Almost every serious business (with a website) has a blog. But why? In this post, I'll explore 7 of the primary reasons companies host, write, and maintain blogs. Most of these businesses blog out of instinct, though recognizing the potential is the first step to making a blog worthwhile.
1. A Promotional Tool
I advise against over-promoting deals, discounts, products, and services in posts. There's certainly a time and place, however, and that's when your business publishes enough content to squeeze in something pseudo-promotional.
The trick is blogging about a related topic or even writing a side-by-side review with a competitor product or an earlier version. This is important because it informs readers and, at the same time, convinces them to check out what it is you're promoting.
2. Social Media Content
Social media is a place for sharing information, so why not share what you're blogging about? Not only do posts give you meaningful, traffic-generating content to post on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+, it's a way to keep a company's newsfeed presence up.
3. An Opportunity To Create Web Content
Blogs are secondary (yet just as important) as a primary website. With an active blog, companies are well-positioned to create content that explores their expertise and services without directly talking about them. The super-promotion should be reserved for websites, while blogs are an outlet for a more personal conversation.
4. Increasing Online Presence
Most businesses blog to index higher on Google search results. While this is a definite "side-effect," blogs simply improve the likelihood that the everyday customer will stumble across a company's website.
5. Informing Customers
Once visitors are on a blog, it's the writer's job to actively instruct, engage, and entertain readers. This hinges on creativity, of course, especially when it comes to writing topics that meet these parameters.
The best way to look at business blogging is this: Instruct visitors on who you are, what you do, and what you know. Does the average customer misunderstand your business or industry? Write a post that explains it. Does the average customer not know how to use a product? Write a post that illustrates a handful of creative ways a specific product is applicable to everyday life.
6. To Connect
Blogs are avenues of conversation. Commentary from readers, shares, likes, and follows turn into a fan base that you know are interested in what you have to say on behalf of your business. This modern form of networking exponentially increases marketing power for the every now and then promotional post.
7. To Become an Authority
Most importantly, blogs are platforms used to prove authority. The best business blogs become resources for competitors, consumers, and the online searcher looking for answers to questions they may have never thought to ask. You can do just this with an active blog.
(business blogging / shutterstock)