A new year means new goals. If your company doesn't yet have a blog, consider launching one as a key resolution in Q1. Don't underestimate the power of blogging. With an estimated 150,000 new websites and 7,000 new pages added to the internet every day, the biggest challenge for every entrepreneur is to be found and to build credibility. A blog can help with both.

In this issue of Promotional Consultant Today, we share four reasons why investing in a blog is valuable for an organization, as highlighted in a January 10, 2017 blog post from the Atlanta-based marketing consulting firm Marketing Eye.

1. Be a thought leader and generate leads. Through blogging, many companies have been able to establish themselves as industry leaders by sharing knowledge they already know or by doing research and learning more about their industry and trends, keeping them ahead of the curve. Marketing Eye says a study has shown that roughly 60 percent of consumers will feel more positive about your business after reading content on your website. So, blog to generate leads.

2. Show transparency and build trust. People want to feel your company culture and know that you are ethical. They want to feel the humanistic aspect of your organization. Marketing Eye says transparency through your blog allows for this reveal to your prospects and helps build a sense of authenticity and trust. How do you create this sense of transparency? Post some personal stories on your blog, feature employees once a month and show video from a recent live event. Prove to your audience that there are actually people behind that computer screen.

3. Engage your audience with a variety of channels. A blog provides an opportunity to share content from other areas of your organization, giving it more life. For example, if a company expert wrote an article that was featured in an industry publication, share a summary of the key points in your blog and repurpose that expertise. Similarly, give your blog content an opportunity to live through other channels, such as your social media accounts, and allow your audience to engage you in multiple ways. If you do this in different forms, not only will it help with creating content, but it will also help you with search engine optimization (SEO). In this world of instant gratification, there is nothing consumers love more than a company that is actively engaged with them.

4. Improve the way your audience discovers you online. The most beneficial reasons that we recommend that companies post blogs on their website is that it boosts the way search engines find and rank your website in search results. As Marketing Eye points out, there is no reason to have an "out of this world" website if no one can find it. By writing blogs that are relevant to your industry, and using key words that people use to search topics about your industry, your company will be able to improve organic search visibility and increase traffic to the website. Search engine algorithms are designed to attract and rank new and updated content higher in the results, making your website more visible.

Consider a blogging strategy in 2017. It's not just about having a blog, it's about building credibility and visibility into your business.

Source: Marketing Eye Atlanta is an innovative full-service marketing, social media, branding, PR, web development, copywriting and graphic design agency. They provide small- to medium-sized businesses with an experienced marketing team for a low monthly fee, delivering hard measurable results through a strategic approach.