Blog writing is an integral piece of any content strategy, and just like any other aspect of marketing, it needs to be reviewed regularly. Even if you're hitting your goals, there is always room for improvement. Here we've identified ten questions to ask when evaluating your blogging strategy.

What Are Your Target Keywords?

While SEO is beginning to put more emphasis on topics rather than keywords, they are still an essential piece of your content strategy. Developing a list of industry-relevant long-tailed keywords will help you develop your topic clusters and blog titles. It is important to audit your keywords monthly to determine their search volume and the competition to rank for them.

Are You Using Topic Clusters?

Topic clusters begin with a piece of pillar content that broadly covers a target keyword or topic. This piece is linked to and from several complementary content pieces that go more in-depth on a particular aspect of your overall topic. These clusters help web crawlers better digest your content and determine its relevance, thus improving your SEO.

How Many Times Are You Posting Per Month?

Statistics from HubSpot state that B2B companies that blog 11+ times per month receive 3.5 times the website traffic compared with those posting 0-4 times monthly. The quality of your writing is undoubtedly the first priority, but there is something to be said for volume. Increasing your blogging activity to 3-4 times per week will give you more indexed pages and a better chance of ranking for a particular keyword.

Is Your Content Entertaining And Educational?

A piece of content can be largely measured by its entertainment and educational value. With a seemingly endless amount of content available online, the quality of what you produce will determine the level of success you see from your blog articles. While blogs are an important promotional tool, your content itself mustn't be overly promotional.

How Many Blog Views Are You Receiving Each Month?

The number of views you receive each month directly reflects the quality of your titles, the relevance to your audience, and the value of your content. If your blog views are not reaching your goals, you'll want to look at the quality of your writing and your distribution strategy. Even the best content will fall flat without the right audience.

Where Is Your Blog Traffic Coming From?

Knowing which channels your blog traffic is coming from will give insight into where to focus your efforts. The platforms where your content is most consumed is a clear indicator of where your target audience prefers to get their information. Focusing on these channels will help improve the ROI of your blogging efforts.

What Is Your Blog Conversion Rate?

Each blog should contain a call to action that directs them to additional content or a product or service offer. If people read your blogs but do not click on your CTA, you may need to redesign your CTA or switch up your offer. If people are clicking on your CTA but not filling out your form, your form may need to be shortened, or your landing page may need some work.

What Are Your Most Successful Blog Titles?

A title or topic that resonated with your audience in the past may still be valuable months or even years down the road. Companies that consistently post to their blog find that most of their visits will come from old blog posts. Repurposing previously successful articles can help you get the most out of your content creation efforts. These titles can also be a great jumping-off point for a brainstorming session.

Do You Have A Blogging Calendar?

Keeping your blogging schedule organized ensures that your posting remains consistent and that you're not covering the same topics repeatedly. Laying out a plan that covers the date and topic of each blog post will help keep your writers on schedule while allowing you to cover a variety of relevant topics.

Who Are Your Most Successful Authors?

Whether you're outsourcing or handling your blog writing in-house, it is a good idea to track your statistics, according to the author. You may find a particular voice resonates more with your target audience. Having a team of writers helps to keep your content fresh, but don't ignore it when a specific author is bringing in the majority of your traffic. They may be able to pass on some secrets to success to the rest of your team.

Download our guide to learn more about auditing your digital strategy!