There’s no question that content marketing is vital to business growth and success today. In fact, it’s at the core of all great digital marketing.
Starting a business blog is a great way to put content marketing into action. Not only can you use it to let people know more about you and what your business stands for, but it’s also great for generating leads. Small businesses that blog enjoy 126% more leads than those that don’t. (Source: Tech Client)
Great content doesn’t feel like marketing—it feels like a gift. ~ Bernadette Jiwa
It’s not hard to get a business blog started, but the key to success lies in having a plan, being committed and most of all consistency. So let’s get started!
Get Inspired!
To get a feel for how you want your blog to flow, I recommend that you scout out other blogs (not necessarily competitors) and pinpoint things that you like and don’t like.
Define Your Why!
Next, think about your reason for blogging. What are you trying to achieve? Write down your purpose and list some specific goals.
Know Your Audience!
Who are you writing for? This is very important to define, because it will shape the length of your articles, the style of your writing and the topics you cover. Producing great content starts with who you’re writing for!
List Your Topics!
What will you write about? Brainstorm the topics that matter to your audience and that are relevant to your business. [See also: The Kind Of Blogging That Wins Customers]
List Your Keywords!
You will want to keyword-optimize your content to show up in relevant searches online. Finding the right keywords requires you to know your audience and think about what they would search for at various stages in their buying cycle to find your products or services. Create your keyword list based on these search terms and then use a tool like Google Keyword Planner (and many others both paid and free) to evaluate how competitive and difficult each keyword is. In general, to start out it’s recommended that you use keywords with a lower difficulty level to make it easier to compete in search rankings. For best results don’t keyword stuff! Use keywords naturally in your content, because at the end of the day it’s more important for your content to be of value!
Set Your Schedule!
How often will you publish an article? I highly recommend that you create an editorial calendar with a schedule that you can stick to. Remember that consistency is key!
Who’s Doing The Writing?
I know this is one of the key reasons why some businesses shy away from starting a blog even though they know the return on investment is high. If neither you nor anyone on your team considers themselves a writer or can commit to producing quality content regularly, consider outsourcing to a freelance writer, have an agency manage your blog, or rally a group of contributing guest writers and offer them exclusive perks!
Images Add An Extra Oomph!
"Using images in your blog posts gets them 94% more views." (Source: Jeff Bullas) Images help set a tone for your blog and they also help to tell your story. What images will you use? Will you use stock photography, original graphics or take your own original photos? Whichever you choose, be sure to use high quality images that will appeal to your audience and help your blog post stand out.
Promote Your Posts!
While it’s great to have a solid keyword strategy in place to help your blog posts show up organically for relevant searches, the truth is your blog won’t get on the first page from day one. You will need to have other ways to promote your blog. Sharing posts on Social Media and emailing them to your subscribers are just two of many great ways to promote your business blog. Also encourage sharing of your posts by creating good content and making it easy for others to share your articles.
Starting a blog for your business is a decision that will give your website a 434% better chance of being found on search engines! (Source: Tech Client) Even beyond that and much more importantly, it’s an opportunity to play a role in helping and inspiring others - to matter to your current and future customers. If you follow the steps above, you’re on your way to helping your business grow!