While surfing through the internet, many of you stumble upon web pages that either talk about a time when someone traveled, showcase a set of products, or sell their services.A lot of people want to know how to expand their online presence, while many are already running weblogs or “blogs,” there are those who don’t know what a blog is and how to start one.
Earlier in time, people used to write a blog to share a memory and write about their personal experiences or interests but as the technological era advanced, blogs have become a profitable mode of digital marketing. Blogs have evolved greatly over time with several widgets, extensions, social media feeds and author profiles incorporated.
If you don’t own a blog but want to magnify your earnings in the realm of B2B, you should think about starting one. It has been found that marketers who use blogs generate 67% more leads than those who do not. Before we jump into the benefits of blogging and its promotion tactics, let’s find out what a blog is. If you want to make your marketing game strong, you need to keep reading!
What is a blog?
In precise terms, a blog is a modified version of a website or web page that you can use for private and professional purposes.It is participatory and interactive with comment boxes embedded at the root of specific blog posts where visitors can provide feedback. Blogs could vary from a conversational style to opinionated blog postings that may help in engaging the audience.
What is a blog post?
A blog post is a separate web page containing a subtopic. It is a piece of content that could be in the form of an article, an essay, or an excerpt that you write to engage the audience and spread the word. For instance, you are writing a blog post with the title “5 best Marketing Tools you can use in 2023” where marketing is your blog topic and marketing tools is your subtopic.
The main reason for a blog post’s existence is to help you rank on SERPs for several keywords so that when someone searches for your keyword, the search engine may show your blog post relevant to the search word. Therefore, a blog post backlink to your web page or blog site.
Blog vs Website
The main distinction between a blog and a website is the subject matter and periodic updates whereas a blog presents information in a reverse chronological order and refreshes content frequently. However, a website’s content comparatively remains unchanged for lengthy periods and is based on topic or subject area.
Secondly, in terms of monetization, a blog helps you generate revenue using multiple methods like affiliate marketing, digital marketing, SEO or building an email list. On the other hand, to monetize a website you need to launch an online consultancy program or sell products via an online store.
Another difference between a blog and a website is that you can update the information and display dynamic content in a blog whereas a website displays static pages only that you cannot regularly update such as landing pages.
5 benefits of a blog
Of all the several benefits of a blog, we are going to discuss the most prominent ones since blogs are a profitable online platform that allows you to create any kind of content, on any niche and maintain it at your own pace. Top brands use multiple marketing strategies to promote their blog and generate handsome revenue from them. Here are the top 5 benefits of a blog worth pondering:
Attract visitors and turn them into leads
Your blog is an attractive source for your blog site visitors, way before they are ready to make a purchase. This is common among educational institutes that are attempting to recruit more students to join their programs. An excellent way to turn your customers into leads is to make them subscribe to your email list and blogs help build a connection with the customer before they could subscribe to your email listing.
Blogs build Loyalty and Trust
A great way in which blogs can build loyalty and trust is to follow the E-A-T criteria for your content which stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness. When you provide well-researched content, backed by evidence and reliable sources, you tend to build trust in your audience. Consumers are most likely to read your content and purchase an offering when they trust your content which also builds authority. It helps expand your audience and proves your knowledge to the reader.
Blogging boosts visibility
If you tailor your blog posts as per SEO by incorporating relevant keywords and promoting other businesses or products through affiliate marketing, it increases your brand visibility. It will eventually help you rank higher in SERPs and generate good revenue.
It lets you understand your customer’s needs
A specific blog post may drive more traffic than the other which helps you identify your consumer’s needs and blogs also offer a space for comments or feedback that can help you do even better at maintaining your brand voice.
It initiates brand awareness.
Unique content can make you stand out from your rivals and give you a competitive edge in terms of engagement, traffic, and conversions. When customers are searching for an answer and write their queries in search engines, your blog may appear higher in the SERPs allowing your brand to have a voice and expand your target audience.
How to start a blog
Once you have understood what a blog is about and what are its benefits, you can think about starting a blog. First things first, think about what your blog is going to be about and once you are through this deciding phase, you can pick a hosting service. You need to go through a series of steps while starting a blog.
Choose a hosting service
Content management systems like WordPress and other blogging sites such as Blogger, Medium and Tumblr allow users to build and design their blogs and choose from several templates. Some of these sites also provide web hosting services which you will need to store your site in a secure database.
Choose your target audience
This is the most important point to consider while setting up a blog. You should ask yourself, who is your target audience and who are you creating your blog for? Think about your niche and brainstorm what topics you will write on. A buyer persona will help you give an idea of what kind of content is in demand and how you should transform it.
Pay attention to your content
It is critical to examine the content format when producing your blog posts, for instance, using subheadings to divide different paragraphs, improving readability, and putting graphics that make your article easier to navigate. These points will help your reader stay engaged and hooked to your blog.
Develop competitor Analysis
To gain a competitive advantage over other top bloggers, you must conduct competitor analysis which will help you gain important insights. It will help you reveal any gaps in your content and how other competitors are performing and ranking so that you can improve your content based on the insights. Competitor analysis will help you revamp your blog and strategy.
Get Skilled in SEO
SEO is your gateway to higher conversions, traffic and engagement as people will only read your blog if you make it worthy of attention. To get organic traffic you must incorporate relevant keywords, learn how to rank in SERPs and improve your SEO strategy.
How to promote your blog
Finally, you must be proficient at promoting your blog using strategies, transforming content and catering to the needs of your target audience in different ways. Here you can get a snapshot of how to promote your blog:
Interlinking and Backlinking
Once you have started posting content on your blog, it will be a good idea to link relevant content in your blog so that it helps the readers find relevant information related to a topic they want to know about. Backlinking and interlinking help you gain authority and fulfil the E-A-T criteria.
Link your Blog
To guide people on your website towards your blog, you must link your blog from your website and make it easy to find by setting a catchy Call-to-Action (CTA). Improve accessibility to your blog and readers will be more than interested in visiting it.
Update the content of your blog
Updating your content saves you time and helps you share your content across multiple channels. You can share your updated content via email, videos, or social media.
Social Media Promotion
Your social media platforms act as a bridge between your blogs and your target audience. You can create appealing videos, graphics,and carousels to drive visitors to your blog using social media. Share the link to your blog across your social media profiles.
Run Ads
Sponsored content promotion is yet another way to promote your blog if your budget allows it. Running ads or boosted Facebook posts are lucrative ways to get started with paid advertising.
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