And why nailing this lynchpin of content marketing is so important
There’s no denying that blogging is integral to the success of a smart content marketing strategy. Without a blog, search engine optimization (SEO) will be a challenge and you’ll struggle to find engaging, conversational content for your social media channels. As well, your site will likely suffer from fewer page views per visitor. If you’re struggling to be seen in the online world, it’s time to learn how to successfully start and manage a blog in a way that supports your business goals.
Let’s start with some blogging basics.
What is a blog – and how is that different from a blog post?
A blog is a section of your website that focuses mainly on written content, accented with images and/or videos. You can publish insights from your industry or your business, answer questions or be more educational in nature. A blog is not focused on selling but instead helps boost your brand awareness, credibility (the trust factor) and drives traffic to your site, which may lead to sales. Each individual page in the blog is called a blog post and is usually concentrated on a specific topic, such as “best bedtime snacks for a good night’s sleep” or “3 common wall-art decorating mistakes.”
A blog is usually written in a more casual, engaging voice than the rest of your website. A blog post can be as brief as 500 words but if you’re tackling a larger topic, it might stretch to 2,000 words. And while it covers a topic in detail, there’s usually a comments section where readers can ask additional questions – which can help build camaraderie between community members while generating leads for you.
From a business perspective, the most common types of blog posts are:
- How-to posts
- List-based (listicle) posts
- Infographic posts (less text and more image driven)
- Pillar posts (much longer posts that explore a topic in depth)
- Explanatory posts (which can be product info or product comparisons)
What makes a good business blog?
Before you launch your blog, it’s important to ask yourself a few questions:
- What do my consumers want to know? Your customer service team should be able to offer some good insights with their most asked questions, which will help you build a topic list.
- Where will I get content from? Building a content pipeline is important to ensure you can maintain a consistent publishing cadence. Will you hire a freelancer or can an employee write the content for you?
- Who will manage the process? Do you have someone on staff who can post the content on your site, manage the keywords and links and source images? This person should also be able to approve comments on each post and ensure your blog is connected to Google Analytics.
- How will you connect your blog to your social media channels? If your social media manager is not writing the content for the blog, make sure those two people are working closely together. They should share a publishing calendar and coordinate efforts on images and social media updates taken from the posts.
- How will you measure success? Every post on your site should be scrutinized to learn which topics your community engages with and which ones fall flat. Google Analytics will show you important insights like time on site, pages viewed per person and top landing pages – all good information to inform future content creation.
How to organize your blog
While launching a blog is a smart step to supporting your content marketing strategy, it can be a challenging undertaking too. If you enjoy writing, you’re one step closer to success than a lot of marketers. If writing isn’t in your wheelhouse, consider hiring a freelancer to produce content for you. To simplify your blogging efforts, consider these points.
1. Identify your topic list. As mentioned earlier, tap into your customer service team for a list of “hot button” questions to start building blog posts around. And then start mapping out your publishing schedule so you can ensure consistent blogging. If you’d like an easy-to-manage content calendar in an excel document, leave me a comment below and I’ll be happy to share mine with you.
2. Know your audience. Now it’s time to take a closer look at your ideal consumer. Do you cater to a high-brow group of consumers or more average folks? Understanding their education levels, lifestyle and travel preferences will help you fashion a voice (also known as brand personality) for the actual writing of each post. After all, if your audience is more likely to read Scientific American than they are Buzz Feed, you’ll want to be sure your writing reflects how well you understand their preferences.
3. Choose your blog domain. If you have a business website already, your blog should live somewhere on that site. And if you’re not already using a CSM (content management system) you’ll need to invest some time into finding one that’s right for you. Talk to other business owners and ask lots of questions, from what they’re using to how easy it is to use. Your web development team will be integral to the success of this step so tread carefully and take your time here.
4. Write your first post. Because you’re new to the blogging scene, start with easily consumable posts rather than how to posts. Listicle posts (5 ways to enhance a bay window) or a curated post (10 window treatment brands we love) will help establish your authenticity and pave the way for truly helpful blog posts (how to replace your bathroom sink). If you’re struggling to write the actual post, this article will help: how to write a business blog post.
If you’re struggling with your digital strategy, I’d love to hear your questions and how I can help. Drop a comment below or shoot me an email and let’s start talking.
In the meantime, these posts might help you begin your content marketing journey:
Good Ideas. I will use these steps in creating high-quality blog to support my content marketing business. Thank you.
Glad to hear the post was helpful, Cha Cha!