Company Blogs in 2020 – Is the Game Worth the Candle?

Today everything is available online. Supply is much greater than demand. Customers can pick from thousands of various domestic or international suppliers, products, and services. So how to make your company stand out from the crowd? Content marketing and company blogs are the answer to the question!

Is it still beneficial to run company blogs?

It depends – that’s what a typical marketer would say. Generally speaking, yes, it’s beneficial. However, there are certain rules that need to be followed to ensure that company blogging brings more good than harm. First and foremost, focus on creating effective and regular content that attracts an engaged and active community of readers. A properly managed company blog translates into increases in conversion rate, website traffic, and brand recognition. A piece of cake? Not necessarily.

Company blogging isn’t an easy ride

If it was, every company could boast a thriving blog, however, it turns out that, in this field, our local market isn’t as potent as it may seem. For the time being, only 29% of Polish companies have been running company blogs for more than four years. Even though 62% of business owners perceive blogging as an important channel of communication with potential customers, only 29% of them publish at least one entry per week. So, as you can see, in this particular case, words speak louder than actions. But we’re getting there.

Bowl & Bone is a perfect example showing how to run an attractive, regular company blog with engaging photos and content.

Most importantly, a company blog needs to:

• be regular. New entries should be published at least once a week,
• correspond to the requirements of your user personas,
• be run and organized according to the previously determined content plan,
• fulfill the company’s objectives, individually established KPIs, and measures of success.

And many, many more. Overwhelmed? Don’t worry! The sky’s the limit. The first step is always the hardest. Then, everything will get easier and you can always visit Delante’s blog to find some support and inspiration.

Why do you need a company blog?

Today, the world of online marketing remains faithful to the concept of Marketing 4.0 described in Philip Kotler’s book.

And what does Philip Kotler say?

Philip Kotler is an unquestionable guru of modern marketing all over the world.

Marketing 1.0 has been here since time began. If you wanted to sell something, there would always be someone to buy it. Marketing 2.0 puts greater emphasis on the customer, not on the product. Marketing 3.0 thoroughly analyzed user behavior and perception of offers and messages. It moved from B2B and B2C formats to H2H (human to human) one. After all, real people stand behind every company.

Marketing 4.0 vs company blogs

Today’s Marketing 4.0 isn’t only about messages from senders to recipients but also about a full dialogue between people standing behind the brand and customers who connect with each other in the offline and online worlds. It’s supposed to inspire engagement, gather the community around a given product, and encourage users to advocate the brand. Company blogs and active use of website content while promoting the brand and selling in social media are one of the tools that support Marketing 4.0.

Company blogs – statistics

If you still aren’t sure whether it’s worth running a company blog, take a closer look at a bunch of statistics supported by marketing research. So what do the numbers indicate? Let’s check:

• Companies spend 46% of their marketing budgets on content creation. Texts, graphics, infographics, e-books, videos, animations… Probably no one would be willing to spend such a fortune without a good reason.
• 47% of users declare to check at least 3-5 pieces of content created by a given company before contacting it for the first time (= becoming a lead) or buying a product (=converting). The game is worth the candle.
• 56% of marketers believe that content tailored to recipients increases their engagement with the brand. There’s probably no one who would share a photo of a billboard or a screenshot of a paid online advertisement. But the situation looks slightly different when it comes to useful guides or unique publications.
• 88% of B2B marketers take advantage of content marketing, and rightly so.
• Websites with company blogs have 434% more indexed pages in Google.
• 600 million Internet users enable ad blockers. Consequently, your ads, contrary to organic entries on your company blog, will never reach them.

The benefits of running a company blog in 2020

Your company is seen as an expert in the field

Do you disseminate knowledge? Well, if so, you’re an expert in the field. Internet users appreciate people who aren’t scared of knowledge sharing. We’re more likely to entrust our money to professionals, even if services or products offered by laymen are much cheaper.

Gratitude and relationships

Offering something for free makes people believe that they’re obliged to give you something in return. And this scheme works similarly when it comes to online content. Company blogs help to build relationships, support PR, and engage readers who become returning users in Google Analytics and then may convert. A real quid pro quo.

A company blog will always remain yours

A company blog and a newsletter will always be your own media dancing to your tune. The truth is that any social media profiles or purchased online advertising spaces will never be really yours and you’ll never be able to fully control or monitor them. The rules may change literally from day to day. Some mysterious updates may decline your reach and consequently, only a small percentage of your followers will learn about new products or offers. Be in control of the situation.

Update your old content! The abovementioned full control enables you to update the information provided in your previous entries. Do your best to ensure that your blog is continuously ranked in top positions in the search results.

Professional blogs = greater sales

How many times have you passed a shop window, noticed something captivating, entered the store, and bought it? The answer to the question is probably “too many times”. In the online world, company blogs work really analogously. A new piece of information, catchy entry or quality infographics is just a lure that is supposed to attract visitors’ attention. And then, just by chance, while reading the blog post they see a voucher and it turns out that the special offer is active only on this particular day, the product catches their eye and… sold!

A positive impact on SEO

Google algorithms appreciate the unique content of company blogs. The struggle to be ranked in top positions in Google is constantly continuing, whether you like it or not. The more blog posts you create, especially the ones with long-tail keywords, the greater your chances to reach better positions. Regularly published content that is willingly shared by your website visitors can really work a miracle for your SEO process.

The drawbacks of running a company blog in 2020

Devoting both time and money

Running a company blog is an extremely time and money consuming task. You can either do it with the help of your in-house experts and hired online marketers or entrust this task to freelance copywriters that will provide you with ready SEO-friendly texts. Analyze whether the character of your company and industry you operate in allows you to employ someone from outside or whether it’s better to do everything yourself.

No plan = no results

It’s pointless to start running a company blog if you don’t have any content plan or strategy. In this case, carpe diem isn’t the best motto you can have. Define the target group, subject matter, and objective of your company blog.

Company blogs – to run or not to run, that is the question

As you can see, the benefits definitely outweigh the drawbacks so YES, it’s worth running a company blog, even in 2020. Moreover, taking into consideration Google algorithms and development strategy, the importance of company blogs and quality website content is likely to increase with each year. Posts and articles created today will be contributing to your brand recognition, online visibility, and SEO process of your website for years. When thinking about it this way, content marketing ceases to be an expense and becomes an investment with a high and easily measurable rate of return.

Do you want to learn more and run your company blog even more efficiently? Or maybe you’d like to commission this task to someone else? We’ll be happy to help you – contact us and let’s talk about the details!