Tips for Starting Your Small Business Blog

There are a lot of really successful business blogs out there. Starting a blog when you’re surrounded by industry giants can be a little intimidating. But that shouldn’t stop you from starting a small business blog.

Here’s why:

Blogs Help Your Business Show Up In Search Results

One huge benefit of having a blog on your company website is higher search rankings. You don’t have to be an SEO expert to know what to write about, you just have to know what topics interest your customers.

In fact, that’s a great place to start when you’re creating a blog.

Compelling Content Keeps People Coming Back

You have a story to tell. It’s the story of you and your company. Why did you start a business? What makes your business unique? These are all things other people want to know about. They want to be a part of your niche community.

The only way to get them there is to start telling your story. Powerful storytelling will help people connect with your business. They may not be ready to buy after reading one blog post, but they’ll be more acquainted with your brand’s unique voice.

If they like what they read, they’ll keep coming back.

Do everything you can to keep them coming back often. A few strategies you can use to accomplish this are:

1. Blog Often

Pete Cashmore of Mashable created five or six pieces of content per day for over a year before before really picking up steam. Now, you have a lot to do while running your business, but that shouldn’t stop you from posting at least one or two pieces of content per week.

If you don’t think you have time to write every week, or you feel inadequate in your writing abilities, it’s totally fine to seek out the help of freelance writers to compose your weekly content. Just make sure you find a writer who understands your unique brand voice.

2. Stay Topical

When you outline the parameters of what your blog will cover, be sure not to veer over those lines too much. For example, if your blog focuses on social technology, don’t suddenly write a blog post about fashion trends.

This seems pretty obvious, but a lot of new bloggers like to let loose once they feel like they have a decent platform. Stay consistent and your audience will reward you with consistency.

3. Avoid Inundating Readers with Sales Pitches

Internet users usually want information when they fire up their browser. They’re not looking for great sales pitches. Using your blog as a sales pitch generator is a mistake. People will be immediately turned off by your content and won’t return to your website.

What people want more than anything is engaging content. Dorie Clark, a marketing strategist who teaches at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, says, “as long as your content is rich and thoughtful, you can build up a massive following and reputation.”

So start by creating great content. Then, be sure to get your content out there. One of the best ways to do this is a pay-per-click ad on Facebook. You only have to pay when someone actually goes to your blog post.

Time to Get the Ball Rolling

Now, you’re ready to get started. Building a blog is hard work, but it’s worth it. It will bring you loads of loyal traffic for years on end.