Did you know that 47% of buyers view 3-5 pieces of content before engaging with a salesperson (Demand Gen Report, 2016)?
Marketing and sales have changed dramatically over the past decade. Consumers who had already grown weary and skeptical of traditional, interruptive advertising, now have powerful tools that put them in control of their own purchase path. Thanks to the Internet, the rise of social media platforms and the seismic shift from using desktops to mobile devices, consumers have shown us that they want good information - fast and at their fingertips - in order to make their own, empowered purchasing decisions.
But that doesn’t mean the end of marketing and sales. Instead, the marketing and sales industries adapted. Today, one of the best ways to improve sales is to attract visitors to your website with a business blog. Buyers, whether they’re B2B or B2C, spend a large portion of their purchase path doing research and engaging with brands online. That’s why providing great content on your blog that your potential customers will find valuable is the fuel that runs the inbound marketing methodology.
Fuel Website Traffic with Great Content on Your Business Blog
Inbound marketing is all about meeting consumers where they are and letting them come to you when they are ready. That sounds passive, but it’s not. You have to be ready with the content they desire in order to capture the sale and their loyalty.
There are many types of digital marketing content that can be a part of your overall online strategy. You can offer visitors everything from whitepapers to video tutorials to free product demos. But the majority of your content development should be focused on blog posts, and there are two main reasons for this.
Reason #1: Blogging strategically around targeted keywords will help you rank higher on the SERP.
But you’re not blogging just to rank higher. Ultimately, your goal is to help your ideal customers find your business through their own search behaviors. And once they find your website, they should be able to easily find additional information that leads them along their purchase path. Your blog posts and website content should nurture a relationship between your business and your customers by aligning with the various stages of the buyer’s journey.
Reason #2: Blogging frequently and consistently helps establish your brand’s authority within your industry.
What questions are your potential customers likely to ask before buying from you? If you can think of every possible question or concern your buyer personas might have and address them with high-quality blog posts, you’ll earn their trust and become the go-to website for people seeking answers in your industry.
Inbound Marketing Content Development Is Here to Stay
59% of respondents to the State of Inbound 2017 survey said their inbound marketing practices provide the highest-quality leads for their sales team, and some industry influencers have even predicted the complete death of cold calling.
Technological advances have upended traditional marketing and sales tactics, and new technology will certainly bring more change in the future, but the trend is clear: consumers are now in control.
Businesses who recognize this trend in content development will gain a competitive edge by solving their potential customer’s pain points upfront – and sometimes even before the customer knows they have one – by providing great content on their business blog.
Not sure you have the staff or time to create enough website content or blog posts? If you're considering outsourcing content writing, download our free ebook, Outsourcing Content Creation: 6 Essential Questions for Choosing the Right Partner, before you make the decision to buy blog content.
About Virtucom Group
Consistent business blogging yields results – more clicks, more subscribers and – ultimately – more conversions. Whether you’re writing an automotive blog, an accounting blog, a healthcare blog or a home renovation blog, blogging for business and content development are useful for any industry. Follow the content writers at the Virtucom Group blog as they share digital marketing tips and discuss website content writing services that can optimize your business blog.
