My father in law keeps telling me that he wants to know how to make money online. I reply by saying start a blog. The guy has way more fishing knowledge than most people and his blog would be killer. In fact we started him a blog and as you can see he has done nothing with it so he is not a believer. In all honesty I wasn't either when I started blogging. My dad was the one who convinced me to blog and it was a good thing he did. I hated blogging at first, even hated the word; I thought it sounded really dorky (still do). However, I can't argue with the results.
Many business owners that dabble in blogging or inbound marketing give up way too early in the process because it doesn't produce instantaneous results. Blogging and inbound marketing are long-term marketing tactics, but over time they will produce leads and eventually customers for your business.
There is a lot of advice given in blogs. What do you do when you have a question about almost anything? You Google it don't you? More and more people are turning to the internet to solve their problems and there are plenty of savvy businesses out there that are reaping the benefits. We give a lot of bookkeeping advice and QuickBooks tips through our blogs. We even have a whole library of QuickBooks video tips that show you how to perform certain QuickBooks tasks step by step. Blogging is a good way to establish yourself as a thought leader in your industry. People respect thought leaders, turn to them for advice, and enjoy doing business with them.
People write blogs because they just enjoy writing. Plenty of people write blogs without SEO in mind or the thought of ever making money. Genuine, fresh content is what they produce and people (as well as Google) love it. If you are passionate about whatever it is that you are writing about you are going to churn out good content. You will naturally build a following and you will have a successful blog.
People love to follow the fad and blogging took off in a big way. Many people start blogs because some marketing guru at a recent networking event told them they had to have one for their business. Many businesses start a blog but don't stick with it for one reason or another, and it eventually goes stagnant.
There is a lot going on with inbound marketing right now and it can be difficult to keep up. Take a look at social media and how many platforms there are. You can try and participate in all of them and do a pretty crappy job. The other strategy is to pick one or two social platforms that your business will do well in and exploit the heck out of them. Just because Pinterest works for one business does not mean it will work for your business. It's the same thing with blogging; don't jump on the bus because everyone is doing it.
Businesses blog as a way to network in a virtual environment. By sharing content across their various platforms it gives them an opportunity to connect with people all over the world. Just like in person networking you may come across prospects, customers and even the competition. One thing to keep in mind about social media is that it is social. When people write comments on your blogs or social media posts it is important that you respond to them; otherwise it's not social. Blogging allows people to find you and your business from all over the world; thus building your network.
People and businesses blog for all sorts of reasons. It doesn't work for every business, nor is everyone interested in blogging. However, if you are willing to put the time and effort in blogging can be very beneficial for your small business.
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