Why Should Small Business Owners Work on Blogging Seriously?
The success of any business depends on its reach and visibility. These two factors, in fact, are interlinked. With reach comes visibility and vice versa. A small business can be successful through engagement with the social media. Blogging is what all entrepreneurs vouch for. It has helped them boost engagement for their business online. Reports suggest, 60% consumers feel positive about a company after reading customized content on its site. And marketers using blogs have higher chances, about 67%, of generating leads than those who don’t create blogs.
A blog is easy (read free) to create and can establish an effective means to communicate with prospective customers. A survey done amongst customers in the US brought to light the fact that around 81% of the customers trust information and advice that they read on the blogs.
Benefits of blogging
If you’re a startup, you might not have a budget for marketing and therefore blogging becomes a feasible option. To create a blog, you need zero investment. Blogs help you generate leads for your business. Let us look at the value a blog brings to your business -
A blog is your business’ online face
The internet has brought the world closer. Your business is no longer limited to your city, town or country — the world is actually your playground now. It does sound nice but let us be very frank — it exposes you to a different level of competition. There are many others in the market like you and to get noticed in the online world, you need to get to the top of the search engine ranking. When you are on top, you get traffic (read prospective customers). A blog builds a bridge between you and the customers. When you regularly add and update your blog with keyword-rich content that is relevant to your business, it gets a steady flow of traffic to your site. This makes the blog valuable. People visit the comments section and add links thus further boosting your rankings. Groove offers an interesting design and content on the blog that keeps interests alive.
Engage the customers
In the traditional way of doing business, you can see your customer. In the online format, you do not see him but still need to engage with him. For this, interaction is important. You need to engage in conversation so that his connect with your product or the brand grows stronger.
A blog is also a great way to communicate your plans to the customers. In case there are some issues about the unavailability of a service or a product, this is the place to tell them about it. Announce any great plans which can benefit them or affect them in some way. Also encourage the visitors to share their views on a product or how they are using it or anything related to what you are selling.
Promotion through blog
Sales, discounts, and any other promotion on the brand can be offered on the blog. This keeps the interest alive. Many will argue that this can also be done through networking sites like Facebook but remember that your blog is linked to your site. It is of great benefit to you to have people visit your site. Hence a blog is a good idea for promotions. The thing to remember here is that your blog needs more than just promotional stuff — you have to keep the interest alive. Hubspot gives product information, sales, agency insights — all this and more — on its blog.
Blogs speak of the mission
Your blog can help you stand out in the crowd. If you are an organic clothing brand, your blog (apart from promoting the products) can give them something to connect with you at an emotional level. For instance, you can give information about organic clothes, how they are made, how they benefit the environment etc. Your posts should focus on these things so that people can see how you go beyond selling organic clothes and that you have a larger purpose. Zappos blog named Beyond the Box talks of everything from culture to lifestyle.
The Human side
Business is always formal and over the internet, it is more so. Customers, on the other hand, want to be more casual. They want to see the human behind the brand. If the blog has personal stories and struggles, it will be easy for them to relate to. Hence a blog that is written in an informal tone helps in forging friendships. Etsy, for example, is a site for selling the handmade product. Etsy blog brings readers face to face with the sellers, gives them DIY ideas etc.
To Conclude
A blog is the cheapest way to expand your online presence. You need to create content and be consistent with it. Adding a few creative posts and anything else that attracts the customer should be included in your blogging strategy.
