Having a blog for your business can bring so many benefits when it comes to promoting your brand, building engagement and increasing traffic to your website.

1. The Importance of
Business Blogging
Victoria Edwards
Digital Content Strategist

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• @tallchickvic
• linkedin.com/in/victorialedwards
• victoria.edwards@floridablue.com
• victoria-edwards.com
Where you can find
me…

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When I am not working…

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OVERVIEW
• What is Search Engine Optimization?
• Why blogging is important to your business
• Things to consider when building a blog
• Tips on how to develop content
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What is Search Engine
Optimization?
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a
collection of techniques used to increase a Web
site's ranking in search engine results pages.

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What is Search Engine
Optimization?
• Not just about the search engines, but
people too!
And….
• How your website is laid out (architecture)
• The type of content you have (good quality)
• How active you are in social media
• Who is linking to your site and the amount of
good quality links

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http://searchengineland.com/seotable

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“Content marketing will move from buzzword
to mature marketing movement in 2014.
From an SEO perspective, Google will be
looking at companies that have robust
content marketing efforts as a sign that
they're the kind of business Google wants to
support.”
~Jayson DeMers, Search Engine Watch

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Why Blogging is Important to Your Business?
• Drives traffic to your website
• Aides in Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Position your brand as an industry leader
• Develop better customer relationships

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Why Blogging is Important to Your Business?
And….
• Can aid in lead generation
• Conversion =

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Drives Traffic to Your Website
• Multiple blog posts will increase the number of
indexed pages in search engines.
• This creates multiple entry points into your
website from search engines and other
sources.

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Aides Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
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• Website and blog will start to rank for
keywords you are wishing to target
• Your great content you produce will make
others want to link to it
• And also will be shared more in social media

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Position Your Brand as an Industry Leader
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• Content will help you develop trust with your
audience
• Will position you as a subject matter expert

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Develop Better Customer Relationships
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• Developing content to:
o Solve their problem
o Entertain your audience
o Educate your customers

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Things to Consider When Building a Blog
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• What platform will you use?
• How frequently will you be able to post?
• What keywords do you want to rank for?
• What will you write about?
• What other types of content will you create?

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What platform will you use?
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• Find one that is:
o Easy to use
o Easy to update
o Backend is SEO friendly

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What Platform will You Use?
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• Many Content Management Systems (CMS)
out there
• I use Wordpress…why?

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What platform will you use?
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• I use Wordpress because:
o It’s easy to use
o It’s easy to update
o It’s backend is SEO friendly
And
o Has many plugins to customize your site
o Easy to find troubleshooting solutions
o Easy to set up
o Can have multiple users

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WARNING!!!!
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• DO NOT USE WORDPRESS.com
• I repeat DO NOT USE WORDPRESS.com
• MUST USE Wordpress.org

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Why?
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• Website Url if you use Wordpress.com:
o Yoursite.wordpress.com
• Limited with customization of site
• Wordpress.com rarely rank for search results
• All traffic you create goes to Wordpress
• Wordress.org lets you have the software, but
it is on your domain (YourSite.com)

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How Frequently will You Be Able to Post?
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• Depends on how much time you have
• 2-3 times a week to get maximum benefit
• Don’t set it and forget it

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What Keywords Do You Want to Rank For?
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• Build out keyword list (10-20)
• Where do the people live that you’re trying to
target?
• Core keywords + location

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What Will You Write About?
• FAQ’s
• How to’s
• Quizzes
• Top trends in your industry
• Top products in your industry
• Helpful tools and resources
• Top people to follow in the industry
• Interview an expert
• Guest blogs
• Ask questions in social and report
answer

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What will You Write About?
And about a million more!!!!
• http://startbloggingonline.com/101-blog-
post-ideas-that-make-your-blog-hot/
• http://www.hubspot.com/blog-topic-
generator
• Just Google “blog ideas”

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What Other Types of Content Will You Create?
• Podcasts
• Inforgraphs/Images
• SlideShare (PowerPoint
Presentations
• Whitepapers
• eBooks

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Tips on How to Develop Content
• Create a content calendar
• Use keywords in content
• Brainstorm with others
• Recycle old content

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Create a Content Calendar
• Title of content (add location)
• Keywords (Geo-focused)
• Platform (social, web, blog, podcast…)
• Audience
• Date

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Create a Content Calendar

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Use Keywords in Content
• Place Keywords in:
o Page Titles
o Meta Description
o On Page

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Use Keywords in Content
• Make filename keyword friendly
• Add keywords in image alt parameters

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Brainstorm with Others
• Get different perspective
• Get different ideas
• Utilize your network outside your space
• Ask questions in social media

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Recycle Old Content
• No need to recreate the wheel
• Turn a blog in to a PowerPoint
• Take one idea from a blog and build it out
• Take another idea and make a inforgraphic
• Create a series

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