Content Development: Resolve to Keep your Blog Updated
Here is the usual scenario: companies launch a new website or decide to add a blog to the one they already have (a very good idea!). Then, as human nature would have it, complacency sets in and often transitions into full-blown dread. “Gung-ho” morphs into “Oh, no.”
Since it’s very difficult to develop a productive Internet marketing strategy without a blog, virtually every top ranking website not only has one but updates it routinely. While more is better (if the quality is good), the bare minimum should be every two weeks.
If you find yourself falling behind with your blogging, here are some motivational considerations to get you back on track. Sometimes all you need is a good wake-up call and these may provide just the thing:
- Without a doubt, a blog is one of the fundamental SEO strategies driving traffic to your website. Remember, every blog post you publish adds one more indexed page to your website. If it’s interesting and useful, rather than some bland drivel regurgitated from another website, it’ll likely be passed around on social media.
- If you play your cards right, it also converts that traffic into leads and sales. How? Savvy bloggers always insert calls-to-action somewhere in the post to stimulate sales. Those might be something like free shipping with every order over $50, free trials or samples, free fact sheets, or anything else that would convince someone to give you contact information.
- It demonstrates your authority about your profession. Most website visitors are impressed by posts that offer current updates about questions they may have about your product or service. It shows you’re truly involved with your company.
- Blogs create a snowball effect that grows with each post. Every post can individually rank on the search engines like any other page of your website. If the post has “legs,” it can continue to accrue value for years into the future. Many companies report that over 50% of their traffic originates with blog posts published at some time in the past. Wow!
Motivational Blogging Numbers
If that last statistic caught your attention, you may also be interested to know that:
- 77% of Internet users read blogs.
- Over half of all bloggers are women. Half are also between the ages of 21 and 35.
- Companies with blogs increase their inbound links by 97%.
- 61% of American consumers have made a purchase based on a blog post.
For national and local search marketing, blogging is the hammer in your toolbox. It’s the implement that successful companies use most often simply because it works. If writing is not your forte, engage with a marketing firm like Strategic eMarketing with a solid record of accomplishment and successful web development. While even bad blogging is better than none at all, you may as well do it right!