Blogging has become so ubiquitous that the word ‘blog’ is often used interchangeably with ‘website’. Like Facebook and Twitter, blogging has entered the common consciousness and even has its own spin-offs like micro-blogging. Even your grandmother probably knows what blogging is!
What a lot of people don’t know is how effectively blogging can be used to drive traffic to websites, forge long-term business relationships, and build brand loyalty.
That’s right: a blog can be an excellent tool to help you grow your business. If you haven’t thought about blogging in that light before, it’s time to start.
In this post, I’m going to talk about how to leverage your blogging skills to boost your business.
First, hone your writing skills
The great blogs out there have highly talented writers behind them. In fact, the entire business of the internet revolves around the most basic and fundamental of skills: writing.
Sure, some people have a natural flair for words. But that’s no reason to believe that you can’t train yourself to be a skilled wordsmith. And when it comes to blogging, there are certain pillars you should always use to hold your posts together:
- Headlines. These should be powerfully crafted and demand to be clicked on. They are what ultimately will drive readership of your blog. If you’re stuck for inspiration, use one of the many blog title idea generators out there to generate something that’s catchy without being clickbait.
- Style. Know your voice and develop it to keep readers coming back to your blog. If you’re someone who tends to speak in a short and direct fashion, you should write that way too. In fact, in general when writing for the internet, steer clear of long, wordy phrases. Our attention spans are not the same as they once were. Keep it clean, clear and concise.
- Structure. Break up bulky paragraphs with pull quotes or visual content to increase the likelihood that people will actually read your blog posts from beginning to end. Make a point quickly and then move on – in another paragraph.
- Quality. Never publish a blog post without editing or proofreading it. Enough said. No excuses. Sloppy writing conveys a careless approach to business. Editing is an essential writing technique that far too few bloggers work at perfecting. Yes, it takes precious time. But it’s worth every second.
Next, apply your writing skills to your business
You’ve been honing your writing skills and they have improved dramatically. Now it’s time to take them and apply them to areas of your business other than your blog.
Many aspects of digital marketing rely heavily on writing. And the same pillars that make for a good blog post also make for a good social media strategy.
Consider this: you have to be a smart, snappy writer to stay relevant and ‘liked’ on social media. Use the experience you’ve gained from blogging to craft tweets that read like a good headline.
This is especially true for brands in non-viral markets. Case in point: Brickell Men’s Products. They sell men’s skincare products – not something that gets shared around social media very often. So they craft direct, creative social posts that appeal to their target customers.
