Over at Hubspot.com, they’re created a great tool to check how the behind the scenes parts of your website are doing.  You know, those parts that actually help you to grow your business, not the parts that look pretty.

The tool is called Marketing Grader.  You just enter your website’s URL and it creates a report for you, right there on your screen.  It’s completely free, so you should go run a report on your website if you haven’t yet.

After analyzing over 4 million websites, Hubspot learned a thing or two about what the ones that get the most traffic are doing that the ones without traffic aren’t.

This is what they learned:

Business that blog receive 50% more traffic to their websites that those that don’t.

So why then do so few business people blog?

Although many business people know the value of blogging, they still don’t do it.  It turns out that its fear that keeps them from blogging.

Here are the 9 most common secret fears
that keep smart business people from blogging:

1. I don’t know what I’d write about.

This is like assuming that blank sheet of paper sitting in front of you means something.  It doesn’t.  All it means is that you haven’t started yet.  Put pen to paper (or fingers to the keyboard) and just write.  It’s called free-form writing and writers use it all the time to get their creative juices flowing.  You might discover that you actually have a lot to say.

2. I’m not a writer.

You don’t have to be an outstanding writer to be a good blogger; you only need to clearly communicate your ideas and connect with your audience.  Anyone can do this.  Just go read some of the most trafficked blogs if you don’t believe me.  Get over the idea you can’t write and just write.

3. I don’t have time.

Your competition is blogging and putting out quality content that answers the questions your audience is most asking — and as a result, they are dominating the search results for your industry.  When it comes to growing your business, you don’t have time to not blog.

4. No one will read it, anyway.

They aren’t going to read it if it stays in your head, either.   Find a blog commenting tribe for some supportive readers to get you rolling.  As soon as you get a few comments from people who were helped or touched by what you wrote, you’ll understand the value that you have to share with the world.

5. I don’t know how to promote it.

Two words: social media.  If you have even one social media profile, you need a blog.  Promoting your business via social media takes more than a simple, “hey, buy this!”  You have to also provide value to your reader/follower/friend as well.  This makes a blog and social media a match made in heaven.

6. It’s too difficult or expensive to set up.

Setting up a blogging-based website is actually one of the least expensive types of websites to set up.  All of the code is open source, meaning it is given away free.  And the systems are all pretty user friendly, so if you are even a little technical, you can do it all yourself.  If you’re not technical, hire someone to set it up for you (its a lot less expensive than you might think).

7. If I share my wisdom for free, no one will buy my services.

There’s an ice cream shop near me that sells 31 flavors of ice cream: that’s a lot of choices!  To make it easier for their customers to choose, they offer free taste samples — of as many flavors as you’d like, even all 31 if that is what it takes.  They offer free tastes because they are confident in the quality of their ice cream and know that you will find that one flavor that screams at you, “This one! This one!”  Your blog posts allow people to “taste test” what you offer so that they can discover if you are their perfect flavor match.

8. Other bloggers have already said everything there is to say on my subject.

Just as there are billions of people on the planet, there are billions of ways of looking at the same subject.  Go down to your local bookstore and browse one of the big categories, it doesn’t matter which one.  Pick up books and read the jackets.  Some will appeal to you and some will not.  This is true of your audience as well: you have a unique perspective that will resonate with your particular audience in a particular way

9. I don’t know where to start.

Start where you start everything in your life: at the beginning.  From there, it is just a matter of taking one step at a time until you are across the room.

Search engines love blogs — they are updated regularly, they contain value-centered content, and they are easy to index — which is part of why they have become so important to search engine optimization.  They will only continue to gain in importance as time goes on so don’t let your secret fears keep you from jumping on the blogging bandwagon.

If you are struggling with your blog or your blogging efforts, check out the Blogging for Business Course.  It will help you master the basics of blogging and set you up for success growing your business by blogging.

I’d like to support you to grow your blog, and your business, online, so please share your comments and struggles below:

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