Time is short, you are busy working in your business and what is the point in writing a blog? Let me explain why it is worth making the effort.

A question I am regularly asked is how long should my blog post be?

To be picked up by the search engines such as Google your blog needs to be around 300 words but if you have a lot of content to share then a 2500 word blog will rank higher by the search engines.

For maximum reach you should aim to put out a blog at least once a week but if that is just too much then the key is to be consistent – put out regular blogs – even if it is only once a month but release it on the internet on the same day at the same time each month – so that your readers will come to expect it.  You may choose to put out your blog on the first Monday of the month at 11am or the last Friday at 3pm but BE CONSISTENT.

So you’ve created your blog, added it to your website, but what do you do now to make the most of your efforts?

Take a paragraph from your blog and share it with your email list with a link to your full blog article, thereby taking your readers to your website. Once on your website your visitors may choose to find out more about the services you offer.

Create 10-20 tweets from content within your blog (to include a link to your blog) which you can share throughout the following month.

Re-create your blog as a LinkedIn article and ask your connections a question at the end to start a conversation.

Create smaller posts for Facebook from content within your blog and again link back to the blog on your website.

Record a short video introducing the key points from your blog and again take listeners to your website to read more.

If you have created a YouTube account, then upload your short video to YouTube to engage with your YouTube followers.

Upload the short video you have created on your Iphone to your Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn groups.

Create some great graphics related to the blog to share on your Instagram Account. Add the graphics to Instagram with key #hashtags so that people can find your content.

Finally, if you are really feeling creative, turn your blog into an eBook, promote it on your social media channels and grow your email list in exchange for the full content.

​There you go – so you have spent time creating your blog. There is so much you can do with it to promote your business. Good luck – and happy blogging.

A good blog posts speak to your target audience. Find out who is buying what you’re selling and write for them. It's as simple as that!

If you sell “websites” then you are not selling to website developers! Blog posts should be easily readable during a coffee break and should not be more than 250-350 words. Your readers will switch off if they need to scroll down the page. If your blog is over 500 words, then reduce the word court by tightening up the wording or provide a part 1 and part 2. When people read online they tend to skim read.
 
Good blog posts are quick and easy to read
Just because something is short doesn’t mean it’s easy to read. When people read online, they skim read so make your post is easy to skim read by cutting content up into sections and lists.
 
Good blog posts say something interesting and useful
It’s OK to write a blog post about a quick thought, but make sure it’s a whole thought, not half of one thought and half of another. Would what you’re writing change the way your reader thinks about an issue? Put together your blog idea, email it to a friend and ask them if it makes sense.
 
Old news can be useful for your readers
You could start with: last year, I wrote a post on how to use Facebook for beginners….
 
Good blog posts don’t have to be works of art
As long as your posts are useful or interesting, your readers will keep coming back for more.
 
Good blog posts show, not tell
Don’t tell your readers that your company is fantastic; write interesting content so that your readers are the ones who say your company is fantastic. Use facts and examples to build trust with your readers.
 
Good blog posts have a compelling title and lead paragraph
Make your readers want to read your post right away. But don’t promise something with your title and intro that you then don’t deliver.
 
Good blog posts are SEO optimized
A great title is vital but you need to strike a balance between catchiness and SEO or keywords but don’t fill your blog with keywords so it becomes uninteresting. Too many keywords and you will be penalised by Google too.
 
Good blog posts include a call to action
Even if it’s just a call to comment or connect on Twitter, blog posts should end with something that moves your reader to a next step. Do not, however, ask people to buy something at the end of a post. Hard sells in blog posts will lose your readers’ trust.
 
I hope you find these tips on how to put together a good blog post useful but please continue to look at competitor blogs and see what is of interest to their readers.  
 
Finally, if you have enjoyed reading my top tips, please pop over and LIKE MY FACEBOOK PAGE where I will continue to provide lots of tips and advice and how to get the best of your online marketing.