Your Business Blog Should Create Clients, Brand You Uniquely, and Develop Loyalty
I’ve been asked the question many times by business owners “Why does my business need a blog?” So I decided to write a quick article from a non technical perspective to try and answer this question for you.
Maintaining a blog for your business has become increasingly important, especially within the context of Social Media. Without a blog it’s just like being dropped into the middle of a large school of fish, all looking very much so the same, with nothing that really differentiates you.
With social media, and the Internet in general, it’s difficult to be heard, seen and found unless you make a distinction of who you are and what you are about. There is solid evidence that maintaining a blog puts you in a better position, making your voice rise above the Internet noise, and thus easier for your customers to find you.
A Quick Blog History
Blogs, actually, are not really a new concept. They have been around since the mid 80’s – used within forums as a collection of documents to be shared mainly amongst Journalists. Towards the end of the 90’s, with the release of the public Internet, other blogging platforms emerged. Blogger.com was the most major blogging platform at the time, which was acquired by Google in the early 2000’s. Since then blogging has gone nuts. There is literally a blog for almost anything imaginable. Individuals seem to blog everything – their lives, families, events, experiences, products, services. This list is seemingly endless.
Even before Social Media too center stage, blogs evolved into something that is extremely strategic for businesses. Every business, as far as I’m concerned, should have a blog in some shape or form. It doesn’t matter if you host the blog yourself or with a 3rd party service. Here are 4 solid reasons, in plain English, WHY it’s important for your business to own a blog.
Your Voice. Your Differentiator. Your Brand.
Websites are generally static in nature. Think about it. When was the last time you changed content on your website? Unless you are an eCommerce vendor (like Amazon or eBay) or an active blogger, the content on your site has not changed in a long time. You and everyone else (especially your competitors) have the same old website, with the same old content, and the same old message. No personality and nothing to differentiate you from 
your competitor. The content is static.
That’s where blogs come in. Blog posts should be considered your unique voice. You have the ability to craft your message in your voice, at a frequency that works best you, and literally capture your audience. Blogs lend themselves to what humans desire:
- People want to connect;
- People are curious;
- People like to know that they are not alone;
- People like to improve themselves;
- People love to read good writing;
- People like inspiration;
- People like to be personal.
A blog is your opportunity to develop what your audience wants, making you unique and something that totally differentiates you from your peers.
Your Loyal and Trusting Customers Return
You’re in business to make a profit. To make a profit you need customers. They are the lifeblood of your company. Without them, nothing really matters. A blog serves a mechanism to develop the loyalty needed to bring your
customers back. As long as the content resonates well with your audience (aka. High quality content) then your
Also, as a business owner you probably understand that it cost 5 – 10 times more to get a new customer than service an existing one. Why then would you want to invest additional money into acquiring new customers? audience will keep coming back for more. A recent survey I did tells me that the number one reason why my viewers keep coming back is because of the interesting and helpful information on my blog.
A blog is the natural vehicle to help develop trust and loyalty, keeping your customers coming back through your front door.
Attract and Get New Customers
In contradiction to what I mentioned above you should not be 100% dependent on your existing customer base only. Through natural attrition, for 
whatever reason, you will lose some of your existing customers. Some of your energies should therefore be placed into finding new customers.
It’s a well known fact that the more articles you post to your blog the better chance you will have of being found by your target market. Most of us use Google to find (almost) everything. With more than 400,000,000 daily searches there is the strong possibility that some of your customers are looking for you, your services and products on the Internet. In fact, for example, when I research information for a product that I want to purchase, I typically do so on the Internet. Most of the time the search results lead me to an authority blog on the subject that I am interested in.
From a technical perspective, search engines love blog postings. Within minutes of writing blog posts they usually appear online. If you do not have a blog, then there is the strong likelihood that search results will bury you (your static website) deep within the search engine, making it very difficult to find you. Conversely, a website with frequent blog postings tend to have the opposite effect – a better chance of being found within the search engine results.
Funnel Customers into Your List
Depending on your business, building a customer list online should be one of your key business objectives. If your social media initiatives are structured correctly, your website includes high quality blog content, the links are strategically placed, and the appropriate automation in place, you will have an excellent opportunity to build a solid customer list.
Final Words and Your Take Away
Hopefully, for those of you who do not have a business blog now understand that is crucial to have one. You just have to make each of the four pieces gel correctly for everything to work well.
Your major take away should be:
- Have a blog with high quality, well written articles;
- Build a blog with a unique voice – your voice. Stand out from the crowd so that your customers can differentiate you from the rest;
- Build trust and loyalty with your existing customer base through the use of well written, interesting and helpful articles. This will keep your customers coming back for more information;
- Build a sales pipeline of new customers by continuously creating new, interesting and helpful articles. The more articles you post the better chance of being found on the Internet.
