Blogging Then and Now
From the beginning, blogging is an important piece of your marketing plan. However, it has made a significant shift from its original purpose. If you have a blog, you’ll need to understand the driving force behind most blogging today.
Once Upon a Time
Blogging started out as an opportunity for everyday people who had no website coding skills to be able to publish content on the internet on a regular basis. It was all about creativity and the freedom of self-expression.
The trouble with a blog is that once you start it, you have to keep producing content for it. This was the main reason many would-be bloggers gave up pretty quickly. The committed bloggers kept going but started to think of ways they might be able to make money from their blog.
This Little Blogger Went to Market
Blogging helped pave the way for the shift to content marketing. Business owners and bloggers started to realize that all content is marketing. The words on the page attract the search engines and can give the site owner free traffic. Every blog post has the potential to be a winner in the traffic lottery.
Content such as sales letters, reviews, and testimonials drive sales. Articles, posts, recipes, advice and so on provide the context for selling something.
The Future of Marketing and Money
Most blogs are not run for the sheer love of it. Instead, it’s part of a marketing strategy to make money. Businesses have added blogs to their sites to offer their expertise and help position them as authorities in their niche or industry.
Entrepreneurs blog in order to create content about their niche, with a link to a relevant product. Even complete beginners to the online business industry can start out as affiliate marketers. They earn commissions by creating content quickly, adding a link to a useful product, and earn money through a program like Amazon Associates.
WordPress is King
WordPress is the most popular blogging platform. It’s easy to use and offers a lot of free themes and plugins.
Themes are templates that determine the layout and appearance of your blog. They provide you with an opportunity to set up your navigation, layout, and more.
Plugins are little mini-programs that add functionality to a blog. You’ll find tons of free and upgraded plugins for any business.
Once you have an interesting blog with great content and commercial potential, it’s time to start spreading the word about it.
