6 Ways to Make the Most of Your E Commerce Blog

To build a successful e-commerce brand, your business has to be more than just a storefront. A thriving blog section on your website allows you to connect with both customers and potential buyers in a deeper way, spreading your brand values while dishing out helpful advice. Many e-commerce businesses try to rely on the old adage of “If you blog it, they will come,” but this isn’t always the case. Utilize the following tips to make the most of your e-commerce blog and build more hype around your brand as a whole. First Off, Why Should You Have a Blog? Building an e-commerce blog can bring a variety of benefits to your brand. One of the most notable is the boost it can give to your search rankings. A SEMrush study looking at 13 ecommerce verticals found that organic and direct traffic accounted for 80% of all traffic. When you regularly upload content that is relevant to your industry, consumers who are searching for products within your field are more likely to come across your site. On top of this, having a blog showcases your industry expertise and provides a platform for your customers to enter the discussion. Blogging is a cost-effective way to promote new products and your brand as a whole, resulting in greater buzz around your business. 1. It Starts with Content Before implementing traffic-boosting tactics like SEO optimization and paid search ads, you’ve got to get the fundamentals down. Because 71% of the consumers in the US will use a search engine to discover new products, brands, and services, it’s important to nail your content creation. This means creating content that your audience would like to read, and that provides real value to those who visit your blog. Don’t just randomly post affiliate links with copied product descriptions—say something that is well thought out and worthy of sharing or a bookmark. If you’re not much of a writer yourself, there are plenty of industry enthusiasts out there who have a knack for penmanship (blogmanship?). Find a content partner that can curate engaging content. 2. Show off Your Best Products Your blog can be used for in-depth dives into your product offerings. Don’t treat these posts like sales pitches—instead, use them as an exploration of why this particular product is awesome. In addition, if there is an interesting backstory behind the product or how you came to discover or create it, feel free to share it in a transparent way. Engage with your readers by asking them to comment with ways they would use this product, or with their wishes for future offerings. For those of you that already have a lot of product-related content, be sure you’re prioritizing your pages and mapping keywords to the ones driving the most traffic. 3. Share Your Brand Story and Mission Sharing your own story is a great way to relate with like-minded readers and connect with your customers on a deeper level. If what you sell means a lot to you personally, don’t be afraid to share your own journey. When visitors resonate with your brand purpose, they’ll be more likely to offer their support and show their loyalty. This is especially effective if you’re in the health and well-being, parenting, or arts and crafts sectors. Also, be sure to amplify your brand story through social media. People will follow your company as it continues to grow if they believe in your mission, and who doesn’t love to hear from loyal followers? 4. Utilize Visuals The layout of your blog should be clean and easy to read—everything, down to the font and background color, affects the way your blog is experienced. In addition, using photos and graphics within your blog posts can help keep your visitors engaged. If your post is in list form, it’s not uncommon to have a visual for each point of the list. Break down any statistics or data that you share by using infographics or data-driven visuals. Not only does this make the information more digestible, but it heightens the impact of what you’re trying to say. Embedding video content on your blog can also be a game changer for engagement. As a bonus, your audience can see your product in action! 5. Stay on Top of Industry Trends By taking your stand as an industry leader, you can offer unique insights into oncoming trends within your e-commerce ecosystem. This requires that you keep your finger on the pulse of your industry through analytical reports, business-to-business news sites, and private networking. When consumers start to come to you for industry insights, they’ll associate your brand as a whole with the cutting-edge quality that you represent. One brand that does this very well is Casper Mattresses. Their content on sleep has blanketed the internet (no pun intended). When it comes to getting a good night’s sleep, many consumers turn to the research and blogs from Casper to stay on top of their sleep game. 6. Integrate Web Push Notifications Web push notifications are great way to let subscribers know about new posts and keep them engaged with your brand. Not only can you send out a push notification to let subscribers know about new or upcoming posts, but you can cater your push content specifically to their individual interests. For example, if you have a blog related to a product that a subscriber has shown interest in before—perhaps with an abandoned cart—Pushnami’s Machine Learning gives you the power to reach these users with the most relevant content automatically. Your blog serves as one of the most powerful elements of your brand identity. While social media lets you share your voice in snippets, blog posts allow you to explore products and ideas in a more in-depth way. Take the time to craft blog posts worth talking about, and watch your brand loyalty—and search rankings—grow. Finally, use browser-based push notifications to build hype around your new posts and get consumers coming back to your e-commerce site.