5 Tips to Optimize Your Blog Posts To Generate More Business
Google search: everyone’s go-to for everything.
Correct us if we’re wrong, but…
What do you do when you have a question without an answer? You google it.
What do you do when you have a problem without a solution? You google it.
What do you do when you’re looking for a specific product or service? You google it.
You get the point here.
Whether you like it or not, google search has become an integral part of our everyday experience. Billions of users use the search engine every day and because of that, it’s a powerful way to gain website impressions, reach new audiences, and generate more business.
And what’s the best way to boost our website’s rankings in Google? Blog writing.
The art of blogging has been around since 1994 and while it started out as a simple means for expressing creative thoughts and sharing daily experiences, blogging and content writing has since transformed into a multi-billion-dollar industry.
Blog posts are a great tool for small business owners because they do two things: nurture your existing clients and expose your services to new audiences through organic search.
The downside, however, is that blogging, much like social media, is an oversaturated space. There’s so much digital content on the internet and in order to stand out, you have to optimize for SEO and business strategy.
To help you get started, here are 5 simple blogging tips that will help you efficiently use your writing time, and leverage blog posts to generate more business.
1. Keyword Research
We’ve already emphasized the significance of Google search but in order to perform well in search rankings, you have to know what you want to rank for. This is where keyword research comes in.
Keyword research allows you to structure your content so that it strategically position your content in front of new audiences that might be interested in your services.
For example, if your business is a yoga studio in Westchester, NY, you have to research for keywords that local yoga practitioners might be looking for. This includes keywords like, “yoga studio upstate NY,” “yoga Westchester,” “yoga studio in Westchester,” etc.
Here are some key pointers when doing keyword research:
- Make sure to include both long-tail keywords and short-tail keywords
- Long-tail keywords: longer and more specific keyword phrases that visitors use when they are closer to point-of-purchase. With the example of a yoga studio above, a long-tail keyword might be, “yoga studio for expecting moms in Westchester, NY.” While they might not get as many impressions because of how specific they are, long-tail keywords are hugely valuable because of how highly targetted they are.
- Short-tail keywords: short keyword phrases that contain only one or two words. Their length makes them less specific but they typically gain more impressions.
- Target variations
- Once you’ve found a keyword that you’d like to use your for blog post, brainstorm variations that might come up. This presents an opportunity to create more content surrounding the idea or theme so that your chances for ranking are higher.
- Use a keyword research tool
- Platforms like Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Google Keyword Planner can help you scope out the competition and save time when doing research.
2. Brainstorm and Schedule Topic Ideas Beforehand
Once your initial keyword research is complete, draft out an entire list of article titles and schedule them in your calendar. Having a list on-hand simplifies the process for when you actually get around to writing the articles. This strategy helps to combat writers block and procrastination.
3. Keep Business Strategy In Mind
You should always structure your blog posts with an end goal in mind.
Do you want to sell a course or program?
Is the point to get more affiliate clicks?
What’s the offer?
When you write your blog posts, you should keep these goals in mind and strategically link to offers when appropriate. This not only adds value but also encourages more sales.
4. Write In Batches Beforehand
We have a client who writes and entire year’s worth of blog content beforehand…
We’re not saying that you have to do this, but it’s worth considering working at least a month or two in advance.
Writing in batches allows you to better tap into that flow state. Once you’ve gotten started with the writing process, it’s easier to just keep going rather than stop and start again. Additionally, having your blog posts written out beforehand gives you ample time for edits and knocks another thing off your to-do list so that you can clear your schedule for more important work.
5. Three Tips To Perform Better In Google
Formatting and backlinking for Google SEO gets pretty complicated but here are three simple tips to help you get started.
- Always use headers to break your content down into sections. This not only makes your blog post easier to read, but also increases the chanes of your piece getting highlighted in Google’s “featured snippets.”
- List-type articles and how-tos tend to perform better in Google
- Use varied sentence structures and content types to keep your audience engaged and to rank higher
These are just 5 simple blogging tips to help you write articles that will generate more business. Which of these do you already implement? Which of these could you use support with? Leave us a message in the comments below!
