More than 50% of marketers say blogging is their top content marketing strategy. Why? Because there are tried-and-true advantages of blogging for long-term business success.
In this article, I’ll share 10 benefits of blogging and how you can use blogs to meet your business goals for years to come.
I’ve helped over a hundred brands grow their business through the power of blogging, and I’ve seen just how powerful it can be.
One of my clients prioritized blogging and got 190,000 website clicks in one year from organic search traffic alone. This doesn’t include the number of website visits they also received from other traffic sources.
Increase brand awareness
Companies that blog get more than 50% more website traffic than those that don’t. This naturally results in more brand awareness for those who have a blog and get traffic to their website.
Think of it this way – two brands sell skincare products. One brand has a blog and gets website traffic. The other brand doesn’t have a blog, so they don’t get many people on their website.
Which of these brands will likely be more popular with consumers? The one people know about because their website shows up in search results.
I have personal experience with this too. When I started my business, I Googled marketing topics a lot. Neil Patel, an online marketing expert, came up often. That’s because he has a well-optimized blog. Now I know his brand anytime it shows up on Google or social media, so I trust him, his resources, and his products.
Do you have a company like this you trust because of how aware you are of them and their expertise?
When companies blog, show up for their audience, and offer value, they naturally build brand awareness.
Boost your website SEO
Website SEO (search engine optimization) is how you show up on Google and reach your target market. Endless studies show just how critical website SEO is for business success, and you need a blog to optimize for SEO.
The stats don’t lie:
68% of online experiences start with a search engine like Google.
More than 50% of website traffic comes from organic search.
Search engine optimization drives over 1,000% more traffic than organic social media.
Source: Ahrefs
Reach new potential customers or clients
If you spend most or all of your marketing efforts on social media, you’re not alone. Many businesses do.
But did you know there are 3 billion more Google users than Instagram?
When you have a blog, you can reach people on Google that might not be on social media.
This isn’t to say don’t use social media marketing, but having a blog lets you reach a wider audience.
Stand apart from your competition
Think of a few of your competitors. There’s a good chance one or more of them don’t have a blog.
If you have a blog, it’s the perfect opportunity to stand apart and show up for your target market.
One of the easiest ways to stand out and build trust is by creating content that fosters connections and offers value – aka blogging.
Develop trust with your target audience
Business blogs are one of the best ways to show up for your target audience.
When people land on your website and discover your blog, it’s the perfect opportunity to show your expertise and develop trust. Unfortunately, many brands miss the mark because they don’t blog effectively or at all.
Here’s how you can blog in a way that builds trust:
Write a strong introduction that hooks your reader and tells them what the article will cover.
Share valuable content. If it doesn’t help your reader, don’t include it.
Back up facts with specific examples and statistics.
Be relatable by sharing personal experiences.
Engage the reader by speaking directly to them.
Be authentic. People connect with authenticity.
Note: Using AI-generated content for your blog is a recipe for distrust. AI pulls from already-existing content on the web, isn’t personal, and can never replicate human touch.
Grow your email list
Growing an email list is easily one of my favorite advantages of blogging. In fact, about 80% of marketers say email is among their top 3 most effective marketing channels.
There are many reasons email is incredibly valuable for long-term business success.
With an email list, you can:
Reach your audience without fighting algorithms
Personalize your content by segmenting your email list
Nurture existing clients or customers
Stay in touch with your audience for years to come
So how do you grow your email list with your blog? By creating a freebie that your readers can opt in to.
A freebie is a resource that helps your target market. For example, I have two PDF freebies: 7 Easy Tips for SEO and an Awesome Blog Article Checklist.
Freebies should be valuable to your audience so they have a reason to share their email to access the resource.
Once they opt-in, they receive the freebie and land on your email list.
Here are some tips for creating your freebie to grow your email list:
Determine a problem your audience faces. Your freebie should solve the problem.
Create your freebie using Canva, or keep it really simple with a Google doc.
Use an email marketing platform to create an opt-in form for your freebie. I LOVE Flodesk for this because it’s easy and affordable.
