As part of most business digital marketing strategies blogging has been put high on the list of priorities.
But, more often than not, it’s something that’s either put off, set to the side or procrastinated about.
As a result businesses are missing out on the chance to truly maximise this fantastic digital marketing resource.
Tina Calder, the Founder of Excalibur Press, has over 20 years’ experience as a journalist and over 12 years’ experience as a multi-platform media professional. As an award-winning business journalist and publicist, Tina knows a thing or two when it comes to writing, creating content, and blogging.
Tina delivered a Lunchtime Learning session facilitated by the Cathedral Quarter BID (Business Improvement District), sharing her top tips to demystify the art of creating good quality digital content.
Why Blog?
Although there are plenty of reasons to start a blog or bring your focus back to your business blog, Tina identified three main reasons:
Blogging enables you to give your potential customers much more information on your products and services, and lets you showcase your experience and expertise.
Blogging about relevant topics helps your website achieve a higher Google ranking.
Content can be used in many ways and can be written to specifically target potential customers, investors, or even employees.
“Blogging is a conscious effort to add valuable content to your website. Maximise the time and effort they take to create by always including a call to action at the end, and re-purposing them on social media channels” said Tina.
“Ideally, you want your blog to break through the noise. Making sure each blog post has a purpose can help this. Blogs should be written to: entertain, educate, inspire, excite, inform, or create an emotional connection, with the ultimate goal being to move the reader to take some form of action.”
Types of Content
And when it comes to what the blog should look at, Tina pointed out there was more than one type of blog post. Some, easier than others to create.
Curated content – gathering information from elsewhere or multiple sources into one themed post.
Evergreen – topics that are always relevant and can be updated periodically.
Re-purposed – older content, or offline content, that can be adapted and updated to be relevant.
Listicles – based on regularly asked or searched for information, a simple blog post with an introductory paragraph and a list.
Opinion and commentary – great if your business is innovative, engaged in current affairs, or if you have an in-house specialist or thought leader.
Collaboration – guest posts or collaborative posts, consider your value chain, suppliers, and complementary businesses who could both provide resources.
“There are loads of resources available on-line that can help you with your blogging journey. Our blog The Content Club by Excalibur Press is just one of these resources – if you need help with any aspect of digital marketing, traditional marketing, or business communications, we’ll more than likely have a blog on the subject.
“Other great resources include Hootsuite for social media posting, Canva for creating imagery, Google trends for seeing what the hot topics are and ‘newsjacking’, as well as ensuring you have a plan for your digital marketing efforts such as a planned content calendar.”
Want to hear more of Tina’s top tips for blogging and maximising your blogging efforts? Check out the full recording of Tina’s workshop on the Cathedral Quarter website or below – https://www.
You can also check out Tina’s own business blog at https://contentclub.