7 Best Content Marketing Blogs to Follow
Whether you’re blogging for personal reasons or professionally, an old hand or newbie on the scene, you should aim to stay ahead of the content marketing game. To keep up with social media, blogging and internet marketing trends – and be the first to know if there have been any major SEO or search-engine specification changes – you need to follow the best blogs about blogging. Here are our favourite:
1. BufferApp
From innovative ‘San Fran’ comes Buffer, a software app that helps users manage social networks with a range of tools that let them schedule posts, and grow and analyse their traffic. The BufferApp blog is a veritable treasure trove of blogging advice, where you can sign up for their succinct, easy-to-read email updates on blogging trends and best practice. Their round-ups of sensible advice often feature the biggest names in blogging, so this blog is definitely one to follow closely.
2. Copyblogger
If you’re a professional content creator or copywriter, this one’s for you. The popular blogging resource keeps up to date with SEO tips ad trends, and offers a range of informative eBooks, seminars and webinars. They also feature guest posts from the pro bloggers of the virtual world. Their most popular posts show how they tend to offer unique angles on the topic of writing and creating content, such as ‘7 Scientifically-Backed Copywriting Tips’ and ‘10 Ways to Build Authority as an Online Writer’.
3. HubSpot
This group offer inbound sales and marketing software support, and they have several blogs on their site’s ‘blog’ drop-down menu, including Marketing, Sales, Agency and Wed Design blogs. The marketing option is like a one-stop shop for content marketers wanting to be in the know on lead generation, analytics and the like. HubSpot offers blogging tips and templates, a topic generator for blogging ideas, an editorial calendar to help you plan your social media strategy, and much, much more. (It’s a pleasure!)
4. Quick Sprout
Seattle-based entrepreneur Neil Patel, a guru in digital marketing, is the cofounder of analytics companies as well as the blog Quick Sprout, which began as a personal project. Neil has helped companies including Amazon grow their revenue, so add Quick Sprout to your RSS feed if you’re a blogger or small business owner to get inside Neil’s head and learn from his many successes. The site’s more than 700 000 monthly visitors benefit from sections such as The Beginner’s Guide to Online Marketing; The Complete Guide to Building Your Blog Audience; and The Advanced Guide to Link Building.
5. ProBlogger
Founder Darren Rowse, an Australian ‘pro blogger’, consultant and the author of ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six Figure Income, started this blog over 10 years ago, which has grown to have a massive following (his blogs get between 85 000 and 100 000 page views a day). There is a lot of content around how you can make a career out of blogging. Check out the forums and the vacancy listings.
6. Bloggingtips.com
This is geared at the everyday blogger, and it’s great for those wanting to feel part of the broader blogging community. On this easy-to-navigate site, a team of writers offer educated advice and the resources include interviews and introductions to bloggers around the world, which make for enjoyable, entertaining reading (plus, the interviews help you find out who else to follow and interact with online).
7. Michelle Shaeffer
Looking for insider info from those who’ve been there, done that, and have the reader following to prove it? Michelle Shaeffer (AKA The Girl Blogger Next Door) shares the highs and lows of her blogging career, as well as the tools, tactics and inspiration you need to create a profitable blog. A free item on her blog is a useful guide to writing headlines that will get clicks and shares, and she offers loads of ideas for blog posts to keep you busy.
Written by: Deidre Donnely