Popular Today, But is Blogging A Flash-in-The-Pan?
As Facebook and Twitter gain momentum, it's been questioned whether blogs will become obsolete? 
To answer that question, let's look at what the facts tell us.
Neither Twitter nor Facebook can match the presence of a blog. Blogs are feature-rich, versatile and permit long form content.
Twitter is text-based and extremely limited. It's considered a microblog that allows microposts of no more than 140 characters. This makes meaningful conversation impossible.
Facebook has more features than Twitter, but it focuses on individuals and their personal lives. However, as Facebook evolves, big-name consumer brands are building a presence.
Even so, because of its consumer-centric focus, it's not a haven for B2B companies. And it's unlikely to be one in the future. Regardless, you can employ Twitter and Facebook creating a synergy that directs traffic to your blog where prospects can find more substantive content. Social media complements rather than replaces blogging.
Blogging is both efficient and effective.
Inbound marketing beats traditional marketing on lead generation costs. A study by Social Examiner corroborates this in documenting a 62% reduction in costs less per lead than traditional outbound marketing.
As long as blogging remains cost-efficient, it's extremely unlikely B2B marketers will abandon it. But cost-efficiency isn't the only consideration.
According to HubSpot's VP of Marketing, Mike Volpe, "blogs generate 55% more website traffic than companies that don't… and they get 97% more links coming in to their sites."
Blogging is effective, in part, because it's an absolute workhorse. Specifically, blogging addresses 6 out of 9 customer buying phases.
- Recognize need
- Establish urgency
- Create company awareness
- Maintain visibility
- Continue relationship
As B2B marketers become more resourceful in exploiting the benefits of blogging, its adoption and use will continue to grow. Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah, authors of Inbound Marketing, say blogs can turn your website into a living and breathing marketplace.
The Future of B2B Blogs
Today, B2B blogs are popular, and they promise to be a force in the future.
They're robust, versatile, and dispense with the hard sell. As long as blogs generate buzz- delivering compelling and engaging content when the buyer needs it – blogs will be a powerful force in the B2B world.
Most importantly, B2B blogging helps to increase your traffic, sales and profits.
The facts dispel the view that blogging's days are numbered. You might see personal blogging decline and give way to social media. But that doesn't apply to business blogging.
To paraphrase Mark Twain, I'd say the rumors of blogging's demise are greatly exaggerated.
Although B2B blogging has gained a solid following, B2B marketers haven't optimized its use. In that sense, B2B blogging hasn't reached a tipping point.
How's your business blog doing? Are you engaging prospects and customers? Are you doing it effectively and efficiently? Blogging done right can serve as the hub of your content marketing program helping you increase sales and profits. It can give you the edge you're looking for.
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Stephen Hodgkiss
Chief Engineer at MarketHive
markethive.com
David O