Part 1: How to Use Blogs to Promote the Health and Wellness Expert in YOU!

PART 1: WHY HEALTH AND WELLNESS BLOGS ARE ESSENTIAL TO PROMOTING YOUR EXPERTISE ONLINE

I’m sure you don’t need any more reminding that the Health and Wellness market is a booming niche on the internet with millions of people searching everyday for answers to their health related concerns.

The reason why I have chosen to put a 4 part series focusing on blogging is because I see so many health and wellness professionals’ personal sites with links to their blogs that looks as if it has fallen by the way side. You hear the following excuses:

• “Not enough time.”
• “Too many clients to attend to.”
• “I can’t get any traffic.”
• “It doesn’t bring me any business.”
• “It’s an unwanted hassle.”

Hopefully, I can dispel those excuses for you with this four part series as blogs provide a fantastic platform to showcase your knowledge and expertise.

The problem is many health and wellness professionals write blogs but don’t really leverage them to their full potential……

……..by “full potential” I mean that their blogs do not focus on two objectives:

1. Focus on catering for an engaged few. Too many think it’s about accumulating millions of followers from the get go.
2. Generate a re-occurring revenue stream………

……it’s seems their blogs just exist for the sake of existing with no real purpose or end product. So if you want to get more out of your blog this 4 part series is worth tuning in to.

Are you an Expert?…..

……..Without going over old ground if you have clients and followers that are already paying for your services / products and subscribe to the information you publish then to them you are an expert! What we need is to get more people perceiving you as the expert! Your blog can help you achieve this. To quantify what “more” doesn’t mean is that you have to attract hundred thousands of visitors per month. Sites that achieve this have either been established for some time, are established corporations or have plenty of capital supporting their advertising and SEO.

What you’re up against……

………as the health and wellness niche is extremely popular and lucrative, you are up against some stiff competition. There are already many other people blogging in this market. This is why your blog should focus on a niche within the health and wellness industry. Experts are perceived as experts because they know a lot about a little and not vice-versa. You should concentrate on delivering high value for a smaller audience instead of diluting your value by trying to serve everyone.

Competition does not always mean competition in the literal sense in the blogosphere…..

…….in the blogging world competition can be a good thing. Firstly, it shows there is a market place for your niche. Secondly, you need other bloggers in your niche to network and share traffic. Building your network and rubbing shoulders with other niche leaders will only increase your reputation but also link traffic back to your site.

Rubbing shoulders with the big boys and girls….

…….is a fantastic way to grow your reach and awareness. By building reputations with other bloggers you may have the opportunity to:

• Write guest blog posts.
• Receive back links to your blog from other well trafficked blogs.
• Increase your credibility by writing for others.
•  Create potential affiliate partners for any information products you create.

Content Is King……

…….your content is part of your glue mixture that makes readers eyes stick to your blog. If you provide entertaining and engaging content that your visitors enjoy and find solutions to their problems they are more likely to perceive you as the go to expert in your niche. Your posts are also your gateways into your blog, therefore you should be thinking about your keywords, headings and url’s to get seen among the web clutter.

Great Content is Your Currency……

……if you are consistently providing great content that is engaging regular followers and subscribers who perceive you as the go to expert your content will become your income stream. This takes time of course. Too many people expect that at a click of a button or instantly after someone subscribes to their blog that they will immediately hand over cash for your products. This is not the case!! And not the right mind-set to adopt!! Just like in any walk of life you have to work at your relationships and gain their trust and loyalty before they start handing over their hard earned cash.

Be active and be seen in your niche blogosphere……

……to build relationships and be seen you should also be active in commenting on other peoples blogs in your health and wellness niche. It’s another opportunity to showcase your knowledge and expertise but also show appreciation to other people’s good work. Praise will go a long way when wanting to start new relationships!

To get started in the blogging world you should consider the following 8 steps first:

1. Develop the right mind-set first. Realise you are in this for the long haul and it will take time and effort to get the results you want.
2. Find your niche to write about and become the expert in.
3. Have a good name and title for your blog that is reflective of who you are and what you do.
4. Find out which other bloggers are worth building relationships with to help share traffic and content. If you are just starting out, why not find a few others who are also nearer the beginning of their journey and help each other to grow. Unfortunately, the big boys and girls will only take note once you have some reputation in the niche.
5. Plan and strategise your content to ensure your content is engaging and optimised for search.
6. Design your blog layout. Make it captivating, easy to navigate and tailored to your purpose and niche.
7. Build your social network platforms around your blog
8. Plan and design your first information give away.

Stay tuned for Part 2!!