The 7 Ways a Blog Can Grow Your Small Business

If you want the best for your small business, you’ve likely considered starting a blog. It seems as if everyone has a blog these days, but is it really worthwhile? The short answer is — yes, absolutely. Taking the time to build a blog can help your small business grow immensely. 

The reality is that creating relevant content can be an incredible marketing tool to drive customers toward your small business. Without one, your small business is missing out on a massive audience that could generate new growth and revenue. 

Why Your Small Business Needs a Blog

Whether you are a local florist trying to help your marketing efforts blossom or a fine cheese importer looking to build a community of gouda gourmands, starting a blog can help your business grow.  It’s arguably one of the best investments that you can make for your small business, as an updated blog is always there for potential customers to reference, unlike email or print ads which can get deleted or thrown away. 

Blogging is an amazing way to boost your website traffic, develop trusting relationships with existing and potential clients, and generate social media sharing opportunities. Now, just imagine someone from your hometown googling your industry and finding your small business’s blog at the top of their search engine results page. 

1. Boost Your SEO and Drive Traffic to Your Website

Search engines like Google are always looking for fresh, newly updated content to share with their audiences. By posting regularly on your small business’s blog, you provide more content for search engines to index and display in their results when people enter search queries.

By posting relevant content about your niche, when potential customers in your local area search for related terms, it is more likely that your website will show up. For example, if you sell custom stationery and write a blog about the best stationery types for wedding invitations, people who are searching for wedding invitations could discover your website through that blog post.

As a bonus, if you are posting high-quality content that is relevant and informative to the topic at hand, there is a strong chance that other websites will use your content as a source and link back to your blog. This is called a backlink. Backlinks are incredibly useful in boosting SEO because search engines use them to help decide if your website is authoritative. 

2. Develop Long-Term Relationships with Clients

As a small business, it is important to develop a strong community and positive relationships with your client base. A blog can help your small business accomplish this by connecting with visitors to your website in a more engaging way. They can comment on your posts and add feedback, allowing you to develop a rapport with the community you serve. 

Blog posts also allow potential new clients to see the more personal, human side of your small business. Many people today care more about the human element of a brand’s story, and through posting blogs, you are able to share this side with them. 

With a blog, your small business can demonstrate your commitment to your vision, ethics, standards, and your personality in general. Let your story shine through! 

3. Establish Your Brand as an Industry Leader

Even if your brand is small, your influence and industry clout can always grow by providing your audience with valuable information through blog posts. Use your blog as an opportunity to demonstrate your expertise in your given field. That way, people will look to your brand as a resource, not just as a brand. 

By blogging, you build authority in your field. People respond to leadership. Make sure to post regularly on your blog so that potential clients know that you are aware of new industry trends and developments. When writing blog posts, make sure to put in the time and effort to ensure that you are providing valuable, educational information to your audience. 

4. Develop Brand Loyalty

Providing value to your audience through blog posting is one of the biggest benefits for your small business. Instead of ads that can come off as in-your-face, blog posts can help you connect with your audience. By providing useful information, your business can help them troubleshoot issues or learn something new. 

Although you’re providing these posts free of charge, they actually perform a useful service to your small business as well as your clients. Through posting blogs, your small business is building brand loyalty that might be the deciding factor in a customer choosing your business over a competitor. 

That being said, you can also promote your brand by including things like customer testimonials and calls to action on your blog. These subtly can nudge your audience towards the next step of frequenting your business. However, be sure not to simply write posts that provide little information other than a sales pitch — audiences are not typically interested in reading these types of blog posts. 

5. Create Social Media Sharing Opportunities

These social media sharing opportunities can come about in two ways: either customers and other interested parties will share a well-written blog post, or your brand can create more content to share on social media through your blog. 

Every time that you post a new blog, you are creating an opportunity for people to share your content — it could even go viral! If you create high quality content, people will want to stay in touch and you can build a following on social media. Whether they are sharing your work through a Facebook post, a tweet, or an Instagram story, it is all free marketing for your small business. These external posts also act to make your small business more credible to other potential clients. 

Additionally, if you are struggling to come up with things to share on your own branded social media accounts, blog posts can be a great option. These help to build a regular posting schedule with quality content. Make sure to add your social media links to your website so that your audience can connect with your other social media content as well.

6. Build Stronger Email Campaigns 

Just as you can share your blog posts to social media, you can also create a newsletter to share with your email marketing list. Make sure to add an option on your website’s blog for visitors to sign up for emails so that they can stay updated on all of your latest posts. 

A strong email presence can benefit your small business. You can generate more leads through promotions and news updates to keep your brand fresh in your clients’ minds. Did your brand win an industry award or host an exciting event? Use your email list as an opportunity to share this news. 

7. Convert Website Traffic Into Leads 

Once you start to bring in website traffic through your blog, it is time to convert that traffic into leads. Every blog post that you write is an opportunity for your website to generate new leads through a simple call to action. 

A call to action can nudge clients to do anything from read an ebook that your small business offers, sign up for a webinar, or subscribe to your newsletter. Basically, anything that the client would share their information for in exchange for this service. Even this blog post has a call to action at the end! 

Sure, not every single blog post reader will be converted into a lead. Don’t be discouraged. Just start blogging, add in those calls to action, set a realistic conversion goal for yourself, and keep trying to improve until you see the results you want. 

Starting Your Blog

Starting a blog for your small business doesn’t have to be stressful or time-consuming. Ultimately, the main thing is just to start writing! However, consistency is key in the blogging era. Don’t just post four blogs in one day and then leave your blog alone for the rest of the month. If you aren’t consistent, your blog will be stale and not as topical. Consider setting up a content calendar for your blog so that you can stay on top of everything. 

Your blog should contain posts that you would like to read. They should be helpful and informative, not just content for the sake of creating content. Typically, longer blog posts rank higher in search engines than shorter blogs. However, make sure that you are still prioritizing quality. 

Seeing long-term results from blog posting doesn’t happen overnight. It takes dedication and incremental growth. However, if you put in the effort and stay consistent, you will be rewarded by results. 

If you want to learn more about how to start a blog for your small business or you need help with keyword research or optimizing your post for search engines then please reach out to our team at Harvest Moon Marketing today. We are here to help small business owners like you reach your digital marketing goals.