Promoting a business blog right now is a challenge—most companies have blogs and they’re churning out tons of content, a trend that will continue into 2021.
How do you ensure your posts are seen by your intended audience when there’s so much content already vying for their attention?
There are a few methods that have worked for brands across numerous fields. We outline eight of the best so you can build a blog promotion strategy that will get you views.
#1 Promote Your Business Blog with Case Studies
One unusual way to promote your business blog is by using case studies.
Brand promotion methods are often sales-forward—they are designed to sell your brand to customers.
But while this is a direct method of spreading awareness about your company, it can be off-putting. After all, customers are being sold to from numerous brands on every channel.
You want to create a blog promotion strategy that sets you apart from your competitors—one where you get to show your customers why your content is worthy of their attention.
That is where case studies come in—they are a great tool to convey to customers what value your brand brings to them, which will organically encourage them to engage with you.
Look at this marketing case study example that outlines how a company achieved its goals.
Source: Venngage
A visual like this can highlight company achievements with statistics—and the same process can be used to promote blogs.
If you’re writing a blog about a product that got great reviews or sold well, designing a case study around it will not only build your brand but draw people to your blog.
With a case study, you can leverage the power of visuals, data, and testimonials so your content gives customers added value.
#2 Always Add CTAs to Promote Business Blog Posts
You’ve written a blog post—now what do you want your reader to do with it?
Promoting your business blog doesn’t mean doing all the work yourself—nor do you have to leave your business blog to promote new posts.
Instead, when you create a blog post, add a call-to-action at the end of your conclusion so readers will want to take their interaction with the post further.
The call to action can be any of the following:
- Read a related blog post—this keeps readers engaged on your site
- Sign up for your newsletter to get the newest blogs
- Buy a product or register for a service related to the blog
- Download a piece of gated content to read more about the blog topic
- Leave a comment about the blog—ensure you have someone in charge of replying to comments
- Book a call with your brand to learn more information
- Adding a call-to-action helps readers engage with your blog instead of closing the tab the moment they’ve finished reading.
#3 Promote Your Business Blog with Email Newsletters
Email marketing is a great channel for promoting your blog. If you already have an email list or are working towards building one, you need to engage your list for your blog.
To build a list, create a form to gather information from website visitors.
Once you have a sizable number of subscribers, segment your list according to user interest—this will help you send targeted emails that users will open.
What kind of content should you include in your emails? Why not your blog posts?
Your email list has already signed up to receive content from you—since you are creating blog posts regularly, inform your subscribers whenever a new blog is published.
Design a simple email like this example below to urge people to read your latest post.
Source: Venngage
Alternatively, create a section in your newsletter templates dedicated to promoting your business blog—this can be a round-up of the latest blog posts or posts on one subject matter.
#4 Write Guest Posts to Promote Your Business Blog
Another method for blog post promotion is to write guest posts for other websites. This does require some work—you will have to write more and pitch topics, but it is well worth it.
Writing guest posts means you get to appear on a website that isn’t your own—you essentially place yourself as a thought leader in your industry.
It also helps you reach a new audience who may not know about your brand.
When pitching your guest post ideas, look within the industry and your niche—this will ensure your content reaches your target audience.
Build your topics around the blog post you have written—this could mean looking at your blog post from a new perspective or elaborating on a specific point in the article.
With guest posting, you can promote your blog to new audiences and establish yourself as an expert in your field.
#5 Promote New Business Blog Posts through Link Building
Guest blogging is an intensive process—it requires ideation, pitching, and finally writing. But there is another way to promote your blog on other websites. That is link building.
Link building is one of the most effective ways to rank on Google—it’s a great method to increase views on new posts and create industry partnerships.
You need to start by shortlisting sites that would be appropriate for your blog. You can use a tool like Ahrefs to find these sites, and Hunter.io to scrape contact details.
Sending out cold outreach emails manually can be extremely time-consuming—using email marketing software like Moosend will help you automate the process.
With link building, be prepared for rejection—but when you find sites that do want to pursue a partnership, you will find the blog promotion process will proceed more smoothly.
#6 Get More Business Blog Views through Online Networking
Networking is quite the buzzword in marketing—but it doesn’t just mean attending industry events or video conferences.
There are online avenues for networking where you can promote blogs.
Content isn’t created in a vacuum—just as you want readers to leave comments on your posts, you can do the same on blogs on other sites and social media posts, like in this example.
Source: Smartblogger
It’s a great way to create a dialogue between your brand and people in your industry—you can share your own experiences with the subject or respond to others’ queries.
Avoid self-promotion in these comments sections, however. Don’t ask people to read your blog post or buy your product—it looks unprofessional.
The goal here is to build long-lasting relationships that will organically lead to more people reading your blog posts.
#7 Consider Paid Advertising to Promote Blog Posts
Paid promotions for blog posts aren’t a feasible option for every brand but it is worth noting here.
Social posts are still harder to see by followers if they aren’t promoted. If you have the budget, promoting posts on social media could be a viable option for you.
You can’t sponsor every new blog post, so choose a category of posts—long-form blogs, for instance—that warrant money being put behind them.
#8 Repurpose Content to Promote Your Business Blog
Your blog posts don’t have to exist as they are—in fact, you can get more attention if you repurpose blogs as other pieces of content.
Combine a set of blog posts on a similar topic into an infographic, like this simple personal branding graphic based on an existing listicle.
You can use an eBook creator to collate blogs into chapters of an eBook or a whitepaper. Blog posts can also be fleshed out into webinars or podcasts.
By repurposing blogs, you can reach audiences who are engaging with other types of media.
Key Takeaways: Create a Focused Strategy to Promote Your Business Blog in 2021
There is so much content online now that it can be hard to rise above the noise and get your content the attention it deserves.
To promote your business blog in 2021, implement these eight methods:
- Create case studies
- Add calls-to-action
- Share your content in emails
- Write guest posts
- Try link building
- Network online
- Consider paid advertising
- Repurpose your blog posts
With the strategies outlined above, you can increase views to your posts and grow your business.
Author's bio:
Ronita Mohan is a content marketer at Venngage, the online infographic maker and design platform. Ronita regularly writes about marketing, sales, and small businesses.
Twitter: @Venngage
