How To Make Your Blog “Work” For Your Business

Written by Laurie Zinn@LineByLineLLC9 years ago

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A blog is an important part of your business’s content marketing strategy. Writing for your blog should not be a chore or another item to cross off your to-do list. If your blog is set up correctly – with a marketing plan that states your blog’s purpose and the topics you are going to write about – your blog can actually “work” for you.

How does a blog “work” for you? Here are 9 ways:

1. It increases your credibility as a business. Much like having a website, a blog shows you are for real, and invested in growing your business.
2. It showcases your knowledge. When you write informative, helpful articles for your website’s visitors, you establish yourself as a trusted professional in the industry. LaPetite Academy’s blog is full of advice and resources for parents, as well as printable worksheets for kids.
3. It’s good for SEO. Google’s algorithms are always changing, but they favor websites that are updated frequently with fresh content. Innovate New Albany’s blog is a great example of this, because thanks to the hard work of many contributors, the site is updated with fresh content several times per month.
4. It leads visitors to your website. Hand in hand with #3, when your blog articles turn up in your visitor’s search results, they click on your blog and are routed to your website.
5. It encourages visitors to explore your website. Once the blog has led your visitors to your website, they may be inclined to read other blogs you’ve written, or explore other pages of your website. The CBusmom blog is full of articles detailing activities for parents and their young children around Columbus. As you scroll down the blog list, you can see all the other articles available with more information and events.
6. It opens conversations with your visitors. Through the comments section of your blog, visitors can engage with you as a business. They can share opinions, insights and provide valuable feedback.
7. It gives you meaningful social media content. Plugging your blog through your social media outlets is a great way to drive traffic to your site and make your blog work for you.
8. It invites visitors to join your email list. Email marketing is a powerful way to reach your target audience because your message lands right in their inboxes. Through your blog’s call to action, you can gather those email addresses to use in your email marketing campaign.
9. It sells your product or service. Last but not least, your blog works for you by asking for the business. Your blog article could be about the best way to use your product, or how your service will make your readers’ lives easier. DLL Landscaping Services has blogs on their website that describe their services and how they can help you during a snow storm, with spring clean-up and with installing a patio.

Once your business blog is up and running, it works for you seven days a week, 24 hours a day, in all parts of the world. It doesn’t require benefits, paid time off, or even a paycheck. But it does ask for a little TLC. Nurture your blog with fresh content frequently, then set it loose to do its work for you.

Laurie Zinn is a Columbus-based freelance writer and owner of Line-By-Line. She helps businesses communicate with their customers through website content, blog articles, email marketing campaigns and social media. For more information about Line-By-Line, visit http://line-by-line.us or contact Laurie at laurie@line-by-line.us.