“Your blog is all wrong.” That was the comment made by a very loyal client, & friend of mine, just recently. I must admit, it did catch me off guard.

“Why? What’s wrong with it?” I asked.

“Dan, don’t get me wrong it’s not written badly, but it doesn’t help me – your client.”

Revelation

I suddenly understood what he was getting at. As the conversation developed my understanding was confirmed. “Your blog is appealing to the wrong audience, Dan, it’s reaching out to fellow copywriters.”

blog

But why? How had my blog hit the wrong audience? These questions led me on a quest.

Just a simple check of other blogs written by professionals in my field, I noticed a pattern.

With the majority of blog titles clearly targeting fellow professionals, it dawned on me that the Write House blog had fallen into the trap of preaching to people who know this stuff.

There is a place 

Look, I’m not saying there’s not a place for blog posts that offer advice to fellow pros, but there’s an obvious void when it comes to posts that appeal to clients.

As I sat listening to my client’s opinion of the Write House blog, it was very obvious that he was frustrated with the lack of ‘client focused’ posts. Elaborating on his ‘don’t make my blog like yours’ comment, he said: “Instead of writing blog posts like ‘How to Write a Useful Article’, look at posts that help me, the client.”

This client is in accountancy, so he suggested a blog post along the lines of “5 Words that should be on an Accountancy Website to Sell Services.”

What’s the purpose of your blog?

I must admit, the purpose of my blog is to generate a client audience, but having heard this particular client’s opinion, I can only conclude that its purpose has failed thus far.

“Do you want your blog to hit the right audience, Dan? Then you need to change its focus.”

Rather than receiving this critically, I acknowledged that this man is my audience. If he can be this honest, then it’s clear to me he has an expectation from the Write House blog to help him improve his service with his company’s content offering.

The meeting had been just as useful to me as it had for him. I went away and put the question out to no fewer than 15 clients, who I knew would give me a very forthright answer.

It simply asked: “Does my blog help your business?”

100% resounding no, from every single client. Was I disheartened? Actually, no.

What my clients had done is helped me in a way that my blog posts should be helping them.

Listen to what your clients are telling you, rather than you telling them what you think they need.

This has been an eye-opener for me, and I’ve been a copywriter for 11 years. The experience has certainly made me re-think my blog strategy.

Clients, I salute you.