Are blogs still relevant? Didn’t social media take over? Will people read my blog even though my business doesn’t have a big following on social media? All these questions are valid, and we are here to shine a light on the fact that we believe that blogs are still very relevant. Let’s look at the trends of blogging in 2021 and how writing blogs can help you grow your business.
The future of blogging in 2021: people still read good quality content
Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook, Reels, YouTube, and Podcasts; there are so many different ways to promote and market your company nowadays. Not only are there many platforms to post from, but it has also become very easy to learn how to market yourself on social media. This is because there is a lot of information out there that teaches you all the ins and outs of social media marketing. Because of the focus on these platforms, it might seem that writing blogs has been pushed aside. But we are here to look at it from a different perspective.
We believe that blogging is still very much alive in 2021. Here is why: people still like to read good quality content. Where social media content can be aesthetically pleasing and inspiring, a good blog provides information people are actually searching for. Blogs have the ability to create an understanding of a topic that will make the reader grow a liking in and share your business’s content more.
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Blogs are built for longevity
Blogs function as a form of “evergreen content”. This content can pop up and gain attention not only for days or weeks, but for years to come. There is a longevity aspect of blogging that is very interesting to many businesses. A social media post evaporates over time, where a well-written blog doesn’t. On top of that, there are still a good amount of people that go to blogs for information instead of searching for it on social media platforms.
Just as with everything in marketing, blogging is best based on a strategy. Part of such a strategy is a SEO analysis, in which you will look at long-term keyword trends and use it as ways to grow your business. Besides that, your blogs should always be updated to current events. This keeps your blog relevant to the reader. On top of this, you can decide to run advertisements, try out affiliate marketing, or get your blog sponsored by other companies to reach an even bigger audience.
Blogging vs. Social Media Platforms
Below, we will dive into three reasons why we believe blogging is still very relevant and as important as social media to promote your business. We will look at ownership of both a blog and social media platforms and what this means for the future of your business. We will dive into the kind of value you can provide for your viewers with both blogs and social media. Then we will look into how creating an email-list can help your company grow.
1. You own your blog
When you use social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok, you are ‘borrowing’ their platforms to showcase your content. This means that if these social media platforms ever decide to shut down, alter their policies, or change their algorithms, that you are depending on their decisions. With your own blog this is not the case: there is no third-party involved that has the control over your blog, you are in control yourself.
2. Blogs can provide a lot of value and context
Blogs are the perfect medium to provide value to your viewers. You are able to provide context, tips, videos, infographics, links to other websites, or links to other pages on your own website. On top of that, you can take all the space that you need to make your point, instead of only being able to use 160 characters (as on Twitter for example). The value that you can provide with your blog will help create trust amongst your audience and will make you appear as an authority in your niche/industry.
3. Building your email list with your blog
Both social media and blogs can be used to build an email list. However, providing a lot of value through blogs helps your followers to want to come back for more. You can easily insert a call to action into your blogpost instead of asking your viewers on social media to follow a ‘link in bio’ to subscribe to your email-list. Every step that can be avoided in the process of getting your viewers to subscribe to your email list is good. That’s why we recommend not only building it through your social media accounts, but also and maybe mostly, through your blog posts.
2021 Blog Trends
Not only are blogs built for longevity, you are also the owner of your website and blog, which in the long run is a safe option to build on. With the right strategies, your blogging business can become a booming business; all to build trust, share knowledge, and become an authority in your niche/industry. Below we will look at five trends we are currently seeing in the blogging world.
1. Blogs are more than just words
Video content is booming and why not utilize this in your blogs? A major trend in the blogging world is to approach the reader from different angles, which will make the content far more interesting. You can make your blog more interactive by showcasing pictures, videos, infographics, internal, and external links. You can also add a call-to-action button that prompts your reader to take the desired action such as ‘buy something’ or ‘get more information’.
2. Use data to your advantage
When you write your posts or create your blogging strategy, we advise you to incorporate blogging KPIs into this strategy. These KPIs will help you to see which goals you want to achieve. You can use the data on your blog articles to your advantage and base your strategy and decisions on facts rather than feelings. In this way you will be able to provide more value to your readers and this will eventually also benefit the growth of your blog. For more information on how to set-up and use Google Analytics, check out the article!
3. Become a guest writer in someone else’s blog
One of the reasons to write blogs is to build trust and become an authority figure for your audience. Another way to achieve this is to become a guest writer for another blogger. This will provide information to their readers and generate backlinks to your own website and (hopefully) create interest amongst their target audience. We therefore would recommend being strategic when choosing other blogs to co-write with since businesses similar to yours will have an audience that will potentially like your content and brand as well.
4. 80% evergreen and 20% trending
Blogs are evergreen content and have the potential to inspire your audience for a long time to come. When you write your articles with the evergreen aspect in mind, you don’t necessarily have to focus on ‘trending’ keywords, even though you do want to use your researched SEO-keywords. However, we advise you to create 20% of your blogs based on trending keywords. This has the potential to generate a lot of traffic to your blog in a short time, with the aim to inspire people with something they are currently searching for. The combination of both evergreen and trending blog posts will help you grow your audience even further.
5. You got to stay flexible
The last trend that we have seen in the blogging world is to stay flexible. The world around us is rapidly changing and what we have analyzed and researched three months ago might not be relevant, respectful, or good for your business tomorrow. Therefore, around planning your content calendar and creating strategies for your blogs, keep in mind that things can change and that being flexible is sometimes necessary.
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