Business Blogging – Are You Getting Results

by Sean Rasmussen on November 13, 2009

Blogging For BusinessSo you’ve started a blog to help your e-commerce business. That’s great. But is it really helping convert visitors to customers? After all, that is the main point of Business Blogging, right?

It may be difficult to tell if your efforts are producing results. The only way you will know for sure is by analysing the available statistics. This not only gives you a clearer picture of what is going on now, but helps you to determine what can be done to achieve better results. Let’s take a look at what your website statistics can show you.

Keyword Analysis

Analyse what terms your visitors are using to reach your blog. Are the search words and phrases related to the actual content on your site? If not, then you are not properly optimising your posts to drive targeted traffic. You might find some doozies that leave you scratching your head when you check your keywords in the stats reports. Sure you might be getting good traffic numbers, but if a visitor clicks on your URL and then doesn’t find the information they are seeking, the blog is not really doing any good as far as marketing.

When you are Business Blogging, you don’t want all of your posts to be transparent attempts to peddle your products or services but neither do you want to waste an opportunity to include relevant keywords and phrases. If your online business is selling performance auto parts, then your blog posts should focus on such things as how-to guides for installing the parts, pictures of customers’ tricked-out cars, or something else related to the products – giving you a great opportunity to include relevant keywords. Keywords are important but quality and value is more important.

If you find that much of your traffic is coming straight to the home page or using your company name in a keyword search, then you are doing a great job of advertising and branding.

Entry/Exit Pages

The pages visitors arrive on are based on the keywords they used for the search. This shows you what posts are most effective for driving website traffic. If a particular topic seems very popular, then consider adding more posts related to this subject matter.

Exit pages offer important information, too. Did the visitor click on one post and then leave from the same page? Obviously there was not further information to induce them to stay and browse other pages. Consider adding some interactive elements, linking related posts, and adding further content that will appeal to your target market. Maybe the problem is that you don’t have enough posts. Keep writing blog posts on a regular basis to build the amount of relevant content. Stale blogs are a big turn-off.

Return Visitors

Of all the traffic arriving at your website, how many of them are return visitors? If you cannot induce visitors to come back or become subscribers, then perhaps you are not offering interesting and informational content. Again, look to your most popular posts and use them as a template for future content.

Give visitors a reason to come back, whether it is for an upcoming online contest, news about your business or industry, or the results of a poll or survey. Return visitors are worth their weight in gold as they have expressed an interest in your blog and are most likely to become customers.

Just because you start a blog doesn’t mean it is an effective marketing tool for your business. Analyse the statistics and determine where your blog needs help, rejoice in those that show you are doing something right, and use this information to make your Business Blogging the best it can be.

Have a most outstanding day.

Sean Rasmussen
Aussie Internet Marketing
www.AussieSEO.com 2010

 

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{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }

Jill Brown June 2, 2010 at 10:55 pm

Hi Sean,
Business Blogging is something I haven’t had much to do with yet. I can understand the value in it by what you say in this article.

I am also understanding the importance of analyzing search terms used by visitors who have reached my blog so that I can be sure I am using the right keywords that relate to my blog content. So interesting!

Very helpful info, thanks

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Jill Brown June 3, 2010 at 11:07 am

Hi Sean,
You’ve put forward some great ideas on how to get return visitors. Competitions like your recent commenting one is exciting for people reading your blogs.
Jill Brown´s last blog ..Common Law – What is Common Law? My ComLuv Profile

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Jazz Salinger June 20, 2010 at 8:25 am

Hi Sean,

I think that successful business blogging is heavily reliant on the keywords you choose. Your website statistics really tell you whether or not you’re making the right choices. My keywords are suitable for my niche but totally wrong for finding customers.

Your blog and your posts really do have to meet the needs of your customers. Otherwise your customers don’t come back and you don’t make sales. Thanks for the great tips on getting it right.
Jazz Salinger´s last blog ..Learn and Earn – It’s a Marathon Not a Sprint My ComLuv Profile

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Elly June 30, 2010 at 11:28 pm

Hi Sean

It really is a skill getting the right balance between overkill with selling and underselling on a business blog. With the information you have given us here, it is a great resource to refer to in order to get it right.

I also like the idea of being creative and giving people a reason to return to blog.

Great information

Blessings
Elly
Elly´s last blog .. My ComLuv Profile

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Don White July 1, 2010 at 7:46 am

I guess I’d better overcome my Canuck aversion to being pushy. I guess I can’t start off every article promoting a product with, “Excuse me. I hate to bother you, but….”
Don White´s last blog ..New Ireton Data My ComLuv Profile

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Gee Hollings July 1, 2010 at 9:22 am

Hi Sean

Some excellent points you bring up. I have found some weird keywords being used but also a high percentage of return visitors.

The other thing I look for when analyzing my statistics is not only the amount of pages being visited but also the amount of time spent on the site and individual pages.
Gee Hollings´s last blog ..Are Keyword Research Services Really Worth It My ComLuv Profile

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jeremy July 1, 2010 at 6:05 pm

Interesting post about business blogging!

Now I really have to ask myself… ‘Are You Getting Results Jeremy?’

Well I guess I am getting some results but now I am beginning to see that there is a whole strategy & structure to building a blog so that you get the constant results that you require.

Using a keyword analysis to drive targeted traffic sounds like a tricky concept to master… or is it?

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Sean Rasmussen July 2, 2010 at 1:28 pm

It’s not really that complicated Jeremy, the nuts and bolts of it are to research what terms are bringing in your traffic, and checking whether or not you are providing useful, relevant information to them when they arrive ;-)

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Jackie Stenhouse July 31, 2010 at 9:50 pm

I often look at the keywords for what brought people to my site and am left wondering so I am obviously not using my keywords properly to target the traffic I want. I also made the mistake at the beginning of blogging about lots of different topics and I think I am still paying the price.
Jackie Stenhouse´s last blog ..Anxiety Separation in Children My ComLuv Profile

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