5 Business-Blogging Mistakes -- and How to Fix Them
5 Business-Blogging Mistakes -- and How to Fix Them
The year was 2008, and I had just launched an independent
financial-planning firm. As a new business owner, I had determined that
my number one goal was to stand out. But, how?
Eventually,
I stumbled on the concept of blogging. I didn't know how to blog or how
to get started, yet I quickly recognized the inherent value of reaching
out to potential clients on their home turf -- the internet.
After figuring out how to launch my website, Good Financial Cents,
I dove into the various strategies that might help me succeed. I
learned everything I could about search engine optimization (SEO), email
marketing and creation of content that would be appealing to everyday
readers to reach my goal of creating the best financial-lanning blog on
the web.
Flash-forward to today: The number of financial-planning
blogs has exploded, a testament to what I knew back then: Blogging is a
smart way to connect with existing clients and cultivate relationships
with new ones.
Further, I've learned a lot about blogging,
exploring how other industries use the web to reach their potential
clients. On the flip side, I've seen business blogs that are an absolute
disaster -- ineffective, generic or simply unable to reach their
potential. Here are those lessons and the common mistakes that hold
businesses back.
Mistake 1: You don't even have a blog.
These
days, it takes some effort if you want your business to stand out on
the web. A fancy website design and professional photography look nice,
but is that all you have? Unless you also have a voice, your website is
nothing more than an online business card. You aren't speaking to your
customers if all they can read is sales copy.
To separate yourself
from your competitors, it's crucial to write fun and informative
content. Not only does this allow clients and customers to learn more
about you and your business, but it gives people insight into what
you're about.
Remember, customers want to work with people, to
know who you are. The more personal you can make your business, the more
successful you'll become.
Mistake 2: You don't bother with SEO.
As
a business owner, you're probably busier than most people you know.
That doesn't get you a free pass from learning about SEO, or search engine optimization.
While some people think of SEO as the black magic of online marketing,
SEO in reality is what helps potential clients actually see your stuff.
And if you're going to bother having a blog, you should make sure people
see it, right?
"Maximizing your content to be SEO-friendly means
including a common keyword that is utilized throughout the title,
images, header, and body of the blog," SEO expert Tom Harness of Harness
Digital Marketing told me. "It's not rocket science, but it's extremely
important."
When I first started blogging, I had a goal of ranking for the term "financial planner in Illinois."
Since I didn't want to pay for a proper SEO strategy, I came up with a
game plan to rank for this term on my own. First, I made sure I had
"financial planner in Illinois" throughout my website -- and even that
small change made a huge difference. From there, I created a specific
landing page, what I called the "SEO Targeted Landing Page," whose
primary mission was to rank for that keyword.
Oftentimes,
I see small businesses that want to rank for a specific term but don't
even mention it on their sites. If you don't want to pay an SEO expert
to create a strategy for you, the least you can do is make sure the best
terms to describe your business are featured prominently and, better
yet, on a specific landing page.
Mistake 3: You're not gathering emails.
During
my first two years blogging, I failed to recognize the importance of
capturing emails. Over time, however, I realized that what many email
marketers say is true -- the money is in your list.
Once that
lightbulb went off for me, my ability to nurture leads and prospects
became a lot easier once I had potential clients' contact information. I
also realized that, when I wanted to promote certain events, webinars
and trainings, I could access my readership much more easily via email.
Depending
on your type of online business, you may also offer special promotions
on products you sell. What better way to advertise those specials than
with a dedicated list of emails from people who have actually signed up?
"Building
an email list is the single most valuable thing you can do to control
the future opportunities in your business," Nathan Barry, the founder of
ConvertKit, told me. "Every day you spend without an email list is a
missed opportunity. Every email subscriber you gain is a potential
future customer, so get started now and treat each person like they're
the key to growing your business. Because they are." Remember, people
don't hand over their emails without a prompt. You have to ask.
Mistake 4: You don't have a lead magnet.
Once
I figured out the value of an email list, I did what a lot of newbie
bloggers do and invited people to join my list out of the kindness of
their hearts: "Hey guys, sign up for my email list to get my newsletter
and free updates!"
Free updates on what?
At first, I didn't
bother explaining what people would receive, or why they might want to
give out their precious email addresses in the first place. What was I
offering in return? At the time, even I couldn't answer that question.
That's changed. Nowadays, I have a lead magnet --
a free "gift" that rewards people for signing up. Right now, my lead
magnet is my "Money Dominating Toolkit," which includes various pdfs and
two chapters of my book, Soldier of Finance.
Once I
began offering this lead magnet, my email subscriber base increased more
than two-and-a-half times overnight. My biggest regret is that it took
me two years to figure this out. Just think of how much bigger my list
might be now if I had started offering an incentive earlier.
Mistake 5: You forget about your story.
While
a business blog should be professional, it's not a place for generic
and boring content. Ghost-written articles can work but only if they
resonate with your readers. And if you're just copying and pasting in
press releases, they won't help you build traffic or loyalty, either. For
your business blog to be successful, you need to incorporate a story or
some sort of narrative. By telling your story, you'll build trust and
become much more relatable.
You definitely want to showcase your
expertise, but you should do so in a way that engages your readers.
Donald Miller, founder of StoryBrand,
espouses the virtues of building brands through storytelling on his
website. "If you want to write a book about physics, you'll have to know
a lot about physics," Miller has written on his site. "And the same
goes for psychology and botany. But to write a humane book, be it
fiction or memoir, all you really need to know is your own story."
The
idea behind your business blog should run in the same vein. If you want
your business to have a human component, you need to show your
humanity. The best way to do that is to share your life and your
experiences.
Final thoughts
Blogging
isn't hard, but it does require a huge investment of your time.
Blogging also requires guts -- and the fortitude to put yourself out
there whether anyone is reading or not.
And like it or not,
blogging is the future of business. Why? Because your customers and
clients are on the internet, and if you want them to find you, you have
to be there, too.
When I created my online course for financial
advisors, the idea that blogging was no longer optional was one of the
biggest lessons I hoped to convey.
When
it comes to blogging, you too can either dive in and learn or stand on
the sidelines and watch others succeed. It's not enough to have an
online business card these days; you need an interactive element that
shows who you are.
leave some comments...
Posted By Abayomi Ismail
Source:Written by Jeff Rose is an entrepreneur disguised as a certified financial planner, author and blogger.
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