For years you’ve probably heard the term “bloggers” or maybe “content creators” and thought of the travelers that write about their adventures and make money via sponsorships and affiliate marketing. But, did you know that blogging can increase your income as a business owner? In fact, 66% of businesses that incorporate blogs into their SEO strategy generate more leads than those that don’t. Blogging is a key element to scaling your online business and increasing your business revenue – here’s why:

Blogs are a key point in developing strong SEO, introducing a small product or digital product offers, attracting new email subscribers, and even converting directly to leads. A proper blog helps you attract your ideal customer and audience, for the long haul of course. 

While many businesses have recognized the importance of blogging in their marketing strategies, others still have to weigh their options. If you’re not an experienced blogger and SEO specialist, blogging is just “more content” for your site and not a strategically placed marketing tool. This means that most businesses are going to need to outsource their blogs which leads to an investment and a desire for a strong ROI. 

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Luckily for you, SEO-rich blogs are PROVEN to increase your site visitors, build brand trust, and increase your clientele. But, let’s break it down into the four basic ways that blogging can increase your business’s revenue:

#1. Attracts New Email Subscribers

The power of a properly built funnel is something that nearly every business owner knows – you can work with a tripwire, offer the product right out, or simply create warm (even hot) leads through a well-written welcome sequence. And while a freebie or lead magnet is a great way to encourage visitors to subscribe, how do you encourage visitors to come to your website? Easy, blogging. 

Blogging is the ideal way to generate organic long-term traffic to your website. Mainly, this happens through SEO. But, you can also generate organic traffic by getting backlinks to your blogs, linking it in your IG bio, or pinning your blogs to Pinterest. Once on your website, visitors can sign up via embeddable forms directly in your blog post or sidebar or through a pop-up subscription box on your website. 

If you’re offering digital products and your sequence is set upright, you can start generating SALES on autopilot (trust me, it’s what I do).

#2. Product (& Digital Product) Sales on Autopilot

So you have products, but you’re not always marketing them – or maybe you have TOO many and can’t market them all at once (without confusing the HECK out of your audience). Plus, selling ALL THE TIME just feels kinda icky if you’re not providing additional value to your audience. That’s where blogging comes in – blogging is a great way to promote your product WITHOUT the icky sales-y feeling. 

Blog topics typically revolve around topics that you’re an expert in, you’re providing valuable information for your audience while showcasing what you and your business can do. When you want to market your product in a blog post simply write a blog post pertaining to the information your product covers and/or relates to. This ensures that the readers that are visiting your blog post are also going to be interested in your product.

All three methods are great for different situations. For example, linking your product’s sales page on a relevant keyword encourages readers to click through if they feel that keyword relates to their needs while directly mentioning the product provides a direct solution to their problem.

#3. Sponsorships, Affiliates, and Collaborations

This is the traditional blogger-y version of increasing your income for your business through blogging. Still, it’s VERY important to analyze the different ways to earn passive income when scaling your business and sponsorships, affiliate marketing, and collaborations are very lucrative when it comes to blogging (and online businesses). 

Blog Sponsorships for Businesses

Sponsorships or “partnerships” with brands can be tricky for businesses depending on your brand values, messaging, and what you as a business owner is comfortable doing. Brand partnerships as a business owner are centered around online tools that you already use for your business or the service you offer. For example, as a Pinterest manager, I might do a partnership with Tailwind, a scheduler I already use. Or, as a blog writer/content creator I might do a partnership with Moz, an SEO tool I use.

Affiliate Marketing for Businesses

Similar to partnerships, affiliate marketing is normally for tools, brands, and services that you already use or have used in the past and recommend to your audience. Instead of the brand paying you a set amount for the post, affiliate marketing is a post you write on your own and link your affiliate links for readers to shop through. These affiliate links are typically good for the duration of your and their business and can lead to long-term passive income. 

Collaborations on Your Business’s Blog 

Collaborations are similar to affiliate marketing but on a more personal level. Affiliate marketing is through a third-party program that pays you a percentage immediately when a purchase is confirmed. Collaborations function in a referral style, paying you manually when the other party receives a client or sale from your content. Collaborations can be written by you or as a guest post by the other business owner. 

#4. Showing Your Process & Results to Attract New Clients

The final way (out of my favorite four) to make money through blogging as a business owner – case studies. When clients of mine have a strong service, good testimonials, and RESULTS that speak I ALWAYS recommend planning a case study in our content calendar. More than once have I directed a lead of my own to the case studies I have on my own blog (for blogging click here & for Pinterest click here) and it’s led to a signed contract. 

Creating a blog post for your case study allows you to dive in-depth into your processes and allows potential clients to get an insider look at what you do for businesses like theirs. Case studies also show off how your past clients feel about working with you – which sometimes speak just as loud as your actual results. One of my FAVORITE case studies that I’ve read is from Âme Creatives covering a client’s rebrand leading to 4 new speaking engagements.

How to Utilize Blogging for Your Online Business

Before you get started with blogging, I highly recommend getting an SEO audit/website evaluation to analyze where your website is ranking right now vs. where you want it to be. Most of these will also include a rundown of where you can improve your website SEO and how to do so. Next, you’ll want to find a few target keywords that relate to your niche and target audience – this will help you come up with content ideas.

You’ll also need to recognize if you can write your own blogs or if you want to invest in a professional. Both come with their benefits (such as saving money, time, and ensuring your best chance of success) and should be weighed carefully before choosing. 

If you’re ready to start blogging for your business, reach out to me at mckaylas@thecommamamaco.com to get started.