Your website will only become successful if the content you place on it is informative, interesting and regularly refreshed. Your blog is one of the best ways to achieve this. Find out how with this free guide.

1. 6 Keys To Unlocking A
Successful Blog

2. Why have a
blog?
A website will only become
successful if the content on it is
informative, interesting and
regularly refreshed.
One of the easiest ways to create
content like this is via a blog.
Keeping a blog can offer many
benefits, but how can you do it
successfully?
• Bloggers generate 55% more
website visitors
• Blogs produce 97% more
inbound links
• Websites with blogs have 434%
more indexed pages on average
than those without blogs.

3. Integrate your blog with
your website

4. Integration
There are two main reasons why:
1. Search Engine Optimisation
Every blog post you write creates more new content for the website,
meaning the search engines always have something new to look at. Any
popularity your blog creates will reflect directly on your website and
shoot you further up the search engine lists.
2. Branding
If you blog on an external platform (like blogger.com or even a separate
WordPress blog) it will be very difficult for you to maintain the same
branding across sites. Keep it clean and consistent by having your blog
on your website to start with.
Keeps things
simple for you,
your readers and
the search engines

5. Publish frequently and
consistently

6. Plan your blog
so you don't
burn out!
Most people struggle to regularly write blog posts. But
once your blog takes off, it could generate five times
more traffic than a site that only gets blog posts once or
twice a month so it really is worth the effort.
To keep up, start by creating an editorial calendar with
the dates you’re going to write a post, and the subjects
you’re going to write about. To start with, aim for one
post a week. When you’re used to that routine it will be
easier to increase the amount of posts per month.
If you have employees, invite them to post blogs too. A
variety of authors will give the blog interest and insight
from a number of different angles. It’s a great
advertisement for your company too – the whole of your
team is engaged in the success of the business.

7. Encourage Engagement

8. Rules of
Engagement..
This is a crucial element if your
blog is going to be truly successful.
Blogging is a social activity so you
have to allow a two-way
conversation. The best way to
encourage readers to return is to
let them engage. Make sure
comments are switched on, and
that you are ready to respond
when the comments come in.
• Keep comments open
• Don't moderate negative
comments, respond! You
may find others defending
your position for you leading
to a fun debate
• Ask questions to encourage
engagement
• Listen to feedback and act
accordingly

9. Promote!

10. Use the two main promotional avenues:
Search Engine Optimisation
Find and use relevant keywords
(sign up free for Google Keyword
Planner:
https://adwords.google.com/KeywordPlanner)
Fill in page titles, meta descriptions
and your blog title with the best
keyword phrase
Put your keywords/phrases into
your blog two or three times
Social Media
Create a Facebook page, Twitter
account, Google+ page and
LinkedIn page for your business
Build up your following
Promote your new blog posts on
these platforms.

11. Remember lead
generation

12. Calls to Action
The whole point of the content on a
website is ultimately to generate
leads.
Don't miss the great opportunity
your blog offers with it's regular,
fresh content: put some calls to
action (CTA) on each blog post.
Make sure your design allows you
to do this easily so you can alter the
CTA to make it relevant.
1. At the end of your blog post
(relevant to what you've written)
2. In the top bar or side bar (more
general about your company)
3. As anchor text within your post
to relevant landing pages or
product and service pages.

13. Don't give up!

14. Enjoy your
success!
Like most things that are worth doing, a
blog will take time and effort.
Don't give up!
If your website doesn't have analytics
integrated already, get it on there so you
can see how your blog is performing; it's
always a good motivator to know how
things are going.
Keep coming back to this short checklist to
make sure you're still covering the basics.

15. Want more help?
At The Webmaster Centre we love to help
businesses like yours to succeed online. 6 keys to
unlocking a successful blog is just a short checklist
for those who have some knowledge of the
subject but would like a little reminder of
important things they may need to know. If you
would like help with your blog you might be
interested in our blogging service at
http://webmastercentre.co.uk/blogging, or call
us direct on 0115 896 2529 to chat about your
requirements .
Our Webmasters are based in
Nottingham, Uk.
If you'd like to come and see us, our
address is:
30a High Street
Arnold
Nottingham
NG5 7DZ