Every new Business Blogging, knowingly or not, enters into competition with the other approximately 32.5 million other small businesses in the US. Fortunately, most of that competition is indirect. For example, new business websites must compete for attention with all the other business websites in the same business.
That competition does make it much harder for a new business to snag attention from either search engines or visitors. Setting up a business blog can help you break through the noise, but only if you do it right.
Keep reading for some key business blogging dos and don’ts that will speed your way to attracting an audience.
Do Use Focused Topic Selection
Mastering topic selection is one of the more difficult elements of business blogging. It’s surprisingly easy to pick topics that aren’t directly related to your business.
Choose topics related to your business that you know well. That lets you dig deep and talk with authority.
Also, stick with mostly evergreen topics. The occasional topical post can add a little flavour, but those posts will get stale quickly.
Don’t Post at Random
A random posting schedule will turn off your audience. Find a posting pace you’re comfortable with, and then post on the same days every time. Most businesses find one to two posts per week at a workable pace.
If you can handle three a week, great! Just understand that if your posting pace drops off, you’ll likely suffer in terms of visitor traffic.
Do Optimize
You’ll also want to optimize content on your blog. In most cases, that means selecting a relevant keyword or two and placing them in strategic positions in the post.
For example, you’ll want your main keyword in the intro and conclusion. Ideally, you’ll also work it into a header.
Don’t Forget Blogging Marketing
Blog marketing happens in two main ways. The first version of blog marketing is where you promote the individual blog posts themselves. This usually works best on social media profiles.
The other method of blog marketing is where you market your products or services inside the blog. That can mean a call-to-action at the end of the blog or links to your product or service pages inside the blog posts.
Do Use Graphics
Make sure you include at least one graphic with each post. Search engines rank blog posts with graphics higher than ones without. Plus, readers are more likely to visit a post with a graphic than one without.
Business Blogging and You
Once you get past the initial problem of how to start a business blog, you face the challenge of filling the blog with content. The good news is that there are some business blogging best practices.
Post consistently about topics you understand well. Optimize your posts with keywords, but avoid keyword stuffing.
Engage in some basic blog marketing, such as promoting posts and including internal links. Also, use graphics with every post.
Looking for some more digital marketing ideas? Check out the posts over in our Digital Marketing section.