The benefits of having an active blog for your business are clear to some; for others it may not be straightforward. Here are 5 “F” words to help you see why we’re launching back into the blogosphere and why you should too!
Fuel, Frequency, Focus, Free, & Fun
Fuel
By creating and publishing blog posts you are in fact fuelling your SEO efforts. Search engines have a love affair with valuable content and by creating valuable content you’re going to drive traffic (new leads) to your website. Not only that, but you will be simultaneously generating material to help you get noticed on social media. The more you’re sharing, the higher the odds are that others are sharing your content. Make sure to add easily identifiable CTA’s (call-to-actions) to each blog post so that you can ensure these new leads are being funnelled into your pipe. Whether it’s in the form of free white papers, slideshares, or a free demo; if you’re adding value to your offer you will begin to generate more leads.
Frequency
Lets start by asking ourselves the question, “How often am I updating my company’s website?” For most of us, the answer is not quite often at all. By keeping up with your blog you’re essentially perking Google’s ears & eyes to the fact that your business is active. Blogging frequently prompts search engines to check in on a more regular basis in order to see what you’re publishing. The more of a pulse your website is emitting, the higher the chances are that new leads will notice your business when performing searches.
Focus
One of the positive side effects of blogging that you and your colleagues involved will feel early on is the focus gained by formulating your strategy. Who’s your audience? What are they interested in? Exactly how are you creating value for new leads and current clients? These are important questions you as a business must answer before you can get started with a blog. A blog with no focus is a waste of time; before you get started, make sure you identify your target audience and personas. Staying up on the latest trends is also a biggie when it comes to blogging. Not only will it serve you well when you’re creating content, but keeping up with your industry’s latest trends will also inspire creativity. Remember, a blog isn’t just a new channel for you to blast your message out upon; a blog is about generating value for and fostering dialogue with your readers.
Free
Simply put, you’re generating free PR for your business by blogging. By free PR we mean free leads! It’s not uncommon at all for bloggers to be interviewed by journalists or for posts to go viral generating a slew of new leads to begin interacting with. You need to look at each blog post as if it were a tiny snowball that you’re about to kick down a massive snow-covered mountain face. Once you’ve published a post it begins ranking in search engines. In time, without any extra effort once published, that one blog post will attract new leads to your site on a daily basis. If you’re doing it right, within a matter of a year you will begin to notice that the majority of traffic coming to your site is being generated by posts you had published over a month prior (crazy huh?). That’s the beauty of blogging; it’s compounding interest for your content!
Fun
We chose to save the best for last. A blog truly is a venture you must approach with a, “work hard; play harder” attitude. If you can remember the core principles for your blog, over time it’s going to become more and more fun. You’re exercising creativity and also establishing credibility for your business. If you have associates contributing to the blog then you’re allowing them to establish credibility for themselves as well! As stated earlier, being an SEO wizard is not a requirement for driving new leads to your website. As long as you’re passionate about what you’re offering this world, the words (in time and maybe with a little bit of a push at first) will begin to flow. Another rewarding part of the job is that you’re opening up a whole new arena to interact with your leads and current clients. Sure you won’t land every lead that visits your blog, but if you remember to implement clearly identifiable CTA’s that offer something of value, you will drive new leads into your pipeline.
People have choice when it comes to digesting information. Some enjoy reading blogs, some enjoy taking to Facebook or Linkedin, and others enjoy picking up the phone to call a rep. In order to get your message out there in an effective way and take advantage of interest your business must be active on all channels. It’s about catering to the individual and the ones who do it best are the outright winners.
We’re certainly thrilled to get the eMarketeer blog up and running again. We look forward to publishing original content that will hopefully inspire you and create a fun atmosphere for us all to engage within. A big piece of advice we can offer is to remember that a blog isn’t just about lead generation; a blog is also about lead (and current client) enlightenment. The overall objective of a blog is to establish yourself as a leader in thought or trusted advisor of sorts. If you’re offering unique, honest content and adding value to your readers lives rather than boring them to tears or constantly shoving “my business, my business, my business” down their throats, you will begin to build rapport with your audience.
Some will scan your content, some will cozy up with a cup of coffee to soak it all in like a sponge. Your job is to have fun, offer a clear added value, and create an inspiring environment that fosters dialogue amongst you and your readers. If you’re doing this the overall quality and success of your blog will evolve for the better by default.
Before we go, maybe you would be willing to chime in with some topics you’d enjoy seeing content created around. We’d love to hear what your interests are, as well as what blogs you enjoy reading! So please let us know by leaving a comment below.
We hope to hear from you, and thanks for reading! It’s nice to be back!