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Is Blogging Dead? 

Is Blogging Dead? 

Is blogging dead? This is an inevitable question which comes up time and time again every year but the swift answer is NO! 

Blogging is absolutely still relevant in 2022! 

However, the practice of blogging is everchanging and getting your blogs seen by an audience may be harder than ever. 

Blogging is still a totally viable digital marketing strategy in 2022 and beyond, which is why we are going to share with you our 5 top tips on how to ensure your blog can thrive in 2022… 

Share Your Blogs 

Whilst blogging will primarily occur on your website, other platforms can grow your audience and create more engagement with your blogs. 

Platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok and others can drastically improve your popularity. Which platform you choose will depend on your content and your audience. If your content is formal and business-focused then LinkedIn will be the spot for you, whereas if you write informal and chatty stories or guides then YouTube could be your friend. 

The best way to share your content to these sites is through repurposing. 

Repurposing is the act of using content you already have and creating something new with it. 

You can repurpose your content by: 

  • Creating a video: This could be of yourself talking about your content or an infographic video showing a how-to guide. 
  • Social media posts: If you have written a blog then you will have lots of written content ready and available. Use a website like Canva to create visually appealing text posts using the most important parts of your content. Use more content to create an appealing caption and link out to your blog. 

If you are not confident appearing visually in person, don’t worry! You can create videos and social media posts anonymously without your face or, if you are posting as a business, you can find another employee who is willing to be involved! 

In 2022, your blog will not be found as easily as in the past therefore you need to make yourself stand out more especially when you are just getting started. 

Create Visual Content 

People love visual content and it is a great addition to your blogs to keep your audience engaged. 

When most people find your blog, they will not have searched for your website specifically and have no prior connection to your blog. This means that you need to keep them interested and engaged from the outset. 

Using videos and images, you can break up your text into more manageable chunks and brighten up your page. 

When including images on your page, you need to include ‘Alt Text’. For those of you who do not know that that is, alt text is the writing which will be displayed in place of an image if the image fails to load or to help visually impaired users. 

Your alt text should describe the image clearly and in detail for your audience. 

Update Old Content 

If you have had a blog for a period of time then it is common to have old content which may now be out of date or in need of a refresh. 

Taking time to update this content can be just as useful as creating new content. As you create blogs, you will learn skills, develop your writing style and the world will change. 

Giving your blogs a (metaphorical) facelift can be all you need, here are a few tips to look out for in your old blogs: 

  • Outdated statistics. If you have outdated statistics from years ago then your audience will presume the rest of the content is outdated. Make sure to update your statistics often even if this means that you need to update the rest of the content of the blog.  
  • Broken links. If your blog links out to other sources, websites, brands or products then you should check that these are all functioning and in use. If any of your links are broken then you should change these. Search for other links that can serve the same purpose to avoid reader disappointment. 
  • Outdated strategies. If your blog is business-related or notes the best practices in an industry then it is important that this is current and accurate information. 

Use Email Marketing to Promote Your Blog 

Once your blog is reaching an audience, you need a way to keep them connected and engaged with your blogs even when they aren’t reading them. 

Creating an email marketing strategy for your readers and attaching a  button/link to your blogs ensures they can be notified every time you post a new blog. 

Using a platform such as Mailerlite allows you to easily create email campaigns with a drag-and-drop editor. This means that you can create your own emails even with no prior experience or knowledge. 

The main items you should include in your emails are: 

  • A catchy title 
  • An intriguing subject line 
  • CTA’s. These can be in the form of links in the text or interactive buttons 
  • High-quality images 

Make Your Website User-Friendly 

So far, all of our tips have been directed towards the content of your blog and sharing it with new audiences however this tip is regarding your website. 

Having amazing content is great however you need your readers to be able to access your blog easily. 

How many times have you been on a website and immediately left because it was taking too long to load? Or because on your mobile phone, the text and images didn’t fit on your screen properly? 

Most readers are now searching on their mobile which means that your blog not only needs to be optimised on desktops, but also for phones. Below are a few things to consider when making your website user-friendly: 

  • Ensure quick loading times 
  • Simple website navigation 
  • Display social media icons 
  • Use a chatbot 
  • Use high-quality images 

So, is blogging dead? No! By using these 5 tips, you can keep your blog relevant and thriving in 2022. 

Do you need help creating your own blog in 2022? Look no further… 

We love creating articles (blogs), posts, quotes, and top-notch content to deliver to your audience through your website, email campaigns, and social media. 

We work with you to develop a content strategy which will also be researched in line with our SEO service to ensure we maximise the reach and engage the right people, your ideal clients. 

Get in touch now to find out how CREATIVE in TiME can help you. 

Blogging: How to Start in 2023

Blogging: How to Start in 2023

So, you want to start a blog…GREAT! 

Blogging is an amazing way to bring more traffic to your website, become an authority in your field and build a community. 

What is Blogging? 

Blogging is the act of posting content on a website. They are informal articles written for the main purpose of showing thought leadership and expertise on a certain topic.  

Often, you will be reading a blog and won’t even know it!  

That recipe you just read, blog. 

List of fashion trends, blog. 

Technology tips, blog. 

If you’re searching for it then someone is blogging about it and vice versa, if you want to blog about something then the likelihood is that someone is searching for it. 

If you want to know the ins and outs of how to start blogging in 2023 then keep reading! 

Step 1: Choose your Blogging Host 

To get people to start reading your blog, it needs to be online! 

