The term blog is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web. It comprises discrete, often informal diary-style text entries. And while blogging is fantastic, it can help you get new visitors and showcase your expertise — some people are not fans of blogging.
There’s nothing wrong with increasing brand awareness via blogging — instead, it is highly suggested, but if you are not a fan of writing — or your audience is not a fan of reading, what do you do? What are the blogging alternatives?
Many don’t feel confident to write and honestly don’t have the time to commit to blogging on a daily or weekly basis! So do you lose out on traffic and valuable clientele because of this? NO!
Blogging is no longer the go-to source for kicking up a website’s marketing efforts. If you are looking for a solution to establish your brand, tell your story, showcase your expertise without using too many words — there are plenty of options available. In this article, we are going to discuss some of the coolest alternatives to blogging:
1. Infographics
Graphs, designs & infographics are the way of the future. Many websites exclusively use infographics in their social media marketing strategies. This holds especially true for real estate agents who produce content exclusively about the real estate market at large.
The latest research of 2020 supports this fact. It states that almost 67% of B2B marketers are creating infographics. In a recent survey, 32% of marketers say visual images are an essential form of content for their business. 33% of the marketers surveyed reported that infographics and similar visual assets are the most critical content in their arsenal.
With a wealth of information and statistics available to create graphics that tell a story, you don’t need blogging! Infographics can help you, and your clients make smart decisions — as long as this information is given in clear, easily consumed graphics.
2. Use Pictures
According to a recent study, 71% of the world’s web users share content online, and 43% share images. So it can be safely said that images are the most shared type of online content.
Let’s have a look at Facebook, which ranks in the top 3 social media channels. The study reveals that posts with images get 53% more likes than posts without. This holds in the case of other channels, too, that attracted 104% more comments than the average post.
The simple reason for photos gaining momentum and more traction is that images are quicker and easier to create than a blog post while still providing value.
Pictures and images also tend to get indexed by search engines too so they can be great for search engine optimization.
3. Videos
According to medium.com, 25% of all businesses use video as a marketing tool. 75& executives watch work-related videos online, and at least 80% of website visitors will watch a video compared to only 20% who will read the full text.
And videos today are getting shorter and more dynamic — and a cool blogging alternative! Take the example of fantastic apps like Twitter’s Vine that have a six-second maximum clip length. These videos have dramatically increased the opportunities for small businesses on a limited budget to get all the benefits of creating videos.
Additional research further supports that videos are only expected to grow in the coming years.
4. Make Podcasts
Podcasting is regarded as a cool alternative to blogging, provided you have the technical know-how required to get a podcast up and running is minimal. For those who are not familiar with the concept of podcasting, this is a periodic audio release featuring one or more people talking about a specific topic.
It could be a business or food coach who can have a weekly podcast on nutrition/ business growth – depending on the speaker. So in simple terms, a podcast can cover a wide range of related matters.
5. Content Curation
One of the biggest boons of the internet is sharing and getting free giveaways. And that’s why you don’t even need to create content for a blog! All you have to do is lookout for the best ones — useful blogs, social media, and articles produced by others. Then borrow or curate it into a regular post on your website or newsletter.
6. Live Streaming
You’ve seen a lot of fitness coaches do it during the pandemic! They had live-streaming sessions to help distressed people who couldn’t hit the gym. Streaming live is a budget-friendly option that can be used to repurpose other content too.
7. Have Interviews
There’s no real need for a blog with the most accessible tools available for recording videos and voice files. Just have a quick interview with your audience, speaker, or eminent influencer — then edit the same and use it on your social media or web page.
8. A Q&A Session
The idea is to share your knowledge and help others gain from it. So why do you need a blog? You can have a chatbot a FAQ or even a Q&A session listed online. The session could be in “mailbag” format, to which you can respond. For example, these may be common questions you get by email.
9. Share Success Stories
A fun way to share your achievements without seeming to brag is through success stories. You can do it from a client’s perspective, or you can share it from their sources. A success story is great news content without following the standard blog format.
10. Case Studies
For any company, case studies form the backbone of its success. The idea is to repackage your experiences into case studies with a clear lesson; you will have valuable new content for attracting leads.
11. Have Memes
This is like a collage of your social media posts. Sometimes, putting together a gif or a meme by repurposing content works wonders.
12. Competitions
A great way to have traction on your website or platform is through competitions. You can have some great coupons or gifts up for grabs.
13. Riddles
Who doesn’t love a good riddle? Tap the audience’s curiosity by using riddles to get the audience’s attention!
These are some of the effective blogging alternatives to get traction without writing too much content. Try it!