The last time I counted there were approximately…… ummmm a LOT of blogs and articles online. It’s where most of us go to find out about, well – everything.

There are:

• hobby blogs
• professional blogs
• news blogs
• half written blogs
• neglected blogs…

They all have a different strategy and objective. Or none at all.

Different horses for different courses

The hobby and personal blogs are doing it just… because they love it and have something to share. Their end game isn’t about making profits right away, if ever.

You know the ones I’m talking about “Mikesadventures.com, Scottandjulieswedding.net,” the kind of thing that really, only Mike, Scott and Julie’s closest friends and mum will read and let’s not forget “ILovewarcraft.com” which may cause hot dispute with other bloggers of similar persuasions.

Professional blogs may not sell any products or services – their profits come from click throughs and advertising and they are able to monetize by sheer number of visits. The more visits the more influence and the more money they can make. Which is why these blogs churn out masses of content – sometimes new material 4 or 5 times a day.

And then there’s yours…

Then we come to YOUR business blog (because you do have one, don’t you?!). The objective of your blog is to showcase your expertise, educate readers (not just your mum, I’m talking about your target market) about how they can work with you, gain their trust and loyalty so that they champion you and wanna work with you.

No blog should be just a bunch of words. To get the most bang for your buck each piece of content needs to pipe into your main objectives (see above).

You have to let them know….

So, when people read your blog articles, do they know what you do? Do they realise that you offer a service and how you work with people?

If you’re not mentioning in your posts that you are a business and what services you offer then how the devil will anyone know that you can help them more than just providing free content?

That doesn’t mean you have to go all-in pushy salesman with it. But, you do have to TELL them.

Crystal clear and classy!

Here’s how to make it crystal clear in a classy, subtle way that educates them by including these 4 things in your articles:

1. An attention grabbing headline or title.

The first step to getting someone to read your blog is getting them to it – that’s what your headline does. Think about the compelling headlines on glossy magazines. Each one carefully crafted to grab your attention before you excitedly clutch the latest edition to your bosom while hot footing it to the till. That’s what you want too

2. A valuable central theme.

Now that they’re ready to read, you want a central theme to run throughout your article that is valuable to them. There are so many distractions in life and online – what will your readers (read: ideal client) get from reading your post? No matter what anyone says they will be thinking: ‘if I read this article, what’s in it for me?’

3. How can they work with you?

Mention how you work with clients, your business, your products. Subtle seeding rather than flashy statements is the way to go

4. Call to action.

i.e. what is it you want them to do? Sign up, work with you, comment? If you don’t guide them to their next action, they’ll click away and (probably) forget you. Opportunity wasted!

Make it a goal to include these in every post, it could be by:

• including a link to your work with me page (see what I did there??)
• giving examples of how you’ve helped clients
• referring to your services (in context, of course)

This will have such an impact during the honeymoon period – what better time to introduce your services than when someone is hanging off your every word!

Take a look at this post I wrote about online schedulers to see these goals in action –

It has a title which encourages the reader to find out more

Next, is there any doubt that you can work with me?

and the final piece – a nice clear call to action…

The rest is up to you!

Try having a little reminder of these 4 things handy wherever it is you write your blog and get in the habit of including them in all your future posts.

So, now you know the must-have inclusions in your blog posts I want to hear from you…

Are you adding these 4 things in your blogs or it is something you’ve never considered? How do you feel about talking about your business in your blogs – uncomfortable or easy as pie? Share your experience in the comments below.