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Blend's Rise to Organic Traffic Dominance: A Case Study

In today's digital age, where businesses compete for attention in the vast expanse of the internet, organic traffic reigns supreme. For Blend, a leading platform provider for the financial services industry, achieving organic traffic dominance has been a journey paved with strategic planning, meticulous execution, and a deep understanding of the ever-evolving digital landscape. This case study delves into the key factors that propelled Blend's organic traffic growth, examining their SEO strategies, paid and social media initiatives, and the influence of Google's core updates.

Organic Traffic Growth

Blend's organic traffic growth story can be divided into two distinct phases.

Phase 1: Building a Foundation with SEO

In 2019, Blend partnered with Column Five Media to develop a comprehensive SEO strategy. Recognizing the need to expand beyond their established presence in the mortgage industry and into consumer banking, Blend sought to establish themselves as a leader in the broader financial services sector. This expansion presented a significant opportunity to rank for a whole new set of keywords1. Column Five Media conducted a content audit and identified a critical gap: the absence of a robust SEO strategy1.

To address this, Column Five Media implemented a topic cluster strategy, creating high-value foundational content around specific keywords and supporting it with related articles targeting long-tail keywords. This approach aimed to establish Blend's authority in the financial services domain and attract a wider audience1.

The results were impressive. After 8 framework iterations and over 100 blog articles, Blend's organic traffic surged by 183%, with over 50 unbranded, high-priority keywords ranking on page 1 of Google search results2. This success can be attributed to several factors:

  • Keyword Research and Optimization: Thorough keyword research enabled Blend to identify relevant terms and phrases used by their target audience. By strategically incorporating these keywords into their website content, meta descriptions, and headings, they improved their search engine visibility and attracted qualified traffic2.
  • Content Strategy and Creation: Blend adopted a content-first approach, focusing on creating high-quality, informative content that addressed the needs and pain points of their target audience. This included blog posts, articles, white papers, and other resources that established Blend as a thought leader in the financial services industry2.
  • Technical SEO: Blend conducted a technical audit of their website, identifying and addressing technical issues that could hinder their organic traffic growth. This included optimizing website speed, improving mobile-friendliness, and ensuring proper site structure and navigation2.
  • Trustworthiness: Blend recognized the importance of trustworthiness in their SEO strategy. By focusing on building trust with their audience through accurate, reliable, and user-focused content, they enhanced their site's credibility and improved their search engine rankings3.

Phase 2: Scaling with Programmatic SEO

The second phase of Blend's organic traffic growth began in 2020, marked by a strategic shift towards programmatic SEO. This approach involved leveraging Contentful, a content management system (CMS), to dynamically generate content tailored to specific user needs and search queries4.

Contentful's API-first architecture allowed Blend to automate content creation and delivery, ensuring that their website remained up-to-date and relevant to user searches. This strategy proved highly effective, with Blend's website attracting over 108,000 monthly organic visitors4.

Paid and Social Media Tools: Amplifying Reach and Engagement

While organic traffic formed the cornerstone of Blend's digital marketing strategy, paid and social media tools played a crucial role in amplifying their reach and engagement.

  • Social Media Marketing: Blend likely leveraged social media platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter to share their content, engage with their audience, and build brand awareness5. By creating informative and engaging social media posts, they could drive traffic to their website and generate leads.
  • Paid Advertising: Blend may have used paid advertising campaigns on platforms like Google Ads and social media to reach a wider audience and target specific demographics6. This could have involved creating targeted ads that promoted their products and services to potential customers.
  • Content Distribution: Blend may have invested in content distribution channels, such as paid content promotion and influencer partnerships, to increase the visibility of their content and attract a larger audience6.
  • AI-powered Texting: Blend may have utilized AI-powered texting solutions like Postscript to enhance customer interactions and drive sales. Postscript's AI models can analyze thousands of message variants and optimize them to increase revenue. In beta testing, this approach has shown an average 20% revenue lift7.

Google Core Updates: Navigating the Shifting Landscape

Google's core updates, designed to improve the overall quality of search results, have had a significant impact on websites across the globe. These updates prioritize high-quality, user-focused content that provides valuable information and a positive user experience. Websites that adhere to these principles are less likely to be negatively impacted by core updates8.

