contact-southern-creative-wordpress-designer-high

filed in:

Boost Your Site Traffic with Blogs

Why It’s Important to Build a Blog-Focused Content Strategy

When I’m off-boarding clients after a website launch, I always advise them to keep their site content fresh by writing blogs. Maybe you’ve heard similar advice about blogging, but you’re unsure why blogs are important. If you skip out on blogging, you miss an opportunity to add value for clients, connect with your ideal audience, and drive organic traffic to your site. I see this happen to service providers all too often as they push blogging to the bottom of the to-do list. I can relate! It can be hard to find the time to blog on top of launching a new website, trying to grow your business, or if you have your hands full with current clients!

As a service provider, let me tell you – if blogging isn’t currently part of your post-launch content strategy for your website, it needs to be! In this post, I’ll let you know all about why blogs are important and should be at the center of your content marketing strategy, along with four incredible brand benefits of blogging:

  • Attracting more new customers through SEO and online marketing
  • Growing your brand outside of social media
  • Creating a resource library for current and potential customers
  • Humanizing your brand to your ideal client

 

Why blogs are important as the center of your content marketing strategy

So often, I hear from clients that they don’t have time to blog on top of everything else that comes with running their business. But it’s actually a prime opportunity to build quality relationships with an audience. In fact, 70% of people prefer to learn about a brand through articles rather than advertisements. Blogging is a great place to start with content marketing! It helps you keep your overall content marketing strategy, brand content pillars, and unique client profile top of mind as you grow your business – all while driving traffic to your website! You already have the expertise that potential clients are looking for, and a blog is a perfect place to put that on display by offering resources to your audience. Let’s look at four key ways blogs are an important way to build your brand. 

 

Blogs attract new customers through search results and online marketing.

Long after a website launch, a site’s core informational pages’ marketing copy will remain the same. While the content of those pages is a crucial part of your brand messaging, the flip side of static pages is that they are not offering any new content to search engines. You may refresh core site copy occasionally, but you’ll rarely add new content. Enter blogs! Blog content is a way to keep your website’s content fresh and dynamically growing.

As you continue to write and build a library of blogs, you’re adding more quality content and keywords to your site, which goes hand in hand with SEO optimization. Whenever your clients want more information on a topic, they’ll turn to Google to have their questions answered. By consistently publishing fresh content to your site and making use of keywords, you’re increasing the chance that your site will appear in the search results.

Writing blogs is important, but the special ingredient is strategy! Once you know your ideal client profile, make it your goal to create blogs for that person. What kind of questions are they asking as they grow their business? Which information will they find helpful in building their brand? What pain points or problems are they experiencing, and how can YOUR company help? Once you’ve brainstormed some ideas, Ubersuggest can help you choose the ideal keywords for your topic. I talked a bit more about how to use Ubersuggest in my post on how to name photos for your website in WordPress – you can read more about that here.

 

Blogs expand your brand beyond social media.

Don’t get me wrong: a strong brand presence on social media is a fantastic tool for growing your business that you shouldn’t overlook! But the usual pattern I see whenever brands launch a new website is that after launch, they immediately focus only on social media marketing without blogging. They’re left confused when they aren’t moving up in SEO rankings and seeing organic site traffic. This is exactly why blogs are important! According to HubSpot, Businesses that blog get 55% more website traffic than businesses that don’t, and companies with blogs produce, on average, 67% more leads every month. 

Social media posts are great for catching the attention of potential clients as they scroll Instagram or Facebook, but there’s only so much you can say in a caption. There just isn’t a lot of space for in-depth content like how-to guides, in-depth comparisons, or step-by-step tutorials. Not to mention, whatever you say in a social media caption isn’t showing up in Google search results, so it’s not driving search traffic to your site.

Blogs also have the upper hand over social media in post-longevity. Even though someone will see your entire library of Instagram content when they visit your profile, each post only stays relevant in new content feeds for a few days. Blogs have more staying power; Figuring out the right formula to get social media posts in front of potential clients can feel a bit like trying to hit a moving target. In contrast, SEO algorithms are a well-known process. If you write quality content and use keywords potential clients are searching for, you WILL show up in Google results! You can’t beat blogging as a long-term strategy to bring new visitors to your site. 

 

Blogging builds a resource library for current and potential customers.

Answers to common client questions, nuggets of wisdom you’ve gained as you grow in expertise and experience, and guides to the tools you use day in and day out are all great places to begin building blog content. If you post consistently about these topics, you’ll inevitably build a valuable content library for people looking for a brand like yours to meet their needs. 

Over time, your high-quality resources and authority will grow, paying off in organic search-driven traffic. But even if someone lands on one blog page from a search engine result, they’ll find an entire content library to explore as they learn from your business. Access to a content library with valuable resources encourages your audience to browse your blog and website for longer, building a stronger relationship and sense of trust with your brand.

To create a strong blog resource library, shoot for a mix of evergreen topics as well as posts that highlight your take on new industry trends. Evergreen posts help you build authority in your field and will deliver search engine traffic for a long time. Posts on industry trends show clients you’re in the know on the latest in your field while potentially driving search result traffic on less-trafficked topics and keywords. 

 

Blogs humanize your brand with current and potential clients.

Earlier this year, I shared how a custom brand photoshoot can personalize your brand image. Blogs are important for the same reason: making your brand seem more human to potential clients. Letting readers peek behind the curtain to see what goes on behind the scenes of your business and hear your unique advice in your brand voice helps them view you as a real person who is ready to help meet their needs. 

If you’ve written with your ideal client profile in mind, you’ll be covering topics that will directly address their needs, answer their questions, and support them as they meet their goals. Current and potential clients will grow more trust in your brand as their best choice whenever they need services and support in your niche. Blogging is brand-building work that pays off in brand know, like, and trust!

Adding a blog to your brand website needs to be taken off the back burner and moved to the front of your priority list! Even though many service providers overlook it, blogging is an important core piece of a content marketing strategy. It has the power to drive site traffic, launch your brand beyond social media posts, build a valuable resource library for current and potential customers, and add a personal element to your brand. A schedule of two to four monthly posts will keep your site content fresh and the library growing! 

If you’re overwhelmed by trying to find the time to write your own blogs, consider outsourcing the writing to a professional ghostwriter. Many small business owners specialize in content writing and have the skills to turn your expertise into fully fleshed-out blog posts. If you’re ready to start, you can find a few of my trusted copywriters listed below!

Amber Kindler – The Midwest Marketer 

Shannon Daigle 

Chloe – The Write Chloe

Sarah – The Content Collective

Steph-brand-photo-shoot-raleigh-43

I'm Steph!

I'm the Founder & Creative Director behind Southern Creative, a.k.a your SEO and techy biz bestie. My passion is crafting websites rooted in strategy so you can put your focus where your heart is and launch a website that works for you - not the other way around.

FGS-Certified-Badge-2022