The first of many to come, this ultimate checklist will guide you through blog marketing for your firm.
Why write blogs?
If you think blogging is for teenagers, then think again.
Blogging has branched out from ‘just a personal online diary’ to something that a huge number of businesses leverage in order to demonstrate their authority and expertise within their industry. Not to mention it will help you to generate leads.
“Small businesses that embrace blogging see 126% more growth in terms of leads than those that don’t blog.” (Source: ConvertWithContent)
So, ‘why blog?’, you ask?
Well, as made evident by the statistic above, blogging has a very positive effect on lead generation and business growth.
57% of companies with a blog have acquired a customer through it (Source: HubSpot), which means that businesses who choose not to blog regularly (or at all) are putting themselves at a disadvantage when competing against those who do.
So, without further ado, here’s a blog marketing checklist that’ll guide you through the best practices to get your blog off the ground.
What to consider when beginning and perfecting a blog for your firm:
1. Have you identified your target audience?
When starting a blog for your business, the first and most important thing to consider is who you’re targeting.
To attract the right readers, your blogs must be tailored to their interests and/or needs.
Remember: Blogs can be both interesting and educational, but avoid hard-sell sales approaches, as they deter readers.
2. Have you decided on the purpose your blog serves?
Most businesses that blog do it to generate leads and interest in their firm. However, successful blogs don’t sell services, or at least not obviously.
Instead, they write about their clients’ needs and relevant industry issues that their clients face, ultimately tying back the topic to a service their firm can offer or an area of expertise their firm specializes in.
By sharing thoughts and understandings on relevant industry matters, they position themselves as thought leaders, ultimately becoming more appealing to their target audience.
If you sell consulting services, for example, chances are your clients won’t want to read about consulting in great detail, but rather how hiring a management consultancy (namely your firm) will help to better their business.
Tip: Give them results and examples to help them understand the benefits of hiring you. By referring to results and case studies your firm has generated for previous clients, you’re promoting your services, without being too ‘salesy’.
3. Have you decided on your tone of voice?
Once you’ve identified your target audience, you’re then able to determine the tone of voice and amount of familiarity or formality you want to use.
It’s important to understand the relationship you wish to create with your readers; do they want to read casual blogs or formal and professional style blogs?
Remember: Consistency is key! Once you’ve decided on your tone, stick to it.
4. How frequently will you post and how long will each blog be?
The more you post, the more information you’ll collect to inform best performing times and blog topics. The frequency of your posts will depend on how your unique audience engages with your content, and should be modified to meet their needs. At a minimum, try and post 5 times a month.
Remember that posting too often can be just as detrimental as not posting at all.
Your content can range from a short 200 word blog, to a longer 1000 word blog. I recommend varying the length of each blog you create, in order to ensure that you appeal to a wider audience.
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Implement these points when starting or growing your firm’s blog and you’ll see a positive shift in the number and quality of new business enquiries you receive.
For more client attraction insight, download our free guide ‘The Self Managing Client Attraction Process’ where we discuss breaking the feast/famine cycle and generating a list of qualified prospects.
Then, if you feel our services would benefit your firm, get in touch so we can discuss the next steps.
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