Do you want to substantially increase traffic to your website to boost the number of leads & conversions? It is as easy as B-L-O-G. We've often seen blogging overlooked as a lead generation tactic from businesses. Shockingly, in 2018 only 53% of Fortune 500 companies used blogging, which means a whopping 47% of them still don't understand the ROI a blog produces. But the analytics don't lie. Here are some baffling blog-related statistics from an Entrepreneur article:

• Companies with active blogs produce 67 percent more leads than those without active blogs.
• Companies with active blogs receive 97 percent more links to their website than those without active blogs.
• Companies with active blogs generate twice as much email traffic than those without active blogs.
• Companies with active blogs score five times more conversions than those without active blogs.

Let's break down some of the key reasons smart businesses are on-board with blogging:

Improve SEO

Improving your website's search engine optimization means driving more traffic to your site. Search engines like to see fresh content and blogs give you a convenient way to add new content on a monthly or even weekly basis. Sprinkling keywords* throughout your posts will also increase your chances of showing up in your target audience's query results. Google* and other search engines want to appropriately answer the searcher's inquiries. If your blog provides a wealth of relevant knowledge, search engines will serve that content up on a silver platter. Hubspot reports you have a 434% better chance of being ranked higher in search engines if your website features a blog.

Become an Industry Authority

Providing a wealth of knowledge isn't just great for winning over search engines. Creating educational posts about hot topics related to your industry positions your brand as an authority in your space. And consumers are more likely to do business with a company they perceive as an authority. In fact, 47% of B2B buyers read 3-5 blog posts or content pieces from business prior to even speaking with a salesperson. If your blog is a strong reflection of your industry knowledge, consumers are more likely to trust your business and therefore want to work with you.

Answer Consumer Questions

Having an FAQ page on your site allows limited space for answers which may require more detail. Creating blog posts to answer customer questions will help them before they even contact you. They'll say “Just imagine how helpful this business will be once I am working with them!” Additionally, answering questions frequently asked by your consumers may remove frustration for employees fielding customer service inquires. As we mentioned earlier, this also makes search engines more likely to serve this content up as an answer to queries.

Address Consumer Issues

It's nice to have a digital safety net for when potential problems arise with your brand's image. For example, if you run a blog for a zoo and visitors are constantly commenting the gorillas look unhappy, write a post about “How Our Zoo is Helping the Endangered Gorilla Population.” Even without issues to address, talking about the ways in which your company is involved in doing good will boost brand reputation.

Leverage Blogs on Social Media

Sharing blogs on social is great way to contribute to frequent posting without having to reinvent the wheel since you've already written the content. It's recommended you add a social share button to your blog so readers can share it on their social channels as well, creating even more exposure for your brand.

Use Blogs as a Sales Tool

E-books* and whitepapers* are great sales tools when it comes to making potential customers aware of your products and services. But they often are lengthier and therefore take a lot more time to create than a blog post does. Communicating via simpler blog posts can save time and money while still having somewhere digitally to send your customers to in order for them to get more info on why they need your business. When a potential customer reads a blog post and decides your products and services are worth checking out, it may make them feel more empowered and like they are making the decisions rather than “giving into a sales pitch.”

While creating a blog is a great start, giving it attention is even better! Marketers who prioritize blogging are 13x more likely to achieve a positive ROI on their efforts. We know your plate is already full and blogging seems like one extra to-do to add to your list. 10 Pound Gorilla can help! Our team is equipped to design, implement, and manage blogs for companies to include on-going content generation that ensures your blog stays relevant. We can also connect your blog to your chosen social media platforms so once a blog is posted on the site it is automatically displayed to your social followers. Contact us today for help getting started blogging for your business and see the ways in which it will positively impact your bottom line.

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