I just had a client tell me that blogging "won't provide much SEO." That statement is so misguided, that I had to stop my playing Words with Friends and write a response pronto. There's no way I could have a content marketing client who is so misinformed.
Blogging and SEO go hand in hand. In fact, I'd say that business blogging is SEO, because what SEO do you have without business blogging? Meta descriptions? Backlinks? Business blogging gives you both of those and much more. Here's the response that I've given to said client. I've replaced the actual client with "Company X" for confidentiality:
blogging is *GREAT* for SEO. Think about it, every blog post is one more chance for you to get found online. Every blog post is a chance to rank for a keyword or phrase. Every blog post puts Company X as a thought leader in online security and privacy. Every blog post is an opportunity for someone to link to it, giving you that backlink. Getting published on other sites is also great for getting backlinks, but it's not the only way to do it, and it's certainly not the most effective way to do it.
Companies who blog have 55% more website visitors, 97% more inbound links, and have a 62% cheaper cost per lead than those that done. Of those companies that do blog, 57% of them have acquired a customer through their company blog. That sounds like what you're after, so how can you say blogging won't do anything for SEO? Blogging *IS* SEO.
Blog posts give you both rank and traffic, and are better than the articles on Technorati because if someone finds the Technorati article, they find Technorati, not necessarily Company X. Sure, they may see the link, but they might not click on it and go to your page. However, if they click on a blog post, they're finding Company X. They are clicking on your link and giving you traffic. They are connecting with your brand and are learning about Product X from Company X. Not Technorati. Not Blogcritics. Not Allison. Not your competitor. You. After all, you're going to sell them the Product X, not me or Technorati, and certainly not your competitor. Be the one to show them why they need Product X and why they need to get it from you.
What do you think of this argument? Do you think this would change your mind, or your client's mind? Would there be anything that you have added?