If you’re a business owner, you need to start blogging. The benefits of business blogging are tremendous. You’ll cultivate an engaged community, your target customers will come to you, and blogging does wonders for organic SEO. But here’s the problem: most busy business owners have no clue how to start a business blog!

Sound familiar? Not to worry, because you’re in the right place. Today, I’m sharing a bite-sized, digestible approach to business blogging in 2021.

But… What’s web hosting and what goes in a business blog post?

I know how flat-out overwhelming it is to learn some techie marketing method that leaves you pulling your hairs out.

Not gonna happen today because you’ll have actionable steps to turn your business blog into a moneymaker. Ready to begin?

Let’s blog!

How to Start a Business Blog: What is it?

First of all, what is a business blog?

A business blog is a section on your website devoted to sharing guidance, expertise, updates on your business, industry trends, and informative, value-rich content your target audiences crave.

Essentially, your blog connects your target audience and customers to your content.

Consistent blogging is trusted by 59% of B2B marketers consider blogging their most valuable inbound marketing source. Blogging is one of the most effective ways to bring organic traffic to your website.

Bottom line: business blogging is a content marketing strategy that’s essential for your inbound marketing campaign.

Before we break down how to start a business blog, let’s talk briefly about the importance of blogging in digital marketing.

Why have a blog on your website?

Ok, you know what it is, but the question remains: How do I start a blog for my small business? And more importantly: how are blogs useful?

Blogging for business is strategic and results-driven, as proven by my oodles of happy clients. For one project, a client would’ve had to spend $84k in paid ads to see the same return we got from blogging 2-3x weekly. More importantly, we positioned the brand as an industry leader, consistently ranking in slots 0-3 on Google SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages).

*BAM*

Blogging isn’t magic, it’s hard work and strategy, but when you nail it? The analytics rise and so do sales — and that’s why your business needs a blog

Plus, your readers trust you. And what do they do with that trust? Stats show that 70% of us love learning about companies from blog posts — not ads.

That’s because blogs build relationships with consumers, rather than one-off sales-y campaigns that have no sustainable growth patterns. You’re helping your audience solve problems, gain knowledge, and grow in some specific way — whether that’s learning a new skill or getting savvy on industry news.

It’s reciprocal, because these loyal readers quickly become invested in your brand!

You clearly know how important blogging is, as proven by you joining me here (yay!), so let’s dive straight into how to start a business blog!

How to Start a Business Blog: Setting up A Blog Section on Your Website

1. Choose a Blogging Platform (CMS)

The first step in blogging for beginners is to create an actual blog. This is quite easy if you already have an existing website. Most content management systems like Shopify and WordPress.org come equipped with a blog section. There are also blog integrations for Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify.

Given how easy it is to start a blog in 2021, there’s really no excuse to put it off one more day.

But hey — you’re not a techie, and guess what: neither am I, folks! But you’re here, scrolling and reading my blog. Case in point: If I can do it, so can you.

I endorse WordPress because it’s equipped for search engine optimization (SEO). And while you’ll still need to learn the basics of SEO to start a business blog that’s successful, you’ll have the advantage of using a platform that has an optimized interface.

2. Pick Your Domain and Web Hosting

If you don’t have an existing website, you’ll need to register your domain via GoDaddy. From there, you can either host your site through GoDaddy, or go with a third-party hosting platform like Bluehost or Siteground.

I’ve tried both, and yeah, everyone raves about Bluehost, but it’s not my jam. For my hosting and CMS, I use Showit with WordPress.

Every web hosting platform has its pros and cons. For instance, I preferred Bluehost’s support over Showit’s. However, Showit has lightning-bolt speed and my organic traffic steadily increased once making the switch. Another Showit advantage: the ridiculously easy, yes-your-grandma-could-do-this design editor.

Drag and drop? No fuss? Yes, please!

As always, I suggest you vet your options and go with the hosting that suits your goals and content needs.

3. Choose Your Blog Theme

Choosing a theme for your blog is a big deal. What type of aesthetics do you want to have? What emotions do you want your business blog to convey? Obvi, you can tell my blog is all about zest, flavor, and personality — hence the bright colors and imagery.

I chose a theme reflective of not only my personality but of course, my target audience. I 100% suggest choosing a WordPress-compatible theme unless you choose another CMS.

For WordPress themes, browse Theme Forest. There are thousands of themes, so employ the filters to find a highly rated, user-friendly design. The themes are super affordable, too, and you can easily find a fully customizable responsive business blog theme for under $100.

Just as 16-year-old me had to die her hair a different color every month, I’ve bounced around my fair share of website themes. Ultimately, I landed on a Showit Theme from Fleurir Online and I love it!

If you choose Showit, head straight to Pinterest to browse stylish, customizable Showit themes.

Ok, you came here with a question your mind: how to start a business blog. Well, to do that successfully, you’ll need a laser-sharp blog content strategy.

How to Start a Business Blog: Creating a Strategy

We’ve covered the mechanics of starting a business blog, but that’s just your first step to get the blog live and have a space online. Now comes the strategic part: creating a content strategy for your blog.

Why does your blog need a content strategy? Because you don’t want to be firing off non-relevant content that ends up hurting your business. I see this a lot, and it’s painful because it can be avoided with a strategy.

Here’s how:

Decide what to write about

Once your blog is live, you’ll probably wonder how to write a blog. Choosing what to blog about may seem overwhelming, but it boils down to market demand. For instance, if you sell cookware, you might blog about easy recipes or kitchen cleaning tips.

I blog about business blogging because that’s what I offer as a blog consultant and content writer! Ultimately, your blog content should best serve your audience’s needs and pain points. In fact, your audience will decide what you share on your blog.

