Why Your Blog Might Not Be Converting Readers into Customers by @KellyMcormick_

by Kelly McCormick | Featured Contributor

Let’s break it down. Why do many people blog? Often it’s to position themselves as an expert, drive traffic to their website, and get new business! This is a great strategy.

But here’s the reality. Most blogs don’t convert into sales. Unfortunately, most people have no idea why all their hard work isn’t paying off. That sucks.

Does This Sound Familiar?

The other day I took on a new client. We’ll call her Carol. She owns a business providing internet based services to entrepreneurs. (I’m keeping her profile vague to protect her privacy.)

Carol has been blogging consistently for over two years. She has built up a steady following. But her loyal readers aren’t banging the doors down to hire her.

Looking at her blog here’s what I discovered. Carol’s post titles were intriguing. Excellent! Plus, she was definitely a topic expert. Wonderful! And her content was packed with lots of useful tips and information. Perfect!

But I was still left wondering…why weren’t her followers turning into buyers?

Diagnosing the Problem

After checking Carol’s posts, through the lens of an unbiased reader, several things hit me. My first insight was HUGE! Get ready for it. Here it is.

I didn’t actually know what Carol did for a living!

It got worse. The only name on the blog was a company name. If I felt compelled to find out more about this mystery blogger, who would I email or speak to?

Red flags lead me to the REAL problem. And it was a common one.

·         Carol’s company didn’t appear to be selling anything. Ouch!

Unless Carol was independently wealthy, treating her blog as a library could keep her bank balance in the red, for years. It was time for a creative solution!

Putting a Great Solution to Work

We used a powerful, yet easy to put together, marketing tool on Carol’s blog. It’s the ‘call to action box’. If you’re not familiar with the ‘call to action box’ it’s similar to an author’s bio and service description seen at the bottom of a guest post.

Here’s the big difference. The ‘call to action box’ sits at the bottom of EACH post on your own blog. The content in the box provides information about you and your services.  

Share Only the Essentials

People have short attention spans. So don’t let your ‘call to action box’ resemble a novel. Stick to the basics.

·         Include your photo. Psychologically people are attracted to a visual image before text. A photo will grab their attention.

·         If possible, use the same photo that’s on your Social Networking Avatars. It will reinforce your brand.

·         Provide your name and/or title.

·         Give a brief description of your services and/or the benefits.

·         Imbed links to other pages on your site. This can include links to the About, Services and Contact pages.

Seeing It to Believe It

This is my ‘call to action box’ from my OutSell Yourself blog.

Please feel free to create something similar. But, insert your own information. Unless you want to send business to me!

Kelly McCormick – Business Growth and Marketing Strategist

From her lawn chair in California, Kelly McCormick helps entrepreneurs and companies world-wide to grow their businesses. She loves uncovering opportunities for growth and developing branding, marketing and sales strategies, which make sense and money! 

But Kelly doesn’t just talk the talk. She walks the walk. Kelly has owned three successful companies, the first at age 21. Over the years she has shared her wisdom at colleges, and in business and consulting programs. Kelly has also spoken at many national and international conferences, company functions, and on-line events.

Kelly’s to-do list has been big. She is the author of a Top Ten Sales book,OutSell Yourself: Ethical Business and Sales Techniques. Kelly has also written for numerous publications, including writing a monthly on-line column, on Selling to Women, for the former Sales and Marketing Management Magazine.

She’s pretty smart too. Kelly has an education in psychology and sociology. But the icing on the cake is a strong gut sense of what will work to build and market a business.

Kelly has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs and companies to grow successful businesses. It’s the cream in her coffee. She’d love to help your business too! You can check her out at www.OutSellYourself.com.

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Kelly McCormick