Are blogs still relevant? The honest truth from an SEO specialist.
If you ask any copywriter, marketer or SEO specialist if blogs are still relevant, you’ll get hit with a resounding ‘yes!’ But it’s hard to know if they really mean yes. Or if they just mean ‘yes, because that’s what I get paid to do.’
Add to this the fact that you probably know from actual experience that publishing a blog on your website isn’t all that different from printing it out, crumpling it up and tossing it over the nearest cliff. Very few people ever seem to notice it, let alone open it up to read it.
On the other hand, the most popular blog posts can get literally millions of views.
So what’s the truth? Are blogs still relevant?
Are blogs still relevant? The honest truth from an SEO specialist .
When it comes to determining if blogs are still relevant, the first step is to figure out what you are writing them for. Are you writing them because you have a message or some thought leadership to get out into the world? Because you have an SEO keyword strategy to implement? Or because you think you have to as part of a successful business strategy? Let’s dive in.
You’re writing to get your message into the world
If you’re writing your blogs to spread a message, that’s great. But only if you’re backing it up with strong community building. What does that mean? Well, back in the day (let’s say 15 years ago), people were reading their favourite bloggers every day. This was the age of the ‘mommy’ bloggers and ‘food’ bloggers.
When we found a blogger we liked, we’d check in frequently to see if they’d updated their posts. We were following those individuals and their journey. And we’d get excited when there was something new to read.
Unfortunately, those days are gone, replaced almost entirely by ‘content creators’ creating videos and podcasts in a serial format. Today our ‘blog’ bandwidth (both literally and figuratively) is taken up almost exclusively by social media influencers, whether our platform of choice is X (Twitter) or YouTube.
So in order to battle that competition, you must have a community that is seeking you out regularly.
Building your community
Building your community can happen in a number of ways.
- Build your database and use EDMs. This will enhance your online engagement activities and help you to create an actively engaged and informed online community. And it’s very successful. On average every dollar you spend on email marketing sees you getting a $36 return.
- Build your social media followers. Social media has its ups and downs, particularly for the business world, but platforms like X and LinkedIn are fantastic for building community when used well. One in five social media users joined or participated in an online community in the first three months of 2023.
- Use Google to draw in aligned readers. Well thought out SEO drives aligned readers to your website, which means you can share your message with exactly the right audience. They may not be reading every blog post, but they will be reading the ones that resonate with their own needs.
You’re writing them because you have an SEO keyword strategy to implement
If you’re wondering, ‘are blogs still relevant?’, this is one of the times where the answer is a resounding yes. Blogs give you multiple opportunities to implement your keyword strategy and drive traffic to your site. And they’re a vital part of your site optimisation as a whole.
Of course, in order to do this well, you need to ensure that your blog is first and foremost written for your audience. You need to be solving a problem, or providing valuable information that your readers want or need. And only then can you implement keywords throughout.
Keywords are important, but they should always be secondary to writing for your audience.
You’re writing them because you think you have to
If you’re just writing blogs because you think it’s part of what a successful business does, you can go ahead and stop right now. Blogs in and of themselves don’t really do that much. There’s so much noise in the world today, that it’s really hard to get heard.
To break through you must have a dedicated community that are already coming to you (think of Seth Godin, for example) via your database, your socials or other community building work. Or you need to have Google on your side through a robust SEO practice.
Are Blogs Still Relevant – The Statistics
When you’re using your blogs well, they can be an excellent driver of business success. Here are some telling 2023 statistics.
• 77% of internet users regularly read blog posts.
• 80% of bloggers say that blogging drives results.
• 71% of bloggers say SEO is their most significant traffic source.
• Bloggers who prioritise SEO earn an average of over US$50,000 annually (with their main traffic source being Google).
Rank Your Blogs!
If you’re ready to jumpstart your own blogging, there are a lot of steps you can take. Check out ‘How to Get Your Blog to Rank’ for tips on getting started. Or get in touch. I’d be happy to help!
