You can word this question however you want: Should you have a blog on your website? It’s asked hundreds of times. My answer?
Absolutely!
If you don’t have a blog on your website, you’re missing out on the main means of keeping the Google search engine happy. The more fresh, original, and helpful content you create on your website, the more the Google crawler will come and index it.
The spider looks for text and links. It doesn’t see pictures or videos.
Not only that, but a blog helps convert potential customers from a visitor into a lead or a sale. It…
- Shows off your expertise and authority
- Guides the reader to the call-to-action (CTA)
- Educates and answers questions your potential customers may have.
Write for the human reader in natural language, but with the search engine in mind. (SEO Copywriting)
Every blog post on your website must contain:
- Title and Meta Description with your focus keyword in it. It could be one word or a phrase that is the main topic of what that blog post is about. The title should be enticing enough for the visitor or social media follower’s curiosity to be piqued so they click on it to read it. This drives the visitor to your site. If you have a WordPress website, I recommend the Yoast SEO plugin, as well as these other free plugins.
- At least 300-500 words (even if the main content feature is a video). The blog article needs to deliver on the title. I can be as long as it needs to be for you to educate your target audience, explain, or tell a story.
- At least a featured image or picture with text wrapped around it. Make sure you describe the picture by filling out the Alt Text area when uploading it. The text is what the search engine spider sees. Having the title or focus keyword helps. Also, if your picture is pinned on Pinterest, that’s the description that will show in the pin.
- Internal links to related content on your website – to other blog posts or pages.
- External links to relevant content – you can cite a source of a quote, picture, or video.
- A call-to-action at the end of the article. What do you want the reader to do once they’ve finished reading the post? Download a free ebook or get an offer? Contact you? Schedule a free appointment? Here’s where you capture the lead that the blog post generated.
- Relevant keyword tags – here you choose all the keywords or phrases that pertain to the post. You can choose several, but don’t go crazy. These appear at the end of the post so people can click on a word to see more articles on that topic.
Blog on your website at least 3 times a week.
It’s been proven that 3 times a week is the charm. Use an editorial calendar to plan your posts ahead of time — a simple spreadsheet or your online calendar will work. If an idea comes to mind, use your phone’s reminders or voice memo to “jot” down the idea so you don’t forget it.
What about a free blog on another site?
Why do you want to send traffic to someone else’s site? Nevertheless, if your budget is tight, you can start on the free WordPress.com site. However, you’ll probably outgrow that platform in a few months. On a self-hosted WordPress website, you have complete control over the whole site. Nevertheless, it’s easy to export (migrate) your content when you’re ready to upgrade.
Here’s Why I Use WordPress.
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