Why your client needs a business blog in 2020.

Some things should be left behind in the last decade: dabbing, Gangnam style, JoJo bows and Google+.

And some things don’t go out of fashion, like blogging for your business!

Have a client who isn't too keen on starting a blog?

It's a new decade- is blogging still relevant? Or is it a crusty leftover from the SEO feast of yesteryear? Let's take a look at some reasons why blogging is still a relevant and effective marketing activity.

This article is taking from my blog "Why your client needs a blog in 2020". Click the below to read the full blog.

Why your client should be blogging: summary

Short on time? Here's a quick summary of why your client should be blogging for their business:

To increase organic website traffic

To build trust with their potential clients and customers

To sell without being pushy

To share their knowledge and skills

To build their brand

Read on for a detailed look at each of these reasons (and how to overcome your client's objections to blogging).

Here are some repurposing ideas you can share with your client- it might convince them to give blogging a go!

(P.S. Want to use my infographic in your own blogs or social media content? Please credit the infographic to me, and link to www.natalleblas.com. Thanks!)

Why your client needs a blog in 2020

Blogging originally started as a creative outlet for many aspiring writers- think food bloggers, travel bloggers and parenting bloggers. Now it's a staple marketing tool used by businesses in all industries, as a way to communicate with their audience.

A 2019 survey conducted by Databox found that:

68% of marketers believe that blogging for your business is more effective now than it was 2 years ago.

Yet many entrepreneurs aren’t blogging for reasons such as:

Lack of confidence

Your client hasn't written anything since being in University or high school. They've forgotten some of the basics of writing and lack the confidence to blog.

Not knowing what to write

Blog post ideas don’t always come easy, and we all know about writer’s block. If your client wants to blog regularly, they need many ideas.

Thinking that blogs aren’t suitable for every business.

Years ago, blogs only existed for writers. You wouldn’t have found a blog on a real estate company website.

"My audience doesn’t read"

We've become obsessed with visuals. Not all businesses have a website- some have a strong social media presence on Instagram and Facebook instead.

If your client has an online content strategy, they should have a blog as part of that strategy.

I’m going to give you some solid reasons why your client needs a blog. If your client still isn't convinced, share a link to this post and get them to read through my ideas for how to overcome some blogging hesitations.

Reasons why your client needs a blog

Increase keyword rankings, organic traffic and sales

Publishing well-written and useful content can help you improve your website’s SEO. Blogs give you a chance to rank for more keywords and get more organic traffic. Optimise your blogs to increase your chances of ranking in Google. Need help with this? My keyword research services help you with optimisation.

Blogging can also help you collaborate with complementary businesses and bloggers through link building, which improves your authority and trust with Google. The more you improve your trust and authority, the more search engines will send organic traffic to your website.

Other websites may find your blogs and link to them or promote them via their social media profiles. This can increase your traffic and introduce you to a new audience.

Build trust with your audience

People choose to work with those they know, like and trust.

Trust can be built through communication, whether it’s talking to potential clients or sharing content with them via blog posts.

You could share helpful information that solves a potential client’s problem. You could write tips and ideas or interesting topics relating to your industry. The more you write, the more you become known and trusted.

Even if a potential client doesn’t need your client's services or products now, they’ll be more likely to contact them in future or recommend others to them.

Regular blogging also tells your client's audience that they;re reliable and dependent, which people value when buying a product or service.

Selling without using pushy tactics

What’s your perception of a business that doesn’t share much information about itself online? A business that doesn’t have a website, or has very little content? It doesn’t tell you much about them or why you should use them.

Most people don’t like cold calls and emails. Direct marketing laws make it tough to reach your intended audience.

By blogging, your client is communicating with their audience in a non-threatening way. Their potential clients can read the blog content at their own leisure. They can decide if they want to contact your client for further information or for a quote.

Sharing knowledge and skills

Is it important for your client to be perceived as an expert in their field?

Potential clients wouldn't be familiar with your client's knowledge and skills since they haven't yet worked with them.

Writing blogs allows your client's knowledge and skills to shine so that potential clients feel confident in using their services.

Building brand awareness

Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room.

Blogging gives your client's brand and business a voice and personality. It allows their audience to connect with them even if they're writing about business topics.

The content created for your client's website, social media and emails are part of their brand.

How to overcome blogging resistance

(otherwise known as, stop making excuses!).

Excuse: I don’t have time

Is your client too busy to market their business? They may not be blogging now, but I bet they're marketing themselves on social media or in person. If so, blogging will actually save them time.

How?

Rather than wasting time thinking of new content to create for social media and email, your client can use their blog content instead.

Solution: Re-purposing blogs will save your clients time

You’ll need to set aside time for writing and editing your posts but blogs are great for re-purposing content. One blog post can create multiple opportunities for content for your social media platforms.

How does this save you time?

You’ll spend less time thinking up social media content when you know you can use your blog content.

Another solution is to outsource your blogging to a content writer- there are writers who specialise in blogs for businesses. If you'd like to be referred to someone, please contact me as I work with many copywriters and content writers.

Excuse: I can’t write

That boring report your client wrote back in University or college may have scarred them for life and put them off ever writing again. Your client might've had poor spelling and grammar back in school!

Solution: If you can talk, you can write

Tell your client to forget everything they were taught about writing back in high school. And don’t worry, we’re not writing a thesis either.

Blogging for your business is much like having a conversation with clients. If you can talk to clients, then you can write for them.

It’s acceptable to write in an informal way. In fact, it’s preferred by most people. If your client wants to engage their audience and have them reading their content, it’s better to use a conversational tone. Like I am in this post.

Can’t spell? Use the spell checker tool. Crap at grammar? Use the grammar checking tool or install Grammarly or Hemingway.

Excuse: “Blogging isn’t suitable for my business.”

In the past, blogs were mainly created for hobbies and fun topics but this has now changed. You’ll find blogs for many industries and business types including real estate companies, financial advisors, business coaches and those in a legal profession.

Solution: Look for blogs in your industry

Have a look at some of your competitors’ websites to see if they blog- I’m betting if you look around you’ll find at least one that does.

If you believe blogging isn’t “professional sounding”, you can use other words to describe it. You might call your blogs “articles” or even create an online magazine on your website.

One final word

I've shared some compelling reasons why your client needs a blog.

Blogging for your business is a great opportunity to build an audience and showcase your business' products/services, knowledge and skills in a helpful and informative way.

The sky's the limit when it comes to choosing topics for your blog posts. If you need some help in this area, my keyword research services may help you- contact me about this.

Do you blog for your business? What have been the benefits of blogging? I'd love to hear your experiences in the comments.