2023 and beyond: 8 reasons why blogs are here to stay
We’ll tell you why the digital content format couldn’t be more alive and how you can benefit from it.
Blogging offers more creative freedom
Snack content is quick to create and even quicker to distribute. Simply choose an existing video or image, write a creative caption, and the post is ready to be published. At least, that’s what you would think. If you regularly publish posts or ads on social media, you know that the reality often looks quite different.
You’ve probably gotten annoyed a few times when an image or video wasn’t accepted. Finding the right format can be as challenging as inserting an image into a Word document without destroying all the formatting.
When publishing your blog posts, on the other hand, you are the boss. You are in control. Make sure your writing is web-compliant, use high-quality visual content, and your blog post is ready to go. Important: Remember to optimise your texts for search engines! You’ll find out how to do this in the next paragraph.
Blog posts can have a positive impact on SEO performance
Criticism of blogs is growing. People say, for instance, that posts aren’t updated regularly or that topics are not approached from a holistic perspective. Another frequent criticism is that some blogs only cover news or current trends without going into detail in terms of their content. If, on top of it, no keyword research was done, the conclusion of the blog opponents comes as no surprise: Blogposts are unsuitable for SEO because they do not fulfil the search intent of the users.
However, that’s a bit of a harsh judgement – don’t you think? Especially when the points criticised can be changed so easily. By taking the following factors into account, you’ll score points from an SEO point of view:
- Use keyword research and user question tools to find new, relevant topic areas!
- Try to identify niche topics!
- Write comprehensive evergreen content!
- Focus on the chosen topic and cover it in depth!
- Update and expand your blog posts regularly (magic word: content recycling)!
Corporate blogs are still all the rage
If you’ve been wondering for a while whether a corporate blog makes sense, our answer is: Yes! Go for it! It’s still a niche topic with a lot of potential. The results of a Statista study show that only eight per cent of all companies in Germany have a corporate blog.
At the same time, according to the Center for Marketing Research UMass Dartmouth, an upward trend in this area can be observed internationally: In 2020, 77 per cent of the 500 companies with the highest turnover in the United States (Fortune 500) were already blog owners.
So what does this mean? The US big players have recognised the potential of corporate blogs – and they will increasingly use this tool in their 2023 communication strategy. In German-speaking countries, the competition is comparatively low. So it’s the perfect time to jump on the blogging bandwagon!
Create HPCU content and end up in the top 10 search results
HPCU what? Behind this term stands pure success. High-Performance Content Units are content pieces that rank in the top ten search results for more than 20 per cent of the keywords. This result speaks for above-average performance, i.e. Google classifies the content as relevant – as content that fulfils the intentions of users and thus contributes to customer satisfaction.
You think that only glossary and topic pages are suited to become HPCUs? Think again! Snackable content, shop pages and even detailed how-to content can be high performers as well. Did your alarm bells just go ding-ding-ding? Yes, that’s right, blog posts also have the potential to be included in this category.
Tip: Who says you always have to reinvent the wheel? Take a look at your competitors’ approach when researching topics – and then do an even better job than them!
Do you want to know more about what role an HPCU analysis plays in the process of developing a navigation strategy? Go ahead and read our article on next-level content audits.
Content recycling keeps your website fresh
How do you keep a cool head on hot summer days when the temperature is well over 30 degrees? Exactly: by treating yourself to refreshments every now and then. It’s a similar process with blogging. By regularly giving your posts a freshening-up, you keep them relevant, up to date and score points with Google.
Google loves up-to-date content and therefore introduced an algorithm change in November 2011. How “fresh” a website is depends on both the topicality and the number of newly published content pieces. If a blog exists within a website, it can positively contribute to the site’s freshness score when approached correctly. How? On the one hand, by addressing current topics and, on the other hand, by regularly publishing new articles.
Social media and blogs are best friends
Should you use your blog to expand on topics from social media or use Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and other platforms to distribute your blog posts? Both works wonderfully, as long as the topic of the post is suitable for the respective channel and offers your target group added value. Once you are finally ready to hit publish after intense preparatory work, social networks can be a real game-changer in terms of reach.
Simply take the most captivating sentences from your post and package them in snack content suitable for the platform. This will give your blog posts targeted attention, which will also be a positive signal for Google.
Get valuable backlinks with high-quality posts
Looking for another way to get your blog content noticed? Then you should look into public relations and blogger collaborations. In 2023, this is the trend par excellence, especially for corporate blogs. If relevant specialist magazines or influential blogs link to your article, you benefit from two decisive advantages:
- You get yourself another very valuable traffic source.
- Important backlinks are created that help your post rank better on Google.
What are you waiting for? Let public attention work in your favour and beat the big drum for your blog posts! After all, backlinks are still one of Google’s top three ranking factors.
Blogs and content commerce: It’s a match!
Imagine you are researching for a summer holiday and find a blog post including a packing list. Some of the items on the list link to an online shop, among them, a backpack. Since you wanted to buy a new backpack anyway, you click on the link and end up on the product page. “How convenient!” you think to yourself. You put the item in your shopping cart and complete the purchase.
This example shows how blogs can be used for content commerce. Simply package your products in exciting stories! This way you can optimally reach your target group.
You can also look for guest bloggers who include your products in creative stories. In this case, you kill two birds with one stone: You use the reach of the blogger and receive – as already described above – important backlinks.
Checklist for blogging in 2023
Our verdict: Blogging is anything but out! Especially if you proceed systematically and take the time to craft your texts, you’ll be able to achieve top rankings on Google. As the cherry on top, we’ve summarised the most important factors for successful blogging in 2023 for you again:
- Invest sufficient time in keyword research.
- Write blog posts with at least 1,000 words.
- Use visual content to break up the text.
- Regularly publish new articles on your corporate blog.
- Update articles and recycle content that performs well.
- Use social media as a reach lever.
- Use PR and blogger collaborations to generate backlinks.
- Tell exciting stories about your products and include links to your online shop.
Beware of shortcuts: Currently, it is tempting to outsource content and copywriting to ChatGPT or other AI tools. Find out why you should approach this topic with caution and what we think about it in the article “Will ChatGPT replace copywriters?”.
