Blogging isn’t rocket science; it’s easy to do. Just start writing. The more you write, the easier it will come.
If using a blog for marketing your business is a priority for you, you’ve probably read statements like this again and again. But all the advice in the world doesn’t stop the fact that when you sit down to write out a post, writers block is something that comes out and frustrates the best of us. So you start writing about things you are comfortable with. But is that truly the best thing you can write about? Are there things you shouldn’t share on a small business blog?
Dig Deeper: Content Writing For Top Performance
The answer is yes. While most small businesses have the freedom and flexibility to write and post anything they choose, there are still a few underlying things you should steer clear of and keep far away from your site. Have you made any of these posts before?
Excessive coverage of sponsored events. Its important to keep your community informed about events you are hosting and sponsoring. But not to the point of excessiveness. As a service business, your customers may appreciate the fact that you are sponsoring a local fun run in your community. But creating 25 posts about it in the month prior to the event won’t help you reach your target market, and won’t add anything to your blog. In fact, it can be a turnoff for the prospects attempting to gain more information on what you do. As they scroll through your content, they won’t applicable advice to the service industry you are in, not titles like “3 Days Until You’ll Find Us At The Local Fun Run”.
Dig Deeper: No One Is Going To Read Your Small Business Blog Unless You Do This
Information not applicable to your industry. If you are a local HVAC company, why are you posting things like “The Best City To Live In”? While it may be well written and a great topic, if you can’t marry it up to your overall business structure, it shouldn’t be showcased on your site.
A real estate agent, for example, might focus in on helping people relocate to her community, in which case a post like “The Best City To Live In”? would be a perfect addition to her blog. But for someone that offers services to existing homeowners – an HVAC company – the post would be meaningless and wouldn’t add to a visitors experience.
Political and religious views. Politics is a scary, unfriendly topic not only to people in the US, but throughout the world. Religion in many ways holds a similar connotation. Unless you wish to alienate a good portion of the population, and you are comfortable with that, leave all references to politics and religion of your business site.
A long list of sales messages. The ultimate purpose of a blog is to educate, not to sell. When people come across your information, they want to learn more about your industry, your products and services, how your information applies to their lives, and what information they need to make an informed decision before making a final purchase. They want information – not more sales tactics designed to try and get them to buy. Selling should be subtle and minimum at best. They will take the necessary steps to connect with you when they are truly ready.
Ultimately a blog is about connecting with the end user – your prospects and customers. Only you can decide what message to share with them and what personality you showcase. Your readers will appreciate your information if you stay true to your message. Make it link worthy. Give people a reason to want to stay and read and share.
- Share insider knowledge within your industry
- Share data, resources and statistics you’ve gathered
- Express your unique and expert perspective
- Link to other complementary businesses and blogs
- Create interesting and informative data
- Create in-depth content that teaches
- Provide case studies so readers can get to know your end results in a more effective way
If you always think of your reader before you push the publish button, your content will add value overall.