The Importance of Blogging to Networking and SEO
Firstly, thank you to James Hutto, not only for following us on Twitter but accepting our invitation to contribute to this blog.
Leading on from this, I’ll be discussing how utilising your blog can help you network with those within the same industry, as well as increase the success of your SEO campaign.
Many people know that a blog is a vital tool to have within a website, but are not using it to its full potential. A blog offers various opportunities for a business to succeed within the World Wide Web, if used in conjunction with other elements of SEO. Content is still King and what better way to voice ideas, opinions and strategies than using your own website to do so.
Blogging has mixed reviews. There are many people that have been contributing to their blog for a long while without as much as a single comment. Then, there are those blogs that seem to have numerous visits and are highly regarded as being a useful source to find out the latest information and goings on in specific areas of interest.
So what makes a good blog and how can it improve online relationships with both people and Search Engines?
Get It Out There
Blogging is no good on its own. As with all aspect of SEO, you need various components to comprise a successful campaign. To get the readers you need to find them, and once you’ve got them you need to keep them. But how is this possible?
Well with social media for one. The most obvious place to find people is on some of the most highly populated websites; Twitter, Facebook and You Tube. Regardless of the industry there are people that always want to know more authoritative figures, but haven’t got the time to go searching. Make yourself visible by posting your information and highlighting news that you’re proud of.
There are various online tools that can link from your blog to your Twitter then to your Facebook so at the click of one button you’re covering all bases. Once you’ve got people visiting your blog, the hardest battle is won.
Keep Content Current
Search Engines are fickle, they get bored and when something better comes along they are likely to choose that over something that isn’t reinventing itself. Search Engines want to see websites producing fresh content, taking the time to build links and spread themselves across the world wide web.
A blog is the perfect platform for reinventing a website, as it offers the opportunity to add fresh content on a regular basis.
The only rule that you should follow to ensure that your blog is successful, is related to the content that you are adding to it.
Make sure it’s recent, exciting and new. You blog doesn’t have to be stuffy, in fact it should be chatty and engage readers. Writing industry based content that is exciting will attract those with the power to influence your company, who will help spread the word within a community. This type of exposure isn’t possible with old copy that people have read about before.
Don’t Focus on a Time Limit
It is healthy to set goals for a business and do everything to reach them. However, getting a blog noticed and building up an authority can take a long time, it’s virtually impossible to put any timing together.
Instead of focusing on what isn’t being achieved, spend time planning what else could be done to improve the blogs authority. This may include increasing how many posts are being submitted, researching further afield or even requesting guest posts from other people to share their thoughts.
This brings me conveniently to how networking can enhance your blogging practices.
Networking for Blogging
Networking provides the perfect opportunity to discuss elements of your business with others within the same industry. But why stop at tweets or comments? Surely the point of making friends and followers is to engage in their recent activity and share ideas.
Blogging can strike conversations and with news that is well written, people will soon be keen to learn more about your company. Urge people to contact you and offer your services through your social media. It is called ‘networking’ for a reason and your news and updates are the perfect conversation starter.
It also opens up doors for people to contribute to your website and with so many different opinions on SEO it’s easy to see why blogging is crucial for any SEO campaign.
Improving your SEO is about engaging with those that can potentially help your business grow. Don’t focus on what your website isn’t providing but rather the people that can help get you where you want to be.
A blog holds more cards than perhaps many website owners realize. If you don’t currently have one it’s a must before continuing with your SEO campaign and if you’ve neglected yours recently, then ensure you get back writing, it’s a sure fire way to help expose your business and gain those all important contacts.
