Are you wondering why your blog isn't driving more business for your company? You’re not alone. Many companies are struggling to figure out how to get the most from their blog, and some may be missing key pieces to the puzzle. The problem? Many companies don’t have a content strategy in place.
Blogs can be an invaluable resource for marketing, lead generation, building relationships with customers and prospects, and establishing yourself as a thought leader. However, despite all of these benefits, many companies fail to maximize their blog's potential. In this article, we will explore why your blog isn't driving more business, as well as actionable steps you can take today that will help you leverage your blogging efforts for maximum impact.
In a digital world of endless distractions, scams, and poorly crafted content, we’re here to help you learn how to use your blog to guide your customers on a strategic journey.
The Importance of Strategy
It’s time to don our “extended metaphor” hats and imagine that your customers are hikers about to set out on a trek. You have a viewpoint that you want them to end up at, wanting to engage with your product. But without a clear trail or signposts, chances of them reaching that viewpoint plummet. In fact, the more unrelated twists and turns they take, the higher their chance of getting confused and giving up.
“If your customer gets lost, you’ve lost your customer.”
Steps to Strategize Your Blog Content
- Determine Your Goal
The first step to getting the most out of your blog is to have a clear understanding of what you want it to accomplish. Do you want to increase brand awareness? Generate leads? Establish yourself as an authority in your industry? Knowing what you want your blog to do will help you create content that is tailored toward achieving those goals.
- Craft the Strategy
Once you have a clear understanding of what you want your blog to do, the next step is to create a strategy for how it will get there. Here you are building the roadmap. This includes understanding the best outlets available, deciding on topics, creating an editorial calendar, and setting up systems for tracking and measuring success. Without a strategy in place, it 's easy to get off track and lose focus.
Maintaining a Content Calendar
A content calendar serves two main purposes: Firstly, it allows you to plan your content out in advance so that you give intentional thought to the information you share, and how it fits into the journey you are taking your reader down. Are you setting up all the right signposts for your hikers?
Secondly, it makes it easier to integrate supporting content. If Blog 1 is scheduled for Sunday, now you know when to release teaser posts, follow-ups, polls/surveys, live commentaries, etc. You’re able to give your content a longer life cycle and have a bigger impact on your consumers decision making process.
Determining Your Target Personas
Identifying your audience is key. As you seek to lead your readers to your product, ask yourself: Did you carve a path for a specific audience? A trail meant for families will look vastly different than one intended for expert hikers. Crafting “Consumer Journeys” with specific personas in mind can avoid creating confusion. Remember, once your customer gets lost, you’ve lost your customer.
Tracking and Measuring Your Success
Once you release your content out into the wild, it’s important to keep a close eye on how it performs. By measuring the success of your articles, you can see what your audience responds to and what’s contributing to conversions. No content calendar is set in stone, and drawing data-driven insights from blog performance can help you make adjustments that will keep your audience engaged and on track to becoming a customer/client.
- Repurpose Your Blog
Finally, it's important to remember that your blog should be a part of your overall marketing strategy. Model this after that Swiss Army Knife all of your hikers have tucked away in their rucksacks. That one blog can be broken up into a surprising amount of content. It should be integrated with other channels such as social media, email, and paid advertising.
This is another way for you to meet the consumer where they’re at. Perhaps one of your personas doesn’t spend time on your blog page, but they’ll still see your value points on social media or in your email campaign. This will help ensure that you are getting the most out of each channel and maximizing the impact of your blog.
By following these steps, you can ensure that your blog drives more business for your company. With a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish, a comprehensive strategy in place, and an integrated approach across all channels, you can maximize the potential of your blog and start seeing results. The digital landscape is still the Wild Wild West in a lot of ways. But with a strategic guide, you can bring your customers through to your final destination, without them even knowing.