By now, surely you have heard a lot about blogging.  Everyone seems to have a blog. But maybe you are still asking yourself why?  In this computer friendly era when all businesses now have a website, what would be the need to have a blog as well?  If you should decide to take on this additional task, what would you include?  Let’s be honest, writing a blog would require a lot of your valuable time and energy.  Consider these 5 benefits of blogging to see why this commitment is worthwhile:

Gain Expertise

In order to write new, interesting and relevant content on a regular basis, you will need to stay on the cutting edge of the trends and ideas in your specific field.  An active search for new industry knowledge while researching for your blog, will establish you as a legitimate expert as you compose your blog posts.  Readers will trust what you have to say when you present them with fresh, useful information.  This trust will translate into more loyal customers.

Promotions

The internet is your business’ best resource for free or low-cost advertising.  Attract new customers and stay in touch with already established clients through your blogging efforts.  Offer updates on upcoming sales or provide new product descriptions.  Use this opportunity to be creative and to express your personality.  Have fun and speak from the heart; don’t just go through the motions.  Readers will sense your sincerity when you really do care about what you are writing.

Networking

Your blog is a great platform for establishing an ongoing relationship with your readers.  Stay connected with readers by creating a section for their comments and you will have a place to bring people together in conversation.  You get relevant customer feedback through their posted remarks.  Be sure to personally reply to each comment, as this is a great opportunity to expand your influence and further demonstrate your expertise.

Branding

All successful companies now have an internet presence.  You can use your blog as another component in your social media campaign by linking it to your Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, You Tube and Instagram accounts.  The more often buyers are reminded of you and your products or services, all the more often will they turn to you when they are in need of a solution in their daily lives.  Attract interested readers through blog posts with a broad appeal and gain repeat customers.  Also, consider this: you may write an article for your blog this week that may turn up in a web search for someone a year from now.  Your writing will last in your archives long after you originally post it and that will help to continually generate new business in the future.

Raise profits

After all, you are in business to earn money, right?  It costs you less to retain a repeat customer than it does to generate a new one.  Use your blog to effectively maintain a connection with those people you have done business with in the past.  Boost your revenue and improve your bottom line by using your blog to your best advantage.  Smart, unique, interesting writing will bring readers back to your website again and again.  This increased web traffic will ultimately raise your earning potential.

These 5 benefits of blogging are the essential reasons why you should be using a blog as part of your online marketing for your business.  Professional blogging with the assistance from a company like Digital Next is another tool to help you stay competitive in today’s challenging economic climate.  It does not need to be a chore, but can be something you enjoy.