As marketers, we do a crapload of blogging. Why? Because that’s what we’re supposed to do, right?
Blogging is rule #1 in the Marketing Handbook Of Salesy Awesomeness, right up there with “Have a mobile-friendly website” and “Actually post stuff on Facebook.”
It’s what we’ve been told to do since the beginning of modern marketing – which wasn’t actually that long ago. It’s the core of inbound. The hotspot for SEO. The powerhouse of your website.
...Or is it?
How Has Blogging Changed?
Over the past five years, we’ve noticed a trend in blogging, something that’s made us question it all.
People aren’t reading blogs as much as they used to. Businesses create quality content and push it out on their site. But these blogs just sit there, gathering dust, before they vanish into the black hole of the internet (not to be confused with the dark web, which I’ve been told is actually quite lively).
Maybe blogging isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
OK, I said it. I’ve committed the ultimate sin. As a marketer, I’ve lost faith in blogging. And, as someone who writes those blogs, I’ve lost faith in myself. Now, I’m asking the question: Does blogging actually work?
According to new research, it does. But it’s the way you do it that makes all the difference.
According to HubSpot, businesses who blog are three times more likely to see positive ROI, on average. Companies who push out blogs see about 67 percent more leads than those who don’t. And, one out of every 10 blog posts is compounding, meaning it generates more organic traffic over time. These compounding posts generate as much traffic as six regular blogs combined and are responsible for 38 percent of all blog traffic.
Ok, ok. We get it. Blogging is inbound marketing gold. But if you aren’t seeing these results, it can be hard to see what the point is. After all, you have invested a lot of time and money into this whole “blogging” thing. If it’s not working, is it worth it?
Before you throw in the towel, keep this in mind: The problem might not be blogging itself. The problem...might be you.
I’m not here to point fingers. Not even the middle one. But, if you really are producing awesome content on your blog, (check out the video above to find out if you are), the problem likely lies in how you’re promoting it.
...You are promoting your blogs, right? Or are you just posting them on Facebook and hoping for the best?
We’ve been guilty of this ourselves. It’s so much easier to throw a blog post into the internet abyss and hope for the best, rather than putting money behind it and creating targeted advertising. Also, money.
Find out how to get the most out of Facebook advertising, here
But Facebook’s organic reach has been declining over time. In fact, organic reach has recently dropped from 16 percent to 6.5 percent of your total followers. If you have over 500,000 likes, it could even be as low as 2 percent.
Yikes.
It's Not Just About Writing & Posting
With this in mind, the best way to ensure your blogging strategy is successful would be to promote it. There are several ways you can do this. Creating a highly targeted promoted post on Facebook will likely give you the most results.
Other tips for breathing life into your dying blogs include:
- Incorporating video
- Redesigning your blog
- Creating higher-quality graphics
- Providing free content (that doesn’t require form submission)
Despite its popularity, blogging is still a relatively new process. As the years pass, it’s going to grow and evolve, like a kid maturing from an obnoxious teenager to a slightly-less-obnoxious adult. Until the next report comes out, your best bet is to continue blogging.
Just remember to promote posts every now and then.
Take your blogging up a notch and become a blogging pro!
