With one of my websites, blog functionality comes as standard.

However, does that mean you should have a blog?

Below I go through some key points that need consideration.

A blog must be kept up to date

We’ve all seen it.

A blog which hasn’t been kept up to date.

The last update may have been from a couple of years ago.

It doesn’t show your business in the best light as it could be perceived as laziness which could then incorrectly reflect upon the rest of your business.

A blog must provide useful information

There’s no point chucking up a blog post for the sake of it.

You have to provide some information that is of value.

If you’re just chucking up a post to check a box then your blog is of little value.

Far better to post some useful content once or twice a month then try and write say a couple of posts a week which are adding no value to your website.

What would I blog about?

I always get asked this question.

Blogs are all about providing useful information that generates ‘expert’ status for you and your business.

No one is saying that they have to be exciting.

You know your business better then anyone else.

People who are potential customers will be delighted to see you flexing your muscle in your chosen industry.

It shows knowledge and it builds trust.

Google likes fresh content

Once your site is up and running, you could just sit back and never update it again.

However, if you want to chase down some Google rankings then you’re going to need to generate some new content every now and again.

A blog is a great way to do this.

It’s not the only way to do it, you could for instance have a case studies section that you update instead.

Either way, Google likes fresh content.

Summary

A blog is a valuable tool for generating organic traffic to your site through a search engine like Google.

I would advise you to use a blog if:

• You’re going to update it at least once a month.
• You’re going to publish content that is of real value.  Don’t worry about it being exciting.
• Google rankings are important to you and you are not adding new content elsewhere on your site.