Blogging isn’t quite the new phenomenon a lot of people consider it to be – people have been blogging for around twenty years now and since the popularisation of multi-author blogs (MABs), blogging has become a part of everyday life for a large number of people.
Search engines love bloggers
It’s no secret that blogging is good for your website – the search engines love dated content. It gives them more content to index which is great for your search engine rankings. Google favour websites that regularly update their content, so developing a plan to publish unique content is a must – but we’ll come on to that later.
Let people know you still exist
It’s not just the bots who love your blogs though. In many cases you will gain a regular, loyal readership base who will come back to read your blog each time you publish something new, but it also shows to new potential clients three things:
- You still exist: you have a recently added article to your website from just five days ago – they know you are still operating
- You are an expert in your field: you have written an article showing you know what you’re talking about – this can only do good for your reputation
- It shows dedication: it takes time and dedication to write blogs and people will recognise and appreciate this. It shows you are serious about what you do and you are willing to give up your time to give something back to the readers
From experience, we know that a lot of people struggle to find the time amongst ‘actual’ work and family life to write blogs and maintain social media accounts, but it’s something we urge business owners to make time for.
How much should I be blogging?
‘How much should I be blogging’ is an age-old question that we here at Cosmic hear a lot – there is no definitive answer to this question, but a good figure is three to four a month at a minimum. One is a week is a nice round figure, so if you are able to schedule a day each week where you push out some new, unique content, you’re onto a winner.
Try and set aside some time once a week to get an article written – thirty minutes to an hour is normally enough time for a person to write up an interesting article for their readers. It may seem like a big chunk of your working time gone, but the potential benefits outweigh that. You are developing a trust in your brand by doing this, and showing you are knowledgeable in your field.
Research your audience
It is a good idea to do test runs over the first few months to see what days and times are most effective for your blogs – using Google Analytics you have the ability to track when traffic is peaking or at a low, so use this data to your advantage and publish your content when the exposure is at it’s highest. Don’t forget to share on your social networks too!
Seek professional, impartial, free advice from Cosmic
If you have any questions about blogging, get in touch with Cosmic by phoning the office on 0845 094 6108, or send Jamie an e-mail on jamie@cosmic.org.uk.