Add your opt-in form to your blog articles where they make sense.
Increase conversions
Many brands use social media for marketing and think that’s enough to reach their target market and convert leads. Adding blogging into the mix is an easy way to increase your conversions.
Not only can you grow your audience with a blog, but people who read blogs are in a buyers mindset, whereas social media users usually aren’t. Instead, they’re looking for entertainment.
In fact, 60% of consumers say blog posts are valuable in the early stages of the buying process. Blogs also have 3x the conversion rate of paid ads.
Tip: Convert blog readers into customers or clients by sharing a call to action in the article to join your email newsletter or purchase a product or service.
Create content for other platforms
While blogging is a long game that’s well worth it, a quick win with blogs is that you can create a lot of content for other platforms.
For example, I’ve created up to 10 social media posts from one blog article. That said, publishing 3 articles per month easily gives you a social media post for every day of the month.
Share business news and helpful information
When you think of blogging for small businesses, you probably focus on sharing helpful information with your audience. In fact, addressing your target audience’s pain points in blog content is the best way to capture and maintain their attention.
But you can also use blogs to share business news –new product or service launches, special events, or rebranding. Blogging lets you write long-form content about important business news to keep your audience in the loop.
For example, if you have a new product or offer, you want to showcase it and tell your audience about it.
You might create short-form content through social media and email with a CTA (call to action) to read the article to learn more.
Build a sustainable business
All of these advantages of a blog lead to creating a sustainable business. Many of the most successful companies that have been around for decades, including Disney, Walmart, and IKEA, have blogs.
Why?
Because blogs are one of the very few spaces on the internet you own.
Most places on the internet are similar to renting. This feels convenient and often works for some time but it isn’t long-term.
Your website, where your blog lives, is all yours. This space or the work you put into it can’t be taken away, so it continues to grow and help you build your brand for years to come.
Business blog examples
There are countless successful businesses with a blog.
Here are some of my favorite business blog examples because they share valuable content, showcase their offers, and boost website traffic:
Advantages of blogging: FAQ
Looking for more information about the importance of blogging? I’ll answer common questions below.
Why does blogging matter?
Blogging matters because blogs allow Google to understand what you offer and who you help. When Google understands and trusts your website, it shows it to its users, helping you increase website traffic to meet your business goals.
What are the benefits of blogging?
The biggest benefits of a blog are boosting your website SEO, reaching your target market, and developing trust with your audience. These blogging results give you a higher chance of conversions, meeting your business goals, and building a sustainable business.
What are the disadvantages of blogging?
Disadvantages of blogging to consider are the skills it requires, and the time it takes to see results.
Writing content that ranks high on search engine results pages and drives conversions isn’t easy because a lot goes into it.
Blogging also isn’t a quick marketing strategy. It usually takes about 24 articles to boost traffic by 30% and 50 articles to increase traffic by about 80%. You'll start seeing results once you get a foundation of high-quality blogs.
Fun fact: In 2021, marketers who prioritized blogging got 30x more return on investment (ROI) than those who didn’t.
What’s the best blogging platform?
I've worked with several blogging platforms, and I find Squarespace to be the best. That said, WordPress and Wix are other effective blog hosting options. Finding a platform with the features you're looking for is important, but any blogging medium works well for creating content and optimizing it for search engines.
Why is blogging better than social media?
Blogging is often considered better than social media because it leads to more conversions. Social media is meant for entertainment and making connections, while blogs reach people searching Google for a specific purpose. If you write blogs that address user intent, it’s easy to convert.
Read more: What is User Intent? A Beginner’s Guide
Advantages of blogging: conclusion
Blogging for small businesses is one of the best strategies for growing a sustainable business. When you have a blog, you can improve your website SEO, increase brand awareness, grow your audience, and build a successful business.
I’m so passionate about the power of blogging, I’ve written over a thousand blog articles over the past 5+ years.
Improve your SEO blog writing skills to drive results with my SEO blogging course. It’s a start-to-finish roadmap that teaches you everything you need to know about writing SEO-friendly blogs for long-term business success. Snag a free preview here.
