Joanna Woodhouse, Writer and Copywriter

Category: Blog writing

  • 7 reasons to have an up-to-date blog on your business website

    In my last blog post, I shared some tips that helped me get my blog up and running after months of not posting. One way I became motivated to finally write a blog post was to remind myself why I started writing posts. The most important of which was the benefits blogging brings to my business. Regular blogging will boost your business too. Read on to find out 7 reasons to blog for your business.

    Demonstrating your knowledge and expertise

    Blog posts that educate are of more interest to a reader than those that sell. Write posts that share the knowledge and expertise of your business. By showing off what you know, you will build trust with your audience, who will be more likely to choose to buy from you. You will also provide valuable content encouraging readers to browse and return to your website to learn more about you and what you offer. Ella Orr of Much More Social uses her blog to share her personal branding and social media knowledge and encourages you to start thinking about why you should choose to work with her.

    Showcasing your product or service

    People don’t always want you to sell to them. But you can highlight the benefits of your products or service in a detailed blog post, encouraging them to click the link to buy the product. This blog tempts the reader to explore the possibility of investing in an air fryer. And after reading the blog post, I might buy this perfume for my husband.

    Driving traffic to your website

    A regularly updated, engaging and well-written blog can drive traffic to your website by improving its search engine ranking. According to Search Engine Journal, websites with good quality and fresh content will be ranked higher by search engines like Google. As Hubspot explains, every time you publish a new post is a fresh opportunity to appear on search engine listings, which will send visitors to your website. Your posts should provide quality content and subtle use of keywords for SEO.

    Provides new content to share on social media

    A blog post can be re-purposed to provide content for your social media channels. As people engage through likes, comments and shares, you will attract a stronger following, build brand awareness and generate leads. These social media posts can also drive traffic back to your website.

    One of the writing packages I offer is blog posts and related copy for social media posts because this is an effective marketing strategy.

    Generate leads

    Your blog post can be a crucial part of your sales funnel. You will have engaged your reader’s interest and built their trust. By including a powerful call to action, you can turn that interest into an enquiry or sale.  

    Boost your subscriber numbers

    If a visitor to your website likes the information you have shared in your blog post or has found it entertaining, they are more likely to want to hear more from you. You can encourage them to subscribe to your blog and sign up for your newsletter. As a result, you will grow the number of people with who you share business news and marketing.

    Provides content for newsletters and emails

    Once you start growing your email list, it is important to send out content regularly. Your blog posts can provide the topic of your next email or newsletter and drive traffic to your website with a call to action, encouraging your reader to read more. So once you’ve organised your blog content finding topics for your next newsletter or email will be easier.

    If you want to develop a successful blog for your business, get in touch to find out how I can help.

  • Five tips to help you start blogging again after a long time away

    How I’m getting my blog up and running again.

    It’s been a while since I’ve written a blog post, which is ironic, considering I tell others how important it is to post content regularly. Blogging is my favourite part of marketing my own business. But life and other work have taken over for the past year, and I wasn’t making it the priority I should have been.  This year I am determined to start blogging regularly, and I have taken some steps to ensure this happens.

    If you also need to get back into the blogging habit, here are the actions I have taken to spur me to write this post, which will help you too.

    1. Be Accountable.

    I needed to be accountable to be able to write this post. I spoke to business coach Ruth Gilbey (who I highly recommend if you are looking for a business coach), and she challenged me to set a date to write and publish this blog. And she said she would be looking out for it. Now I was accountable to start blogging again, so I had to write. If I’ve told someone I’m producing content for them to read, I don’t want to let them, or myself, down.

    I recommend that you find someone to help you be accountable. Whether that is a friend, colleague, mentor, or social media or networking group, tell them you will start producing content again and set a date for them to watch out for your post or article.

    2. Have an idea.

    A lack of ideas can be the one thing that is holding you back. Set aside some time for content planning. Think about what would your ideal client like to read about? Could what you like to read inspire some posts? Talk to friends, colleagues, and collaborators — perhaps together, you can come up with a topic for your comeback post. If writer’s block is holding you back, this post contains some handy tips.

    3. Don’t worry about the length of your post.

    At this point, it doesn’t matter how many words your post needs to be. You need to write and post that first piece — there will be plenty of time to craft that blog post that’s perfect for SEO (if that’s your aim) once you get back in the habit.

    4. Remind yourself why you started blogging in the first place.

    Knowing what you are losing by not blogging is surely motivation to start again. For me, blogging is an essential part of my marketing. It shows I can write and am an expert in my field. Writing this post has reminded me that I really enjoy doing this.

    5. Get help by calling in the professionals.

    If you struggle to find time to blog, the research and writing process is taking too long, or you lack confidence, freelance writers like me can help. I can talk to you to help you develop topics for your blog. I can also research and write your posts for you. If you prefer, your posts can be ghost-written so they appear under your name.

    To find out how I can help you with your blogging or any other writing or copywriting, book a Discovery Call with me by sending an email to joanna@joannawoodhouse.co.uk