If you are a home stager with a website, you have probably heard that you need to have a blog. It’s technically not a necessity to have a blog, as most home stagers don’t blog, but blogging can be a game changer for your website and your business.
For home stagers who don’t have a blog yet, they find that starting a blog can be intimidating. In addition to being intimidated, there are a hundred reasons they can give to justify not blogging. Do any of these sound familiar:
- I’m not a good writer. The truth is that most bloggers don’t have a degree in journalism either. I went to school for math and engineering, which is as far away from journalism as you can get!
- I don’t have the time. The truth is that a blog takes time, but it’s not a full time job. Everyone can find time to blog.
- I don’t know what to write about. The truth is that you actually do have topics to write about. You talk to clients, and you respond to emails. Your clients have told you what they want to know, so those sources are a treasure trove of ideas. If one client has a question, chances are that most clients and potential clients have that same question, but haven’t asked yet.
- Then they finally convince themselves that a blog isn’t really that important. The truth is that a blog is very important for a home staging website!
Ok, so you’ve heard that you need a blog, and you don’t have many more good excuses. Now you’re probably asking “ok, but why is a blog so important?” You don’t want to have to blog unless there is good reason, right?
There are actually many reasons that a home stager needs to blog. Fortunate for you, we are going to give you the top 5 reasons (in our opinion) to blog.
Top 5 Reasons to Blog
Almost everyone with a website needs to blog. But you are a home stager, not a wannabe cook with a kale recipe blog. A home stager’s reasons for blogging are different, so this information is specific to you.
Reason 1 that a home stager needs to blog: Value
A blog provides value to your website visitors. Your website is for your visitors, not for you, so give them what they want. They found your website because they need something home staging related, and your blog is the opportunity to educate them.
Some things that a visitor to a home stager website may want to read in your blog are how home staging works, the benefits of home staging, different styles, how to clean a house for home staging, or the difference between a consultation and staging. Write about anything your website visitors would want to learn. Look in your emails about questions you have answered, or recall the conversations that you have had with clients. I’m sure you can make a list of topics pretty easily.
Reason 2 that a home stager needs to blog: SEO
A blog is one of the best ways to help your website’s SEO. Google does it’s best to figure out what your website is about by reading through all the content on your website. The more quality content you have on your website, the better your website tells a story to Google that you are a great home stager who provides value to your website visitors. Additionally, the more content that your website has, the more search terms your website can likely show up on the SERP (search engine rankings page). Who doesn’t want their website to show up on Google?
Reason 3 that a home stager needs to blog: Authority
Your blog shows that you are the home staging authority in your area. When someone goes to your website with a great blog, they view you as an expert in home staging that they need to use. Google loves websites that are authorities, because they want to provide the best service to the person searching.
Consider a homeowner who was told that they need a home stager, and they found two websites. One website just has the standard about us, services we offer, and some other generic information that every home stager’s website has. The other website has that standard information, plus a blog with 20 blog posts that are based around questions that their clients have asked, which, not coincidentally, are the same exact questions that homeowner wants answers to. Which home stager do you think that homeowner will call?
Reason 4 that a home stager needs to blog: Lack of competition
So few home stagers actually have blogs! Ok, the previous reason was kind of a set up for this one, but it’s true. Blogging is virtually a competition free zone for home stagers!
Of course there are some home stagers who blog, and if one is in your area, then don’t get discouraged. You will write differently, provide a different viewpoint, and write about slightly different topics. There is room for many bloggers in every service area.
However, the reality is that probably no home stager in your area blogs for their website. Once Google realizes that you are the home staging authority in your area, you will be one of the top results in Google.
Remember that homeowner from earlier who has to choose which home stager to call? When your website is the one that answers all of their questions in your blog, expect them to call.
Reason 5 that a home stager needs to blog: It’s fun!
Blogging can be fun. Really. I’m having fun writing this!
Final Thoughts on the Importance of Home Stagers to Blog
Your blog will bring you credibility, prove that you are the home staging authority, help your website rise up the Google rankings, and distinguish you from your competition. And you will have fun writing your blog.
Most people only know what home staging is from watching HGTV or the DIY network, or from their Realtor telling them that they need to stage their home if they want it to sell. Would you rather a Realtor explain home staging to your potential client, or have that potential client learn from your blog?
If you don’t have a website yet, different website platforms have different blogging capabilities.
- WordPress – WordPress was started as a blogging platform, and then they built other features around it. WordPress is the best platform for blogging. Stager Sidekick is built on WordPress, and we build all of our clients’ websites on WordPress.
- Squarespace – Squarespace is a very easy to use website builder that allows a website to have a blog as well. We haven’t used Squarespace, but this review from the website WebsiteToolTester.com suggests that it is the second best blogging platform after WordPress.
- Wix – Wix is another easy to use website builder. It also includes blogging capability. Blogging has a user friendly interface. We haven’t used Wix, but it generally has pretty good reviews for blogging.
- GoDaddy GoCentral (previous known as GoDaddy Website Builder) – GoDaddy GoCentral is a very easy to use website builder. However, GoCentral doesn’t have the ability to have a blog. Since a blog is so important for a home stager’s business, we don’t recommend using GoCentral to build your website. We have used GoCentral before, and were disappointed that it doesn’t offer the ability to blog.
If you are a home stager who wants a modern website that is built for you on WordPress, Stager Sidekick can help. We make websites specifically for home stagers, and we’ll even teach you how to blog! Click to see our pricing and the features you will get with your new website.
