Blogs have come a long way from the ramblings and rantings of teenage girls about their crushes and periods or whatever.
Content marketing is one of the most effective ways to build your brand, connect with your audience and capture qualified leads.
So why aren’t you keeping your blog updated?
Here are the top 3 excuses I always get:
1. Nobody will read my blog so why bother…
Since Google introduced their cuddly animal algorithms, consistent blogging has become a must in any marketing strategy. Although we aren’t sure how Google indexes and ranks pages specifically, it’s safe to say that the more you blog, the more traffic you’ll receive.
If you don’t wanna take my word for it, then take HubSpot’s. They found that blogs are the most visited sections of their clients’ website. In fact, blog pages have outperformed other pages by 10:1.
People aren’t really interested in your company profile, services or corporate social responsibility. What they want to see is who you are, what you’re all about and how you go about things. If you check out my company’s official blog, it’s really about the nonsense that my team gets up to, rather than the hardcore work that happens behind-the-scenes.
By presenting the lighter side of things and my company’s culture, we’ve garnered a ton of interest from clients, prospects and the general public.
Because people connect to people. Not formalities and a logo.
Remember that information is rampant and, for the most part, free. Visitors seek you out specifically to hear your take on things that they already know about. Which brings me to my next point…
2. I don’t know enough to write a blog
Nonsense.
You don’t need extensive research to keep a fresh blog. All you need is an opinion.
Google CEO Eric Schmidt has this stat to share with you:
“Now, every two days we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003.”
You’re not going to come up with original content. What you can do is come up with an original point of view. Don’t stress out over it. Don’t try to be clever for the sake of it. Just be yourself.
Any content is better than no content.
The great thing about blogs is that they encourage participation from your readers. It’s a two-way stream of communication. I’m talking about blog comments.
You’re not a news site. Don’t give out straight facts. Share your opinion. If it’s controversial, all the better! Sit back and watch the flame war progress below. Unless you’re a raging bigot, I’m almost certain that you’ll have people on your side.
Debates and discussions are a great way to get more traffic as people will return to your post to see what others have added. On top of that, you’re connecting to your ideal audience on a personal level. Which is always a plus.
Blogging drives traffic. Content drives leads. Bam.
3. I don’t know what to blog about
When you tell people you’re in _____, what do they ask you? How do you answer them?
Write that down. That’s your blog.
It’s really very simple.
A lot of the inspiration for this blog comes from daily conversations I have with the people around me. Whether it’s acquaintances who are interested in what I do, my team that need clarification, a discussion I had with my partners or a chat around the dinner table with my parents.
People ask questions because they want to know the answer. Duh. Answer it in your blog.
