You see more and more business getting into blogging. Corporate websites of all sizes are now sporting “blog” links in their navigation. But just having a blog is trendy. Using it well is tricky. Too many businesses use their blogs as an outlet for company news and updates; they become these dumping grounds for self-promotional press releases, veiled sales pitches and product news. You’ve seen them, but you haven’t read them because they miss the mark on what a blog is supposed to be. Granted there are differences between business blogging and personal blogging but the heart of it is the same: connection. Blogs are supposed to resonate and engage others. But they can do a lot for a business to, if the blog is used right.
Authority
Are you an expert in your niche? Well, if you are in a line of work, it helps if you have at least more expertise on your subject than most people. A blog is the perfect place to demonstrate that knowledge. Not in a self-serving soap box kind of way, but in an educational way. When you provide information to your customers that will help increase their awareness on your subject you build a kind of trust that leads to long-term customer loyalty.
Traffic
Every page on a website serves as an entryway into the site. For every page you create you also create a new opportunity to be discovered through searches. Blog posts are an excellent way to add content on a regular basis. When you focus on topics and titles that reflect common research queries related to your subject you gain traffic by ranking and getting visits from information seekers. Now, people searching for info are in a different frame of mind from purchasers. So not every visit to a blog post will convert to a sale, but it doesn’t have to. If you get really good at providing solid information on your subject, people who come across your site frequently seeking knowledge will remember your name. And that, is branding.
Links
The other benefit of blog content is that it can acquire links. Your posts could be featured in weekly, or monthly round ups. It could be used as a reference by another blogger. It can be picked up by any number of entities as an authoritative resource on your subject. This is especially true if you make full use of social media platforms to grow your network and promote your new posts. Interesting content is by far the best way to acquire links to a business site, and without links, the rankings war in competitive niches will be un-winnable.
Humanity
Businesses often seem far too dethatched from the people they serve. There is this corporate wall between the institution and the masses. When you blog, and blog well, you can break through that wall. By having a clear identity or group of people behind the blog you give the public people they can relate to and connect to. It brings a face and humanity to your company, which builds trust and credibility.
Personality
That’s why businesses need to give serious thought to who they put at the keyboard. It must be someone you whose judgment you can trust and whose voice you want representing the company. Sure, everyone will make mistakes and have missteps in their blogging careers. But most importantly your spokesperson should be someone you believe will be able to touch people on a real level while still maintaining the dignity, integrity and professionalism of the business as a whole.
If a business starts a blog just to have one, but doesn’t make the most of it, does it really exist? Well, if a tree falls in the woods… you know the deal. The point is, if you don’t put effort and dedication into the growth of the blog there’s little point to having it. A blog is a powerful marketing tool, but not if it is used for marketing. It will market your business if you use it to build a community while showing your authority and humanity. Combine that with strategically selecting your writer and topics and you will also benefit from links and traffic. A blog can do a great service for a business, but only if the business can do proper service to the blog.
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Tagged as: authority, Blogging, business, corporate, humanity, links, personality, traffic, wrong way
{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi, these are another great tips by Juliet.
I was expecting you to talk about the backlinks you get by having a blog.
Anyway, it is good one.
Cheers!
Roy
Backlink benefits were discussed in the links section of the article.
This is great tips to help a blog better, this tips which can help you to write better blog posts, tips for guest blogging and tips to help you generate an income from your blog. Hardwork is the key of success.
It is better the businesses pay the authors of their niche blogs and submit the article or write review on their products. It will be easy to gain authority than a blog.
Musthafa @Money Blogger´s last [type] ..16 Powerful SEO Tips To Build Legal Backlinks For Your Blog
Hi,
Yes, the significance of Blogging has been acknowledged all over the web. Even the power of Social Media Marketing (SMM) would be very limited if there would no blogs. Without ‘Blogs’ what would you have to Digg, Share, Like or Stumble?
The rule stays simple yet, the content must of merit, fresh and must be updated on frequent basis. Even you may invite guest bloggers to keep your blog updated, asking them to contribute post on the pertinent topics.
Regards,
Blogs can be really useful in attracting high quality baclinks. And you’ve said it right that blogs must be interactive and not mere meant for self-promotion.
Rajesh@Techozens´s last [type] ..All Facebook Chat Smileys Emoticons Codes
The main purpose of blogging is to create community so that you can make them buy your products or services.
Riya @ Couponseasy´s last [type] ..HostGator Coupon Codes- Latest Promo Discount Vouchers Daily Updated
I think one of the main benefits for a business to get into blogging is that it allows them to connect with their clients/customers on a more personal level. By allowing customers to leave comments on the posts, they can engage in an online discussion, and perhaps also learn what the customer is looking for in the business.
Paul Salmon@Technically Easy´s last [type] ..Branding your Blog for Better Online Success
I agree with you completely. There are many purposes why one blogs, but the majority of them is because you can get more traffic and links. This will definitely help in your business.
Jessica@HostGator Coupon Codes´s last [type] ..HostGator New Office and HostGator Account Manager
Blogging is a great internet marketing tactic. As you mentioned, blogs shouldn’t be about promoting your products or services. People don’t want to read that. People are looking for information. They want to learn something new or be entertained. The hardest thing about blogging is the need for new content on a consistent basis. You don’t want to build a following only to ditch them due to lack of time.
Traffic plays a important role in the blog. So, i have to improve traffic for my blog. Will try
HI James,
I agree with you about corporate blogging. To me the most important thing in online marketing is having many links and networking of the clients. Traffic is also important, it’s associated with the clients or the audience of our web, the more people visit our web, the higher of traffic that we can get.
Andrew Walker´s last [type] ..Soccercom Coupons
Blogging future is really bright. Blog are useful to share your information about business or anything you love to share. Blogging is genuinly a great platform to learn or share.
Kavita @ Bollywood Lyrics´s last [type] ..Lyrics of Nakkadwaley Disco Song – Delhi Belly
yes, links is the utmost important thing that one can get, after making a blog, you meet new people, new business men, good for your work , more chances to get success in short span of time
Thats absolutely TRUE.
All points which you have mentioned are in real sense very much effective and useful for business.
Thanks a lot for sharing this. Sorry I reached here LATE and miss many things.
Juli I am totally agree with you that business owner should have blog now a day. its help to build a community around the business.
Thanks
Blogging is great for promoting interaction between the blogger and his community. When combined with the correct plugins you can drive a tremendous amount of traffic to your pages. Especially givent he fact that google loves wordpress and other blog platforms.
Kevin@Business Cash´s last [type] ..Front Page
Hey Juliet, Nice post and you have listed all genuine benefits of blogging for business. Blogging is a great medium of Traffic, Links and Customer Interaction etc. for any business. There are a lot more advantages of business blogging. I think every business must manage a blog of themselves.
Jawed@blogging tips´s last [type] ..The Advantages of Blogging for Business
I do agree with all the concepts you have presented on your post. They’re really convincing and will definitely work. Still, the posts are too short for newbies. May you please extend them a little from subsequent time? Thanks for the post.
escudos heraldicos´s last [type] ..1