When I (re)build a website for a client, I often find myself recommending they start a blog. There are good reasons for it, and writing this feels a bit meta, because they’re also the reasons I’m starting mine.
I give this kind of advice regularly. But then when it came to my own business, I realised how much harder it is to be objective about yourself. I didn’t think I’d have enough to write about. Then I noticed that the design, communication, and marketing tips I share informally with clients are things many business owners, freelancers and nonprofit teams would find useful. So here we are.
So, why bother with a blog?
A blog does a few things at once. It shows you know what you’re talking about. Over time, it builds credibility and maybe even a kind of quiet authority in your field. It makes your website feel alive rather than static (which matters if you’re not particularly active on social media). And, on a more practical note, Google genuinely loves regular written content. Long-form posts give search engine bots a lot to scan and index. When following SEO good practices, blog posts can help your site rank higher over time.
As a bonus, it also gives you somewhere to store the thinking you’re already doing. If you find yourself explaining the same things to clients repeatedly, a blog post can become a handy reference.
But maybe it’s not for you
Here’s the honest part. A blog works best if you actually keep it going. An abandoned one, with three posts from two years ago, can look worse than no blog at all. It signals inactivity, even though you might actually be too busy with client work to post as regularly as initially intended.
So before committing, I’d suggest a small experiment: spend a couple of weeks jotting down topic ideas as they come to you. If they keep coming, that’s a good sign. If it feels like pulling teeth, that’s also useful information.
And if writing feels like a burden, then it’s probably not the right investment for you right now. There are other ways to stay visible.
This is exactly what I did
I sat on this idea for a while before actually starting. I wondered if I had enough to say, whether anyone would read it, whether I could keep it up. I made a list of topics on my phone and the list kept growing and ideas came to me at random times. So I decided to try.
I don’t know yet if I’ll manage to post as regularly as I’d like. It’s always easier to plan than to execute. You’ll be able to judge that for yourself over the next few months.
In the coming posts, I’ll be writing about web design, branding, and accessibility, mostly aimed at nonprofits and small organisations who want to communicate their work more clearly. Occasionally something more personal or behind-the-scenes. We’ll see where it goes. In the meantime, thank you for reading this far. I hope you find something useful here.