If you are starting from scratch, then you need to use a blog host to get your blog online. 

In this guide, we will show you how to use BlueHost for all of your blogging needs. Let me tell you a few quick reasons: 

  • They register your custom domain name for free 
  • 30-day money back guarantee 
  • Free, automatic installation of WordPress blogging software (this sounds scary but don’t panic) 
Image showing BlueHost screen showing prices for blogging hosting

Step 2: Create Your Account 

Once you visit their website, you need to select your plan. We would recommend that for a blogging beginner, you will only need the basic plan. 

Next, you need to input your domain name. Yes, this may seem like the complicated part. 

If you already have previously paid to register a domain and wish to use that to host your blog, then you can put it in the right box. If you have not, then input your chosen domain name into the left box and click “next”. 

Now for the easy part, I’m sure most of us have bought something using the internet before, so fill out your billing details on the registration page now. 

You will also need to choose your hosting package and extras, for a beginner blog, it is likely you are not going to need any extras as your account plan will have everything you need for your blog. 

You are now ready to create your BlueHost account and password! Not to be that person but please choose a secure and unique password, I don’t want any birthdays or full names here! 

Confirmation picture from Bluehost for blogging host

Once you have your account set up, you will be shown an installation helper but since you are reading this you can just click on “skip this step” to follow along with us instead (or do both!). 

The WordPress blogging platform will automatically install, and you can click on the “log into WordPress” button on the top right-hand corner to go to the administrator section of your blog. 

Step 3: Customise your blog 

This is where the fun really begins, here is your opportunity to customise the appearance of your blog! 

How you want your blog to look is personal preference, there is no right or wrong answer for how your own blog should look.  

One of the benefits of WordPress is its “themes” which can be accessed through the “appearance” tab. You should have some free WordPress themes already installed for use on your blog and unless you have a very specific design in mind, we would recommend using one of these. 

Once you pick a theme, all you need to do is hover other the theme and click activate. It’s that easy! 

If you don’t like any of these themes, just click “add new theme” to browse lots of other WordPress themes which you can install and activate. 

Step 4: Start writing 

The first step to any good blog is coming up with a title but we aren’t going to talk about that today, we already have a blog about that! Click here to find out about how to create engaging and catchy titles that people will WANT to click on. 

Step 5: Post! 

On WordPress, go to the menu on the left and click “posts”. 

Delete the post which is already there (it defaults on all new blogs and is not needed) and then click “add new”. 

You can now add in a title, your content and even extra things such as images. Don’t forget your SEO as well (what is SEO for blogging, you ask? Click here to find out). 

If you are creating your own blog, then you will also need to promote it. What’s a blog if it isn’t being read? 

Some ways to promote your blog are through social media, email marketing and search engine optimisation. 

If you are unsure of how to do this then get in touch now 

How Blogging Helps your Business?

How Blogging Helps your Business?

What is Blogging?

Blogging is the act of posting content on a website. They are informal articles written for the purpose of showing thought leadership and expertise on a topic. 

All sounds pretty serious right? But don’t worry, it’s not that difficult!

How Blogging Helps your Business

Blogs help your business in a number of ways. They are a great way to generate fresh new content on a website and provide a catalyst for email marketing and social media promotion to improve your SEO and drive search traffic to your website.

Is Blogging Still Relevant?

Yes! Each month, approximately 409 million people view more than 20 billion pages and 77% of internet users, read blogs. That’s a lot of people. This is why 53% of marketers prioritise blogging as their primary content marketing strategy.

Why is Blogging Important?

You will have been told, if you run a business, how important it is for your company to have it found, and to have blogs on your website.

Blogging allows you to share information about your business and its services but it also allows you to share opinions and thoughts on certain topics. It is also a great way to create a personality for your company and makes your business more credible and approachable.

How Blogging Helps SEO

First, what is SEO?

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is the process of improving your site to increase its visibility when people search for products or services related to your business in Google, Bing, and other search engines. 

But how can blogging help SEO? 

  • It keeps your website fresh and current
  • It keeps people on your website for longer
  • A quality blog gives others sites more reasons to link back to your site
  • A blog helps you connect with your audience

Blogging: Where To Begin

Here’s our top tips for getting started with blogging:

  1. Create engaging titles and DO NOT make them misleading! They’ll only bounce straight off the blog post once they realise it’s about something completely different to what they thought it was going to be. 
  2. Use long-tail keywords throughout. These are extremely important for any SEO strategy. Half of all searches are for terms that are four words or longer. But these can be difficult to put into your pages. Don’t know how to use long-tail keywords in your blogs? Click here.
  3. Write about trending topics/questions in your industry. You can do this by searching a keyword e.g. ‘marketing’ or ‘manufacturing’ into Answer The Public or Uber Suggest and see what people are talking about. Create your content around it! 
  4. LINK LINK LINK! So much of SEO is about links and internal links are the easiest one’s for you to get since you can create them for yourself. Link to another blog post or a pricing page that’s relevant to the information you’re writing about. 
  5. Always include a Call to Action (CTA)!

Already Blogging?

Got some smashing blogs? Great…but don’t stop there! Market your blogs. Update your blogs. Back link in your blogs. Collab with your blogs.

Use blogs to look like the authority in your industry. Use blogs to answer questions your customers have, and ones they didn’t know they had. If you’re too busy to work out how to create, format and promote your content…let us!

CREATIVE in TiME are here to help. We audit, advise, mentor and manage your marketing requirements (and all your blogging needs). Click here to book a discovery call with us.