In recent years, blogs have become an important part of online marketing. The term "blogger" has even become a recognized job title. Blogs started as small, online logs written by individuals. Now many companies have recognized the potential of blogging for their marketing strategy. A blog can be used to write about many different topics. Whether political statements, experience reports, advertising information or comments, a blog can cover a lot of ground. Due to the increasing popularity and the rapidly increasing number of blogs, the quality of the content becomes more and more crucial.
Why should companies create and maintain a blog?
"Content is King" is the message most companies have understood by now. And blogs are a great way to regularly publish content. Blogs also contribute to search engine optimization by back-linking to the corporate website. Furthermore, blogs can be used to improve customer care and image cultivation. These positive effects require high-quality content.
However, blogs can also be used for forwarding the target group to further offers, which can be found, for example, on a landing page. This makes blogs a tool for lead generation.
How to manage a corporate blog?
First of all, a content strategy must be developed before the blog is published. This step is essential for companies that want to use the blog as an advertising, customer service and information platform. The blog represents the values of the business just like the corporate website and should therefore be handled accordingly.
At the core of a blogging strategy is identifying a niche to write about. Subsequently, sub-themes should be defined to offer potential readers some variation. This will also appeal to a wider audience. The selection of topics must always be coordinated with the defined target groups. After all, you want to be relevant to existing customers and generate new leads.
An underestimated aspect is often the competition. Before you implement your content strategy, you must also analyze the blogs of competing companies in order to stand out as best as possible. Publish quality content that is optimized for search engines, contains relevant keywords, and is ranked ahead of the competition. A comprehensive keyword research is enormously important to find out exactly what your potential customers are looking for online. Also long tail keywords can improve the ranking of your posts decisively and should therefore be incorporated into blog posts. Check keywords regularly, because the search behavior of potential customers can change.
The most important steps at a glance:
- Strategy and editorial calendar (frequency of blog posts)
- Keyword research
- Topic research
- Writing and editing
- Design (image and video material)
- Distribution
- Possibly re-posts
How do I promote my blog content?
It is a good idea to make a list of channels on which blog posts can be shared from the outset. You should also consider defining a publication schedule (e.g. publishing content every Tuesday and Thursday). Creating blog posts can be an elaborate process. Do not waste the effort by not promoting your content, e.g. via e-mail newsletters or on social media channels.
Furthermore, the time of publication is an important aspect. Find out when the target group is usually online and share your content at the right moment to ensure it will be read by the right people.
How do I measure success?
You can measure the success of your blog and the individual posts by regularly evaluating the key figures you define yourself. Such key figures can be, for example, likes, retweets, backlinks, number of subscribers, traffic, or the number of followers. It is entirely up to you what you consider relevant to the success of your company.