Company blogs have been and will continue to be a great digital marketing tool, channel, and asset. We no longer question whether our business should have a blog – the question we ask now is How do we convert blog visitors and readers into customers?
Let’s dive in!
Solve Real Problems
The first thing to consider is how valuable your blog actually is.
Readers appreciate information they can work with. That might be solutions to actual problems, as well as advice on issues they consider important or are struggling with at the moment.
Sure, if you write about abstract issues, you may be attracting a certain readership. But if you aim to convert them, they need to see the value in your product or service.
Source: buffer.com
Here is an example from Gili, a brand that covers some very hands-on and practical topics on their blog. How to patch your paddleboard or how to fix a crack in it is certainly something that their readers will want to know. They’ll be able to spot the post’s value a mile off.
Use Clever Lead Magnets
Gated content is another way businesses utilized blogs to convert visitors in the past. The one downside to it is that businesses have started to use mediocre content as lead magnets, giving them a somewhat bad rep.
The key to using gated content as a lead magnet is to ensure value, yet again. The information you provide (for the price of the reader’s email address) needs to be worth it.
Gaining access to someone’s inbox is only the first step of the process, however. You still need to be clever with your email marketing campaign in order to get someone to convert.
Chart Mogul provides gated content that is not only valuable, but its value is clear to see right away. If you can zero in on a topic that can be of similar benefit to your own audience, start producing that content.
Keep in mind that you still need to work with topics that are relevant and relatable to your brand. Don’t do a guide on decorating your home for the holidays if you are a car wash business.
Provide Real Facts
Another issue that comes up with blog content production is the reliability of data. Since there is literally no control on the internet, and you can state practically anything and get away with it, some users will have more difficulty trusting you. That’s especially if you cover topics that would merit some evidence.
The simplest way to circumvent the issue is to cite reliable and unimpeachable sources in your content. Drink LMNT does this really well in this post, where they base their opinions on research and studies conducted by medical professionals.
You may not always be able to rely on data provided by completely trustworthy sources, but citing your sources can be an excellent first step to establishing trust.
Format Your Posts for Skim Readers
Most readers don’t want to spend too much time on a post. They want to get to the gist of it as fast as possible, and come back to read the entire thing if they determine it provides some real value to them. Or, if they really like the writing style, they’ll be pulled in regardless.
To be of value and help your top-to-bottom readers as well as the skimmers, ensure your blog posts are formatted well. Use bullet points and numbered lists, break things up with visuals, and use charts and tables wherever you can.
Source: contentmarketinginstitute.com
This Baselang post illustrates the point nicely – although they could have chosen to simply list the words they are talking about, they’ve put in the extra effort to add a neat table to the text. This makes it much easier to digest, and also much more visually appealing.
Make Yourself the Example
Explaining how your product or service solves a particular issue is the best way to conceive your blog posts.
If you think this is not always possible, take a look at this example from Ahrefs. You can turn to any other post on their blog, for that matter. They have perfected the art of writing about topics within which they can also reference their solutions and add some screenshots to prove the point.
It’s not that there are no other tools available – it’s that they have integrated their product so well within their content. Readers will naturally want to test their suggestions out, seeing as they are already on the website.
This also means that their organic traffic (and conversion rates) have been on a steady rise since they have started implementing this tactic.
Source: ahrefs.com/
Share Customer Stories and Testimonials
Finally, you want to share as much of your satisfied customers’ experiences as possible. You don’t have to write an entire post about them every time, but you can add a blurb or a testimonial into the post you are writing.
Citing reviews from social media is a great way to do this. So is referencing a customer service email you’ve received, for instance.
On the other hand, when you are composing an entire post based on a customer’s experience, make sure you still do it tastefully and without too much bragging.
Somnifix has done this in a post that discusses a customer’s journey, yet it is still both informative and interesting, as opposed to a clear sales pitch. The chart below will give you a good idea of how different resources are usually perceived:
Source: spectoos.com
A/B Test Your Headlines and CTAs
One of the most popular (and most successful) conversion optimization tactics is A/B testing.
After all, you can never be sure how your readers will react to specific headlines and CTAs. You might feel they are the absolute best match for your target audience, only to discover you were wrong. For example, research has shown that headlines that feature numbers are the most popular, but there are other headline preferences to consider:
Source: monsterinsights.com
Implement regular A/B tests for certain segments of your posts. Apart from the headlines and CTAs, you can also test images, formatting, even specific elements of the copy, like tone of voice and point of view. Optimizing and testing your copy will take more time, but it can also provide some amazing results.
Source: econcultancy.com
Final Thoughts
Consider the aim of your articles carefully. Align them with your sales funnel and target audience distribution. Once you do this, you can reach that sweet spot of informative, valuable, and reliable content. We’re talking about the kind of content that inspires conversions but is still not an outright sales pitch.
Take some of our advice into consideration, and happy blogging!
About the Author: Natasha has been working for, and collaborating with, individual clients and companies of all sizes for more than a decade. Natasha specializes in writing about design, branding, digital marketing, and business growth. To see what she is up to next, check out her Twitter dashboard.