If you’re active in the digital and social media world, then it’s likely you will have come across many different forms of blog posts. These could be listicles (list posts), how-to guides, interviews, personal stories, or even longform journalism.
For those in the coffee sector, blogs have become one of the most important digital marketing tools available. Not only do they give brands a voice and the potential to reach a wide audience, blogs also help foster a connection with customers that endures long after they’ve bought a product.
In the following, we’re going to give a brief overview about the significance of blogs and why you should consider starting your own as soon as possible.
Education and updates
Blogs present an excellent opportunity to educate, inform, and share information about your business and its activities. They also provide a platform on which to update your customers about your latest products and services.
For coffee businesses, a blog can cover a range of topics that have interest for your target audience. Perhaps you’re a green bean supplier that has several containers of new coffee on the way – your blog post can include details about the coffees that will be arriving, such as origin, producer, and processing method. It could also cover the intricacies of shipping coffee around the globe and how your audience can gain access to these coffees.
This might seem like a lot of information to share – but that’s the purpose of a blog. It gives you the freedom to expand on what you and your partners do, as well as the products and services you share.
By educating your audience, you provide them with greater insight into your business, and a better understanding of who you are and what you provide.
Creating a pathway to your website
One of the most common mistakes when creating a blog or news feed is to think of it as simply another section of your website. Instead, you should be considering it as a pathway through which people gain access to your site.
Once you’ve written and published a blog post, it will only be found on your website if people go looking for it (or if it’s on your homepage). If they don’t know it’s there, then they may not find it at all.
To maximise traffic to your website, ensure that you’re sharing your blog posts on your social media feeds, including links to your blog feed in email signatures, and sharing new post alerts via regular newsletters.
Once your blog is up and running with a few published articles, you’re more likely to retain visitors to your website. If someone sees your blog post shared on social media, such as on LinkedIn, it’s likely they’ll explore other areas of your website, too.
By the time they’ve clicked through a few pages, they will have gained a much deeper understanding of your business and its work than if they had simply visited your homepage.
Improving SEO
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is the process of improving the quality and quantity of traffic to your website using internet search engines, such as Google.
Blog posts are a great way to improve the SEO of your website without overhauling the entire copy of your website. The more you use certain keywords related to your industry throughout your blog posts, the more likely you are to appear as one of the top results on search engines
When digital experts look to improve the SEO of a website, one of their priorities is often to maximise the frequency of keywords so that your business appears in searches. For example, if you’re a coffee roaster in Amsterdam, you’ll want to repeat terms such as “Amsterdam coffee roaster”, so that you appear near the top when people search for it.
To further increase your SEO, make sure to keep your blog post titles straightforward and relevant to the content. If you’ve written a blog post about the different ways of processing coffee, then the title, “Have you ever wondered about coffee processes and how they are different?” will not rank as highly as a title such as “Coffee processing explained”, or “What are the different ways to process coffee?”.
Elevating your social media content
Social media has become an essential part of marketing for businesses in all kinds of industries around the world, and is often the first place consumers look when wanting to learn more about a business, product, or service.
Across different social media platforms, there are various limits on the amount of text you can publish in any one post. For Twitter, the limit is 280 characters, LinkedIn is 700 characters, and Instagram is 2,200 characters.
A blog not only enables you to write about particular topics in greater depth, but also provides interesting content that will improve your social media engagement and reward your followers.
When sharing your blog posts on social media channels, it’s important to pay attention to the different audiences on these platforms and the best way to communicate with them.
If you write, “New blog post here” with a URL and copy and paste that across Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, it’s unlikely people will click on the link and read your blog post. Instead, use these various platforms to entice readers to click through and read more on the blog post on your website, e.g. “Ever wondered what the differences are between natural and washed processed coffee? Read our latest blog post to find out.”
As you share images and links to your blog on your social media channels, think about previous posts you’ve shared, what’s been successful, and what other companies are doing to share their content.
At the end of the day, you want to make it as interesting and engaging as possible so your audience will come back for more in the future.
Provide context
Blog posts are also a great way to let your audience know why your products and services are worthwhile.
By providing this context and letting your customers and followers know exactly who you are and why you do what you do, you position yourself as a transparent, forthcoming and approachable business that they’ll gravitate towards.
This can be as simple as providing a mission statement as part of your website copy. However, if your messaging isn’t integrated into regular updates and blog posts, your audience may lose track of who you are and what you’re trying to achieve.
When writing blog posts, remember to link your products, services and updates to your business philosophy and mission. If you’re providing information about a new product, tell your audience exactly why this product is being offered and how it aligns with your vision.
Start a conversation
One of the most important functions of blog posts and copywriting isn’t just to be seen – it’s to start a conversation!
Forms of branded storytelling such as blog posts shouldn’t be uni-directional; the aim is to get people talking about your coffee business, what you’re doing, and why it’s worthwhile. This will also enable you to get an idea of what your audience appreciates, what they engage with, and what they’d like to read about more.
Not all blog posts need to be educational – they also allow you to have a conversation with your audience about changes to your business, and provide them with the opportunity to provide feedback. If you’re looking to start producing freeze dried, instant coffee but aren’t sure how it will resonate with your audience, write a blog on the benefits of this style of coffee and see what your audience has to say about it!
Like any conversation with your friends or family, the most important thing is not to dominate and to enable others to have their say. You’re providing an opinion, a resource or an update; but you’re also providing an opportunity for others to be heard.
Interested in learning more about creating a successful blog for your business? Book a meeting with the PDG Media team to start planning your digital marketing strategy.
