Content marketing is the future of marketing for small businesses. According to Impact BND, a small business that blogs get 126% more lead growth than small businesses that don't blog. "But no one reads blogs anymore!" Yes, they do. An extraordinary 77% of Internet users read blogs. No, your eyes aren't deceiving you, customers still read them.
A blog is a simple way to connect with customers and share relevant and valuable information. Plus, search engines love good blogs as they drive traffic to your website (think SEO).
Think of it this way, a company blog is the voice of your brand. Small businesses should have one in order to tell their brand's story. A small business blog is an inexpensive and effective way to increase your leads.
8 Tips for Starting a Business Blog
- Choose your platform. Use a blogging platform like WordPress, Hubspot, or Blogger.
- Content Marketing Strategy. Create a content marketing strategy focused on the pain points you'd like to alleviate. What do you want your readers to take away? Decide what you want to accomplish with your content and then start strategizing what pieces you want to write to accomplish those goals.
- Set a goal. Have a goal, for example, do you want to drive more traffic to your site? Do you want people to buy a specific product or service? Do you want to establish yourself as a subject matter expert?
- Make it valuable. Give knowledge away, make sure you're giving something of value to your customers so that they will come back for more.
- Be consistent. Consistency is difficult but if you're seen as a reliable source of information, you'll get faithful readers wanting more. Consistent content will drive more people to your website.
- Social Media. A business blog will provide you with social media content that you can utilize to spread your story.
- Email Marketing Content. The content you write in your blog will not only help you develop social media posts but it will also provide you with email marketing content.
- SEO. With the right keywords and search engine optimization strategy, your small business blog will generate leads to your website.
For more information on how to start a blog, drop me a line.
