6 Reasons Why Business Blogging Is Good for Business
Business owners have a huge opportunity at their fingertips, and that’s because social media and the Internet has made it easier to have direct relationships with consumers. At no other time in history have business owners had the opportunity to directly communicate with their target clients and customers. While “blogging” is not the only way, it is a great way to communicate with your target audience.
The beauty of websites like Alexandriasmallbusiness.com (where I blog) is the opportunity to put a specific geographic area on the “Internet” map. There are many areas with very special or unique cultures, and when you blog about these areas, it’s a great way to not only promote the area but also to promote your business in the area.
I used to write a column for the Lake-Ridge Occoquan, VA Patch called “Entrepreneur’s Spotlight” where I interviewed and wrote about entrepreneurs located in Lake-Ridge and Occoquan, Virginia. I wrote about a local ice cream shop, an event planner, and a community of artists. What I found as I interviewed and connected with each business owner was that this small strip of local businesses (much like other areas across the world) has a collective spirit and stories that need to be told. These posts were the catalyst for me to start CEO Blog Nation which includes DMV CEO that covers entrepreneurship in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia. The beauty of the articles I wrote for Patch was that they highlighted the Occoquan, Virginia, area and promoted the local businesses there.
Why Is Blogging Important to Local Business Owners?
With so many things to juggle and so little time, why should a business owner take the time to blog? At CEO Blog Nation, we asked entrepreneurs to explain explain how they use their blogs for their businesses. I highlighted six reasons below:
1. Blogging is good for SEO. Blogging provides fresh content which can help you and your business rank well on search engines. Even if you take the time to follow a great strategy which is to guest blog or repost your blog on sites like LinkedIn Pulse or Medium, it is still a good way to help you to be found.
2. It’s a unique way to tell your story. A common concern of business owners is that they don’t know what to write or blog about. Business owners can share "behind-the-scenes" stories of their businesses--it could be a spotlight interview of an employee or a guest post written by a customer or client. These types of posts not only provide fresh content and information to your readers, but can make you a more trusted option that your customers are more likely to buy from.
3. You can answer potential questions. One of the "pains" of business owners is getting “shopped.” This is when a potential client asks a bunch of questions and you provide all your great answers for free--and then the person doesn't actually buy from you. Why not create blog posts on frequently asked questions that you can direct people to and save yourself time? It's also a great way to solidify yourself as an expert. Here’s an example I wrote for a client who wanted to know how to name images for SEO.
4. It provides more leads and opportunities. As reported by HubSpot, B2B marketers that use blogs receive 67 percent more leads than those that do not. You will receive opportunities especially if you have a way to build your list or if you have a way for people to take action (see the end of this post).
5. A blog drives traffic to your site. If you have your blog integrated or built into your website, or even if you just link to your website, it’s a great way to drive people back to your website. If you are providing quality content that is relevant to your target market, people will come to your blog and may sign up for your newsletter or connect with you on social media.
6. It’s the future. Another interesting fact, which is evident in our every day human interaction, we are not speaking to each other as much in the “old way.” Now, interaction is taking place through FaceTime, Facebook Messenger, Snapchat, Periscope, and GroupMe--and this will only continue. By 2020, customers will manage 85 percent of their relationships without talking to a human.
Originally posted: Alexandria Small Business
