Entries Tagged 'blogging for business' ↓

Everyone is blogging these days, so how do you make sure your blog posts stand out from everyone else’s?

With the average number of blog posts in a 24 hour period being 900,000 making sure yours gets found and read is quite a tall order.

We’ve put together 8 tips to help you make your posts stand out.

Creating blog posts

Is there really such as thing as a perfect blog post? Probably not, after all, you’re writing for a diverse readership so what you write isn’t going to appeal to everyone.

But there are certain things you can do to increase your chances of getting your stuff read.

1. Headline

The beginning is always the best place to start.

Your headline is the make or break of your post. After all, if it’s a bit drab and lame, no one is going to take the time to read it.

Make sure it uses your keywords (but that doesn’t mean stuff it with them), it’s catchy, shareable and, above all, reflects what’s in the body of your post.

2. Sub headings

These are vitally important.

If you write a long post and its just reams of text, it’s not going to look very inviting.

But, if you divide up with meaningful sub headings, your reader will be able to easily navigate through the text. It will also have the effect of making it look easier to read because it will be broken down into bite-sized chunks.

3. Optimised, natural copy

That sounds like a bit of an oxymoron, but it really is possible to write natural content that is optimised. If you think about it, if you’re writing about a topic (such as gardening), your main keywords will naturally occur within your writing, so there is no need to try and shoe horn them in to every sentence.

4. Visuals

Visuals (so long as they’re relevant) can only enhance your blog post.

Graphics, images and videos will add a new dimension to what you’re talking about and add extra value for the reader.

5. Call to action

Even though you’re not directly selling through your blog post, you should still include a call to action.

It could be asking them to subscribe to your newsletter, your blog’s RSS feed or visit your website for more information.

After all, if you’re going to take the time to generate great content, you may as well get something out of it.

6. Social sharing

Adding tools to share your content on social media will help boost your readership and visibility in the search engines.

Twitter, Facebook etc., are everyday tools people use to communicate with each other and share ideas and information. Making it easy for people to share your content has to be a good thing – doesn’t it?

7. You may also like…

At the end of your post it’s always a good idea to add links to related content that your reader may also find useful.

8. Comments

There’s often a great deal of debate about whether you should allow people to comment on your blogs or not.

As far as we’re concerned, blogging is a way of communicating with people and allowing others to have their say and expand on your ideas enriches it.

Over to you

What’s your take on this?

Are there are any other elements you would expect to see in the ‘perfect’ blog post? Leave a comment below.

IBM published a very gloomy statistic – around 80% of corporate blogs don’t get beyond a fifth post.

Isn’t that incredible?

Is it really that difficult to run a blog?

Well, I’ve been blogging for about 5 years now and I’m still going strong, so what is that I’m doing that the corporates aren’t?

Showing commitment

One of the first things you must realise when you start to blog is that you must be committed to it.

It’s no good going into it all gung-ho only to suddenly realise you have nothing left to say after a few posts.

Coming up with great ideas day after day is one of the basic requirements of a blog. Of course, in a large company you have the benefit of numerous staff members who can also contribute, so there should be no excuse for running out of material.

If you don’t have the manpower to run the blog, why not outsource some of your writing to a copywriter who can create fabulous posts for you by recycling old white papers, interviewing some of your subject matter experts or producing posts commenting on industry news?

But content is only one aspect, you also have to publicize it through your social media channels, make sure your posts are found by using your keywords and keep an eye on your analytics to measure your reach.

Then you have the comments to consider. These must be responded to in a timely manner and monitored.

You see there’s a lot to think about.

Finding your voice

Assuming you have the commitment necessary to make your blog a success, you then have to think about how you want to come across to your readers.

There’s no point mimicking someone else’s style because why would anyone want to read a copycat blog?

It’s vital you find your own voice and style and come up with posts that are unique to you. After all, no one wants to subscribe to a dozen blogs that all comment on exactly the same stuff.

Also, try to mix your posts up a bit. Don’t just comment on industry news all the time, try adding in some ‘how to’ posts or top tips, perhaps even an interview or case study to keep it fresh and challenging.

Be patient

A lot of companies give up too easily. Once they start to blog, they expect to instantly see a vast increase in their traffic. But it doesn’t happen that way.

You must be patient because it will take time to get your posts to work effectively in the search results, for them to be found and for your readership to grow.

To encourage people to read your blog, make sure it’s easily accessible from you website, mention it in your newsletters and other customer communications and publicize each new posts through social media.

Above all be patient, it will happen.

Blogging isn’t a quick fix; its ROI won’t materialize over night. It’s a long-term commitment. So don’t give up, keep going because sooner or later you will begin to see the benefits.

Most online marketers engage in content marketing in one form or another.

They understand the benefits it brings to their website’s visibility, customers’ satisfaction levels and of course, their bottom line.

But content marketing is only any good if people can find your blogs and articles. So, how can you be sure it’s being found and being read?

It all comes down to measuring the 3 pillars of content marketing:

Visibility

This one is concerned with how easily people can find your content.

When you check your Google Analytics, if your page views are low, it would suggest your content is less than prominent in the search results.

You can remedy this by comparing the keywords that people are using to find your content with the ones that are part of your strategy. You’ll also need to check your META tags and META descriptions. And remember, your META description is the initial hook you can write to encourage someone to click through to your website so make sure it’s enticing.

Relevance

Assuming people can find your content, they’re only going to read it if it resonates with the. Are you offering a solution to their problem? Are you providing the answer they’ve been looking for?

