8 Reasons Why Your Website Needs a Blog
If you want to stay relevant, grow your customer base, stand out among your competitors, attract more web traffic, and make more sales, then your business needs a blog. It’s really as simple as that, as it’s a statistically proven fact that companies that blog generate more leads than those who don’t.
It’s a conversation we have time and time again, and particularly with small business owners and managers. So perhaps we’re preaching to the converted. But maybe you’re one of those business owners or managers who feel a bit at odds with blogging. After all, you may have a great website already that ticks all the boxes for having great web copy, clear information on your products and services, an aesthetically appealing design, a user-friendly structure, and links to glowing testimonials from previous customers. Your site may even be well set up from a technical perspective taking into account performance, accessibility, best practices, and SEO principles. So why would you bother investing time and money in yet another aspect of your website that frankly is just so last decade, right? Well, actually, wrong! Business blogging is as relevant and necessary as ever. Here’s why…
Get Found
Many small to medium-sized businesses have a relatively low page count. Depending on the industry you are in and the competition level, you may think this is enough to sell your goods and services without needing anything further. But in reality, this is unlikely to be the case, meaning there are potential clients out there who just aren’t finding your site.
A blog section can help with this, as every new blog post is a new indexed page that can show up in online searches. So blogs are a great way to make your website more discoverable, and if you are savvy with search terms and keywording, the results of bringing new targeted traffic to your website can make a huge difference.
Boost Your SEO
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is multifaceted and can be somewhat mind-boggling at the best of times. Generally, it revolves around the combination of the best technical practices in terms of how your website is developed and coded, combined with having the best written content to get your site to show as high up as possible in online searches. Blog writing can be an integral part of this.
Search engines like Google want to send their users to sites that best meet their needs and search terms. They don’t want to send them to out of date content or abandoned websites. So making new blog pages and updating your site map accordingly is important, as search engines actively reward sites that publish regular fresh content, use relevant keywords, and provide appropriate content in relation to specific search terms. Blogging facilitates all of these requirements, allowing you to improve your SEO rankings.
Create Social Media Fodder
Blogs provide regular content for your social media posts. If your business is small and you struggle to find content to make social media posts frequently enough, then blogs are a great way to maintain a consistent presence. Particularly if your website is small, there are only so many times you can share links to the same web pages on your social media platforms before interest wanes. Posting a link to each new blog as you publish it online will help keep your followers engaged with new content, plus having your social media audience share and react to your blog posts will increase your reach and presence even further.
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Increase your Web Traffic
The additional pages you create by adding regular blogs will increase the flow of visitors to your website. Plus, if you hyperlink keywords and phrases in your blogs to other pages on your website for relevant information on products, services, staff info, and even other previous blog posts, you’ll automatically drive more traffic through your website. This, in turn, will lead to increased SEO rankings, even more web traffic, enhanced lead generation, and ultimately, sales.
Reinforce Your Brand Persona
Having a defined brand personality is important, and communicating that to customers is vital. So if you’ve already worked hard on establishing your brand persona, it’s time to showcase the hell out of it!
Blogs are a great way to add a more personal touch to a website, including more details about your loves, lifestyles, and passions so your potential customers feel more connected to you. Blog’s are a perfect vehicle to convey your knowledge, experience, professional accomplishments, and build trust with your target audience.
Open An Additional Channel of Communication
Websites typically provide information in a very one-dimensional fashion, with little or no opportunities for two-way interaction. Yes, most of you have probably caught on to ‘Live Chat’ messenger options by now, which is great. However, a blog creates a much less invasive option for a two-way chat by the incorporation of a comments and questions section. As an added bonus, you can increase interaction with other site visitors simultaneously, as it’s a much more open exchange with opportunities for anyone to weigh in. Replying to comments and questions builds trust and demonstrates your experience and expertise. Plus it generates more leads as you are offering users the opportunity to ask questions and seek advice on an informal and obligation-free basis, rather than them taking the time to fill in your contact form.
Showcase your Achievements and Unique Selling Points
Call it shameless self-promotion if you like, but blogging provides you with a platform to prove how you differ from other operators in the market, what you have achieved, and why you are a better option than your competitors. Whether it’s a prominent project or collaboration you’ve been involved in, your environmental efforts, the calibre of your staff, or a high profile client you’ve attracted, blogs allow you to draw attention to your unique selling points (USP’s). This provides a perfect platform to build confidence and respect as a player in the industry in a way that regular web site pages just can’t do. At the end of the day, there are myriad other businesses out there offering the same or similar products and services as you, and blogging is a great way to demonstrate how your company is unique.
You Can’t Afford Not To
Yes, as much as we hate it, it’s the ‘because everyone else is’ argument. Don’t get us wrong, we hate the concept of being ‘sheeple’ as much as anyone else. But in an age where there is an answer for pretty much every conceivable question at the end of a Google search, you’d rather people found their answer on one of your web pages than on one of your competitors, right? And if your competitors have active blogs and you don’t, you’re already behind. They are already out there gaining web traffic, building trust, showing off their latest achievements, and snagging customers that could be yours!
So…
Still think you don’t need a blog? We hope not! Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions or comments, or would like any further information on our blog writing services.