When is comes to websites, many businesses take the same approach. They create websites that act like digital brochures—a place to showcase their products, services, pricing, and company or contact information. While these types of websites are essential for converting customers who are ready to buy and want to know what you have to offer, they often fall short in attracting potential customers who are still in the early stages of their buying journey.
If your website only lists your offerings and company details, you’re missing out on a large segment of people who are researching, exploring adjacent topics, or simply unaware they need what you provide. This is where blogging becomes a powerful tool in expanding your inbound funnel and attracting those potential customers early in their journey. In simple terms, you are fishing with a very small net.
The Limitations of Brochure Websites
A typical website includes pages like:
- Home Page – A brief overview of your business.
- Products or Services – Detailed descriptions of what you offer.
- About Us – Company history, mission, and team bios.
- Pricing – Information on your packages or services.
- Contact Information – How to get in touch.
These pages serve a critical function for visitors who already know about your business and are in the consideration or decision stages of their buying journey. However, they often fail to speak to people who are still in the research phase or are not even aware they need your services.
For example, a potential customer might not be searching for “business consulting services” yet. Instead, they could be looking for information on “how to improve team efficiency” or “strategies for reducing operational costs.” These adjacent topics can draw in visitors earlier in their decision-making process. A blog that covers such topics helps fill the gap by answering questions and providing useful information to those at the top of the funnel.
Attracting Top-of-Funnel Audiences with Blogging
A blog provides a platform to cover a broader range of topics relevant to your industry, offering valuable content that engages potential customers in the early stages of their journey. These individuals might not know they need your product or service yet, but they are actively searching for answers, solutions, or general knowledge related to your industry.
For example:
- For a financial services firm: Instead of focusing only on investment services, you could write a blog titled “How to Start Budgeting for Financial Freedom,” which might attract readers interested in managing their finances before they’re ready to invest.
- For a home improvement business: A post like “Top 5 DIY Home Renovation Mistakes to Avoid” would engage homeowners looking for renovation advice but not yet ready to hire a contractor.
By creating content that addresses common pain points, answers questions, or educates your audience, your blog can draw in a wider range of visitors who may not yet be ready to make a purchase but are starting to explore their options.
Let’s take a look at another example. Let’s say you’re a business that sells tourist packages to Ireland. When creating your website you probably want to include the types of packages your company offers, the prices, where the tours will go, information on what to bring on the tours, who the best-fit customers or demographics of your tours are, etc. Your website will do a great job of answering questions for people ready to book tours of Ireland and may even win some search traffic for people directly looking for your services.
But what about people who may not even know they want to book a tourist package to Ireland? A blog titled “The top 10 hiking trails in Ireland” could win a significant amount of search traffic. These people might be planning a self-guided trip or perhaps are even still deciding which country they want to visit. Perhaps you win traffic for someone who would never book an organized tour, but perhaps their parents are an ideal fit customer.
With this type of strategy, you shift your marketing plan from only trying to win your best-fit customers. You expand your funnel and bring more traffic to your website.
Healthcare: Using Blogging to Capture Early-Stage Traffic
Blogging can be particularly effective in industries like healthcare, where potential patients often research symptoms, treatment options, or general wellness advice before even thinking about booking an appointment or seeking medical help. Here’s an example of how a healthcare company could use blogging to capture early-stage leads.
Imagine you’re running a physical therapy clinic. Your website’s service pages might include descriptions of treatments like “sports injury rehabilitation” or “post-surgery recovery plans.” These are great for patients who are already aware they need your services. But what about the many individuals who are researching how to deal with persistent back pain or who are looking for exercise advice to avoid injury?
A blog post titled “How to Prevent Lower Back Pain While Working from Home” could capture the attention of remote workers who are starting to feel the effects of poor posture but haven’t considered physical therapy yet. Another post, like “5 Stretches to Reduce Shoulder Pain After Exercise,” could appeal to fitness enthusiasts who may not realize physical therapy can help them maintain their performance.
These blog posts create an opportunity to build trust and establish your clinic as a go-to resource for health and wellness. Over time, as readers engage with your content and become more educated about their health, they may eventually turn to your clinic when they decide they need professional treatment.
Why Long-Tail Keywords Matter for SEO
One of the greatest advantages of blogging is the ability to target long-tail keywords—longer, more specific search phrases that people use when seeking detailed information. While your main website pages might focus on core keywords like “business consulting” or “physical therapy,” blog posts can target more niche phrases that capture searchers at different stages of their journey.
For example:
- Instead of trying to rank for a competitive keyword like “mental health counseling,” a blog post could target “how to manage anxiety in high-stress workplaces.”
- Rather than focusing on “dental care services,” a post could rank for “best ways to prevent cavities in children.”
Long-tail keywords typically have lower search volume than broad keywords, but they also come with less competition, making it easier for your blog to rank higher in search engine results. Furthermore, because these searches are more specific, they often attract more qualified leads who are actively seeking answers to their problems.
