3 Whys and Hows for B2B Blogging

In one of our previous articles, Content Marketing – The Fairy Godmother of New Business Opportunities, we said that consumers have become totally impassive to traditional marketing and agile marketers are looking for better ways to engage customers and are increasingly turning to content marketing.   And an essential tool, continuously increasing in importance in B2B marketing, is blogging.

Although maybe a bit slow to embrace blogging at the beginning, as it was seen a little too geeky, with unclear results, time consuming and even difficult, now more and more companies are adding blogs to their marketing mix.  And the statistics are there to back up widespread blog adoption, as B2B companies that blog generate 67% more leads per month than those who do not .

So why should a company start a blog?

• A blog has the potential to position your company as an expert in your field.   Write about what you know best and share your expertise with as many people as possible.  Engage with customers, prospects and other experts and the more you engage the more your reputation will grow.  And it goes without saying that once your reputation is established, maintain it, and you will find your customers will be both easier to attract and more loyal.
• A blog helps to create a dialogue with customer and prospects.  Done in the right way, blogging will attract comments from your target audience, on your products, services or just thoughts about your company and this will give you invaluable knowledge about your market.
• Improve search engine rankings and attract traffic.  Frequently updated and valuable content will make your website more visible and attract more visitors, which translate in more leads and ultimately increased sales.

I think the benefits of blogging are quite clear and worth the investment; because to obtain the benefits blogging has to be done properly, not as an after-thought.  And doing it right means considering the following three steps.

• Listen to your audience, continuously monitor social media, groups, directories and find out what they want to know and how can you contribute to the conversation.  Keep your eyes and ears open and respond to actual needs and wants.
• Write well, be interesting and post regularly.  Try to offer the reader a story, make them care about the subject, invite comments.  Set a schedule and stick to it.  But most importantly, write about what your business knows and does well and always be authentic.
• Promote your posts across social media channels and submit it to as many groups and directories where your audience can be found as possible.  And keep interacting with your audience.  It may be time consuming but even the best content is not worth much if it’s hidden.

In conclusion, a blog is a highly effective way of promoting your business and, once you get started, not that difficult to do.  In the beginning it may seem difficult to think of what to write but just keep in mind that you only have to write about what your business knows and does well and it will become easier.  Also, a professional agency could help you with the set up and promotion of your blog and even improve the presentation of your content.  So just start doing it, make your voice heard and the benefits will start showing.