Every business needs to have a solid content marketing strategy that includes regular blogging. Among other things, publishing high-quality blog posts helps a business educate its audience, promote transparency, and position itself as an industry authority. 

But most importantly, creating strategic blog content is a proven way of driving traffic to your website, nurturing the leads, and eventually converting them into customers. Generally, blogging helps drive long-term marketing results. 

Almost a third of businesses with a website run a blog, and we hope you are among them. This is because, according to statistics, businesses that blog generate over two-thirds more leads per month. Actually, another survey found that 60% of consumers consider blog posts valuable during the early stages of the buying process, further reinforcing the importance of blogging.

But let's face it. All content is not equal. Some blog topics garner more clicks than others, making them potentially viral. Others are more conversion-oriented thus have a high potency of converting leads, while some focus on educating the audience, thereby strengthening brand credibility.

Driving leads and sales are the primary goals in most blogging strategies. Hence, knowing which content types yield the highest potential of converting more website visitors is crucial to your blogging success. 

More than half of buyers research a product online before buying to ensure they are making the right decision, and the percentage keeps increasing with the growth in eCommerce. As such, you need to pack up your blog with posts that answer most of the questions buyers have when researching products/services they want to buy

This article focuses on the top six blog topics that you should be prioritising to drive more leads and sales. Without further ado, let's look at some of these highly impactful blog content.

Cost/Pricing Articles

Cost or pricing is one of the most common factors buyers consider when researching a product/service. If they have a rough idea of how much an item would cost, they will probably research to compare prices between several providers. But sometimes, the consumer might be completely clueless about what a product/service goes for, necessitating research to find the cost. 

Probably, you have ever followed a link promising to have information on the cost of a particular product/service you were researching, only to end up with no info after reading or skimming through the content expectantly. It's such a frustrating experience, isn't it? 

If, say, you visit another website and find the cost information and an invitation to view the product you're researching, you will likely consider buying from them. For most buyers, convenience is one of the top priorities; hence it's crucial to simplify their buyer journey as much as possible. Publishing cost and pricing articles is an excellent way of capturing leads looking for the information and hopefully push them further down the sales funnel. 

In any case, a consumer searching for a product/service cost/pricing is at a more advanced stage than one looking for general product information. Thus, a cost/pricing article is highly likely to convert than a how-to article. While how-to articles still have their place in your content strategy, if you're specifically seeking to drive more leads and sales in the now, think cost or pricing articles.

Generally, most businesses refrain from publishing cost/pricing information for different reasons. Some fear they might chase a customer away before they have a chance to talk to them. Hence, they prefer putting a 'request quote' call to action instead to initiate a conversation with the customer and hopefully convince them to buy. Others might argue that they offer custom solutions; hence a blanket price quotation wouldn't suffice.

The truth is, indicating how much you sell a product/service helps attract good fit prospects, which is crucial in speeding the sale process. Besides, you don't want to deal with a load of tire kickers while failing to give good prospects a chance to buy from you. 

In the same way, if you offer custom solutions, you can mention so and then provide a price range for the product/service. That way, serious buyers can decide to buy or not buy from you on the spot and move to the next step in the buyer journey.

Problem Articles

Problems drive us to buy things. Or let's put it this way – problems attract your customers to you. But sometimes, a consumer might not be aware they have a problem until after reading your post. Thus, your content should be diverse, addressing the different needs of each category of customers. 

To write a successful problem article, you need to focus on connecting with the consumer emotionally. You cannot afford to miss this. First, you should start by highlighting the problem. Then paint a picture of how the problem could be affecting the audience to make them feel you understand their situation. 

If the situation allows, discuss the various consequences likely to arise if the problem is left unaddressed. This strikes a nerve in them and arouses a sense of urgency to get a solution. At this point, you can introduce your solution and invite them to try it.

Comparison Articles

Comparison articles can take different angles. For example, you can compare features and pricing between your two closely related products or what you sell versus what a competitor sells.

This is highly relevant, as it's common for buyers to compare various products before buying. For instance, if a prospect wants to purchase a security system, they might go through several of them before settling on one. Their key interest would be things such as product features, integration capabilities, installation and maintenance, product and vendor reliability, pricing, and so forth.

Once the customer picks their top preferences, they might make specific queries about how one product compares to the other. Thus, publishing comparison articles either for the different products you offer (e.g., a flooring company might write a comparison blog post about ceramic flooring vs. hardwood flooring) or comparing similar competing solutions (e.g., an accounting firm might publish a comparison article about QuickBooks vs. FreshBooks), can help attract customers who are at that point in their buyer journey.

