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Business blogging 101: How content can boost your product sales
Every day 175,000 new blogs appear on the web: English teachers sharing their knowledge, travelers discussing their trips, beauty bloggers recommending new ways of rejuvenation and different shops promoting their products online. Since 2007 the number of blogs reached 63,2 million. During all these years they also had undergone changes transforming from an entertainment thing to a powerful business instrument:
- 21% of Internet users spend time online on reading content;
- 58% of customers learn about the brands via their websites and social networks;
- 62% of people read titles and descriptions when looking for interesting companies.
Blogs filled with the right content are essential components of a professional marketing toolbox that can boost product sales and create new marketing channels. That`s why it`s time to learn how to start a business blog and benefit from it.
Business blog benefits
Being a cheap and fast way to build an online presence, a business blog becomes a perfect way for entrepreneurs to prove their credibility and expertise. Compared to basic websites, a blog is more dynamic as it encourages your visitors to interact with you via comments and sharing. This way you are building a network and enhancing the visibility of your product and services in a casual unobtrusive way.
A business blog was voted №4 tool for generating sales leads. But like any other marketing instrument, it is more effective when used properly. It means:
- SEO optimization (keywords in the text that will help users to find your article via search engines. For example, typing «who can do my coursework for me» will direct people to the website with writing services);
- Outbound/inbound link clicks (traffic directed from and to your website);
- Organic website traffic directed to the blog page.
How to start a blog?
If you decide that starting a blog business will bring you more money, it makes sense to learn some basic things before testing the waters:
- Choose a platform. People who just start with their blogs will be fine to use one of the ready-made solutions like WordPress. It will allow customizing your blog, making it responsive and user-friendly. However, don’t forget to check how it looks on different types of devices and whether it has some level of customer support;
- Register a domain name. A domain is a URL used to access your blog (for example, www.businessblog.com). This will cost you around $10 a year in addition to hosting expenses;
- Get a plan. First, define your main objective: what should a blog bring you? Then decide on such things as frequency of updating, tone of voice (academic, casual, authoritative, or fun) and ways you make the readers take action (email, questions, links, quote or comment requests, CTA):
- Start writing. Keep it relevant, personal and useful: blog readers would want to know about your company and trends of your industry so just give it to them telling a story. Offering helpful tips, additional information and links to other resources will make the readers more eager to share the article. If the content is useful, other web owners may also want to give links to your website: the more clicks they get, the more people visit your blog and the more likely it will show up at the top of search engine results.
Indeed, a business blog may become a highly effective and low-cost marketing instrument to create an online presence. Starting with small steps and providing fresh content every three days will be a good start for boosting your sales and customers` loyalty.