What is business blogging? And why does it matter?
Blogging is one of those things that people think they understand, but guess what? They don’t. Not really, anyway.
Many people either get it wrong, or ignore blogging completely. Either way, this is a huge mistake.
Any business that ignores blogging is leaving money on the table.
Today, we’re going to explain what business blogging is and show you why it’s an incredibly powerful marketing strategy.
And we'll also help you create an amazing article in 20 minutes, even if you're totally new to blogging.
What do you mean by business blog?
Let’s start with a definition.
A blog is traditionally a personal, online collection of thoughts, opinions, knowledge or information. A business blog is the same thing, but in a business context.
At a basic level, a blog allows a business to communicate with both customers and potential leads in ways that it can’t elsewhere.
You get more freedom and flexibility with blog posts - so business blogging can bring your brand to life. For this reason, it’s considered a marketing tactic.
What is the purpose of a company blog?
So, we know that business blogging is a marketing strategy that helps companies communicate and connect with their target audience, but that still doesn’t address the key question:
Why bother with blogging?
Well, it's simple. A company blog helps deliver the one thing that every business in the world wants more of:
Sales.
Most people don’t realise this. They think blogging is all about fluffy branding and vanity metrics, like how many likes and retweets an article generated.
It’s not.
Blog posts generate revenue. That's why blogging is an essential marketing strategy, especially for smaller businesses with no advertising budget.
Companies can't afford to ignore content marketing.
The benefits of blogging for business
Business blogging increases your brand’s online visibility and blog posts remain the most effective form of content for companies.
If you’re looking to buy a new coffee machine, you might do some research, enter a search term, and find a really useful blog post reviewing the latest gadgets.
Now, if that business also sells coffee machines, you’ve just become a potential lead. The blog post has increased the amount of trust and authority that the business has with you, even if you don’t realise it.
This whole process is known as inbound marketing, or content marketing. And, as a marketing tactic, it has 3 amazing advantages over every other strategy:
Benefit #1: Unlike ads, blogging is free. It doesn’t cost you anything to write a company blog, yet it can act as a marketing tool for years.
Benefit #2: Unlike ads, blogging works 24/7. You can create one article that attracts people to your website all day, every day.
Benefit #3: Unlike ads, blogging attracts people who want to come to your website. Basically, ads can work, but they’re an intrusive experience. Blogs are the opposite.
The disadvantages of blogging for business
If you do it right, there aren’t any disadvantages to blogging for business.
The main issue with content marketing is that most people don’t understand how to do it correctly.
Companies blog every day, week and month without seeing any success because they make one of 2 errors:
Issue #1: They don’t understand search engine optimisation [SEO] and how to get content to rank highly.
Issue #2: They don’t understand how to write a blog post that attracts the right audience. They never ask why anyone would want to read their blog.
So, without the right knowledge, a business could be wasting its time. Blogging for business isn’t about how often you can publish content – it’s about creating the right articles for the right people, in the right way.
Blogging for beginners
Okay, so how do you write a great blog post if you’ve never done it before? What’s the most important rule for business blogging?
The main thing to remember is to put your audience first. In other words, forget about what you think you should be writing about.
The whole point of an article is to serve potential customers and offer them value, so that means understanding what’s on their mind. What do they need to know?
If all you did was write a blog post that addresses a particular pain point for your target audience, then you’ll already be miles ahead of most other business blogs.
How to write a blog post in 30 minutes
Do you need a simple step-by-step guide to writing a blog post?
No problem. We’ll show you an easy process for creating a blog post in about 30 minutes.
Here's a 9-step system you can use right now:
Step 1
Consider who you're writing for and define your target audience [2 minutes]
Step 2
Think what your audience wants to know and brainstorm content ideas [4 minutes]
Step 3
Pick one topic to write about - the thing that’s important to them [1 minute]
Step 4
List approximately 5 bullet points that you want to include in your article [2 minutes]
Step 5
Create a sexy headline [2 minutes]
Step 6
Write a short opening that hints at why the reader should read on [2 minutes]
Step 7
Write the bulk of the post and address all the points in your plan [10 minutes]
Step 8
Write a conclusion and wrap everything up by summarising the value you've given [2 minutes]
Step 9
Read through your work, remove unnecessary words and refine the post [5 minutes]
Now you know what business blogging is
We've demonstrated that a blog is used to attract potential customers. In that sense, a blog is a marketing asset.
A sales weapon.
You've also seen the purpose of a company blog. How blogging is one of the most valuable type of marketing you can do.
Plus, you’ve also been given a super-simple guide to writing a blog post in around 20 minutes.
It’s easy to follow, even if you’re a complete beginner.