A lot of clients ask us if they should add a blog to their website.  And that always leads to the same question:

“Why do you want a blog on your website?”

Most often, these business owners don’t have an answer formulated.  What they eventually come around to saying sounds something like they think they should have a blog so they would like to go ahead and add one.

If they move forward with the blog, they usually post to the blog for several months and then rarely (if ever) post again.  To potential clients who venture over to the blog, it looks like a half-finished product that doesn’t convey a good feeling about the ability of this company to “get the job done”.

What is the Goal of the Blog?

The important thing you must decide when determining whether you should add a blog, is what is its purpose?  Every single change that you make to your website should have a clearly defined purpose.  If you don’t have a good reason to make a change, don’t waste the time!

Now, don’t let me lead you down the path of thinking that blogs are just a waste.  They can be a very important component of your online marketing strategy.  There are probably several reasons why you might want to add a blog to your website:

1. Increase Traffic - If you have enough articles (and you usually need a lot), you can generate new traffic to your website.  You just have to make sure you write the content so that it will target your potential clients.
2. Educate Your Clients - This is a great way to keep your clients updated on what you are doing and provide them with additional information.  The toughest part is getting them to visit your blog on a regular basis so that they can gain some value from the blog.
3. Provide a Personal Forum - Some people would just like to publish their own thoughts for the rest of the world to read.  This usually means there isn’t much of a business purpose.  It’s usually just a way to stoke the ego of the author.

Blogs Take a lot of Time

The thing most people don’t realize is that writing a blog takes time.  You have to provide insightful, well-written content to keep an audience.  If you’re just creating 1 article per week (the very minimum of what you should output), you need to allocate at least 2 hours per week to coming up with ideas and writing the content.

Just make sure you have a purpose, the time, and the determination to keep writing in the blog for a long period of time.  If you’re comfortable with these commitments then a blog can become a great asset to your business.

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