Blogging for Marketing Success

Believe it or not, but last year, there were more than a half-billion blogs published, and OptinMonster forecasts that the number of bloggers in the U.S. alone will have grown to 31 million by the end of 2020. A study by the digital tech firm also reported that when marketers make blogging a priority, they realize 13 times an ROI.

Why? More than half the marketers polled (53%) said their top content marketing priority is blogging. 60% admitted to having a personalization strategy while nearly the same number (57%) credited blogging alone for bringing in new customers.

Brands not yet blogging would be wise to incorporate blogging into their marketing sooner than later. Like the blockbuster Clint Eastwood movie, “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” there are ways to succeed at blogging as well as other bad and ugly ways to fail.

Prospects flock to blogs that help them learn and answer questions. Pricing and costs, reviews, comparisons, and best practices are also popular topics. If it’s of value to them, they’ll be loyal. Many bloggers, however, err by talking more about themselves and turn off their visitors.

People will buy and return to brands they trust. If they feel a blog continually pitches them, they may still read it but are less likely to buy. This doesn’t mean not talking about the brand but being honest and transparent. These work better in building trust and keeping people returning and buying. If that exquisite cup is sold cannot go into the microwave, acknowledge that and extol its other merits and value.

Even if readers aren’t being pitched, what are the next steps the brand wants them to take? Have the next step in mind. It may be providing additional information a prospect might need before deciding to buy. It could be an additional resource or another blog, or a download. In ending the blog, be sure to guide the reader to action by making the header an actionable one.

Determine and consider what most visitors are using to access the blog. What devices are they using, and is the brand’s site optimized to accommodate them? Are the best SEO practices being employed to maximize search results? That includes clear root keywords with headers and internal links to improve rank in search engines.

Write for the brand’s target audience rather than to everyone. The latter will discourage and possibly turn off those the brand wishes to reach. Keep the writing clear and simple without using jargon and seemingly clever buzz words. Assume the audience to be novices. The end game is to leave them knowing more after reading the blog than when they started.

As saturated as the industry is, one thing that keeps successful brands top of mind is staying relevant by creating evergreen content. Such pieces have a near eternal life and are pertinent months and even years later. In fact, updating and republishing periodically not only makes the information fresh but also helps boost SEO.