A common misconception online businesses have is that a functional website and sales page is enough for customer satisfaction, leaving the blog an afterthought. The blog can bring a spotlight to your website that your other marketing strategies cannot. It is so proven that 92% of content marketers emphasize the importance of using blogs in their strategy. Developing a blog post can be a great addition to any content marketing strategy, but its effectiveness is limited to how well it is applied. An adequately designed blog post is the first step in your journey to becoming a blogging expert and driving traffic to your website.
Blogging is a great way to get your brand noticed, but it can take a lot of work to convert visitors into leads. But how do you go about creating conversion-focused blog posts? We have a 5-step plan that will aid in your blog development and lead to an increased conversion rate today.
Why do you need a blog post?
One of the more excellent ways of communicating with customers is through blog posts. Blog posts are a great way to promote products and services and build relationships. Establishing and maintaining customer relationships is important because it allows you to provide them with valuable information about sales and promotions available to your business.
Blogs are responsible for 434% more indexed pages, and it is due to the continuous inclusion of new content in various forms. Search engines, such as Google, tend to index new content more frequently, which can increase the number of pages indexed. Also, blogs often contain internal links to other website pages, which can help search engines discover and index more pages. In addition, the more indexed pages your website has, the higher the chances of your website earning a top page spot on Google search results.
Blog posts are essential to brand awareness tools; they allow customers to look inside at your business and how the products or services you offer can help their lives. Websites with blogs receive 67% more leads than websites without.
Benefits of creating a blog post for your website
There are several benefits to creating a blog post for your website, including:
- Improving search engine rankings: blog posts provide new information that answers questions relevant to inputted search queries, enhancing the websites’ rankings.
- Driving traffic to the website: blog posts can be shared on social media, in email marketing campaigns, and through other channels, which can drive traffic to the website.
- Building relationships with customers: blog posts can be used to educate and inform customers about the company and its products or services. Businesses can also use it to establish themselves as an authority in their industry.
- Generating leads: blog posts can attract potential customers and generate leads by including calls-to-action or lead magnets.
- Showcasing the company’s expertise: by creating informative and valuable content, a company can demonstrate its expertise and thought leadership within its industry.
- Cost-effective: blogging is one of the most cost-effective ways to drive website traffic and generate leads.
- Long-term value: blog posts can be evergreen and continue to drive traffic and leads for months or even years after they are published.
Step plan for creating blog posts that convert
- Draft the right keyword/topic/outline
When creating blog posts, choosing the right keywords, topics and outlines is crucial to ensure that the post is relevant and exciting to the target audience. This method can increase the chances that the post will be read and shared and ultimately lead to conversions.
Keywords are words or phrases that people use when searching for information online. By including the right keywords in your blog post, you can help search engines understand your post and make it more likely that it will appear in search results. The topic of your blog post should be relevant and interesting to your target audience. An outline can help you organize your thoughts and ensure that your post is easy to follow. It should include an introduction, main body, and conclusion. This way, readers will know what to expect and be more likely to read the entire post.
- Develop catchy headlines
Developing catchy headlines is an integral part of creating blog posts that convert because it is the first thing that readers will see, and it can determine whether they will continue reading. A good headline should be attention-grabbing, clear, and accurate.
A catchy headline can grab readers’ attention and make them want to learn more. It can also communicate the post’s main idea and give readers an idea of what to expect. Additionally, headlines with keywords can help improve the post’s search engine optimization (SEO) and make it more likely to appear in search results.
- Pay attention to your introduction.
Paying attention to your introduction is essential in creating blog posts that convert because it sets the tone for the rest of the post and can make or break a reader’s decision to continue reading. A good introduction should be engaging, informative, and relevant to the reader. It should provide context for the post and clarify why the reader should care about the topic. It should also include a hook, a sentence that draws the reader in.
A good introduction should also include a clear and concise thesis statement which emphasizes the main point or purpose of the post. Great thesis statements guide the rest of the post and clearly show what the post aims to achieve. All this can ultimately increase the chances of conversion.
- Create valuable and helpful content
The value of the content you publish in your blog posts is crucial when it comes to the conversion rate of the post. Valuable content establishes trust and credibility with the reader and provides them with solutions to their problems. When readers find your content useful and helpful, they are more likely to return to your website, share your content with others, and become customers with room for loyalty.
Valuable content is established on well-researched, accurate, and unbiased information. It should be presented in an easy-to-read format and be visually appealing. Helpful content goes further by providing readers with actionable tips and advice. It should be practical, easy to follow and give the readers a clear benefit. Website authority matters when it comes to website traffic, and the more valuable and helpful content on your website, the more visitors will consider you a trusted expert in your industry. Customer trust and visits will improve your search engine rankings.
- Employ the right call-to-action
After creating valuable content and establishing your website as a trusted authority, the next step is to use the right call-to-action (CTA). CTAs matter because it tells the reader what you want them to do next and how they can take action. For example, a CTA button or link can prompt the reader to take a specific action, such as making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or downloading a free resource.
The CTA employed must be clear, concise, and prominent. It should be placed in a logical and visually appealing location, at the end of the post or in a sidebar. The text should be action-oriented and use action verbs, such as “Download”, “Sign up”, or “Shop now”. The CTA should also be relevant to the post. If the blog post is about a new product, then “Shop now” or “Learn more” is the right fit. Colours matter when it comes to CTAs; the CTA button should stand out.
Other steps you can use include;
- Using dedicated landing pages: using dedicated landing pages can increase blog post conversion because it provides a specific and targeted experience for the reader, helps to keep the visitor focused on the desired action and remove any distractions. In addition, it can be optimized for search engines.
- Utilizing social proofs: using social proof provides potential customers with evidence that other people have found value in your product or service by building trust and credibility, increasing the perceived value and addressing objections. Testimonials can increase your conversions on sales pages by 34%.
- Formatting your write-up correctly: a properly formatted blog post makes the content easy to read and understand. You can do so by using appropriate headings, subheadings, bullet points, and short paragraphs, and easy to read with proper alignment, font size, and spacing.
- Using visual elements: Did you know that 90% of the information transmitted to the brain is visual? Visual elements make blog posts more engaging and appealing by breaking up the text, conveying information, providing an engaging and interactive experience, and helping establish credibility and trust.
Conclusion
Whether you choose to use a 5-step plan or a more detailed plan in your content marketing strategy, the critical factor is not to forget the importance of a blog. Instead, blogs provide a wide range of benefits for a website, such as increasing website traffic, improving search engine rankings, building trust and credibility, generating leads and sales, and enhancing brand awareness and reputation.