If you only think of blogs as something uni students do to chronicle their gap years, then you might be baffled at the concept of a company blog.
Take a look at your most successful competitors’ websites, and you might not even see anything called ‘Blog’ on it. So why should you bother?
Here’s the thing – most companies do have blogs. They’re just called something else. Companies call them all sorts of things, such as ‘Insights’, ‘Resources’, ‘Knowledge’, ‘Articles’, or, in many cases, just the obvious ‘Blog’.
Whatever you want to call it, the place where you share insights about your products and services, company news and opinions about industry trends or activities is essentially a blog.
So back to the real question – why do companies need blogs?
We take a deep-dive into the purpose of a company blog, and why you might – or might not – want to start one.
You might have Product and Services pages that are brilliantly written. And hopefully you’ll have some excellent case studies and testimonials, too.
But there’s no better way to show your customers that you understand their problems and the issues they face than with a company blog.
The blog Tips for Using Retail Loyalty Apps to Boost Sales by app developer ADAMAPP is a perfect example.
While ADAMAPP can showcase a list of clients they’ve worked with and even mention a few brief details of how they help them with loyalty apps, this blog post gets to the heart of one of the key issues for companies considering these types of apps – how can I use them to increase profits?
By delving thoroughly into this topic, any business considering developing a loyalty app can see that ADAMAPP understands one of their main concerns about it – how to ensure the app isn’t just a waste of the company’s money.
But if ADAMAPP had put this long post into the Loyalty App section of their Products page, nobody would read it. They want the Products page to provide a nutshell summary of what the company does with that product. But in a blog, people expect to read longer articles that showcase a company’s expertise more thoroughly.
Most companies do not update their websites very often – and it makes Google wonder if you’re even still in business. It’s like having a shop but never changing your window displays. People who pass by every day aren’t going to want to come in if your wares are dusty and cobwebs are dangling from the ceiling.
When it comes to Google, your website is your shopfront, and your blog is your window display.
Google is really just a concierge that helps guide people to places it thinks they will like. And people like lively businesses that have something new and interesting to say.
Unless you run an online publishing company, such as a newspaper, the simplest way to let Google know you’re still around is by creating new blog posts. Even if you only upload one blog every week or two, it sends a message to Google that your site is active.
What’s more, blogs are an excellent place for your target SEO keywords, and a great way to create internal links – and to get backlinks – which are all things that can help you go up the search rankings.
Not only do blogs showcase your company’s personality – and yes, you have one, whether you realise it or not – they also show that you’re active and up-to-date in the industry and in the issues relevant to them.
Whether you run a B2B or B2C company, your customers – both potential and existing – want to hear your insights in your area of expertise.
Create a good blog and not only will Google start sending more people your way, other people will start spreading the word about your company, too, by sharing your articles with their network. And there is no more powerful advertising method than word of mouth.
Your company is on social media. And if you ask your social media manager the best way to drive traffic from your social media channels to your website, they will almost certainly tell you it’s by creating interesting, shareable content.
A blog is the ideal place to do that.
You can create all sorts of interesting and fun content for your blog that your social team can push out to your followers. This generates interest among your social network followers – which in turn boosts the number of potential customers visiting your website.
When you’re trying to develop a warm lead, blogs can help turn them into customers. You can target particular markets, then create blogs that speak directly to them. Using segmented marketing tools, you can then send these to them in email newsletters. And your sales team can use them as part of their communications strategy.
The good news is that it doesn’t matter if the blog was written a year ago. As long as it’s still relevant to your customer, they won’t care about the date on the blogpost.
Keeping your current and potential customers abreast of your company news helps keep you front of mind for them. It could be details of new products or services you’re offering, important new hires or information about company developments.
And if you have awards, press coverage and other prestigious information to share, even better. This helps them realise that others value your company, too, which can make them more likely to purchase.
…there’s one very good reason not to write one.
Creating a poor company blog is a complete waste of money. Instead of doing all of the above, it does the opposite. If people click on your blog and find it uninteresting or badly written, they will quickly leave. This not only damages your company in the eyes of your customers, it also has a negative effect on your Google rankings – no matter how many SEO keywords you cram into it.
Unless you are willing to devote the time and effort needed to create a good blog – one that your customers want to read – then you’re better off not doing one at all. You’ll be missing out on all of the opportunities above, but at least you won’t be making your company look worse in the eyes of your customers and Google.
Blogs work for companies of all shapes and sizes – and the UK’s most successful companies have them, including Amazon, KPMG, EDF Energy, Starling Bank and LinkedIn. Even Google has a blog.
If you lack the in-house resources to create a good blog, we can help.
At Proof Content, we create engaging, insightful and shareable blogposts for all sorts of companies. We have a pool of more than 150 freelance copywriters and journalists, covering a wide range of industries, so if you need a blog, we have the resources to manage it for you. Speak to the team.
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