Despite all rumors to the contrary, blogging in 2018, and marketing through the written word, is not dead.
Your audience is still looking for value. They’re looking to find out what you know, and all the best tips, tricks or strategies for navigating your industry. There are a lot of reasons that your business should be blogging in 2018. Here are a few:
Blogging in 2018:
Results in Profit
B2B businesses that blog receive 67 percent more leads than those that do not. Isn’t that the reason we’re all here? With a slight investment in time, you can create a positive impact on your bottom line and continue to grow your business.
This reason alone should be enough to convince you of the importance of starting a blog.
Keeps Your Business Top of Mind
Publishing quality content on a frequent basis through your blog posts will give your audience a reason to remember you when they need your services. When you publish a steady stream of blog posts, they’ll tend to remember you.
If you can publish at least a few times a month, your readers will be more likely to return to your website as they are looking for your services. Blogging in 2018 is about staying in front of your audience, and publishing valuable work.
One frequent question businesses have, is how often to blog. The answer is, as often as you can publish a meaningful piece of work. The key is to make sure that each piece offer something.
Differentiates Your Business
Chances are, you’re not the only one in your industry with an online presence. You’re not the only technology company, landscaper, plumber or realtor. But a blog offers you the opportunity to put your unique stamp on an issue.
With a blog, you are showcasing your industry expertise in a way that you wouldn’t be able to do on your website pages. The blog offers you the chance to be 100-percent informative, instead of turning on the hard sell. You have the freedom to cultivate your brand’s personality – which is a good thing. Whether you’re B2B or B2C, people buy from the people they like. If you can convey that value in a friendly, personable way, you will differentiate yourself from the others.
Offers You More Opportunities to Be Seen
All that work you’ve put into being top of mind can pay off. Every time you publish a blog post, you are creating something that has the potential to be indexed by Google. The nerdy marketing term for this, is that blog posts help with your long tail search phrases.
A potential customer is not always outright searching for “software developers in my area.” They may be searching for phrases that have more to do with the process. “What to look for in a developer” or “What’s Involved in Building Software?” may be searched as well.
These phrases can still attract a hot lead. If you aren’t positioning yourself to be found in these places, you may be missing out.
Allows You to Integrate Your Web Presence
Blogging allows you to create a system of links throughout your website that will help entice potential customers to stay on your site for longer periods of time. Your blogs can quickly point your readers to other useful, relevant content whether it is on, or off site.
You can link to your business’s website pages, landing pages, ebooks and other useful information, as it’s relevant. This is something that both the search engines and your readers value.
Conclusion…
Is your business blogging in 2018? If the answer is no, why not? If you are blogging in 2018, you will be positioned for a stronger year, and your digital marketing efforts can truly help.
The only true cost to blogging is your time. However, if you are looking to free yourself up, and return to other aspects of running your business, it may make sense to hire a blog copywriter.
Matt Brennan is a Chicago-area marketing copywriter and copy editor. He is also the author of Write Right-Sell Now.
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