Do you really need a blog?
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Judging by the participation level in the Productivity & Organizing Blog Carnival and the Blogging Organizers group on Facebook, there are a lot of professional organizers who recognize the value of blogging as a marketing tool. If you haven't yet tried this fun and inexpensive way to promote your business, here are some of the ways a blog can help spark more interest in your organizing services, and ultimately generate more income for you.
A blog exhibits your expertise.
Because a blog is easier to update than a static website, you can continually add pictures of your successful organizing projects and even videos to show prospective clients what you can do for them. Explaining the process behind your before and after pictures gives people a deeper understanding of the work you do than a simple list of services can ever do.
A blog can demonstrate how you will solve client problems.
It's often said that people buy solutions, not services. Although you can explain how you solve your clients' problems on a regular web page, on a blog, it all becomes more tangible, because it's more personal.
A blog shows you are actively using your skills.
Any post you make about the work you are doing with your clients is a good testimonial. It shows that there are people who already trust you to do what you claim you will do. If your clients are willing to contribute to your blog or allow you to quote them, even better!
A blog can help increase website traffic.
When you write and promote good, relevant content, people will take notice. When they do, they are more likely to share it on their own blogs and social networks or to email it to others - all good ways to get fresh traffic. Furthermore, when your posts include the keywords your potential clients might use when searching for your services online, you greatly increase the chance that your blog will appear in the search results.
A blog can reduce the need to answer questions over and over.
There are questions in every business that people tend to ask again and again. When you answer these questions on your blog, you help your prospects out by giving them the information they want and eliminate the need to type your answer again and again. At the same time, you build trust and add fresh content to your website, stuff that search engines and people alike love.
A blog allows your prospects to get to know you.
People want to do business with someone they know, like, and trust. This is particularly true when you provide a service, and especially when you will be entering their personal space. Because a blog is interactive, through the comments people can begin to experience you and get a feel of how your business treats its customers.
To learn more, watch this video of a presentation on Blogging to Brand Your Business for PIC TV a number of years ago. Although most of the example blogs I mention have changed or no longer exist, the information is still valuable today.
Learn how to create a captivating blog page.
Although starting a blog can involve a big learning curve at first, it can be very rewarding.
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These are all great reasons to blog, Janet. To these, I’d add three more.
First, blogging doesn’t just bring you to the attention of prospects, letting them get to know you. It also grows the number of your colleagues and potential strategic partnerships in related fields. The more people you know, the more people who know you…the more opportunities for professional and personal growth.
Second, writing a blog, especially if you have even a soft deadline, where your clients are expecting to see something from you every week, builds an ebb and flow into your week. For me, for example, I know that on Mondays, my admin day, I’ll be working for a while on my blog. I’ve set aside time during the week so that when I’m not working on it, I’m not berating myself that I should be. A place for everything…even in our schedules.
And third, writing a blog is a wonderful, stress-free way to develop content for a book, teleclass, home study course or other eventual passive income product. It can be overwhelming to think about writing an entire book or class, but when blogging, the logical chapters or elements seem to write themselves, eventually requiring only some editing and creating connective tissue on your part.
Thanks, Janet, for reminding everyone of all the these excellent reasons to to blog and that it’s not just an exercise in ego.
Janet, can you believe it’s been almost 14 and a half years since I first replied to this post? And all of your points are still completely valid.
The only thing that’s changed is that I get a lot of requests from dubious (as well as some valid) sources wanting to write guest posts for me. However, I always say no because *for my purposes* the most important reason I blog is to make it serve as a portfolio of my expertise and skills for prospective clients. I understand the value of guests posts, but for me, writing y own material is key for all the reasons I expressed all those years ago.
I get those too, but not as many as I used to. Since I do welcome guest posts, it saves me time to not have to review those dubious requests!
Julie, thank you so much for pointing out that, like networking, blogging isn’t just about selling, but about making valuable connections with other professionals. Of course, the other benefits you’ve mentioned are equally valuable!
Yes, my blog is the reason I have a weekly column in our local newspaper. The editor found my blog, liked what she read, and noticed I regularly posted fresh content.
That’s fantastic! A local column is a great way to be introduced to potential clients who might never stumble upon your actual blog.
I like Julie’s point about the ebb and flow. I think we understand what we teach, and in a way, blogging can be a way to teach. I always learn and sharpen my skills when I’m researching a blog. It has been a real positive for me, and hopefully for my readers as well!