For instance, a blog post titled “How to Recognize Early Signs of Hearing Loss” might attract a segment of readers researching health issues but who aren’t yet looking for hearing aids. By educating them on the subject, you increase the likelihood they will turn to your company when they decide they need help.
Over time, targeting long-tail keywords in your blog posts helps to increase organic traffic to your site, making your blog a consistent source of qualified leads.
How to Capture Contact Information from Blog Visitors
Attracting traffic through your blog is only the first step. The real power of blogging lies in turning those visitors into leads. One of the most effective ways to do this is by capturing contact information—such as an email address—from your readers. This allows you to nurture those leads over time through email marketing and drip campaigns, moving them further down your funnel.
Here are some strategies for capturing contact information from your blog visitors:
1. Offer a Lead Magnet
A lead magnet is a valuable piece of content offered in exchange for a visitor’s email address. This could be a downloadable eBook, checklist, whitepaper, or guide related to the blog post topic. A well-designed lead magnet provides practical value to your audience and entices them to share their contact information.
For example:
- A marketing agency could offer a downloadable guide titled “10 Proven Ways to Boost Your Website’s SEO” in exchange for email sign-ups.
- A healthcare provider might offer a free “Guide to Healthy Living in Your 40s” or a “Chronic Pain Management Checklist.”
By providing something of value, you can encourage readers to submit their email addresses, turning casual blog visitors into leads.
2. Use Pop-Ups or Slide-Ins
Pop-ups and slide-ins can be an effective way to capture email addresses from your blog readers without being intrusive. You can trigger pop-ups based on certain user behaviors, such as:
- Exit intent: A pop-up appears when a user is about to leave the page.
- Scroll depth: A pop-up or slide-in appears when the reader scrolls down a significant portion of the blog post, indicating they’re engaged with the content.
For example, a healthcare blog could use a pop-up to offer a free eBook on managing chronic pain or invite readers to subscribe to the clinic’s wellness newsletter.
3. Embed Call-to-Action (CTA) Buttons
Every blog post should include a clear call-to-action (CTA) that encourages readers to take the next step. This might be downloading a free resource, signing up for a newsletter, or requesting a consultation. Embedding CTA buttons within your blog posts is an effective way to prompt readers to share their contact details.
For instance, after a blog post on “Effective Strategies to Treat Plantar Fasciitis,” a physical therapy clinic might include a CTA like, “Download our free guide on at-home exercises to relieve foot pain.”
Becoming Ok With Not Every Piece Of Content Representing Your Brand
One of the biggest challenges we see when companies try to expand their funnel with blogging is that internal content creators and marketers often feel the need to tightly align every blog post with their company’s products, services, and brand guidelines. While it’s understandable to want your content to directly promote what you offer, this narrow focus can limit the reach and effectiveness of your blog. Blogging is not just about selling—it’s about building trust, educating your audience, and drawing in potential customers by addressing a wider range of topics that are relevant to them. By expanding beyond strict industry speak and product descriptions, you can engage readers at different stages of their journey and build a broader connection with your audience.
Not every blog post needs to function as a press release for your business. In fact, it’s often the more general, relatable, and educational content that performs better in search engines and appeals to a wider audience. For example, a business that sells software might also write posts about productivity tips or team collaboration strategies. These are topics adjacent to what they offer, and though they don’t directly pitch the product, they still add value to the reader. The blog becomes a trusted resource for information, positioning the company as a thought leader and allowing the product to become part of the conversation when the time is right.
It’s also crucial to avoid overloading your blogs with technical jargon or industry-specific language. While these terms may make sense to experts, they can alienate a broader audience that might not yet be familiar with your field. Creating accessible, human-centered content that speaks to real problems or questions your audience has can make your blog more engaging and easier to relate to. When done right, blogs that branch out from your exact services serve as entry points, introducing new readers to your brand and creating more opportunities to build relationships with potential customers.
In essence, expanding your blog topics allows you to meet your audience where they are—offering solutions, guidance, and value beyond your direct offerings. By stepping outside of your product bubble, you can reach a broader audience, create more meaningful engagement, and ultimately grow your business in a more organic and long-lasting way.
Blogging with Conway Marketing Group
At Conway Marketing Group, we understand the power of content in driving inbound traffic and generating leads. Our team specializes in helping businesses create and implement effective blogging strategies that expand your funnel, increase brand awareness, and improve lead generation.
Here’s how we can help:
- Content Planning: We identify key topics and long-tail keywords that will attract your target audience at all stages of their buying journey.
- SEO Optimization: Our content is written with SEO best practices in mind, helping your blog posts rank higher in search engine results and drive more organic traffic.
- Lead Nurturing: We incorporate lead magnets, CTAs, and optimized email marketing strategies into your blog to capture valuable leads from your traffic.
- Email Campaigns: Once you’ve captured leads, we design personalized drip campaigns to nurture them, moving them closer to making a purchase or booking a consultation.
If your website is mainly serving as a brochure and isn’t attracting top-of-funnel visitors, it’s time to start blogging. Contact us today to learn how we can develop a blogging strategy that transforms your website into a traffic-driving, lead-generating machine.
