#UKvUSA: Why aren’t print buyers reading your blogs?
Two continents: US and UK. Two different buying backgrounds: procurement and agency. Two alternative ways of looking at things. I’m delighted to have teamed up with Deborah Corn from PrintMediaCentr to bring two extremely different views to some important print questions. So welcome to Print Buying: #UKvUSA where Deborah and I share information about our experiences from both sides of the pond.
At the end of this post I have linked to Deborah’s answer to the same question. We wrote our answers (each limited to 500 words) without any idea of what the other was writing. As Deborah says: “Maybe we will agree, maybe we won’t, maybe we don’t even see the question in the same way – who knows… that’s the fun part!”
Please do leave comments, thoughts and support at the bottom of this post and on Deborah’s post. It would be great if also posted your thoughts on Twitter, using the hashtag #UKvUSA Remember to watch out for our answers to another question next month.
#UKvUSA: Why aren’t print buyers reading your blogs?
Blogs drive sales
Three out of four of my last new clients approached me because they liked what they wrote on my blog. Blogs are a great sales channel. However, they only work if they are done in the right way. Here are three key reasons why I think blogs fail.
1) You don’t have a blog
The number one reason why people aren’t reading your blog is because you don’t have one. It always surprises me that so many printing companies do not have blogs. They are a low cost and highly effective way to engage prospects and customers.
The prospect of having to write inspiring content on a regular basis can seem very scary. But with a bit of planning, most people find that it isn’t that difficult. There is always the option to outsource the actual blog creation.
However, just because you have a blog, it doesn’t mean that people will read it. Here’s another basic reason why many people don’t read some very good industry blogs.
2) No-one knows about your blog
Having a blog and updating it regularly doesn’t mean that your readers will come flooding in. It’s important to make sure that people know about your blog.
It’s easy to get the word out. Here are three quick and easy ways to start getting readers:
- Email the blog to your prospect and customer database
- Make sure your staff talk about it on their social media channels
- Publish it on LinkedIn groups where your customers and prospects hang out
Now you have people visiting your blog but its important to make sure that readers engage with the blog. That’s where the third blogging error comes in.
3) Your blog doesn’t interest your prospects and clients
I see a number of blogs that do nothing but talk about company news. They are trying to be direct sales channels. Remember, blogs are about engaging people, not about closing the deal.
That means it’s vital to be in your readers’ worlds. Unless you have unusually technical customers, people aren’t going to care about your presses or the finer points of printing. They want to read about things that are directly relevant to them and their world.
The best way to find out what your audience want to read about is to ask them. Quite often their replies may have nothing to do with print. That may seem worrying. But if you can provide the right content, they will engage with you. You will stay front of mind for them.
And that’s when blogs start building business.
Here is a great example of a printing blog that drives business
Have a look at http://dreamingincmyk.com/ It’s run by Christine Alexander who works at Metropolitan Printing. The blog is full of useful information and there is plenty of print inspiration. It has also led to good business for Christine.
Isn’t it time you made sure that you have a blog and start driving readers to it?
How did Deborah tackle this question? See here. Look out for the next #UKvUSA battle next month: “Should Printers Talk About ROI?”
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PS There are some more very useful ideas on how to look at things from the buyer’s point of view in my free pdf book below. Make sure you download your copy right now.
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