The purpose of business blogging is to educate and inform your target clientele. So while you personally may want to blog about camping gear, it won’t make much sense if your business sells high-end furniture.

There are two key factors when deciding what to blog about:

• Categories. Choosing 3-5 categories creates an easy-to-navigate, user-friendly blog. It also keeps your content thematic and branded.
• Pillar content. These are the meatiest, most value-rich blog posts that shoot straight to your target reader’s utmost needs.

Choosing your blog categories and pillar content isn’t an easy task, but it’s necessary to keep your blog content on track. Additionally, these factors help you deliver the most valuable content to your readers.

But where do you start? I’m here to help! In my free beginner’s guide to starting a business blog, I walk you through exactly how to start a business blog. You’ll learn my exact process for creating pillar content and choosing your blog categories, too!

⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️  Tap the image below to subscribe and download your freebie! ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️ 

Choose the tone and voice of your blog

What do all successful business blog examples have in common? They know how to articulate their brand messaging to best engage their target audience. Each brand has a unique entity, and your brand voice can make or break your blog’s performance.

When you’re learning how to start a business blog, it’s important to mold the blog’s tone and voice. The good thing is that people come to your blog because they want to be treated like a human, not a dollar sign. And blogging specifically delivers on this need by engaging with your readers in an authentic, trustworthy way.

In other words: they’re not on your blog to be sold to directly.

Choosing the tone and voice of your blog relies on understanding your target audience:

Are they millennials?

Are they Baby Boomers?

Do they live in rural areas or big cities?

Do they use slang or talk formally?

Do you sell academic equipment? Then you should chat formally with your audience. But if you sell yoga pants or healing crystals? Another voice altogether.

Every blog is unique, because every audience is uniquely defined by their demographics and consumer patterns.

Crawl into the mind of your target audience and above all: write as your readers talk. They’ll feel more comfortable reading your content if it aligns with their own voice.

One of the easiest tricks to nail tone and voice is to write in a conversational style.

Get savvy on basic SEO

If you’re afraid of SEO (search engine optimization) let me extinguish your fears. SEO is a cause-and-effect method. You apply a set of SEO principles to your blog content and the organic traffic will start to trickle in. However, learning how to use SEO effectively? That’s a skill set you’ll need to learn and become proficient at with practice.

Learning SEO is one of the best ways to make your online business (and blog!) more visible to prospective customers. Want to rank higher? Then you’ll need to learn SEO basics.

Track your progress

The reason you’ve come here to learn how to start a business blog is that you want to see ROI, right? Whether you’re looking to boost sales or get more newsletter sign-ups, blogging needs results to be effective.

And that’s why you’ll want to dive into your blog’s analytics. Revisit your blogging goals, and remember that they aren’t linear.

Some blog content may serve to drive conversions to your products or services. Others may enhance brand awareness and increase rankings on search engines.

Building a holistic business blog encompasses all of your blogging goals so that you can ultimately perform better online.

There’s no use posting a bunch of content to your business blog if you’re not going to track how the content performs. For instance, maybe you thought a topic cluster about how to start a mobile dog grooming business would be a solid lead. Yet over time, more traffic came to a post about DIY dog grooming tips.

Time to pivot!

If certain blog posts are performing better than others, then lean into that subject or category and start producing related content.

The more you share content to your business blog, the quicker patterns will emerge. With the data, you can better serve targeted content that consistently performs well.

How else can you bring traffic to your business blog?

Don’t forget to promote your business blog

Wait — isn’t the point of a business blog to promote your business? Yes! But you also have to market your blog posts to gain exposure.

Simply writing and publishing a blog post isn’t enough. You’ll need to create a comprehensive blog promotion strategy that involves:

• Promoting your blog posts on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and any social media platforms relevant to your target readers
• Create a backlink strategy to get external media exposure
• Build a newsletter strategy to promote your blog posts and increase your following
• Include social sharing buttons on your blog page
• Start guest posting on other industry blogs

The more you blog, the more organic traffic you’ll see. However, you also need to invest time and money into marketing your blog from multiple angles.

Ready to get your blog up and running?

Time to start your business blog!

Are you still wondering, should I start a blog for my business?

The answer is yes. The very thought of business blogging might seem intimidating. But trust me, blogging is fundamental for building loyal relationships and long-term customers. And that’s not all: you’ll gain notoriety and establish your brand as a thought-leader.

Do you know why I blog for my business? Because I absolutely love it and it’s an effective way to build exposure and credibility in the blogging niche. I use my platform as a means to educate people on how to start a business blog that’s successful, holistic, and sustainable.

But I’ve been at this for years and I didn’t learn my expertise overnight.

I know how intimidating it feels to start a business blog with zero experience! Creating a holistic internal blog strategy that garners leads and business growth requires:

• Setting up a blog section on your website
• Deciding what to write about
• Choosing the tone and voice of your blog
• Getting savvy on SEO principles
• Tracking blog progress and analytics
• Promoting your blog for maximum exposure

There are many moving parts to starting a business blog and it helps to have a roadmap to keep you focused and consistent.

I’ve got you covered!

Grab my FREE business blogging guide, where I walk you through the seven crucial steps to starting a business blog. I’m taking the tech headache out of blogging to make it accessible for ALL business owners!

Still have business blogging questions?

Whether you’re just learning how to start a business blog or are looking to get more from your blog: chime in with your comments below, I’m here to help!

ByChristinaLyon is a full-service content writing and blog consulting agency designed to help you succeed online. My team and I help you start a business blog that increases organic traffic and helps your business succeed online with high-quality content marketing. Get in touch today to learn more.

And while I have you here, stop by the blog for more business blogging guides!