Is Blogging Still Relevant in 2022?
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As I sat down to plan out my blog posts for 2022 earlier this week, I started to wonder, ‘why do I even bother? Is blogging still useful?’ Despite the self doubt that creeps in sometimes, the answer is right in the data. Google Analytics doesn’t lie! People are discovering my business every day through organic search, primarily thanks to this blog. Blogging isn’t dead, despite what you may have heard. Let’s explore the benefits of blogging and how to create valuable blog content.
The Benefits of Blogging
Blogging has evolved over the past few years. We’re no longer living in the era in which people subscribed totheir favorite blogs through an RSS feed. Yet, consider all the times you’ve had a question, googled it, and read articles from the search results. Often, those are blogs! If you’re blogging consistently, you may be able to get your blog content to appear in search results for exactly the kind of people you’re hoping to attract to your website. Driving people to your website is one of the main reasons blogging can be so worthwhile.
If you’re feeling uncertain about the value of blogging, consider this: 409 million people view more than 20 billion blog pages every month. OptinMonster also reports that companies that blog get 97% more links to their website! Additionally, data shows that internet users both trust blogs and have purchased items because they were recommended in a blog post.
Many online spaces have become pay to play. Google Ads can be incredibly expensive; Facebook has decreased organic reach for business pages, pushing companies to run ads to reach new eyes. Blogging, on the other hand, can be more cost effective as it only costs the investment of your time.
While social media is a great tool to have in your toolbox, it’s not a replacement for blogging. The short shelf life of social media content makes it hard for folks to go back and discover your older content. Think of it–you put all that effort into writing a powerful story in your Instagram caption, a few people read it, and by the next day, it’s fallen so far down in people’s feeds, no one new will discover it. That’s not true of blogs!
One of the absolute best parts of blogging is that it continues to attract users to your website for years to come. When I reviewed the data to compile 10 Blog Posts You Loved in 2021, I was pleasantly surprised by how many of the blog posts were from past years. Six of my ten most popular posts in 2021 were from 2020! That doesn’t mean that my 2021 posts weren’t great too. It just means my content from past years remains valuable to my target audience! Blog content has a much longer lifespan than social media content, which makes it an excellent investment.
Once someone has discovered your website, your blog is a great way to build credibility and trust. By sharing your knowledge with others, folks can see how much expertise you have in your niche and realize just how much value you are able to provide.
Tips for Creating Helpful Blog Content
Always Add Value
“Hey, we have a new CEO” is not a valuable blog post. It’s important news about your company, but many in your audience simply don’t care. Always create blog content with your target audience in mind. There are thousands of pieces of content on the internet competing for their attention. Why should they click on yours? What value are you adding? Many businesses and nonprofits get caught up in wanting to blast their message out to the world without thinking of what their audience actually cares about. Make sure to keep their interests in mind when developing your blog strategy and content.
Quality Over Quantity
It’s not about having a massive number of blog posts on your website. You don’t need to blog three times a week–not even weekly, honestly–for it to have an impact on your website and your business. High quality, engaging blog posts that answer questions your target demographic is asking are ideal for building a blog that people actually want to read.
Keep it Organized
A blog post should be easy to read and digest. It’s not meant to be a longread from The Atlantic that takes 45 minutes to get through. You want your readers to be able to skim it as part of their average workday and find a valuable takeaway they can implement right away. Headlines are helpful to your reader! Even a well-crafted listicle can be impactful.
Include a Call to Action
At the end of your blog post, what do you want your reader to do? You certainly don’t want them to go away and forget about you! Try incorporating a button at the end of the blog post encouraging them to take action. You can prompt them to sign up for your newsletter, follow you on social media, download a white paper, any number of things! Keep providing value to keep them engaged.
As a reminder, blogging is just one piece of the larger content marketing puzzle. It’s not just a great blog, or just a killer Instagram account that will effectively market your business. It’s all of these pieces working together–blogging, email marketing, SEO, social media strategy–that can attract your target demographic to your website to learn more and take action.
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