Blogs, once the exclusive domain of hobbyists, have now evolved beyond that niche. Blogging has become a powerful new digital channel that can build an audience, drive marketing campaigns, and boost a brand’s online authority. As a result, blogging has emerged as a vital tool for entrepreneurs and executives to broadcast themselves to the world.
The Power of Blogging
Blogging has profoundly impacted the modern web. Since its inception, this medium has offered a way to share ideas, connect with audiences, and build an online reputation.
Recent years have seen blogging become an integral part of enhancing personal brand awareness. A survey conducted by HubSpot revealed that sites with aggressive blogging attracted 55% more visitors than those without. That’s a substantial difference.
It’s not just me emphasizing the significance of blogs. Global business leaders such as Richard Branson, Bill Gates, Mark Cuban, and Reid Hoffman all uphold a consistent blog presence:
Their collective endorsement certainly underscores its value.
Content Creation Strategies
Not exactly sure what to write about? That’s the easy part. Stick with topics you know.
Share your thoughts on topics like:
Industry Insights: do you have an insider’s look to share? Post it. These are some of the most common blog topics for executives and entrepreneurs, because it’s a mutual interest that they and their audience share.
Leadership Advice: insights don’t need to be industry-specific. Your experience as a leader is just as valuable to your audience. Posting about leadership advice can connect you with professionals you may never have met otherwise.
Your Personal Journey: like leadership advice, sharing parts of your own personal story are industry-agnostic. Since personal stories can often involve some kind of trauma or tribulations, though, you should be careful about how you share them. First, think about your past. Then, identify any turning points and write them down. Before hitting ‘publish’ on your post, seek feedback from trusted people and genuinely consider their insights.
After you’ve outlined the topics for your initial blog posts, it’s time to dive into the details. Make sure you’re writing in a consistent and unique voice. Your readers should become familiar with how your internal voice speaks after a few posts.
Whichever combinations of subjects you choose, make sure your content is both concise and informative. You need concise information because — let’s face it — the human attention span isn’t what it used to be, and it maxes out at about 45 seconds. You need to capture a reader’s interest within that time frame.
Your posts also need to be informative. Otherwise, you’re not generating any value for your audience.
Blogging Platforms
Now that you have an idea of what you’re going to write about, it’s time to choose your blogging platform.
WordPress
WordPress is a great choice. It’s the most widely-used blogging platform globally, and there’s a reason for that. With endless options for visual themes and functional plugins, WordPress offers capabilities that other platforms just can’t match.
Medium
Medium is another great option for blog hosting. Where WordPress offers unbeatable customization, Medium has a built-in audience that sets it apart from other blogging platforms. It’s also free to use, making it an excellent choice for entrepreneurs or executives in startups.
LinkedIn
Last (but certainly not least), we have LinkedIn. Like Medium, LinkedIn has a built-in audience. But it gets a slight edge over its competitor thanks to its audience.
The readership on Medium doesn’t necessarily skew towards an audience of professionals. In contrast, LinkedIn’s audience is made primarily of executives and entrepreneurs who are hungry for content in their specific niche.
Promoting Your Blog
Even if you choose a platform with a built-in audience like LinkedIn, you’re going to need to promote your content to build your readership. You need to pull out all the stops here. Share your content on as many channels as you can. Post it to every social media page you have, blast it in your newsletters, and spread it to your professional connections.
Additionally, engage with users through comments to promote engagement. Not only does user engagement please the algorithm and boost your post’s reach, but it also enhances the trustworthiness of your professional brand among your followers.
E-E-A-T, Sleep, Blog, Repeat
Finally, search engine visibility is another aspect of blog promotion.
To maximize your blog’s visibility on search engines, you’ll want to write with E-E-A-T in mind. While this acronym may make you hungry, it’s actually a way that Google ranks content that appears on its search results.
To ensure that the most readers find your posts, make sure that your information exhibits Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. Otherwise, you’ll get lost in the data noise of the internet.
Overcoming Challenges
No one ever said being a writer was easy. You’re going to run into your own set of challenges as you get your blog off the ground. Fortunately, you won’t be the first (or last) person to experience these problems, and the people who came before you have some ways to overcome them.
Writer’s Block
One of the biggest issues any writer faces is writer’s block. It happens to every writer at some point. Even one of the greatest writers alive today, Stephen King, struggles with this phenomenon.
Don’t panic, though. There are a few different ways you can work to overcome writer’s block. For example, if you’re in a time crunch, move past the topic that’s giving you trouble and move on to the next section. Talking also helps. If you have an accessible friend that you trust, talk your ideas out with them to help break up what’s blocking your inspiration.
Time
Another major constraint that professionals face when donning their writing caps is time. If you’re an executive or entrepreneur, chances are you have a lot of work-related responsibilities. That may not leave you with enough time to actually write your posts.
Fortunately, there’s a solution here. Platforms like Upwork allow you to outsource your content to professional writers. On a budget? AI tools like ChatGPT can also be useful here, although they aren’t as plug-and-play as hiring an actual writer is. You’ll definitely need to dedicate some time to proofreading and editing AI-generated content.
Wrapping Up
If you’ve been waiting to start your blog, don’t hesitate. Now’s your chance to take the plunge. Blogging can be an exciting and fun activity, and its impact on your personal brand can’t be overstated. It may take between 3 and 6 months, but you’ll soon see a significant boost in your overall traffic. Good luck.
As the significance of executive branding continues to grow in the upcoming years, this is the very moment to refine your online presence. Ready to dominate on LinkedIn and elevate your executive profile like never before? Reach out to me at ik@innakuts.com.