Why is no one reading your blog? Chances are, you’re not doing it right. Here are some of the blog writing mistakes you may be making.
There is so much content out there. In fact, the U.S. alone generates 2,657,700 gigabytes of internet data every minute. Every minute! That’s a whole lot of videos, tweets, posts, and photos being shared online. No wonder no one is reading your blog.
There’s so much competition out there, it’s hard to stand out against those numbers. Even with the time and energy you’re putting into your blog, you’re not seeing the views and engagement you were hoping to achieve.
Most likely, you are making one of these mistakes. Here are some reasons why no one is reading your blog.
10 reasons why no one is reading your blog: an infographic
How can supply chain and logistics businesses adjust to the new way of doing things? The latest B2B Buyer’s Survey offers insight into how B2B buyers are finding vendors, engaging with them, and — ultimately — deciding to work with one. Some of the statistics are very telling and give vendors a good idea about where they need to invest their time and money in order to get buyers’ attention
10 stats about the B2B buyer’s journey
1) Length of buying process
The B2B buying process is becoming longer and more complex because the majority of buyers (82%) are using more sources to research and evaluate products and services, and they are spending more time in the research phase itself.
2) Web search is first
62% of B2B buyers say that a web search was one of the first three resources they use to learn about a solution.
3) Online eventually
In fact, in a different study, 94% of buyers reported using online research at some point in the purchasing process.
4) Searching for what?
71% of B2B researchers start with a generic search — rather than searching for a particular company.
5) How many searches?
B2B researchers do an average of 12 searches before engaging with a specific brand’s site.
6) Self-sufficiency on the sales path
Buyers are 57% of the way down the sales path by the time they engage with a brand’s website, meaning they have already spent a fair amount of time educating themselves with the enormous amount of information available to them on the internet.
7) Social media plays a role
And content isn’t limited to your website: A vibrant social media presence helps buyers conduct their research. In fact, more than half (53%) of B2B buyers report turning to social media to make buying decisions.
8) (More than ever)
What’s more, more than a third (34%) say they are spending more time this year than last using social media to research vendors and solutions.
9) LinkedIn is B2B’s network of choice
LinkedIn is reportedly the most impactful to the research process. 81% of respondents said it was very important or somewhat important.
10) But don’t discount video
And, believe it or not, video sites like YouTube and Vimeo are playing an increasingly important role in the B2B buyer’s journey, with 60% of respondents ranking them very important or somewhat important.
YouTube creators focus on audience engagement, as opposed to branding, which helps them organically grow an authentic loyal following.
I recently watched a video from Truly Social President and Founder Tara Hunt about the genius of YouTube creators. She offers truly valuable insight into why people with little technology and resources have been more successful in growing a loyal audience with video than corporate campaigns with all the money and creativity in the world.
Perhaps it’s worth saying first: Yes, video can work for the supply chain. And YouTube, in particular, can be very worthwhile as part of your larger social marketing strategy. The decade-old video platform has over 1.3 billion users. 1.3 BILLION! And that’s not all: Users watch over 5 billion videos on YouTube every single day, and upload 300 hours of video every minute.
This presents a huge opportunity for your company to reach prospects in a new way. It also means that your videos really need to stand out to make an impact and avoid getting lost in the shuffle. After all, approximately 20% of people who start a video will leave after the first 10 seconds.
So how are creators attracting viewers while corporate brands aren’t?
5 ways creators are out-YouTubing brands
1. Consistency
Creators know the success behind their YouTube channels is a constant stream of content. This be can new content or simply responding to their followers, but they are active every day, around the clock. Brands tend to spend a lot of time and energy on content but are inconsistent in their posting, often abandoning their YouTube channels for days or weeks at a time. Their followers become bored with their lack of attention and move on.
2. Community
The foundation of YouTube — and most social media platforms, actually — is community and the resulting two-way dialogue between creators and their followers. The intent of a creator’s video is to engage their audience and build a relationship that is beneficial to both parties. On the other hand, brands tend to be overly focused on the attention their content stirs up, the “buzz” they are able to draw, neglecting the important process of creating and nurturing a relationship with their followers.
3. Interaction
Companies often focus on pushing their “messaging” on one (or just a few) social media platform(s). They spend an enormous amount of time and money perfecting content that reflects this messaging, hoping their followers will engage with it.
Contrarily, YouTube creators focus on interaction. They interact on multiple platforms, reaching out to their audience and taking full advantage of every opportunity to connect with their followers. What’s more, successful YouTubers don’t merely expect engagement — they ask for it. They promote hashtags, solicit video responses from viewers, and encourage feedback via social media interactions. Calls-to-action can stimulate subscriptions, shares and cross-pollination with other platforms.
