Much has been said about how important it is for every business to have an online presence. Naturally, many businesses have taken heed and have put up their own business websites to establish their brand and promote their products and services on the Internet.
These days, however, a simple business website just isn’t enough. In order to build authority in your industry and for prospective clients and customers to see you as relevant, a business website should always have a blog attached to it.
Every business needs a blog, and here are 7 reasons why.
1. A blog is your direct Internet marketing channel
What better way to communicate with prospective customers than through a blog? With a simple and easy to use blog, you can easily provide them relevant information.
2. A blog raises your online visibility
Writing a blog helps your business get noticed online. With each blog post you make, your chances of being seen become even greater. Potential customers and clients will take notice, and so will other writers, bloggers, reporters, who in turn can feature you and your business in one capacity or another.
3. A blog establishes your credibility
A blog gives you the opportunity to write about things that are related to your industry, and that will help you establish that you are indeed a credible source of information. The more credibility you have because of your blog, the more people will trust you and your business, and that could mean more business for you.
4. A blog is a cost-effective marketing tool
Sure, a blog is not exactly without expense, especially when you’re not using any of those free blogging platforms available today. But having a blog with its own domain and own paid hosting is infinitely more cost-effective than traditional paid advertising. To spread the word the word about your brand, products and services, all you have to do is post great content about them. Plus, a blog allows you to connect all your other online marketing campaigns from newsletters to social media in just one place.
5. Search engines love blogs
Whenever you come up with fresh and relevant content for your blog, you can be sure that the bots of Google and its siblings in the search engine industry will be all over it and thereby increase the chances of your business getting stumbled upon by your target online audience.
6. A blog presents plenty of new opportunities
By the time you have built your reputation as a good and relevant blogger, you will have the opportunity to write guest blog posts for other blogs within the same niche. You can also invite other bloggers to become a guest blogger on your blog. This two-way exchange provides you a chance to showcase your expertise in front of a different audience, not to mention good networking opportunities that could lead to a lot of good things for your business.
7. Engage your customers through blogs
From letting prospective customers know about upcoming promotions about your brand, products and services to asking for feedback about them, a blog has proven itself to be an invaluable tool for communicating with customers and prospective customers. With a blog, you can effectively create an intimate relationship with your target audience and keep their loyalty for a long time to come.
If you run a business and you still don’t have a blog, it’s never too late to start. You don’t really have to be tech-savvy to create one. Setting up a blog these days can be quite easy and it won’t cost you much.