Like the cost and pricing article, this type of post also appeals to prospects at an advanced stage along the buyer journey, increasing the chances of converting them. However, one crucial thing to keep in mind when comparing your product with a competitor's is to be as objective as possible. Prospects can see through bias, which can quickly weaken their trust, thereby costing you potential leads.

'Best of' Articles

'Best of' articles are among the blog post types that can drive the highest conversion. Whether you are comparing the best products for a particular problem, the best solution providers for a specific service, or best practices for executing this or that activity, 'best of' articles are a must-have content on your site.

Think of it this way. How often have you typed 'best xxx' when researching a product or service? Countless times, right? Now, imagine most people do the same, including your potential customers.

Whatever your industry or line of business, you should purpose to create 'best of' articles for every line of product or service you provide. And you don't have to limit yourself to the term 'best.' You can explore other popular terminologies people use when searching for top products, services, or ways of doing things. For example, you could create lists with superlatives such as most, highest, cheapest, fastest, wealthiest, least, safest, etc.

Sometimes, creating a 'best of' post might require comparing services across different providers, meaning you have to highlight the best qualities of your top competitors. But this should not discourage you from creating the content. Not at all. 

Remember, a prospect may still learn about what your competitors offer outside your website. They might even gather the information from the competitor's site or one of their promoters, which is likely to be more convincing. So they are better off learning about your competitors from your site, where you still have a chance to convert them.

Bottom line: 'Best of' articles, in most cases, bring you traffic that is ready to convert. Well-written, objective, and high-quality 'best of' lists raise your chances of winning the prospect's trust and converting them.

Reviews of Products You Sell 

Do you have an amazing bunch of products/services that you wish every ideal customer out there should try? How about writing detailed and objective reviews of them. As much as reviews from customers yield more credibility, you do not want to forego the opportunity of converting customers who might be looking for authentic product information. Someone looking for information about a specific product they are interested in might not mind, even if it comes from you, as long as it's objective.

Generally, product reviews have become such a big deal in a buyer's journey. For example, 9 out of 10 consumers search for reviews before purchasing a product. And more than half of them read four reviews on average before settling for a product.

What do they look for?

Mostly, they are after information on product authenticity, which they hope to find by gleaning past customers' opinions. Look at it this way. Prospects want to be sure the product will meet their needs. Positive feedback from a user who has experienced the product is pretty reliable. Nonetheless, authentic information from you on the product capabilities is equally reliable as long as it's not biased. 

In maintaining objectivity, you should not shy away from mentioning the product's limitations. Remember, you cannot appeal to every prospect out there, so don't indicate a product can do what you know it can't. Also, to add more credibility to the review posts, you can link to other reviews around the web. 

In-Depth Case Studies 

Case studies are ideal for establishing trust and credibility. Strategically crafted case studies that elaborate how your product has impacted your customers can go a long way in giving a prospect that little final push to conversion.

One important quality of a powerful case study is that it should be concise. Though you might be tempted to paste all the product's positive features, a case study is not the right channel. Instead, it should be concise, only providing relevant information about how a particular customer benefited from using the product.

Nonetheless, as much as conciseness is vital, you should not provide a shallow account. On the contrary, ensure you give as many details as necessary to answer the specific buyer's questions.

Assuming the prospect is facing similar challenges to the old customer, describing their journey with the product is sure to nurture the prospect's interest and raise their sense of urgency to experience the relief. 

To achieve this, you need to identify the objections prospects may have about your products, find the right customers to interview, and ask them questions that address the objections. To make the case study more believable, you should take note of punchy quotes from the customer and spruce them strategically throughout the post. In addition, if you happen to record the interview on video (make sure it's high-quality), you can embed it on the page for those that would prefer watching.

Leverage Your Content Marketing (Blogging) for More Leads and Sales

There's no doubt blogging is an indispensable inbound marketing strategy. Customers thirst for content that answers their questions, especially at the final stages of the buyer journey. Packing your business blog with relevant posts that answer the prospects' questions and nudge them to convert is crucial to your success. 

While creating different content types is essential to educate your audience and promote thought leadership, you have to be more specific about the content you publish when it comes to driving leads and sales. We hope our list of top six blog topics – cost and pricing, problem, comparisons, best of, reviews, in-depth case studies – for lead generation and conversion will inspire you as you embark on optimising your content marketing.

Meanwhile, remember at Digikat Marketing, we are always ready to help you out with your inbound marketing and business growth strategies. Not sure where to start? Book a content audit.