In your Analytics, this can be judged by your bounce rate (the percentage of people that land on your site and then leave immediately). A high percentage suggests they are not engaging with your content. So, make sure it is packed with benefits and written from your customers’ point of view – not blatant promotion for your company.

Value

The type of post you produce is also important.

We’ve already said how important it is that your content resonated with your reader, but it’s equally as important that the format of your post appeals to them.

How to articles, statistics, templates etc., are all very popular because they give your reader something for nothing.

The number of sign ups to your RSS feed and the number of shares you receive on social media will reflect how ‘on target’ your information is.

You see, content marketing is essential for any online business – from copywriters to solicitors, software houses to photographers – it will:

• Promote you as an expert in your field
• Give you more ownership of the web
• Boost your visibility in the search results
• Generate links to your website

But to get the most from it, make sure you always think of your customer and measure your results.

This guest post is by David Harfield of iPhoneAppCafe.com. The author’s views are entirely his own and may not reflect the views of FreelanceCopywritersBlog.com. If you are interested in producing a Guest Post for this blog, please get in touch with your ideas.

After spending five years in the freelance copywriting game, I’ve had to iron out a fair few bad habits as well as learn a few good ones.  I’d like to share with you a few pieces of advice that will help turn any rusty copywriting skills into pure gold.

1. Know your audience

OK, this sounds like a fairly obvious point, but when you take the time to think about it, it is actually the most important thing to remember; if you want traffic to be directed towards your blog, you have to appeal to the people that make up that traffic.  So, if your blog or website tends to attract younger people or is based around a theme that is typically associated with the younger generation, consider this when you are wondering what vernacular to use.

Perhaps you could throw in a few ‘cool’ colloquialisms or reference some zeitgeist pop star to show them that you have the common touch.  On the flip side, let’s say that you work for a technology site; your audience is going to appreciate it if you have a decent grasp of technological terminology, so don’t be afraid to do a little research in this area.  Remember, a little can go a long way.

2. Make your titles ‘clickable’

In the blogosphere, one of the most important elements of your article will be your title; seeing as this is what your audience is going to initially be attracted to, it has to be particularly attractive.  So, let’s discuss what’s attractive.  I’ll bet that you clicked on this link because you thought that it would be a short, brief summary of copywriting tips that you could digest before moving on to doing something else (and you were right!).  If I had entitled it ‘If you want to improve your copywriting skills, this article can help’, most of you would have clicked off by the fourth word.

What I’m trying to elucidate is that short, snappy, keyword rich titles work best.  Don’t use language that alienates your audience, but definitely use specific niche keywords that they will be drawn to.  Numbered lists are very attractive too, as are ‘How To…’ titles; basically, most people are short on time and if they want to read an essay, they’ll buy a book (or at least go to a library…).

3. Proof, proof and then proof again!

Once again, this seems like a fairly facile point to make, yet you would be surprised at how many writers do not proof their work.  I like to encourage people to submit each piece of work that they write to the ‘Read Out Loud’ test (I’m pretty sure that you can work out how this test works); if it doesn’t sound right when spoken, it’s certainly not going to read fluidly and your audience will click off as soon as they are bored.

Concurrently, Google has recently altered its algorithm for ranking sites, meaning that user experience counts for a lot more than what it did previously; this means that if you want your site to rise up the rankings, you have to rid your articles of any (and I mean ANY!), grammatical and spelling errors.

David Harfield is the editor at iPhoneAppCafe.com where he reviews the Best iPhone apps and accessories.

OK, that’s nothing new. I’m guessing you’ve been told by umpteen marketers that you should be blogging.

But how much does blogging really help?

Well, according to Hubspot, companies that blog get:

• 55% more visitors
• 97% more inbound links
• 434% more indexed pages

Not only that, but 57% of companies with a blog have acquired a customer from it.

Still think you don’t need one?

Getting started

Now you’ve been convinced to start blogging, you have to decide a few things:

• The niche you’ll blog about
• The type of articles you’ll write
• Who will blog
• How often you’ll blog
• How you’ll promote it

Your niche

Before you put finger to keyboard, you need to give some thought about the topics you’ll cover. Obviously, it makes sense for you to write about your business activities. So, as I’m a copywriter my blog focuses on copywriting, marketing and social media.

Always stick with what you know, after all, that’s want you’re an expert in.

Type of articles

It’s good to add a variety of articles such as top tips, opinion pieces, how to guides, reporting on industry news etc.

As your blog grows your analytics will show you which articles are the best received. Using that information, you can hone your blogs to draw in more readers.

Who will blog?

If you run a company with several staff, why leave the blog writing to one person when you can ask everyone to contribute.

Just make sure they understand how their posts are to be written (i.e. in the second person with a conversational style and absolutely no jargon) and which keywords they should include. It’s a great idea to add an author’s bio too, that way you readers can put a face to the name.

How often is too often?

The frequency you decide on has to be achievable. If you are the only person in your business, setting a goal of a blog a day is probably not going to happen. I blog 3 times a week, which is manageable.

Set yourself a realistic target and stick to it. People will get used to your posting frequency very quickly so if you suddenly stop, they’ll wander off elsewhere.

Promotion

Many companies make the mistake of thinking that just because they have a blog people will read it. That’s not always the case; you will also have to show them it’s there. Social media tools such as Twitter are a great way to promote your blog and widen its readership.

Over to you

Have you been convinced to blog?

Perhaps you’ve been blogging for a while – if so, leave a comment below and let us hear your blogging success stories.