Blog Writing

Social media can play an important role in your SEO strategy, but having your own blog is at least as important.  Here’s what you need to know.

The reality of social media

You own any content you create for social media.  Effectively, however, the social media platform owns everything else.  They own the platform itself.  They own the rules by which it operates.  Most importantly of all, they own the relationship with the user.  This means that they control what content is and is not promoted organically to any given user.

In short, therefore, social media can still be of huge value to businesses.  The best way to leverage it, however, is to use it as its name suggests.  Treat it as a place to find and socialize with (potential) customers.  Do whatever you can to guide users on the platform, naturally, to the content you host on your website, such as your blog.  Do not rely on the platform itself.

There are two good reasons for not relying on any given social media platform.  The first is that you can lose access to it at any time.  Hacking is now a serious threat.  You also have the risk of being suspended or even banned, if you inadvertently break a rule.  The second is that social media platforms can lose their relevance and, hence, their usefulness.

The advantage of having your own blog

You own your own blog.  This puts you in charge of everything.  An effective blog can build relationships with customers, and encourage them to visit your site, while discretely selling to them.  Blogs can also boost your SEO.  Firstly, they can help you to rank for certain keywords.  Secondly, they can help with link-building.  This is a major component of modern SEO.

The practicalities of having your own blog

Blogs are less resource-intensive than other forms of content, such as photos, videos and podcasts.  As a result, they are generally much more affordable to run.  This tends to be a major consideration for smaller companies.

That said, blogs still need to be high quality to make an impact.  They also need to be updated as frequently as your budget will allow.  This can be a bit of a stretch, especially for smaller companies.  Generally, the best solution is to look for an affordable article writing service.

Be aware that there is a difference between regular blog writing services and SEO blog writing services.  The former produce blogs to your specifications.  The latter can do a lot more of the “heavy lifting” for you e.g. researching keywords, finding pictures and inserting inbound and outbound links.

Choosing a blog writing partner

In theory, there are three ways you can have your blogs written.  The first is to employ an in-house writer.  The second is to employ a freelancer and the third is to go to an agency.  In practice, very few small companies will be able to justify hiring a staff writer.  Freelancers can be a more practical option but they generally need some level of management.

For most small businesses, therefore, using an agency is the most convenient, practical and cost-effective solution.  If you’re looking for SEO blog writing services or any other help with SEO, please contact us and we’ll be happy to help.