A business blog has become so important these days, that we include one as standard on all websites we design. Also, it’s based on the best blogging platform in the world – WordPress. Whether you choose to use it or not is up to you, but we suggest that you do. Your blog is an extremely powerful marketing tool for your business, but only if you use it.
Why is a business blog important?
You want your business to be found on Google, right? Keeping a company blog is an excellent way to increase your website’s visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs). The reason is simple. Google wants to organise the world’s information and show only relevant, high-quality content that answers the question to searchers. That’s it!
The searcher is looking for an answer and will probably find it in relevant high-quality content. Google wants to answer the searcher’s question so that they will come back if they have another question.
The more high-quality information you have on your website, the easier it is for someone to find your website. People want to read high-quality content because it will probably answer their question(s). You are the local expert when it comes to your own business, and you probably know the answers to many of their questions. Write it down!
Example: Bob & John meets through Bob’s business blog & Google
Imagine Bob is a mechanic that keeps a business website and a business blog. John is looking for a mechanic to fix something on his car, but he can’t find someone in his area. John turns to Google and searches for a mechanic “near me” and Bob’s website displays in the results.
Seeing that it is near John, he clicks through and reads a few posts on Bob’s blog to get a feel for Bob’s personality and expertise on the subject. After reading a few posts, he is ready to make contact and meet Bob in person. He finds the business contact details and a handy map on their website, and off he goes to meet Bob.
Until John walked into the shop, Bob didn’t even have an idea that he (through his blog) was being researched for a potential job. He wrote a post 7 months ago about something, and John now needs that specific thing done. Bob just made a sale by writing something on his blog. Maybe Bob has made hundreds of sales (in the past) through that same post.
Why should your business have a blog?
Your business blog can serve many purposes, let’s touch on a few to give you an idea. This is by no means an extensive list, just a few examples to show what can be achieved.
Share your business’ story
Every business (big or small) has a story. Some are more interesting than others, but every business has a story. If your story is interesting or inspiring, why not post it on your blog? If you regularly share your business’ story with customers in-store, it is prime content for your blog. Most local small business and their customers share a bond. This bond is usually created and nurtured by sharing personal experiences.
However, if you don’t share your business story with anyone ever, just skip it. The point is to generate content that people will find interesting or that will help someone in some way. If you are the owner of a local coffee shop, your clients probably know you by name. That means there is a potential for a deeper personal relationship. One that will keep them coming back to your coffee shop and not the one across the street.
Inform customers about what’s going on around you
You can inform your customers about things that happen at or around your business. If you are hosting a Golf day, that is something to mention. Maybe you hosted one last week and want to write a post on the event. Maybe someone attended an event near your business and decides to drop by just to see what your business is up to. You instantly created a new connection – just by mentioning what’s going on around you.
This obviously depends on the type of business you are in, but a music store mentioning a live event definitely could attract new customers. Maybe a radio station is doing a live broadcast in the centre that your shop is based in. Write about something that is relevant to you, and in close proximity to you.
News, Promotions & Announcements
Promotions are usually a big hit, especially if you have many readers in your area or sell your products online. You can also write about any announcements or notices you want your customers to know about.
Product updates, additions, features, etc.
Let’s say you create a unique product, and your business is to make and sell this product. Don’t you think your customers would want to know about any new additions or product features? This is the type of content that you should post on your blog.
When someone visits your blog, it is mostly from one of two sources – direct, or search. Usually, they know about your blog and are interested in reading about you, your store, products or your services. Or they searched for something you have or sell, and are interested in details about the product or service.
Both options are an opportunity for you to give them more information about your store, products or services. Either they will learn something, or they will buy something – maybe both.
More Quality Content = Better Rankings = Better for Business
The more content you have, the more there is for Google to find. The higher the quality and accuracy of your content, the more searchers Google will show your content to. The more people see your content, the more they will read more and start a relationship with you and your business.
They will then start to buy your product or service – which is really what you wanted all along. This is a win-win situation. They get what they want, and you get what you want – and Google get’s what Google wants.