Is blogging dead?

Every biz coach has an opinion about how much value blogging has for online entrepreneurs. And by “blogging” I’m referring to regularly publishing valuable content, whether it’s written or recorded (e.g., vlog, podcast, etc.).

*Plus, I’m sure you see the irony in reading a blog post answering the question: Is blogging dead?* 😁

So, here’s the deal.

There absolutely is 100% value in collecting and displaying your best content and intellectual property (e.g., blog posts) on a platform that you own (your website).

Please don’t try to build your business with social media, a landing page, and a “buy now” button! 😬

When you blog (or vlog or podcast):

1. Ideal clients can find you because your best content is in one place on the internet (preferably a place you own and pay for).
2. Those ideal clients that find you—especially the ones who are searching the internet for a solution to their health problems and goals—are ready to buy (they’re “warm”)!
3. Providing awesome content for free—before asking for an email address to access it—allows you to demonstrate your expertise, build trust, and be generous without expectation of anything in return.

Contrary to some advice, you don’t need to have 2,000+ word SEO-optimized blog posts published four times per week! As far as I see, there are just two types of people who do this. They either only blog and this is their full-time job or they have a huge budget to outsource content creation (and have exceptional success with it—I know because I ghostwrite some of these blog posts.)

 

Your blog readers and email subscribers are a much “warmer” audience than

Social media. If you ditch the effort to consistently publish valuable content on your website and focus all of your time and energy on third-party platforms (social media & paid ads), you’re constantly spending time “warming up” a cold audience. You’re out there (with all the other people in your industry) getting in front of thousands of people hoping to encourage a few who may be slightly interested in your freebie. (Because they’re literally not feeling the pains and goals you’re solving right now.)

I’m not saying not to do this. But, in addition to social media and paid ads to “cold” audiences, don’t you also want to be found when people are looking for you because they’re literally ready to buy your solutions to their pains and goals?

The wellness industry is now over $4.2 trillion (way bigger than pharma, BTW!), so standing out on third-party platforms like social media is getting harder and harder. Ironically, I see very few people in the wellness industry blogging well and ranking in search engines. But there are loads of people searching the internet for your solutions and you’re not getting found!

Can you see the opportunity of having all your amazing content in one place where people can find you?

The wellness industry is now over $4.2 trillion and by not collecting all of your amazing content in one place (i.e. a blog) you're just blending in with the rest of the online social media advertising noise. Click To Tweet

Before I dive into some of the nerdy facts (you know me!) let me show you how your content on your blog can be the foundation for all of your online marketing efforts . . . even social media advertising! 😉

 

Blogging is the foundation for your online digital marketing strategy

 

Imagine putting some effort into one excellent piece of content and then having your whole strategy and pipeline filled up. From that one piece of content. That’s how I use my blog.

A summary of my digital content strategy can be found here. Your content marketing efforts start with your blog in the centre because once you have a decent blog post, you automatically have content for your:

• newsletter
• several social media posts on all of your accounts
• search engines
• paid ads (boosted social media posts or ads)

And, your blog itself acts as a free, valuable, give-before-asking library of your expertise and position AND a conversion tool to increase your email list of warm leads!

Your blog acts as a free, valuable, give-before-asking library of your expertise and position AND a conversion tool to increase your email list of warm leads! #ContentMarketing #Blog Click To Tweet

 

Is blogging dead? NOT if you like people to find you

The thing with online marketing is that the objective is to constantly grow your email list. Yep! With or without a blog your email list is key.

But . . .

There are people searching the web right now for your solutions to their heath problems and goals. They’re at the end of the buyer’s journey—they’re doing research and they’re literally getting ready to buy. Now.

For the thousands (millions?) of idea clients and patients who are not already on your email list or have your social media feed posts send them notifications, let me ask you: Without a blog how will they find you?

How do people find health pros, join their email lists, and inquire about products and services when they need them? Answer: Via search engines!

How are people going to find you to join your email list and inquire about your products and services when they need you? Answer: Being findable on search engines! #Blog #SEO Click To Tweet

If your only way of growing your email list is via social media or paid advertising (trying to pull in cold leads), you’re missing out on HOT buyers who are already in the last stages of the buying cycle!

 

Is blogging dead? NOT if you want a long-term strategy to get clients

Yes, online advertising can get you visibility quickly. It can grow your email list with people who are potentially going to eventually buy from you one day. Maybe. They may have an interest in a topic or competitor of yours at one time.

They will need a lot of encouragement to warm up to you (and that buyer’s journey timeframe is getting longer and longer!).

Yes, that’s the whole purpose of a funnel—to warm up cold subscribers. But, I wonder if the reason why we now need 18 calls or “touchpoints” (not the infamous “six” from years and years ago that we *still* keep hearing about) with potential new buyers is that we’re targeting way too many cold people and not focusing on simply being there for the ones who are hot?

Even after the “warming up” funnel, you will need to spend time overcoming objections because you’re trying to convince and motivate them that your product/program/service is the solution to their problem when you offer it. This is cool for you if you love overcoming sales objections. (It’s just not my style.)

But, here’s how blogging is different and why it’s not dead.

By publishing quality content that’s findable by search engines you have more sustainable visibility in the long run. It doesn’t rely on regular advertising fees to a cold demographic that likely will never buy from you.

I think of it as a slow-cooker: put in the effort upfront, wait for the magic to happen on its own, reap the passive benefits for months and years to come.

HINT: Now’s the time to get in the game with at least a few kickass quality blog posts and search engine optimization!

 

Is blogging dead? NOT if you like to give before asking

Imagine you are your ideal client or patient for a second.

You’re scrolling through social media knowing that the 2nd or 3rd post you see is a sponsored one (that’s conversion-optimized to get your attention, pique your interest, and get you to click through to a landing page).

