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Let's start by growing your blog with SEO. A strategy that stands the test of time. A strategy you can also extend to other search engines.
According to HubSpot, companies with a blog have on average 434% more indexed pages (research from 2009). The flip side is that around 15.72% of online marketers actually see creating content as their most effective SEO strategy.
Why exactly?
Content marketing lets you as a business share valuable information with your audience, build trust and earn a position as a thought leader in your industry.
A blog is a powerful tool in your content marketing arsenal. It gives you a platform to share your expertise and to increase your visibility in search engines.
In 2026 there are around 600 million blogs on the web. Some 6 billion people use the internet (ITU, 2025). And of those, more than 8 in 10 read blogs (Master Blogging, March 2026).
Reason enough to get started.
Here are some strategies to grow your blog with SEO:
Long tail keywords are more specific search terms with less competition.
They make up almost 93% of all keywords (Ahrefs, US keywords, May 2026). Yet businesses often overlook them, because in most cases they focus on transactional content first.
By focusing on long tail keywords, you can:
Search algorithms, like those of Google and Bing (and yes, more are on the way), are getting smarter at recognising quality content. That is why it is essential to focus on quality over quantity.
In another post about content pruning we describe how, in early 2024, we removed 8% of all old blog posts on zoekmachinespecialist.com. This alone increased search traffic by around 13%.
A few tips:
In plain terms: A handy reference for Google's quality raters to examine websites thoroughly. This document contains clear guidelines for measuring the reliability and quality of online content. It focuses on three key points: is the content valuable, how pleasant is the website to use and has the site built a good reputation? This determines whether a website ranks high.
Example: Take an HR department that spends an hour or two updating a blog post and thereby improves traffic across the entire website.
A catchy headline is crucial to attract readers. Study successful blogs from businesses in your industry and analyse their headline structures. A few tips for strong headlines:
A well-structured article is more pleasant to read and also helps your SEO. Use:
Then close your blog post with a strong conclusion, a question for your audience or a call to action. Respond quickly to comments to build your community.
Tap into trending topics, especially with SEO, by adding a fresh angle. This can perform well on social media and improve your SEO. Publishing your post is only half the job.
Think about promotion via email newsletters and social media.
For your best posts, you can approach influencers to bring your content to the attention of more people. By applying these strategies, you significantly increase the impact of your blog post.
Social media plays an ever bigger role in how people search for and consume information. According to Google's own US figures from July 2022, reported by Nieman Lab, almost 40% of Gen Z use TikTok and Instagram for searches instead of Google. How can you respond to this?
Search behaviour is changing. In 2003, Google had a market share of 90%.
The only social media platform we had back then, off the top of my head, was MSN Messenger. And that was definitely not a search engine.
Then AI chatbots such as ChatGPT and Gemini, with their explosive growth from late 2022, managed to grab a share.
Adapt your strategy by:
Organic reach on social media is a challenge. Most impressions and engagement happen within the first 24 hours after publication.
On top of that, total organic reach drops by a few percent every quarter. After 2 days, expect few or even zero impressions for your posts (!). To succeed:
Although the lifespan of social media posts is short, you can still generate lasting traffic by:
If you understand SEO, you have a big advantage in social media marketing, because these are the same kinds of tactics we use in our blog posts, to create content on our website and in our website copy (copywriting). You always want to focus on topics within your industry. You also want to jump in now and then on popular topics based on what is happening locally or what concerns everyone.
In your SEO campaigns and in your social media campaigns alike.
Make the most of these tools. Social media platforms have invested heavily in insight and analytics tools.
Explore them thoroughly.
You will find trending topics for content, suggestions for categories and groups, analytical trends and useful templates. Make full use of these options to strengthen your social media strategy:
An interesting development in content marketing is the rise of low-fidelity
(lo-fi) content, in other words photos or short videos with a DIY look and minimal editing.
This content seems to resonate better with audiences:
Effective content marketing speaks to customers at every stage of the customer journey. Here's how:
Frequency matters less than the quality and relevance of your content. Focus on creating valuable, well-optimised articles. For most businesses, 1-2 times a week is a good starting point.
Yes, I recommend tailoring content to each platform. Use your blog for in-depth articles and social media for bite-sized, visual content. You can certainly reuse blog content and adapt it for social media.
Look at metrics such as website traffic, engagement (likes, shares, comments), conversions and the ranking for your main keywords. Use tools such as Google Analytics and platform-specific insights.
More in this series on creating content
The next step
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About the author
Dominic Pietersz
Your dedicated point of contact
Dominic helps SMEs grow through Google and other channels. With his international experience, he turns challenges into concrete growth.
Follow Dominic on LinkedInInspiration · Scrolling through my own timeline, I thought about how blog and social media strengthen each other. That thought grew into this piece about content marketing today.
