The pros and cons of blogging for business 

Is having a business blog worth it?

In fact, companies that maintain blogs generate 67% more leads and receive 55% more visitors to their websites.

Sounds interesting?

Here, you’ll learn what a business blog is and why every B2B company should have one. I’ll also break down exactly how a blog can help your business grow.

What is a business blog?

A business blog is a page on a company’s website that is updated frequently with content. The blog usually centres around a specific topic, and companies use it to increase organic traffic, generate relevant leads, build authority, and strengthen their brand.

Why do businesses need a blog?

A blog is the perfect platform to share your knowledge and expertise through blog posts, customer case studies, white papers, and articles.

Doing so can help you attract, retain, and convert potential customers.

Now, you might think that blogs don’t directly apply to your industry or business. However, before making a purchase – whether it’s a camera or a CRM system – we all turn to Google for guidance. And guess what we find most often? Blogs!

It might not be obvious, but blogs play a big role in our buying decisions.

Now, here’s the catch: if you don’t have a business blog, your potential customers are likely to end up on a competitor’s. To put it simply, companies with successful blogs have a better shot at reaching people in need of their products or services.

How a blog can help your business grow:

Bringing the right traffic to your website: A business blog doesn’t just increase your website’s traffic; it brings in the right traffic. You reach your target audience by writing about topics they want to read about and using keywords they’re searching for.

For example, this blog is about marketing because I’m a content writer selling my services to people interested in marketing.

Helping you convert that traffic to leads: Each person who visits your blog is a possible lead, and you can turn them into one by adding a call to action (CTA) at the end of each post. Your CTA can be as simple as urging readers to sign up for your newsletter or offering them a white paper in exchange for their contact details. 

What are the pros and cons of blogging för business?

While business blogging comes with numerous benefits, it’s not without its challenges. One of the cons is that maintaining a consistent and high-quality blog can be time-consuming, and the results might not be instant. Plus, the online space is crowded, so standing out among the competition can be a challenge.

But despite the cons, blogging for business is still well worth the effort.

It’s a powerful way to build brand awareness, increase traffic, generate relevant leads, and establish thought leadership. Over time, the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks, making it a valuable tool for any business. 

Let’s dive into the pros and cons of blogging for business!

Pros of blogging:

Search engine optimisation: Blogging regularly with high-quality content can boost your website’s ranking in search engines and attract more organic visitors.
Authority building: Sharing valuable and authoritative content positions your business as an industry thought leader, building trust with your audience.
Lead generation: Blog posts can be used to convert leads by simply including CTAs.
Brand awareness: Blog content is shareable on social media, expanding your brand’s presence and potentially reaching a broader audience.
Cost-effectiveness: Blogging is often more cost-effective than traditional advertising, offering long-term value as old posts continue to attract visitors.
Customer retention: Providing valuable, informative content can help retain existing customers, who may return for more information or repeat purchases.

Cons of blogging:

Time-consuming: Consistently creating high-quality blog content can be time-consuming. Especially for small businesses with limited resources.
Require consistency: Consistency is key to a successful blog, but it can be challenging to maintain a regular posting schedule.
Results take time: It may take a while to see significant results from blogging in terms of increased traffic and conversions. Patience is necessary.

Topp 5 benefits of blogging for business 

1. Draws more visitors to your website

More traffic leads to more potential leads that can eventually become paying customers. Therefore, continually increasing and maintaining organic traffic is essential for companies aiming to grow. Regularly updating your business blog with SEO-optimised content can help you achieve this.

Here’s how a blog generates traffic to your website:

• Keywords: Conducting keyword research and implementing those keywords in your articles and blog posts can help you rank higher on Google.
• Backlinks: Creating valuable blog posts and articles increases the chances of acquiring backlinks, which can boost your website’s domain authority.
• Regular activity: Websites that publish content regularly are more likely to rank higher on Google because search engines prioritise indexing active sites over less active ones.

You might wonder, can’t you pay for traffic?

The answer is yes; you can use Google Ads to advertise in search results. However, this approach can be quite expensive, and as soon as you stop paying, the traffic stops coming. If you want to save money and see long-term results, it’s better to update your business blog with SEO-optimised content.

2. Converts those visitors to leads

A business blog can also help you convert more relevant leads.

To achieve this, you need to place CTAs (calls to action) in your blog posts. A CTA can be a button or a link that encourages visitors to take specific actions. Examples of CTAs can include “Subscribe to our newsletter,” “Download a free white paper,” “Book a demo,” or “Register here.”

Here’s how blog readers can convert into leads:

• Your visitors find your business blog through a Google search.
• They read a blog post and come across a CTA.
• Clicking on the CTA takes them to a landing page with a form.
• They fill out the form and share their contact information to access a white paper.
• Voilà! The visitor has now become a lead.

Consider using marketing automation to follow up with relevant leads through lead nurturing emails

3. Increases brand awareness

Blogging provides a consistent stream of fresh content that’s perfect for sharing on social media. By repurposing blog posts into engaging social media updates, you can enhance your online presence and reach a broader audience. This, in turn, opens the door to new website visitors, potential leads, and future customers.

Moreover, your blog serves as an ideal platform for sharing noteworthy company updates with the world. This includes success stories from satisfied customers, exciting additions to your customer base, the latest product enhancements, and introductions of new employees.

4. Generates 24/7 results

Your business blog works around the clock, every day of the year. This means it continues to generate traffic and leads even when you’ve gone to sleep, taken a vacation, or gone home for the day.

High-quality content writing is a long-term investment that yields enduring results. In my experience, it’s often the oldest blog posts that receive the most traffic. Therefore, businesses stand to benefit from creating evergreen content that maintains its relevance for months and years to come. 🍀 While it may take some time to see results from a business blog, once they appear, they tend to persist.

One tip is to develop a content strategy for your business blog. When you approach your blog strategically, you can expect it to continue driving traffic and leads in the future, whether you invest time and resources in it or not. Occasional updates may be necessary to maintain its ranking, but it doesn’t have to be an expensive or time-consuming commitment.

This makes a business blog one of the most cost-effective marketing methods.

A business blog is also a powerful tool for companies looking to scale up. More blog posts mean more traffic, more leads, and more customers.

5. Builds authority

By having a blog, you can provide your target audience with insightful content. This helps you build strong customer relationships and establishes your company as an industry thought leader.

🎯 If you’re not sure who your target audience is yet, consider conducting a target audience analysis.

A business blog can be used to educate potential customers on specific topics. Most of us are more likely to buy a product or service from someone with whom we have a relationship, ideally someone who has taken the time to educate us by offering free (impartial!) content. Companies that build relationships with potential customers (in this case, through a blog) are more likely to make sales.

In fact, 52% of B2B customers say they are more likely to buy from a company after consuming their content.

A business blog should aim to answer the audience’s questions and present solutions to their challenges. If you can do that, you have a great chance of positioning yourself as a credible source of information.

Where do people turn when they need to research a purchase? They turn to a credible source of information.

In conclusion, a business blog is a valuable resource for all companies. It can help increase organic traffic, conversions, and authority. By delivering relevant content, companies can build strong relationships with both existing and potential customers. If you don’t have a business blog yet or if you have one but aren’t publishing regularly, now is the perfect time to get started! Make a blog a part of your marketing strategy today.

✍️ If you want to regularly update your business blog but don’t have time to create content, contact me, and I’ll help you write blog posts that boost your organic traffic.