Yeah! We’re at my favorite step of the Hourglass: blogging.  I love to write.  There’s something about the power of language and communication that comes across in the written form that can’t be expressed in other media.  And that I, or you, get to enjoy expressing those skills and use them to attract sales makes it all the more satisfying.

However, just like in our last post where we discussed how just because someone gives something away for free doesn’t necessarily mean anyone would want it, the same idea carries over into this week’s topic: blogging.  Just because you have a blog that you write to frequently doesn’t mean anyone will read it or transact a sale. You have to utilize your blog correctly in order to continue to draw them down the sales funnel portion of the Hourglass.

You can apply our Hourglass Marketing System to any business. You begin with social media and engage on all of your social media platforms.  As you attract people to your fan pages, you furnish them with an opt-in or freebie offer.  Provide value in this offer, so your potential customers visit your blog to learn more helpful hints and information.

In future posts we’ll discuss email drip campaigns that will lead to your eventual sale, but for now we will stick to discussing your blog.  A good blog can play a powerful role in attracting customers to your products and/or services.

Here are a few tips below to help employ yours effectively:

*Determine the frequency of your posts and plan a schedule. Find a good balance.  Don’t over commit yourself to the point you burn out, but make sure you still maintain a presence.  Figure out what works best with you and your target market and stick with it.

*What value do you provide through your blog? Don’t write to a vacuum. People will visit your blog when they have a reason to read what you have to say.  What reason will you give them?

*Write topical articles relevant to your niche.  This ties into the value tip above.  Your readers confront a lot of competing messages out there.  Give them what they seek with information of value that will help them in their business, not just yours.

*Create theme months.  Tie in your blog posts to an overall theme that you address over the course of a month.  Plan out 8-10 things to share regarding the theme and write a post on each.

*If you run low on material, go take a refresher course or learn a new skill. Write about your self improvement experiences over your next series of posts. Others will learn from what you share.

*Promote your blog on your social media channels. You did all of that hard work writing it so get the word out there! Ask your friends to sign up for announcements and let everyone in your feed know when a new post publishes.

*Cross integrate between media types.  Facebook’s algorithm shows posts higher and more often when they contain pictures, media, or other high-profile attachments.  Get a greater reach by attaching your link to an inspirational quote, article or picture sure to be seen and shared.

*Maintain a good social balance.  Don’t beat your customers over their head with sales pitches. Instead, target to have about 85% fan value and no more than 15% promotion for you when posting.

More tips:

For more great tips to help bring structure and automation to your marketing system please check out our free Hourglass Marketing System Brainstorming Guide.

Also, stick around, because all November long we will cover Online Marketing Automation Strategies with our Hourglass Concept marketing strategy as the framework; dedicating a blog post to each level of the program.

As always, we welcome your comments and feedback so please feel free to ask questions or leave your tips to share as well. We plan to get all of our outlets involved so be sure to check us out not only here at the blog (or make it easier and sign up to get the posts as they go live!), but on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Pinterest, and Google+…and YouTube!

Share your thoughts, stuck points, and successes!  We are here to Unbound you from the overwhelm online marketing presents!

 

About the Author:

John DuBois writes content and copy as well as helping plan strategy for Unbound Virtual Administrators.  John and his partner, Tara, can’t wait to share the step-by-step social media e-book they are currently putting together that will get you up and running on all of the major platforms.  There’s also a book in the works on Unbound’s Hourglass Marketing System to help you build a system for your own business.

Please connect with John on Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.