know the personality of your brand and the human side of your business. It makes you seem more approachable, while satisfying the need of your audience in providing the information they are searching for.

Going back to the example of air duct cleaning service, I found three companies that had a business blog page on their website, packed with valuable information that covered topics like:

• Allergic reactions from mold in air ducts
• Benefits of air duct cleaning in different seasons
• Why air duct cleaning is a must for every homeowner
• What should a consumer look for when searching for an air duct service provider
• What are the advantages of air duct cleaning
• Tips to improve your indoor air quality
• How to eliminate biohazardous waste
• Carpet cleaning techniques
• Understanding air duct cleaning basics
• Clean-up after home renovation
• How to remove mold

See what they did there?

As a prospective customer of an air duct cleaning service, I was looking for basic information to understand how this service works and what’s important for me to know as a buyer. The information that these companies provided on their business blog pages covered a much bigger ground than what I was looking for originally. I didn’t even think about seasonality factor in duct cleaning and other facts.

And that’s why blogs are important for your business. They build trust and position you as a reputable authority and a trusted source of information in the eyes of the consumer. According to Hubspot, blogs have been rated as the 5th most trusted source for accurate online information.

 

BUSINESS BLOGS ARE A GOLDMINE FOR SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS

Having a strong online presence for your business is essential. And online presence means different things in different industries. But amongst those is posting quality and informative social media content on relevant social channels.

Trying to come up with content on a regular basis for people that aren’t marketers takes a lot of time, effort and creative energy, not to mention compelling writing skills. While you can outsource your content development needs to a copywriter like myself (pardon, the not-so-subtle self-promotion), there are other effective ways to maximize the reach of your content by cross-promoting your blogs on social media.

Re-purpose your content

Re-purposing your business blogs on social media, gives you a goldmine of content ideas for your social media posts. Digital Marketing Institute came up with a few unique ways that you can use to post and promote your blog articles on social media.

• Ask a thought-provoking question in a post title and link to your blog
• Post the URL address to your blog within the post title
• Pull a memorable quote from your business blog and post with a link
• Write a compelling teaser to your business blog
• Highlight a fact or an intriguing stat from your blog in a social media post
• Promote your business blog in a How To format. Those get great engagement.
• Post a problem that’s relevant to your audience and position your blog as a solution

 

WHETHER YOU ARE A MARKETER OR NOT, BLOGS ARE A MUST FOR YOUR BUSINESS

Whatever industry or business you are in, business blogs should be an integral part of your marketing strategy. Whether your goal is to increase your brand exposure, find meaningful ways to connect and engage with your prospective clients, generate new leads, or position yourself as a key player in your field – business blog is a powerful enabler that will help.

If you’re still not sure where to start or how to generate ideas for your business blog, here is another article that talks about how your FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS from your clients are packed with ideas for blog writing that your audience would love.

And if all of this makes you feel a bit overwhelmed, know this: it’s normal! And you are not alone! As a content marketer and a professional copywriter, I help non-marketers make sense of marketing and help their business grow by taking content development off their plates. Check out my website or feel free to reach out.