4. Connection
Gone are the days of expensive and lengthy productions. Creators have captivated their audiences by creating organic, raw material that focuses on the emotional connect. The polished and professional content that brands create are void of vulnerability and lack the connection today’s followers are seeking.
5. Collaboration
Creators root for one another; they follow one another; they promote one another. YouTube creators seek the opportunity to expand their audience by collaborating with other creators who focus on the same topics and interests. Through the power of collaboration, creators expand the exposure of their content to different audiences, gaining subscribers and views.
Brands see other brands as competition. In a time when audiences prefer engagement and social awareness, this competitive attitude hurts brands’ likability and ultimately diminishes their viewership.
If companies were to focus more on audience engagement in these ways, they would have a better chance at mimicking the wild success of YouTube creators who have amassed a loyal following.
Try these out-of-the-box ideas for content and other tactics that can help you generate leads.
Generating new leads and growing your business is imperative to a business’s viability. Referrals from current customers are a strong option for growth, but often they aren’t enough to keep a business thriving.
Generating leads is tough work. Creating cold emails can be daunting, and following up with cold calls can be even worse. Most of the time, these calls fall on deaf ears. People don’t want to be pulled away from their day to hear your sales pitch.
Content marketing is the process of creating content that prospects and customers want to consume to educate them about your business, your expertise in the field, and your products and services. Content is an excellent lead-generation tool. But it’s often difficult to create content that does all these things without being an overt sales pitch — which people definitely don’t want to read. And no read, no lead.
So we’ve created a list of 10 ideas for reaching your prospective audience and generating leads with content and more. They’ll appreciate the information, and you’ll help spread the word about your business. Enjoy!
10 ideas for generating leads
1) Interview an expert about success in the field.
Reach out to leaders in your industry to share their thoughts and tips for success. You’ll prove to potential customers that you are committed to discovering the latest and greatest in your field. Don’t be afraid to ask detailed questions and share real answers. The specific answers will enlighten potential customers and provide actionable items for them to walk away with.
2) Create a video.
Videos are a great way to take advantage of social media platforms like YouTube and Facebook. Create fun, entertaining videos that educate potential customers about issues or pain points your business helps solve. Remember to keep your videos short and to the point.
3) Make a quiz.
When visitors come to your website or social media pages, offer them a creative quiz to capture their contact information. Once they have completed the quiz, you get a lead, and they get the correct answers. You’ll learn about more about them as a potential customer, and they can learn more about your products and services.
Eastern International College created a unique quiz to help students choose a major. The quiz helped students learn about their interests and gave Eastern International College useful insight into counseling them on their class selection.
4) Offer content upgrades.
Content upgrades can be a very valuable lead-generation tool. For example, say you’ve written a blog post about the best time to post on social media. Add an offer for a downloadable guide to create a social media strategy at the end of your post. To get the download, customers must submit their contact information via a form. You get the contact info; the customer gets the content upgrade — it’s a win-win!
5) Show your tried-and-true tactics.
What is really working for your business? Write an honest post that allows potential customers the opportunity to see what has really worked for you, and what hasn’t. Your honesty will help cultivate trust with potential customers and benefit other companies looking to grow their lead base.
6) Host a giveaway.
According to Kissmetric Blog, giveaways can be one of the most successful ways to generate leads. The key is to find out what your customers actually want. You can leverage a giveaway to direct online traffic to a landing page, where you can capture new leads. It is important to find a giveaway that is directed at a specific audience. If your giveaway is too broad, you will be left with large list of dead-end leads.
7) Guest blog on a relevant website.
You’ve reached out to experts to put their tips and success stories on your blog — now you need to do the same. Research the sites that your key audience is visiting and offer to guest blog on their site. Create relevant and valuable content that can generate exposure for your company. You will not only come across as a leader in your industry, but you’ll reach a vast new audience.
8) Offer insight into prospects’ top questions.
Consider questions that you hear from prospects and create in-depth tutorials to answer them. Potential customers will find the step-by-step articles useful, giving you the opportunity for a lead. Oftentimes the companies that step up to answer tough questions or provide instructions in easy-to-follow formats are the ones that get the business.
9) Get involved in the community.
There has never been a greater call to get involved in community outreach. Companies that are committed to creating change and engagement in their communities create trust in their customers. Volunteer at local events, guest speak at schools, or help local student organizations. You can demonstrate your expertise while creating real ties to the community. This will help you stand out not only as a leader in your industry, but as a caring and involved brand.
10) Offer a free trial.
