If you run a small business or nonprofit these days, you (hopefully) made a smart investment in a website and all the benefits it brings.
You may have found after some time, though, that the traffic or leads aren’t quite what you expected. Frustrating, to say the least.
Fortunately, the problem may be a simple one. It may be time to crack open your favorite word processor or text editor and start blogging.
Did you know that companies that blog receive 67% more leads than those who don’t? Not too shabby.
I know what you’re thinking. Blogging is hard! Well, I’m here to let you know that a) it doesn’t have to be, and b) the topic of this post—the effort you put is absolutely worth it.
Still not convinced? Read on!
1. Blogging can bring the search engines to you.
Right now, at this very moment, there are search engines scouring the internet for fresh, relevant content. When you publish an engaging blog post, you send a signal that you have what they want, and there’s more where that come from. It’s like chocolate cake for these search engines. And who doesn’t like chocolate cake? *
2. Blogging can deliver more customer leads.
As search engines digest more of your published content and your blog pages get indexed, visitors are more likely to find your content. With some simple on-page optimization, these searchers will be compelled to click on your search result and visit your site. Of course your site was designed to convert visitors to leads, right? Right. And as a small business owner, you’re well-versed in turning leads into customers.
3. Blogging can establish your expertise.
You probably know quite a bit about your business area, but outside of your customers (and friends and family, of course), who knows this? Once you start blogging, anyone visiting your site will know this.
You get to pick the topics you want to focus on, and the people who end up reading your knowledgeable posts found you because they were *already searching* for an answer. That you provided! You’ve established expertise with a new audience, and gained more credibility with existing customers. Don’t look now, but here come the recommendations and referrals.
4. Your blogging efforts continue to pay dividends over time.
Each blog post you write and publish is getting indexed and is waiting to be found by someone looking for a solution to a problem. Some of these posts may be duds, some may bring moderate traffic, and some (about 1 in 10, according to HubSpot) are “compounding posts”, which actually grow over time.
5. Blogging lets you connect with your site visitors in real time.
The beauty of content management systems like WordPress is that they have visitor engagement built right in. You can enable comments for your blog articles, giving you the opportunity to directly connect with your visitors for clarification, follow-up, and more.
6. Blogging helps you figure out what your visitors want to hear.
Now that you’re a prolific blogger, you’re creating a wealth of content that your visitors love. Or do they? Fortunately you’ve set up analytics to track how your blog posts are performing, and you can quickly determine what resonates with them and what doesn’t. This gives you the opportunity to focus more on solving the problems they’re looking for instead of shooting in the dark.
7. Blogging gives you something to share.
If you have a social media presence for your business [and you should!], your blog posts are just what the doctor ordered. Each time you publish a blog article, you can post it to Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. You’re adding value for your followers, which can grow your social media presence while generating more traffic to your site. Win, meet win.
So there you have it. Seven ways that blogging can breathe new life into your website. Your site isn’t getting anywhere just sitting there. Start blogging today!
* Note: While not everyone loves chocolate cake, search engines love fresh blog posts.