Does my eCommerce Website Need a Blog?
05/04/2022 | Share:
If you’re new to eCommerce, or if you’re currently running an online store and are looking at new marketing methods, you may consider running a blog. A blog can be a hugely profitable strategy for a business and incredibly effective for exposure. But, these aren’t the only benefits of a blog for an eCommerce website.
This post will identify the top 7 reasons why having a blog on your eCommerce website is a fantastic idea.
But firstly, let’s look briefly at what a blog actually is and the kind of content to consider using.
What is a Blog?
A blog is typically a piece of informative content produced by a person or company online. The most effective blogs are regularly updated with news, information, ideas, or a take on current affairs – things the existing reader of the blog will find interesting. A blog is also a great way of increasing a brand’s exposure through shares and likes.
Top 7 Benefits of Having a Blog
Search Engine Optimisation: SEO
Business blogging is a hugely influential ingredient of a successful content marketing strategy, as one of the most vital elements of search engine optimisation is content marketing. A blog is a fantastic way of updating relevant and valuable information to attract a targeted audience who will, ultimately, be interested in the products or services within your eCommerce store.
Each time you publish a keyword-optimised blog, this represents a welcoming path for potential consumers who have searched for a matching keyword. Of course, the blog’s content needs to be informative, accurate, and grammatically correct, but more than this, it needs to be regularly updated.
By checking the above boxes, over time, you will transform visitors and readers into returning guests and, fundamentally, consumers.
Speaks to and Engages Customers
Blogging is the number one brand-building activity. One of the reasons for this is that it is the only genuine way to develop the voice of your business, to speak to and engage with customers – both potential and established.
By starting a blog on your eCommerce website, you have an excellent way to establish the identity and voice of your business – in exactly the way you want it to come across.
You will be able to communicate the value and personality of your eCommerce store explicitly through the type of content you create for your blog, the style of your writing, even down to the types of imagery you use.
Through your blog, you will have the opportunity to connect with your audience and show them what is unique about your business.
Show Your Expertise
Showing your expertise is about proving your leadership and authority on a given topic. This, in turn, builds trust with readers and is an important aspect of an eCommerce blog.
It can be done through a blog in a couple of different ways, such as:
- Differentiating your brand from the competition
- Improving the validity of your claims
- Associating with known authorities
- Discussing specific anecdotes to showcase your experience in action
So, how do you establish expertise?
Well, again, there are several different ways to do this:
Begin with the right foundation: The blog you run needs to look, read, and function as professionally as possible from the very beginning. It is vital to pay attention to the minor details, such as spelling and grammar – tiny mistakes can completely transform how your visitors perceive your business.
Show passion: The Blog Starter claims that one thing is needed to be a successful blogger, and this is a passion for the topic. If you care about the subject, this will shine through in the finished piece – and it doesn’t hurt to throw in some credentials and experience in a natural way, too. For example, rather than outlining your length of experience, refer to previous challenges you’ve overcome or problems you’ve solved in your work.
Creates Online Community
The sheer volume of bloggers and website blogs means it is challenging to stand out, but one thing that can help is to build a community. Building a community around your blog isn’t quick. Still, it is effective as this community will ultimately generate new traffic to your site, increasing your exposure, with you having to do nothing more than create an outstanding blog!
Here are a few more benefits of having a community around your blog:
Many readers lead to more social shares, which generates more traffic to your eCommerce site.
When visitors leave comments on the blog, this improves its position to become a blog of authority.
The higher the number of readers, the higher the chance of people linking back to your blog, which is excellent for SEO value.
Another SEO boost occurs when interaction between readers occurs on your blog and their overall time on this single page.
A solid fan base will lead to recommendations of your site within readers’ online communities.
Builds Loyalty
If you give your readers valuable information consistently through your blog, they’re likely to return repeatedly. Return visitors make up 80% of a website’s total profit, so it is genuinely vital to create a feeling of loyalty.
While all of the information in this post so far will contribute to returning visitors, one thing not mentioned is enticement/encouragement. What can your blog have that will make people want to come back?
Here are a few tips:
Verified sources and trusted information
Incentives such as rewards
Something different to other blogs – humour, engagement, inside information, etc.,
Invitation for feedback and a good level of interaction
Supports Social Media
If you create interesting, relevant, and engaging blogs, you increase the probability of them being shared on social media, which will significantly grow your audience to an otherwise potentially unreachable group.
Each time you create a new blog post, you’re creating content that readers can share on your behalf to their social media pages – Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Twitter – which helps expose your eCommerce store to a brand new audience who otherwise may never have discovered you.
It’s Free
How many marketing methods are genuinely free? They’re certainly few and far between, but blogging costs you only your time and is one of the most profitable strategies there is!
If you’re new to eCommerce or online retailing, then you’re going to want to look at keeping costs low – and nothing is cheaper than typing up your own thoughts! Of course, you can outsource your blogging to a content writing agency, but even this is a small cost compared to most other marketing and advertising avenues.
Summary
A blog is a free, easy, and genuinely fun marketing method that can be as unique as your eCommerce store.
Being authentic will really resonate with potential customers and their needs. Ensuring that your blog offers interesting and relevant information is a great way to build a community on your page and on social media through shares. All of this greatly improves your SEO.
However, don’t use a blog as a sales pitch – it isn’t the right place. Your integrity and authority are the things to shine through on a blog, with your products coming secondary.
