You should have a blog on your company’s website. Period. No exceptions.
Why blog? I’m so glad that you asked. Here are seven reasons to have a blog.
Note: If you already know you need a blog, but don’t know how to get started, then this is the post for you!
1. It gives your audience a reason to go to your website regularly.
You may have a wonderful, functional website, but if all it has is static information, your audience has no reason to look at your site more than once. To stay on your audience’s mind (and increase traffic and time spent on your site), use your blog to regularly add fresh content to your site.
2. It demonstrates your authority on topics related to your business.
Blog posts related to your business show that you are an authority on that topic and helps your audience see your business as a trusted source of information. Trust leads to customers—not just one-time buyers, but loyal customers who are invested in your brand because of the extra value that you give them.
3. It improves SEO by giving your audience more ways to find you.
Having content on your website about the topics your audience is searching for creates more ways for your audience to find you. Each blog post is a unique page on your site. More pages increase your chances of appearing in Google searches and reaching new people who are interested in what you have to say—giving you a way to reach new people without paying for ads.
Hint: Use this knowledge to you advantage when you are looking for ideas of what to write about on your blog—use topics that your customers are searching for on Google! Next month’s quick tip will help you figure out what those topics are.
4. It gives you something to talk about…
I already mentioned in Nighthawk’s February quick tip how you could be posting more on social media. But do you have trouble coming up with ideas for posts that your audience will actually engage with? Blog to the rescue! Posting on social media about your interesting blog content helps fill out your social media calendar with links that drive traffic to your site—wins all the way around!
5. …and it gives your audience something to talk about.
When was the last time one of your followers shared a link to your “About Us” page on social media? Probably not recently. However, your blog posts should be about topics that your audience would share, increasing your organic reach and resulting in more exposure and new followers!
6. It gives you opportunities to convert blog-viewers to leads or customers.
I’m a big proponent of patience when going for the sale. In many cases, I suggest aiming to collect leads (email addresses) from your readers. Collecting a lead gives you a permanent form of contact information. Then, you can use email marketing to help your audience get to know your business until they are ready to become customers. If you want to chat more about a lead strategy for your blog, let’s talk one-on-one about it.
7. Unlike social media posts or email newsletters, blog posts are permanent and 100% yours.
Why put so much effort into creating original content for social media or email newsletters over and over again, only to have it disappear beyond your audience’s attention after a few hours? Save yourself from extra stress and frustration by giving your content a permanent home on your blog. It makes your website more well-rounded, and you can reference and link to your content over and over again. It’s a no-brainer!
Taking the Next Steps
It’s not a hard concept to sell—having a blog just makes sense. Want to get started with a blog, revamp your current blog, or make sure your blog is on track? Check out my basic blogging tips.
Sign up for Nighthawk emails and get marketing tips twice monthly.
Want to take a peek at my email strategy for Nighthawk? Check it out here!
