When is a blog not a blog?

A blog post is an article – ideally showcasing your knowledge and experience, showing off your expertise – but it is NOT a sales pitch.

I see blogs on people’s websites that are clearly written for SEO purposes, but there’s where their usefulness stops.

If I search for a specific service and the keywords I use link to a blog that is clearly a sales pitch, with no real value for me, what do you think is going on in my head?

Annoyance?  Because I searched for a service or product and got a lot of keyword-stuffed copy that doesn’t tell me what I need to know.

Frustration?  Because this isn’t the information I was looking for really and I feel I’ve wasted my time.

Boredom?  Because I didn’t need to be told how wonderful your company is, I just want to know if you’ve got what I’m actually looking for.

Disappointment?  Because the copy sounds like it was written by a robot and doesn’t answer the question I needed answered.

Is it likely that I’ll be thinking ‘Whoopee, I needed to be told how wonderful this company is with a lot of clunky copy that isn’t really easy to read?’

And, if someone arrives on your website and goes to your blog for something of value and they get this kind of post, they’ll be gone, never to return.

The other side of the coin

Having said that, a blog post offers valuable opportunities to both the company and the reader.

For the writer it’s an opportunity to share your wisdom and show how well you know your stuff.  This delivers value and is much more likely to grab the reader’s attention and keep them engaged.

For the reader it offers value, knowledge and experience that creates a feeling of getting something of value for nothing.

What a content-rich blog does is provide potential clients with evidence that you are an expert in your field and gives the decision to use your services a boost.  That SEO content isn’t meant to be for human beings and is likely to counter-productive when it comes to attracting potential clients.

And a good blog has a long life

Writing a blog post is only the first use of that content. 

Take some soundbites from your blog post and turn them into social posts – linking back to the blog.  Now more people will discover what a star you are in your industry!

Post the article on LinkedIn as a newsletter – and watch your subscriptions grow.

Post it on Substack as an article and use those social posts as notes to attract subscribers.  Now every time you post a new article all those people will get it in their inbox.

You can also use it as a newsletter that you email out to your list (accompanied by your latest offer or promotion), which means that all those people, who may never otherwise visit your website, get exposure to your expertise.

A blog is never just a blog!