Are you taking advantage of this crucial marketing tool and do you even know where to begin? I’m not afraid to admit that when it comes to the importance of blogging for business I am very much on the beginning of the learning curve here! Every expert started somewhere - as a beginner - so come along with me and I’ll share what I’m learning. Let’s kick some blogging butt together for the sake of our businesses ;)
One of my friends who blogs has a post he wrote in 2014. It would have taken him awhile to write. But this post brings in about 150 views to his website every month!!! That is a long tail. I’ve come to the conclusion that I cannot afford NOT to invest in quality content for this reason. Here are the 5 things you need to know about blogging as you get started (and stay tuned for our incredible solution to your blogging guilt).
#1. You are writing for humans AND robots
Little bots are crawling cyberspace looking for clues as to why they should index YOUR site. The good news is the robots are getting more sophisticated. They used to get sucked in by blogs stuffed full of keywords that were barely readable for humans. While keywords are still important Google is trying to encourage websites to create high quality, original content.
"Write well, and you’ll be rewarded in search rankings."
(Grant from our web platform Rocketspark)
#2. SEO/Search Engine Optimisation is the real reason we blog (for business)
I started blogging to communicate, to answer client questions and to provide value. As I began to understand how a good blog post can help to GROW business, I realised it's all about the SEO. Optimising what I write so that Google will help me to reach more people.
Ultimately we want searchers to find us, buy our products, and hire us for our services.
So how do we optimise our blog posts? My first little hack is using the Google Keyword Planner. Signing up to Google AdWords gives you access to the Keyword Planner (under tools), which gives you data about about actual search queries. For example, if you type in “hire a gardener” , click on the “Keyword ideas” tab, and you’ll find that in fact “landscape gardeners” is a more common search query in Auckland. So then you incorporate the phrase into your post.
#3. Quality counts
I think about each blog post and how long of a life it might have. I want to write things that will be of value today and in years to come. In this sense the length does not matter. Here are 4 types of content that will add value to your customers (thanks to CopyBlogger) - attraction, authority, affinity and action.
ATTRACTION CONTENT
Your goal for attraction content is for people to consume it and spread it.
Things like “101 ways to take a photo”, infographics and how too’s, things people can download like checklists and guides, surveys and questionnaires, and one we have which is popular is all my the places I use to get free beautiful images. It’s a good way to answer a frequently asked question you may get from customers, and a way to add value.
Using pictures and graphics is really key here. Things that are easy for people to scan (we tend to scan more than we read) and for the eyes to digest. Jump into the topic quickly and have lots of breaks in the paragraphs. White space is good!
AUTHORITY CONTENT
This is the demonstration of your expertise. But the motto here is “Show, don’t tell.” It’s no good telling everyone you’re the best.
Instead: Use case studies and testimonials.
AND a really great thing to do is Empower your audience: “You give them what they need to know in order to succeed, making them the rock stars” (Copyblogger.com) and they become your biggest fans.
With authority content longer is often better. Digital marketing master Neil Patel found, counterintuitively, that most top-ten pages in search results for any given query have at least 2,000 words. He also found that long posts (1500+ words) get linked to more and garner more “likes” on social media. BUT, you must be genuine and let the content dictate the length.
AFFINITY CONTENT
This is the stuff that relates with your audience, builds a bond, and the things you do that make your audience like you.
This could be ways you give back to the community, make people laugh, share personal wins and losses.
ACTION CONTENT
This is the trickiest one. And the more successfully you have done the others the easier this will get. Asking for comments, asking readers to share the post, asking for participation in a survey, getting email subscriptions, and - most importantly - getting people to buy your product or hire you. There is an art to it. But all I can say is practice makes perfect and you just have to keep testing and trying.
Successfully using all four allows you to convince people to like, trust, and ultimately buy from you.
#4. Titles are your front door - make sure it’s open
80% of people read the headline but only 20% will keep reading so make the headline good enough to intrigue them. But you’re not writing a clever novel here.
- Say exactly what the blog is about (don’t try to be vague or cute) Our latest post was called: “5 Reasons To Hire A Brand Stylist: Your Spotlight For Growth”
- Put the keywords in the beginning of the headline (people read the first and last 3 words so the middle is not so important)
- Keep it results focused. Think of that action you want to encourage.
- If appropriate, put a number in it!! It works. And use the numeral not the word.
- The Content Marketing Institute discovered that the ideal length is 6 words. But hey it’s got to work so don’t get caught up on that ;)
Some catchy blog title formulas include:
- List: 21+ Ways To {Do Something} That Will {Produce Desirable Effect}
- How to: How To Make A {Thing} To {Produce Desirable Effect}
- Question: What Can {Thing} Teach You About {Unrelated Thing}?
- Controversy: Would You Do {Unimaginable Thing}? I Just Did.
- Numbers: 105 Easy Ways To {Do Something} That Will Skyrocket By 206% In 1 Year
#5. Once written, twice share!
Ok I made that up. But once it’s written you’ve got to share it. If you’re not proud of it and sharing it why do you think anyone else would? Post on your Facebook page, send it out with your newsletter. Ask your mum to like it. Mine always does - thanks mum. Just get it out there. And then rinse and repeat.
And the beauty of a well written post is this: you can share it for YEARS! Re-post it, find an old one to add to your newsletter. If it's good content, it's not just going to be a flash in the pan. There will still be value and you are doing a service to your customers and readers when you bring them back to helpful posts. You can always update figures or references or add something new to the article. But you don't have to reinvent the wheel each time you want to communicate with your tribe.
And now, our dirty little secret...
We aren't going to write any more blogs.
WHAAAAAAT....?!
Ok, ok, I'm being dramatic.
Yes, I (Shay) did write this post. It took me HOURS. Seriously. And it was in the writing of it that I have come across two amazing contacts that we have teamed up with to provide the ULTIMATE BLOGGING SOLUTION.
We can set you up with your whole year’s worth of blogs
with beautiful graphics and images and you’ll be thanking me each time
you want to post a blog and all you have to do is upload and share it.
I have just outsourced all my future blog posts and will be offering the same service to all my clients as they are all begging for it! My job is designing and creating brands and websites. Not writing. And not spending all day researching keywords and formatting and overthinking every little word.
I expect you are the same.
If you want to get the experts in to your blog get in touch with us today and we can meet up or talk on the phone to explain how it all works.
- Yes, it will be in your tone/voice and on brand.
- Yes, you will supply the concepts for each blog. (Think how much more motivating is it to write up 6 ideas knowing someone else will be doing the work?!)
- Yes, they will be original pieces of writing, and they will become your intellectual property.
CLICK THE IMAGES ABOVE FOR MORE INFO
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