Massive Online Visibility: Website or Blog?

As the Blog Squad™ we get asked this question all the time: should I do my website first and then a blog? Do I need a website if I have a blog? Which is best for online visibility?

When I first went online in 1999 to market my newsletter business, I learned that getting traffic to my website was key. But I didn’t know squat about traffic, website analytics, keywords, or search engines.

I understand all that better now, but at the time, and for the first few years, I just focused on how to:

• get visitors to land on my website
• then read it
• then buy what I had to offer

I put a lot of time and energy into building up traffic, but it never seemed to work.

What I Learned From Having a Low Traffic Website…

I suppose I was not unlike many people today who decide to finally take the plunge and start using the Internet to get more exposure, and possibly find new clients.

1. I learned that not everything you read about Internet marketing applies to your specific business.

2. I learned that there are a lot of people giving out advice from their own experiences and perspectives. They swear that what worked for them will work for you.

3. I learned that you could spend a fortune buying home study programs and still not be able to apply it to your own specific business.

So you can understand why, in 2004, after working hard to build my online business and still having very low traffic to my website, I was frustrated.

Have you ever been so mad that you end up taking action, any action, just to get out of your frustration?

Well, the next thing I knew I read an email that said, “Every business should have a blog.” And it went on to say that “any idiot could go over to Typepad.com, get a free trial account, and be blogging in an hour.”

So I took action. I set up my first blog and you can see it at www.writingontheweb.com.

Results Scorecard for Blog vs. Website

Along with my partner Denise Wakeman, we just celebrated the 4th anniversary of that blog. And I have to reflect on a few observations:

From the Website:

• My old website still has low traffic (I keep it up there, and every so often get an email or a phone call from someone who lands there.) (I've put up a new blog site for it now: www.ContentforCoachesandConsultants.com.)

From the blog:

• Our business has more than quintupled (both in revenue and number of new clients)
• Our list of prospects, the database I have permission to market to, has grown 15 times
• We never make sales calls, clients call or email us asking to work with us, already pre-sold on our services

Business blogging works extremely well for connecting with prospects, building relationships and trust, getting found on the Web, and getting new clients.

Having a static website works a little bit. Maybe. Sometimes …or not really.

Folks, this has been our experience and it may be different for you, depending on what niche you’re in. But we’ve heard similar results from colleagues and peers.

We know that a business blog when optimized and well-branded will get you more results than a website. If you have both, keep them. But spend your time and energy on your blog.

Related Post:
Visibility: 4 Ways You Need to Shine Online
Massive Online Visibility: Everywhere you go, there you are...

Learn How to Reverse the Client Chase: free teleseminar October 23, 2008.
Register here: www.reversetheclientchase.com

Comments

[Ricardo Bueno]

Re: "If you have both, keep them. But spend your time and energy on your blog."

Amen to that! If you have a website, that's great (and if that's your only online presence, then I suppose that it's a start). But, a blog wield yield you better traffic and overall better results! The great thing is, it can serve as your website and blog all-in-one! Besides, the average consumer doesn't differentiate between a blog and a website (when they search a keyterm and land on your blog, for all practical purposes, it's just a website to them that happened to have the information that they were looking for!).

Hope the conference went well :-)

[James Hill]

Excellent content - as you always provide and inspires me to come again and again. You are on my RSS reader now so I can read more from you down the road.