What do you do if you’ve been blogging about home building or renovation for a while and nobody seems to be reading?
One of the first things you need to consider is whether or not your intended audience is even finding you. There is a myth out there that’s as old as the Internet: If you put content out there, people will read it. But there are millions of pages of content out there. How would someone just happen to land on your blog?
The way most people will find your information is through an online search. In order for your content to be found by the search engines you need to do what you can to optimize your blog so that when people enter something in a search engine (such as Google) that your blog is one of the first web pages to show up. There are a couple of critical steps to make sure this happens.
Key words play a huge role in helping to get your posts found (and read). But there’s more to using key words successfully than simply repeating them over and over in your post. What’s really critical here is to think like your customers. When you write, use the kind of language your customers would use in a search. Avoid industry jargon and overly technical terms. Describe things the way you would to any layman—not to another builder.
Be aware of where your audience is. If you’re a homebuilder or remodeler in the St. Louis area, you’re probably not trying to reach a national audience. So instead of writing a blog about “Kitchen Remodeling Ideas”, write it about “Kitchen Remodeling Ideas for Your St. Louis Home.” Why? Because people in your area are most likely looking for a builder or remodeler in the St. Louis area who can help them with their remodeling project. When they search online, they are more likely to type in: “Remodeling St. Louis” because they are looking for someone local.
Of course there’s more to getting found than what we’ve talked about here. But optimizing your blog by taking these simple steps is a good way to start. And you don’t have to hire an expensive SEO expert to do it. You just need to start thinking—and writing—like a customer.
We’d like to leave you with one final question: How do you know if your blog is working or not?