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And reasons why businesses include blog sections on their websites
This is one of the most frequently asked questions by entrepreneurs while building their business websites: “Should I include a blog in my website?” we will not say yes or no, but explain the differences between a website and a blog, benefits and also the disadvantages of having a blog as part of your business website. Then you will have a clear understanding of what a blog is and decide if you would like to include it in your marketing strategy. Let’s start!
What is the difference between a blog and a website?
Let’s first describe what a blog is and how it is different from websites.
Blogs are a type of website which are more dynamic than websites. In blogs, content needs to be regularly updated and generally the newest content is presented first on the website. Blog articles could be written in a friendlier tone, and other bloggers can comment on them, sharing their opinions.
While blogs are typically written by individuals, there are also lots of corporations placing blog sections on their business websites.
On the other hand, business websites present certain information and these are presented in an organised way (such as home page, about, services, contact etc.). We call these static pages. In business websites, the content doesn’t need to be updated all the time because business websites are more like a representation of your business. However, websites can contain both static pages and blog sections.
In short, blogs can be a website or part of a website.
SEO and blogs
At this point, we should understand why businesses are including blog sections in their websites. The main technical reason to include a blog section in a business website is to get more traffic from search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo or Yandex. By using certain keywords and applying on-site SEO tactics, business websites get more opportunities to rank in search engines. Search engines love active, fresh content and their aim is to help searchers to find the most relevant and useful content.
Just like Instagram and Facebook, search engines also have an algorithm. Their search algorithms sort through hundreds of billions of web pages in their search index and it is a website developer’s/SEO expert’s job to improve your site’s ranking, therefore, making it more visible. Below are some of the basic ways to improve your search ranking you should consider while building your website.
1. Improving your website’s user experience:
Are the menu items and content properly organised? Do your visitors find what they are looking for easily? Are CTA (Call to Action) buttons visible?
2. Writing content that is optimised for SEO
Are there relevant keywords in your content? Is your content talking about A Group while your niche is B Group?
3. Creating internal and external links
Are you linking some of your content to the others under your website? Is your website or website content being shared so others can also see it?
4. Optimising your images
Are your images too heavy? Are they named properly? Did you add alt-texts so that visually impaired people can also benefit from your content?
5. Fixing broken links
Are there links on your website that go nowhere?
6. Making your website/Blog mobile friendly
Is your website visible and working properly on mobile devices? Does it have a responsive design?
7. Improving the page speed
Is your website too slow? Are there unused plugins on the back end? Are your images optimised?
8. Use of H1 and H2 tags
When creating your content, have you included headings and subheadings? Have you included your targeted and relevant keywords in your H1 and H2 tags?
The list goes on but these are the basic things any entrepreneur can ask their web developer/SEO expert while having their websites built. When you follow these steps, search engines will favour your content, therefore the number of organic traffic to your website will increase. If a website builder doesn’t change/optimise the content an entrepreneur sends to place on her/his website, then either the entrepreneur understands his/her niche, keywords and SEO very well, or the web developer doesn’t understand SEO and its advantages.
Why do businesses include blog sections on their websites:
It is an essential part of online marketing strategy for many businesses to include a blog section in their websites. Here are some reasons why many small or big businesses include a blog section on their websites:
1- Blogs keep your website visitors longer on your website.
Did you know that between 70 and 96 per cent of people who abandon your website never return? As an entrepreneur, your most important online goal should be to convert those first-time visitors into customers. You can’t achieve this goal if your visitors abandon your website. Blogs are great ways to keep your visitors engaged with your content and stay on your website to learn more about your products and services.
2- Blogs give you the opportunity to give internal & external links.
There is a big difference between internal and external links, and they serve different purposes for your content strategy. Failing to include internal links on your website that point users from one page on the site to another are one of the simplest SEO mistakes you can make. On the other hand, external links drive traffic to other websites, blogs, and articles from your website. When you use external links in your blog posts, you build a relationship and a connection between your website and another reputable website. However, you need to check and update these links regularly. If you link to especially non-secure websites, search engines may penalise you.
3- When you create content for your blog, you create content to be shared on social media.
People tend to share interesting blog posts rather than sharing a product or service page. A blog can make your site more shareable, and people sharing your content means you will get more backlinks to your website which leads to better search rankings.
4- If you work with reputable guest bloggers, their popularity can help you.
Guest blogging is one of the best online marketing strategies you can invest in. A reputable blogger can increase your chances to receive more traffic through social media or other websites, increase your exposure and even improve your online authority. Guest blogging certainly has more benefits than increasing your visibility.
5- Search engines love up-to-date and fresh content.
Fresh content means that a website’s pages have been updated or new ones have been added. When you have a website, you cannot update the content all the time. On the other hand, a blog gives you an opportunity to add new pages to your website and have search engines index your new content.
6- Including images in your blog helps with your SEO.
When you add new blog posts, you add new images and when you add names and alt texts to these images, you give search engines like Google another reason to show your website.
There are many more reasons we could count like creating authority in your field or building connections with your potential clients but the most important fact is that placing a blog in your business website increases your organic traffic.
Disadvantages of having a blog section on your website
I can hear you asking, how can something be disadvantageous when it helps with your SEO and increases your organic traffic? While the benefits of blogging overwhelm its drawbacks, a bad blog is worse than no blog at all.
As we mentioned above, the content needs to be fresh in order for search engines to rank your website. This means you will need to create content for your blog at least once a week and maintain it. It is a big commitment. You need to have a content strategy, great visuals to use on your blog and a dedication to promoting the content regularly. Your content needs to attract the right type of audience and be free of a lot of grammar mistakes. Once you have a blog, it will be in competition with other bloggers out there who are doing this professionally- and search engines see these professionals as the authority.
Conclusion
If you still cannot make up your mind, it’s ok. There is always a lot to do when you start building your own business and blogging may not be part of this. Blogging takes time and effort and just like SEO, it takes time to bring results. If you are not ready to invest in blogging yet, make sure to follow the steps of good basic SEO that we mentioned above. It is what matters at the beginning of your journey.
If you are ready to invest in this, go ahead and start building your content strategy and make sure it speaks to your audience. Choose topics that are naturally related to your business. For example, if you are selling holiday packages, write content about packing hacks, selecting hotels or traveling solo. Because at the end of the day, your blog will help you attract readers who are interested in the products and services you offer.
Social Influence.Co gives equal importance to SEO, technical optimization, user experience and design. If you would like to level up your landing pages or need a new website, have a look at our fully customizable website packages
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