The fact that you are reading this is proof enough of the value of blogging. Writing informative blogs for your company's website, or even having fun with a personal blog, is an effective way to market both yourself and your company.
Blogging is easy to do and cost effective. Blog articles are meant to be short, informative, and can even be casual. You can easily set up a blog section on your company's website, or even sign up with a free blog service like WordPress or Blogger to create your own webpage just for blogging.
Blogging is a form of content marketing, which is one of the most powerful ways to communicate your message. Content marketing uses consistent and informative content to educate and engage your audience. Using resources like social media, newsletters, brochures, blog articles, and dozens of other mediums, you can put your brand in front of a customer in such a way that they will want to read it. If content marketing is done correctly and your information is valuable, then customers will see you as an authority on the subject matter and return to you to learn more about whatever it is you're writing about.
The opposite of content marketing is traditional advertising. As people get bombarded from every angle with advertisements every day, they are more apt to tune out advertising like the used car salesmen yelling, "For no money down!" Consumers are more likely to go with companies that provide them with valuable materials that help them make informed buying decisions. Here are some statistics about the effectiveness of content marketing from Inboundwriter.com.
- 90% of consumers find custom content useful and 78% believe that organizations providing custom content are interested in building good relationships with them. (TMG Custom Media)
- Because 61% of consumers say they feel better about a company that delivers custom content, they are also more likely to buy from that company. (Custom Content Council)
- Blogs give websites 434% more indexed pages and 97% more indexed links. (Content+)
- Interesting content is a top 3 reason people follow brands on social media. (Content+)
Additionally, blogging adds value to your company by increasing traffic to your website. The internet is set up to reward websites that have fresh and informative content with higher rankings on search engines. Therefore, the more you write about what people are searching for (think FAQ's), and the more regular you are with adding new blog articles, the more traffic you will see steadily finding their way to your website.
In the world of marketing, it is no secret that blogging is a powerful tool to reach people. This is one reason why so many companies are doing it and why it's more than just an internet fad. At National Technologies Group, we are serious bloggers (obviously), and we want to pass on blogging tips to our customers. Join us next week as we pass on valuable advice on how to write a decent blog.