One crucial aspect of core updates is their potential to cause significant shifts in search intent9. This means that the types of content that rank well for specific keywords can change over time, requiring businesses to adapt their SEO strategies accordingly. Blend's ability to adapt to these shifts, by continuously monitoring search trends and refining their content, has likely contributed to their resilience in the face of core updates.

High-Intent Keywords: Capturing Qualified Leads

High-intent keywords are search terms that indicate a user's strong intention to make a purchase or take a specific action. These keywords are invaluable for businesses as they attract qualified leads who are more likely to convert into customers10. Ranking for commercial keywords, in particular, is crucial for generating pipeline and capturing buyers in the B2B context11.

Here's a table summarizing the types of keywords that typically signal high intent in the B2B context:

Works cited

  1. How Our Smart SEO Strategy Increased Blend's Site Traffic 183% - Column Five, accessed January 5, 2025, https://www.columnfivemedia.com/how-our-smart-seo-strategy-increased-blends-site-traffic-183/
  2. Blend Case Study: Increasing Site Traffic 183% - Column Five, accessed January 5, 2025, https://www.columnfivemedia.com/case-studies/increasing-blends-site-traffic-183/
  3. How to Increase Organic Traffic for Marketing Agencies in 2024 - Swydo, accessed January 5, 2025, https://www.swydo.com/blog/how-to-increase-organic-traffic/
  4. Contentful's Programmatic SEO: Generating 108K+ Monthly Organic ..., accessed January 5, 2025, https://insights.upgrowth.in/how-contentfuls-programmatic-seo-delivers-108k-monthly-organic-traffic/
  5. Mastering Your Organic Social Media Strategy: A Guide - The CMO, accessed January 5, 2025, https://thecmo.com/digital-marketing/organic-social-media-strategy/
  6. The Ultimate Guide to Contentful Headless CMS: Everything You Should Know, accessed January 5, 2025, https://www.saffronedge.com/blog/contentful-headless-cms/
  7. Postscript - SMS Marketing and Sales for Shopify Brands, accessed January 5, 2025, https://postscript.io/
  8. March 2024 Google Algorithm Impact - Neil Patel, accessed January 5, 2025, https://neilpatel.com/blog/google-march-2024-algorithm-update/
  9. Cracking Google's Code: The Impact of Core Updates and Search Intent on Your SEO, accessed January 5, 2025, https://www.amsive.com/insights/seo/cracking-googles-code-the-impact-of-core-updates-and-search-intent-on-your-seo/
  10. Buyer Intent Keywords Convert Better. Here's How to Find Them - Ahrefs, accessed January 5, 2025, https://ahrefs.com/blog/buyer-intent-keywords/
  11. High-Intent SEO Best Practices, accessed January 5, 2025, https://www.blendb2b.com/websites-decoded/high-intent-seo-best-practices

Questions and Answers

  1. What were the key phases in Blend's organic traffic growth strategy?

    Blend's organic traffic growth strategy was divided into two phases: building a foundation with SEO and scaling with programmatic SEO.

  2. How did Blend establish authority in the financial services sector?

    Blend established authority by implementing a topic cluster strategy, creating high-value foundational content around specific keywords, and supporting it with related articles targeting long-tail keywords.

  3. What role did technical SEO play in Blend's strategy?

    Technical SEO involved conducting a technical audit to optimize website speed, improve mobile-friendliness, and ensure proper site structure and navigation, which were crucial for organic traffic growth.

  4. How did Blend leverage programmatic SEO to enhance their content strategy?

    Blend used Contentful's API-first architecture to automate content creation and delivery, ensuring their website remained relevant to user searches and attracted over 108,000 monthly organic visitors.

  5. What impact did Google's core updates have on Blend's SEO strategy?

    Google's core updates required Blend to continuously monitor search trends and refine their content to adapt to shifts in search intent, maintaining resilience in the face of these updates.

  6. Why are high-intent keywords important for Blend's strategy?

    High-intent keywords attract qualified leads who are more likely to convert into customers, making them crucial for generating pipeline and capturing buyers in the B2B context.
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