New Module: Magento 2 Blog MX

We’ve recently released Blog MX, a paid version of our blogging module. It’s a comprehensive solution, and an excellent choice for anyone looking to run a blog on their site.

Not sure if you need this extension? I’m going to explain when, why, and who can benefit from the module the most in this article:

1. The Paid Version's Benefits
2. The Problems the Module Solves
3. How a Blog Can Help Your Store
4. Key Features
5. Modules that Complement Blog MX
6. Summary

The Paid Version's Benefits

We decided to introduce a paid version so we could add even more features to the module and offer a higher-quality support to the paying customers.

The free version isn't going anywhere, you'll still be able to use it just fine with its current functionality. Any free user can upgrade to the paid version seamlessly, too.

The Problems Blog MX Solves

Magento doesn’t include any way to run a blog out-of-the-box. As such, your best option is to embed an external solution like Wordpress. This will either make your infrastructure too complicated for little reason or require adding subdomains that are poor for UX.

Blog MX is fully integrated with Magento. You’ll be able to run the blog in your backend without embedding anything else.

How a Blog Can Help Your Store

A blog is a versatile tool, and the majority of online stores can benefit from it in some shape or form. However, it shines the most when it comes to SEO, traffic acquisition, and update organization.

• It’s no secret that Google - and pretty much every other search engine - prioritizes long-form high-quality content that is posted regularly. There are many forms of content that fit this set of criteria: videos, podcasts or even regular product updates, - but a classic written blog remains the most cost-efficient option.

• Traffic acquisition partially overlaps with SEO, but you can reach an audience in other ways besides search engines. Social networks and messengers comprise a large amount of online traffic, and search engines can’t crawl them. High-quality posts are sure to attract a lot of traffic from these channels.

• Last but not least, a blog is great for posting your store's news. You shouldn’t underestimate their value.

  You need to keep a history of your updates for the best possible UX. Social feeds don’t work well because they make it harder to access older content by design. On top of that, leaving your site to go somewhere else feels counterintuitive and unprofessional.

  A news archive on the site itself is the best option for UX. It’ll also make your site feel more professional and increase your customers' trust. A history of updates implies that you’re in it for a long haul.

That said, as valuable as a blog is, it’s a strategic investment that requires high-quality content to be posted at regular intervals. You’re going to need a well-developed content plan and a dedicated person in charge of the blog in order to get the most out of it.

If you lack resources or are focused on getting a quicker ROI, other ways to grow your business, like targeted ad campaigns, should better serve your needs.

Key Features

1. TinyMCE. You can format your posts with the standard Magento content editor you’re accustomed to. There’s no need to relearn or worry about compatibility issues.

2. Categories and tags. A comprehensive blog structure is vital for the UX. It’s also important for SEO because category pages work great as SEO landing pages. The module lets you structure your blog with both categories (including sub-categories!) and tags.

   Categories are great for broader vertical classification. Tags come in handy when you need a narrower horizontal taxonomy.

3. Comments. The module supports Disqus and Facebook comment boxes. The readers’ comments will serve as social proof, increase trust, and help you foster brand loyalty.

4. Related Products widget. If you’re writing a marketing post, you can easily add a gallery with all the relevant products below it. This feature is great for maximizing conversions.

5. Pinned Posts. If a post is going to be relevant for a long period of time, you can easily pin it so that the newer posts don’t bury it.

Modules that Enhance Blog MX

Blog MX is an extremely useful module, but we have other extensions that can make it even more efficient.

If you'd like to direct more traffic to your posts, you may be interested in our Push Notifications module. It'll let you push the news about your posts directly to your readers' devices. These messages will never go unnoticed.

Besides that, our Promo Banners module allows you to create eye-catching banners and place them anywhere on your site. They will also work great if you'd like to direct more traffic to your posts.

Summary

Blog MX is a full-fledged blogging suite that’s great for improving your site’s search rankings, driving more traffic to it, and organizing updates in a more intuitive and professional fashion. The paid version offers better support than the free version. It'll also include more features in the future.

The module lets you write or format posts with the standard TinyMCE, structure them with categories and tags, add Disqus or Facebook comment boxes, add related products to the bottom and pin certain posts. It’s completely integrated within Magento, too.

If you're interested in directing more traffic to your blog, you should also take a look at our Push Notifications and Promo Banners extensions.

We’re constantly working on releasing new extensions and updating the existing modules, so we’re always interested in your feedback. Do you have a dream Magento feature that hasn’t been implemented yet? Let me know in the comments or write us an email!