Blogging is an important part of business marketing as online advertising is. The modern blogosphere is rather crowded. So, all companies that run business blogs should take care to make the posts interesting and engaging. It’s is, of course, easier said than done. A successful business blog can establish a company as an authority in a particular area, leading to more engaged customers and more interested customers. So, here are several methods that will help your marketing team improve the business blog:
1. Research What Readers Like
Before getting on to blogging, first research what readers actually like to read about, advises Global Resources consultants who often do marketing audits for small businesses. For example, if you are blogging for a restaurant, it might be tempting to blog about restaurants in your sector. But this may not be a topic the readers are interested in. The readers might be more interested in the food the restaurant serves, how the dishes are prepared, or the culinary history behind them. Therefore, it’s important to conduct surveys to find out what potential blog readers might like reading about. If the blog is more than a year old, find out what subscribers like to read about, and then base future topics on these.
2. Shift Focus Away from Your Business
Do not use your company blog as a platform for press releases. Sure, it’s exciting to tell everyone about a new branch you have opened in some faraway place or a shiny new technology the company has obtained. But keep these posts brief. Readers are usually not interested in business aspects that get the employees excited. Focus on the topics that interest readers, as mentioned above. Or you could make a mundane business topic more interesting. For example, if the company is opening a new branch, readers may like to know what the new place is like, and whether it’s different from all the others. For service sector businesses, like restaurants or retail shops, opening a new branch is great news for customers as well. But for other businesses, like a management company, that’s not very interesting to read about.
3. Improve Visuals
Don’t forget to make posts as visually appealing as possible. Include pictures and graphics whenever possible. Remember that web users are often motivated by visual aspects of posts, not the textual content. While writing attention-grabbing headlines is important, so is including visual material like videos and infographics to keep readers interested.
4. Get Influencer Quotes
Want to have everyone click on a blog post? Then drop a name. If you want a blog post to go viral or get more shares than usual, find an influencer who is willing to offer the article a quote. The more famous the influencer is, the more likely everyone would be interested in your post. Also, famous influencer quotes increase your blog post’s chances of getting referenced elsewhere.
5. Base Topics on Trending Headlines
If you are not sure what the readers are interested in, base the blog post topics on headlines that are currently trending. Headlines indicate general consumer interest, which your business can capitalize on with a blog post. But do keep in mind that the news cycle moves on, so these posts have shorter shelf lives.
Always find interesting stories to tell with your blog posts. The narrative structure is generally more appealing than posting another listicle.