You’re part of the 99% of people who are NOT looking for whatever is being offered. You haven’t even started your buyer’s journey. You’re not aware that you have the problem that the health pro is trying to solve (and you probably don’t have that problem, anyway). You are most likely never going to buy from them.

#Truth

But, it looks interesting so you click anyway.

The next page (landing page) is full of copywritten sales psychology buzz words to get your emotions riled up and convince you that you are interested and need the stuff being offered. And heck, it’s free, so why not just give my email address and grab that recipe book, instructional video, or whatever. It looks good and promises great results!

At this point, you get your “freebie” and a barrage of carefully-crafted funnel emails designed to eventually warm you up to the advertiser so they can make you an offer to buy the next step in the process of getting those great results.

This totally happens and can totally work. It’s just a lot of work to make someone want your offers, rather than simply be ready, willing, and able when they’re desperately looking for a solution.

This is what’s happening in the wellness industry (and likely many others) now:

• Entrepreneurs pay social media sites for a chance to buy your attention. #PayToPlay
• Promising all kinds of results and benefits (are your ideal clients getting more skeptical of these kinds of promises?).
• Asking for something (e.g., email address) before providing anything in return.

Now, stop being your client and be you—the credible, generous, online health pro.

How does this process make you feel from their perspective? Is this the only way you want to collect leads? What about all of those people who are frantically searching the internet for you, but cannot find you? Those who want your solutions right now, but have to continue to suffer without them?

Doesn’t having a “findable” blog with all of your best content make 100% sense in the world of online business?

 

Nerdy numbers about why blogging is not dead

 

Yes, content marketing is totally worth it!

The entire raison d’être of business blogging is content marketing. You’re publishing valuable content to market your business. Your blog is not the only piece of the content marketing system, but it’s the foundation.

Blogging increases traffic and visibility

According to Impact (ref):

Companies that blog get 55% more website visitors and

71% of bloggers who maintain blogs for a busines, report that they have increased their visibility within their industries through their blogs.

Boom.

And we’re just getting started . . .

Small businesses with blogs do better than those without

According to Impact (ref):

Small businesses with blogs get 126% more lead growth than small businesses without and

69% of businesses attribute their lead generation success to blogging.

That’s not too shabby seeing as a 100% increase is double (so 126% is more than double!).

Continuing on . . .

Content marketing’s ROI vs. other marketing strategies

Case studies show that content marketing can have an ROI four times higher than targeted advertising. (ref).

How can you argue with a four times difference? This isn’t a 10% increase, folks. These are huge numbers!

Content marketing generates more leads than advertising

According to Demand Metric, content marketing generates over three times as many leads as outbound marketing and costs 62% less (ref).

And 70% of people would rather learn about a company through articles, rather than ads (ref). This is not surprising, right? Wouldn’t you prefer valuable content to salesy advertising? I sure would.

In general, people have moved their attention away from ads. Have you ever clicked “skip ad” or used “ad blockers?”

Ya, thought so!

People would rather have a personal connection with a product, brand, or person.

So, how do we connect with our audience and build the “know, like, and trust” factor with them?

With our blog content!

Because 70% of people feel closer to a company as a result of content marketing (ref).

Guess what reading content about a product inspires people to do

60% of people are inspired to seek out a product after reading content about it (ref).

How does that work for you?

And how about using your blog as a resource library?

You will be able to refer your clients to your blog as their expert resource. Publish content about common questions and problems and then share that link with anyone and everyone who can benefit from it.

Finally, my most favourite stat, about becoming a thought leader . . .

According to Impact (ref):

56% of bloggers who maintain blogs for a business say that their blog has helped their company establish a position as a thought leader in the industry.

 

In other words:

I hope this answers the question: Is blogging dead? It’s clearly NOT dead and content marketing is totally worth it.

Blogging allows you to be found when people are looking for solutions to their problems and ready to buy. Plus, it’s a generous way to share valuable information with people for free and build your “know, like, and trust” factor with anyone online.

Blogging and content marketing is totally worth it for online businesses #Blogging #ContentMarketing Click To Tweet

 

My personal advice about blogging (because it’s not dead)

 

1. Content is a long-term game, so be patient with measuring your outcome. There are no guarantees, but as with most things in life and business, persistence will eventually pay off (quitting won’t—guaranteed).
2. Every single post does not have to be “epic” or “evergreen.” You can mix up the types and formats. Keep quality at the forefront, but you don’t have to “knock it out of the park” every. single. time. Want some health and wellness blog post ideas? How about how to (strategically) choose your next post?
3. Don’t start from scratch every single time. Re-purpose your content like a pro with this guide.
4. Blogging can help you to clarify the direction you want to move your business. When certain content feels awesome to you and is well-received by your audience, that may be a sign you’re on the right path.
5. Want to know four places to get blog posts?

 

Conclusion

 

Even if you believe blogging is dead, please keep your best content and intellectual property on a website that you own.

Use the marketing style that works and feels best for you (Writing? Video? Audio?) and feel free to mix it up, keeping quality at the forefront.

Blogging and content marketing is SO worth it! (I hope the array of facts and figures has convinced you of this. Or at least got your attention.)

Are you hopping on the bandwagon, or not?

Your biz. Your choice.

 

Signing off and toasting: Blogging isn’t dead, it’s a solid strategy for a sustainable business.

 

Over to you

 

What do you think? Do you think blogging is dead? Do you believe that blogging is generous and allows warm buyers to find you when they’re ready to buy? What did you think of the stats?

If you’re convinced, but stuck, I can help you!

I’d love to know (in the comments below)!

 

Originally published March 2019; updated with more awesomeness December 2021.