“Do I really need a blog for my business?”

How many balls can you juggle at once without dropping any? Three? Five? One? How do you decide which balls to put down when the number suddenly rockets to seven?

Small businesses and startups inevitably have many balls in the air, and constant priority management is vital to ensuring smooth and successful operations.

Online content creation is generally not considered a high priority item for a lot of small businesses. Frankly, it is a task that many simply don’t think is worth the time, effort and money.

I get it, why should a hairdresser spend time writing blog posts on the latest hairstyle fashion or the effect of peroxide on your hair?

Here are just 5 (of many) reasons why:

1. Generates awareness

So why can’t you just put up a billboard to boost awareness of your business? By all means, do it! Every car on the highway will see it!

But that’s just it: every car. Not every driver on the A7 is looking for a football coach for their six-year-old son.

Content marketing is not writing a whole bunch of random social posts to get people to know about you. Rather, it is the consistent creation of valuable, relevant, and helpful content that will attract the attention of a specific, targeted audience.

We live in an age where we want to educate ourselves. When you were looking to buy or sell your apartment, how many people sent you a picture of an advert of a real estate agent, smiling and showing a thumbs up? I’m guessing not many…

On the other hand, how many articles or blog posts did you search – or were sent – about the property prices in Luxembourg? You can bet those articles weren’t written by the local dog vet!

Research has shown that businesses who have blogs generate 67% more leads than those who don’t. People are looking for information and for answers, and if your content is interesting and helpful then customers will read it and, ideally, share it with their network.

2. Showcases your expertise

The reality is that people want to have the Best. The best hairdresser, the best pest remover, the best creche for their kids… Demonstrating your knowledge and expertise in your online content shows potential customers that you really know what you’re doing.

A Google search for “Why does my pug lick the carpet?” could lead to someone finding your insightful blog post about the effects of canine saliva on Turkish rugs. They will obviously be so impressed by your in-depth knowledge about the precious carpet fibres that your business will be top-of-mind when their rug is due for a clean.

In the same way, a mother looking to find a good mathematics tutor for her junior Einstein is more likely to choose you as the teacher if you are regularly posting quality resources about getting the best out of young geniuses.

Why? Because she trusts in your expertise.

3. Boosts your search engine rankings

Over the course of the Covid-19 pandemic (March 2020 to now) Google search traffic has increased from around 3.6 billion searches per day, to approximately 6 billion searches per day!

This goes beyond suggesting that lockdown resulted in boredom – it shows that the number of people using search engines to find answers to their questions, or products and services to meet their needs, has never been greater.

However, in order to leverage off this, you need to ensure that your business ranks high on search engines. Good online content is one of the key methods of achieving this.

For a closer look at improving your Google rankings, check out our blog post on boosting your business’ search engine optimisation.

4. Keeps your audiences engaged and increases audience size with little cost

If you are consistently posting good quality content, your target audience will subscribe to your website and follow your blog, social profiles etc. Imagine having a group of your exact target market eagerly awaiting your newsletter in their inbox!

Obviously, the result is that when you launch a new product or offering, you already have a captive audience. This can help you reach more people without having to invest more budget into paid advertising and other short term promotion techniques. In fact, according to Demand Metric, content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing!

5. Promotes customer loyalty

We live in a world where we are surrounded by options. Looking for a new tent for your upcoming camping trip? A single search on Amazon gives you a million tents, a billion reviews and a gazillion opinions about which is the best.

But you buy the Supernova Mountain Explorer tent again. Even though the reason you need a new tent is because the zipper on your previous Supernova Mountain Explorer tent broke.

What makes you stick with them, rather than trying something new? You simply love the brand.

Lasting customer loyalty does not come from a product discount or a free gift. Customers stick around when they buy into the all-round brand experience.

Studies show that after reading custom content, 82% of customers feel more positive about a company and 70% feel closer to the company.

Customers buy into your brand identity, your voice, your “how-to” articles and your responses to their emails when their tent zips break. Authentic, quality content is how you create a voice and brand identity that customers stick with.

Conclusion

So, why should a hairdresser spend time writing articles on the latest hairstyle fashion or the effect of peroxide on your hair? Because it works.

That being said, if you really are juggling seven balls and feel that one more – regardless of how important it may be – will result in catastrophe rather than circus-standard acrobatics, ask for help. Poor content is not better than no content.

If you’re looking for support in designing or implementing a content strategy, get in touch!