Let’s face it: the Internet is saturated with brands speaking to potential and current customers. And with so many voices droning on in marketing efforts, many people tune out rather than pay attention.
So, what’s the key to a successful business blog where your brand’s voice rises above the din? Authentic engagement is what matters. You not only want to reach the people who will most likely buy your product or service, but you want to build relationships with them. That’s how you win more business.
The good news is that you don’t have to develop a complicated blog with all sorts of bells and whistles, in order to develop authentic relationships with your readers. You merely need to know who they are, and speak to who they are. Instead of investing time in building a “fancy” blog, spend that time truly understanding your readers/customers.
If you want to create a successful business blog that will help you win more readers, fans, and clients, ask yourself these five questions:
- Who are you speaking to?
Though you might have hundreds or thousands of readers, when you write your blog, act as though you are writing for one person—perhaps your number one fan. When you write for one reader, your blog instantly becomes more engaging, personal, and persuasive. Go beyond demographics to visualize your fan—understand your reader’s dreams and struggles, empathize with them and inspire them. Your ideal reader—your one fan—can be your favorite customer, an imaginary person, or a composite of various people you know.
- What makes your prospects want to read your blog?
You know what purpose your blog serves for your business, but have you thought about what’s in it for the fan you are writing for? Your blog reader isn’t interested in your company objectives and doesn’t want to hear your promotional messages or sales pitches. In order to make a successful business blog, to make sure it becomes a must-read resource in your niche, try to think about how you can take away your reader’s problems, make them happier or more successful. The purpose of each of your blog articles define how you help your readers and keeps you focused on engaging and inspiring them.
- Does each blog post help your fan?
Stop creating content for the sake of creating content. If you want to engage your readers and win business, you must write about the topics that your readers crave. Try creating a running list of blog topics that you know are relevant to your readers—something that you can update as you learn more about your customer’s needs, values, and aspirations, and something you can refer back to when you’re ready to write a new blog post.
To generate ideas, ask yourself about your reader: What are her dreams? What are her struggles? Which hot industry topics does she follow? Which buying decisions does she need to make? Which resources could educate her? What questions does she have?
If you address these questions with your blog topics, your authority and following will increase organically and effortlessly—and so will your sales. Have any questions about creating a successful business blog? Drop us a line.