Some people out there think blogging is meant to replace sales conversations.
This is the wrong view to have on business blogging.
The art of the sale still requires conversations that take place via email, phone or in person. But this part of the sales process take part after the initial discovery and interaction.
That’s where the blog comes in…
Blogging Starts The Conversation
Over 300 million people read blogs. That’s just on WordPress.com. And those are only the people that realize they’re reading blogs.
With websites taking the form of blogs in design and structure the numbers are likely even higher. You’re reading a blog post right now. Any type of article or piece of content on the web is a form of blogging.
The point is that people are reading content and it’s a growing trend. People crave information and bloggers, writers and others are providing that information as a way to add value to a product or service.
Blogging is very much an early part of the modern day sales process. The point of a blog is to find the people searching for information. You want to provide what they’re looking for and earn their trust with the information you provide.
Once you have the person’s attention you want your website to show them that you can fill a need they have. From there they contact you and the sales conversation begins.
But is blogging more than that?
The Depth of the Blog Conversation Depends on the Reader
I’m seeing a different trend with some readers on the GBW Blog. I’ve mentioned before that some people will call or contact GBW ready to get started. They’ve read through the blog posts on the site. They’ve found us through a blog post on search or social.
As they read those posts they learn what we stand for and what we can do. They read the content on the site and by the time they reach out the sales conversation has already taken place.
To me, that’s lead nurturing and it doesn’t really take any phone or email conversation.
I don’t know that blogging is replacing the regular sales conversation, but I am seeing that some people get all they need from the content on your website – blog posts, page information and pricing packages.
Think of your website as something that’s always improving. It’s just like you would do as a salesperson. You listen to the people you meet and you learn from their questions.
Every time I speak with prospects or with current clients I learn something. I listen to their thought process as they were looking for blogging services and I try to answer as many questions as I can on the website.
I want the site to act as a salesperson for GBW. It’s cheap labor and the website is working 24/7 and has all the information a real person could have.
So for some customers I think the blog and the website are taking over the conversation.
It’s not a change for everybody, though, so a blog working in tandem with your sales team is probably the best bet for now.