Blogging can also be a confidence booster. Sometimes I choose a topic that’s a little outside my area of expertise, but when I begin to research it, I realize I know a lot more than I thought!
That’s so true, Janet. I think that’s why I love researching so much! 😉
Blogging isn’t my passion. Thank-you for continually educating and encouraging me to keep posting.
We should get together for lunch one day, and talk about ways to make it more fun for you.
Great tips for anyone starting a blog. I totally agree finding the right keywords that your potential clients may be using is beneficial. Thanks for sharing, Janet.
Writing a blog has given me so much exposure and really positions me as an expert in my field. I’m so glad I started blogging when I started my business. Thanks, Janet!
I am still in two minds about bloggging, i think there is an advantage, like you said about not having to repeat yourself, but most people i know in person don’t even read blogs, and i have not gotten clients from any of my blog posts.
Jill, I don’t wait for people to find my blog and read it. And I don’t have very many subscribers, either, compared to my number of social media followers and newsletter subscribers. I use it as material to post in social media, to include in my newsletters, and to pro-actively send to clients and prospect who are dealing with an issue I have written about. They don’t care about all the other blog posts. They care about the one that speaks to THEM. Their situations, in turn, give me ideas of what to write about. I don’t know that anyone has said to me, “You know, I read this one blog post of yours and it inspired me to hire you!” Instead, they may read many blog posts (while not even being a subscriber, because they see them elsewhere) and one day finally decide to hire me and not even be able to say why.
Wow – lots of different results from different people! I wonder if it’s geographic, or if some of you are doing things differently than others.
Janet-
This is a wonderful post. I’ve been blogging for six years and have noticed that some bloggers I knew have decided to STOP blogging. I still enjoy writing, having conversations, and seeing the long term results of my efforts, but… I have been revisiting my “why.”
After reading your post and some of the comments, I’m realizing once again the value of blogging (personally and professionally.) So thank you for helping me sort this out with your article.
Just about all of the points you made, along with the ones Julie added have been true for me. I’m not sure I ever took the time to think them through in quite this specific way.
You asked whether blogging results are geographic. It’s possible, but I’m guessing that has less to do with it being that blogs are accessible anywhere in the world. It might have more to do with how one promotes, engages, and matches their content to the audience they’re addressing.
And the other piece is that things don’t just happen overnight…at least not in most instances.
Thank you again for putting it in black and white.
Linda, I’m so pleased that my article was helpful to you!
Even though blogs can be accessed from anywhere in the world, I was wondering if people in some areas might be more apt to read them than others, but your point is great. When you provide a service locally, you need to work that into your blog – so rather than just saying “dispose of paint in an environmentally responsible way,” provide specific instructions to the folks in your area.
Your reminder about things not happening overnight is sound as well. I know that when I make a change in my marketing focus, it’s usually about a year before I can say, “Hey, it worked!” or “Hmm, maybe I need to rethink this.”
It’s so fun rereading this. I enjoy blogging even more than when I started blogging 15 years ago. I also see the many benefits, including:
– Networking with clients, media, and colleagues
– Providing helpful information and inspiration
– Exploring ideas
– Providing resources
– Improving brand recognition
– Providing a platform to introduce new products and services
– Promoting colleagues
– Interviewing industry leaders
– Writing as a creative outlet
– Generating business
– Answering frequently asked questions
– Establishing a rapport/comfort level with my readers
Thank you for giving us a regular place to share each other’s posts.
Thanks for your comment, Linda! There are just SO MANY benefits to blogging!
In addition to all of the above reasons, I like to say I can work with any budget and provide help that ranges from free to “worth every penny”. On the free end is, of course, my blog. If someone is having a specific issue and isn’t quite ready to hire me I will send them a blog post (usually mine, but not always) on that specific topic as a way to help them for free and stay in contact.
Great response, Hazel! Of course, one could have a supply of paragraphs to copy and paste into emails, but by making that information public, you make it possible for those not ready to even email you to find it, and for those you send the link to to discover even more helpful information on your blog.
I like to write client case studies to help prospective clients see how the organizing process goes. We also write team tips posts, so people can get to know my organizing team.
That’s an excellent use of your blog, and you know those case studies and team tips are unique to your business, which really helps you to stand out!
I would add that blogging helps you to stay current. Researching current trends to write about helps me know what is happening in organizing. Writing about trends and commenting on what other people think are trends is a good way to evaluate what is important in organizing and what is a craze that will fade.
That’s a great point! And that not only helps you in the ways you describe, but blogging about those trends keeps your content current and interesting.