There are a few unwritten rules that we think every blogger should know...
Whether you're new to - or an old hand - at blogging, there comes a time when you need to review what you're doing and how successful those efforts are (and how they can be improved). We think there a couple of little "tricks" or facts worth making a note of for all of your content creators out there!
1. Produce green content
Make that content last longer and worth more by making it re purposeful.
So, yes, you might have first drafted that blog 17 months ago, but does it still make a valid point that will help you buyer personas - aka audience?
Fantastic! Keep sharing it on newsletters, social media platforms and making references to it in seminars!
Some of the best content out there is yonks old - its about being "evergreen", rather than time-related. Of course, a mixture is often best, but any company that produces content knows that those which don't have a sell-by date are the most valuable.
2. Use lead generation
We always advise companies to look into lead generation, so if you're a regular blogger, it should be a natural next step to look into producing PDF downloads, which you can use in a lead generation and nurturing process.
Find out more about lead generation via our blogs and allow your users to learn more once they have finished reading your content.
3. Allow for a follow-up step
Whether its adding a call-to-action / form at the end of your post for a lead generation process (such as a PDF download) or a sentence inviting people to tweet with you about your blog topic, you want to create a natural in-road for conversation or deeper engagement.
Choose yours and experiment with different offerings for "next steps" for your readers! We're happy to advise - tweet us (see what we did there)!
4. Less is often more
In many ways we often think that we need to type more, put more into the design, add more keywords to our post or do something else extra.
However, blogs should be easy to read - as in quick to skim through for busy readers and just enough so that they don't get bored or distracted.
Aim for a blog post that takes no more than seven minutes to skim through. If your topic is lengthy, expand your post into a mini-series - giving you more collateral!
5. Remain on brand - in every sense
If your company is an accountancy - renowned for their formal approach to just about everything - then your blog content should be too, your topic is serious so your content needs to reflect this (remember serious doesn't mean boring and cold, necessarily)!
Your blog should be a part of your main website and not direct customers somewhere else, nor should it look completely different to your brand - don't confuse your customers or make anything at all challenging for them!
What's next?
Review your content process and consider how you can streamline it and improve the user experience. Perhaps, ask long term business associates or trusted clients to give a no-holds barred review of your content - you'll thank them for the feedback in the long run, because if a current customer thinks it then any potential new customers will too!
