A Blog: A Better Listing on Google

By Alan Coleman on 12 Mar 2013

Last week, a fellow marketer – Beatrice Whelan, co-organiser of Blog Awards Ireland – shared a golden nugget with us in the form of a simple acronym: A BLOG = A Better Listing on Google Since we launched our content marketing service a few weeks ago, we have been educating some of our clients on the importance of having a well-maintained and frequently updated blog on their website. RIP Link-Building For a long time now, we have been blue in the face telling people that the shelf-life of the traditional link building process is nearing an end. Google is now seeking to give their users the best possible service by giving them exactly what they want: relevant, up-to-date information. They have copped on to the fact that thousands of links can be farmed and directed towards a website, and have decided to make people work harder for a first-page ranking. This is where content marketing comes in. This is SEO 2.0. Content Marketing Content Marketing is a multi-step process. The first step in this process should be the consideration of a blog. At the very least, a frequently updated blog signals to Google that ‘this website has something new to offer people.’ Therefore, publishing even as little as two blog posts per week can influence search ranking. Blog posts need to be created and published with the needs of both the creator and reader in mind; the creator is in pursuit of web traffic and engagement, while the reader seeks relevant and useful content. The Creator To get the most out of having a blog, there are some certain guidelines which need to be followed. Unfortunately, it is not just a matter of jotting down the days thoughts in any old fashion. Here are some simple tips for writing SEO-friendly blogs:

Blog posts need to be optimised for the keywords and key phrases you are targeting
The blog title is also important; some tips include leading with keywords, numbering lists and using colons (like we have done in the title of this post!)
Posts need to be well-structured
SEO plug-ins are useful and make adding meta-tags and descriptions simple
Linking the post to Google+ and other social media platforms will heighten visibility and provide opportunity to gain natural link

The Reader Blogs are becoming more and more of a support to customers. There is a common misconception that social media platforms are the be-all and end-all of everything. Despite their undeniable importance, however, we believe blogs are just as important. Recent research by TechnoratiMedia found that after retail and brand sites, blogs are the third most influential digital resource. Consumers ranked blogs as extremely important for shaping opinions and motivating purchasing decisions. Perhaps one of the reasons blogs have become so important is that, particularly in the case of online retailing, consumers have become increasingly weary of conducting business with a company they have never heard of or a person they have never met. A blog represents the opportunity to develop and communicate a personality, show transparency and develop trust. It also provides the chance to detail features of your product or service you may have made on your homepage, as well as flesh out price packages. Content Marketing at Wolfgang Digital We are having lots of fun developing innovative content marketing strategies for some of our clients. Be sure to give us a shout if you are thinking of taking an adventure into the blogosphere – we would be happy to help. Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and sign up for our monthly newsletter at the top of this page! P.S. Thanks Beatrice!