According to HubSpot, “free trials of a brand’s services help get a prospect’s foot halfway through the door.” Offering free trials of your services is a great way to demonstrate how your company can add value to your customers. Once they experience the benefits of your services or products, they’ll be more likely to purchase them in the future. The free trial can lead to sales in a low-pressure situation for the customer.
Take a moment to let that sink in. After Google, people are searching YouTube for content. Strike that: Over one billion people are searching YouTube for content.
This has raised the eyebrows of content marketers across many industries, including B2B businesses, who recognize the enormous potential for reaching customers through this medium.
If you haven’t considered distributing content through YouTube, you may soon find yourself scrambling to catch up with your competitors who are. For those who don’t know much about YouTube or are clueless about how it can work for business, here are a few basics to get you started.
What is YouTube?
YouTube is a free video-sharing website and social media platform that allows users to view, upload, share, rate, and comment on content. It was launched in 2005 by three former Paypal employees and purchased by Google in 2006. It now operates as a subsidiary of Google.
You do not have to be a registered user to view content, but you must be registered to upload content. Registered users can also subscribe to content providers’ channels to receive updates when something new is available, and can create playlists of favorite videos to view at any time.
In addition to being available on the YouTube website, YouTube videos can be embedded, shared, or uploaded to other sites (such as Facebook).
Why is it good for business?
YouTube has massive potential for businesses. Here are just five reasons to participate.
Users watch around 3.25 billion hours of video every month.
Videos with over 1 billion views: 10,113
80% of views are from outside the U.S.
More than half of views are from mobile devices.
You can navigate YouTube in 76 different languages.
2) Improved search rankings
YouTube videos are included in Google’s search results, ranking above web pages in certain searches. Potential customers searching for products and services like yours will be more likely to find you in such instances.
3) User experience
Video has become so popular for a reason: People like consuming it. By producing content in this medium, you are offering a user experience that is in high demand.
4) Build your brand
Video is the ideal storytelling platform, and it’s also perfect for how-tos, product demonstrations, and other content that demonstrates your company’s expertise. Show your brand personality and engage your audience while building your reputation as a thought leader in your industry.
5) Track performance metrics
YouTube Analytics makes it easy to see who is watching your videos and how they are engaging with them. Run reports on audience demographics, revenue, engagement, traffic sources, and more.
How do I get started?
There are two avenues for businesses who are looking to reach YouTube’s more-than-3-billion users.
For one, businesses can buy ads that run before other videos, beside playing videos, and in search results. Video ads are not covered in this post, but you can learn more about them here.
Secondly, businesses can create their own YouTube channel and upload original content as part of their inbound marketing programs. To get started, you will need to sign into your business’ Google account or create one. Find the sign in button at the top-right corner of the YouTube homepage.
With your account, you will own your very own “channel,” on which you will post your content. Branding your channel is an important step, as this will be the face of your company on this platform. Below are some tips.
Anatomy of a branded YouTube channel
Coyote Logistics, a 3PL provider, has done an excellent job of branding its YouTube channel.
Company Logo
Upload your company’s logo by hovering over the channel icon and clicking the pencil icon when it appears.
Branded Banner
Upload an image that represents your brand and what users will find on your channel. Hover over the channel art, click the “Add channel art” button or the pencil icon in the upper-right corner and select “Edit channel art.” Coyote Logistics makes a bold statement (very representative of its brand personality) here. For the best results on all devices, YouTube recommends uploading a single 2560 x 1440 px image.
Social Icons
Provide links to your other social channels by hovering over the channel art, clicking the pencil icon in the upper-right corner, and selecting “Edit links.” Add the URLs for each of your channels under “Custom links.”
Customize Layout
Click the customize button to create a layout for your channel. You can add up to 10 “sections,” which allow you to group videos in a particular way. For example, you could add sections of recent uploads, popular uploads, playlists, etc.This helps visitors to decide what to watch — and lets you promote content you wish for visitors to see.
About
Navigate to the About section to add a channel description, business email address, country, and social links (if you haven’t already).
Uploading videos
Once you have your channel set, you’re ready to start adding your original content. YouTube Help has a wealth of resources to help you get started, problem-solve, and learn more. The below video offers an introduction to uploading videos in just a few quick steps.
Other terms to know
Playlist: Playlists let you organize your videos into different categories, like interviews, tips, product demonstrations, etc. Learn more.
Channel trailer: A short video, like a movie trailer, that gives visitors an idea of the kinds of videos they’ll find on your channel. Learn more.
YouTube Red: This is the premium subscription option that allows you to view videos without ads, watch videos offline, and more.