If ever you have doubts about maintaining a blog for your business please revisit this article. It should give you a healthy perspective on the importance of blogging, especially in a Social Media context.
If you found this article helpful please share it. Links below:
About Gary Hyman
Gary Hyman works with entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, and business professionals helping them create a thriving online business presence. He helps your clients become your raving fans and referral partners for life. Gary is business, marketing, IT and Social Media savvy. He has 25+ years professional business experience, and has developed easy to learn systems to help your company run smoothly.
16 Responses to “Your Business Blog Should Create Clients, Brand You Uniquely, and Develop Loyalty”
Angie M Jordan on January 15, 2013
Amazing tips Gary! I have to say that blogging for business is essential to success online! Many are still so resistent to it… And in a fews years time, they will be left behind, they kind of already are. Great points and I like that you gave a little history about blogs. They are not a new concept, they are just really, really, really easy to create and publish now!
xo, Angie
Angie M Jordan recently posted…The First Rule Of Blogging Is: There Are No Rules Of Blogging
Alexandra McAllister on January 15, 2013
Excellent information! I agree that blogging is essential for business and online success. Great tips. Thanks for providing such valuable info.
Alexandra McAllister recently posted…Get The Smart Phone App That Pays You – iLivingApp
Sally K Witt on January 16, 2013
Great to read the history about blogging, and your wonderful tips.
Meire Weishaupt on January 16, 2013
Great post Gary! If people know just about how search engines love blog postings, they would give more attention to their blogs and/or start one as soon as possible. I love to think that the blog is the center of everything! Thank you for the article!
Meire Weishaupt recently posted…The State of Online Engagement 2012 – [INFOGRAPHIC]
Gary Hyman on January 16, 2013
I think you hit it right on Meire – the blog being the center of everything. It’s your sacred turf – a turf that you can control and in charge of. It’s a property where you should be channeling each and everyone of your interested social media prospects too.
jean on January 16, 2013
Great information and really timely for me. I just had a client ask why she needed a blog for her business.
jean recently posted…Getting Results
denny hagel on January 16, 2013
Excellent article explaining the importance of a blog! Thanks!
denny hagel recently posted…3 Main Components to Law of Attraction Parenting
Lisa Birnesser on January 16, 2013
Loved this post, Gary. Blogging is so important in so many ways. It helps give you credibility and helps position you as an expert in your niche. Thanks!
Lisa Birnesser recently posted…How Procrastination Blocks Your Happiness
Anita on January 16, 2013
I think a business blog much like a brick and mortar business. I think you have done an excellent job presenting how important it is to have an active site and be producing quality content on a regular basis.
Anita recently posted…Business Productivity Trap – Perfection vs. Excellence
Designer Rob Russo on January 18, 2013
Such an inspiring article, Gary. I love the analogy at the beginning with the school of fish. How similar we would be if we all posted the same updates, quotes and the like on various social media outlets. It’s finding the way back to our own blog, where we develop our own voice, when we become unique.
Designer Rob Russo recently posted…On National Hat Day — and Every Day — I Wear a lot of Hats
Delia on January 18, 2013
Thanks for creating awareness, Gary!
So so important to have a blog for all the good reasons that you mentioned. I almost ignore a website that does not have some form of a blog, it’s like it hasn’t been brought into this century
Delia recently posted…3 blog formatting mistakes that make you lose readers
mbeck333@mac.com on January 21, 2013
How interesting to read the history of blogging. And thanks for the great tips, Gary!
mbeck333@mac.com recently posted…AWARENESS – the ASPIC Way!
Norma Doiron @Start, Grow or Strengthen Your Business Online on January 21, 2013
Standing out is the one that resonates with me. They are all important but for sure if we are not standing out we are blending in… not good. Great post, you did a great job!
Norma Doiron @Start, Grow or Strengthen Your Business Online recently posted…Visitors Are Window Shopping on Your Blog
Susan Myers on January 22, 2013
Great job explaining why it is imperative for business owners to have a blog. Loved the history of blogging too!
Susan Myers recently posted…Website Traffic-5 Fast And Easy Ways To Get There
Amy on January 22, 2013
I appreciate the idea of using a blog to set my business apart from the competition. We don’t always get the right platform to tell our stories, and I agree that many people want a more personal connection. It’s what branding is all about!
Amy recently posted…Into the Maddening Crowd
Lorii Abela on January 24, 2013
I found this article indeed helpful. I, personally love blogging. It shows my personality and it is very essential for my biz. I get to know a lot of people on my niche and it builds relationships with my clients – not to mention attract more potential clients