Content marketing remains an ideal strategy for companies who wish to grow. Digital marketing requires a steady stream of updated, expert content.
Unfortunately, many small companies embark on a program but soon run out of ideas to keep things moving forward.
With the right tools and tactics in hand, that never has to be a problem. There are unlimited topics for nearly every industry, especially with "hooks." Consider a few tips that will help solidify a successful business content marketing strategy.
Start With Research
Content marketers start with intense research that looks to fill a void. There's no reason to create new articles if existing ones are already definitive. It's a better tactic to drill down and go more in-depth, rather than regurgitate the same general information. There are many voids for almost any subject that provide the seed for a compelling video or written content piece.
Researching can be as simple as searching the internet for unanswered questions. Answering that question is a legitimate way to make a unique and engaging article or video that brings traffic. Useful content like that also gets a share of links from sources, increasing the organic value significantly.
Understand Your Audience
Research for the topic is one thing, but it's also essential to understand the audience. Knowing which demographic you're creating content for will make the production more natural. You can speak in the customer's voice and appeal to their emotions by carefully crafting your narrative. The better you know what they want, the faster and more accurately you'll deliver.
Audiences are fuel for content marketing success, and Analytics is the way to understand their needs. It's crucial to review and monitor stats to discover which keywords are bringing the most visitors. That way, it becomes a more straightforward task to create an editorial calendar.
Pick an Appropriate Objective
The first step on the content marketing strategy journey is to choose the most appropriate objective for their campaign. There are five general categories that most will use.
1) Companies want to attract new visitors to a website.
Content marketing is a way to get more organic search traffic, which brings highly-targeted visitors to the website.
2) Generating more leads form of digital marketing.
Content not only draws people in, but it also serves to convert prospects.
3) You are adding qualified prospects to the company's mailing list.
Content also draws in people who sign up for mailing lists. It's easy to include an opt-in form on content pieces, so this objective is always available.
4) You are cementing a reputation as an industry expert.
Content is the ideal way to prove expertise to a group. Answering questions authoritatively and providing up to date information are proven ways to grow an audience.
5) Building brand awareness and extending company reach.
Content allows companies to share to social channels and to boost the post for reach purposes. Well-conceived campaigns get prospects to discover more about the company.
Create the campaign and execute it based on one primary objective. If the marketing teams want to achieve more goals, do so with individual campaigns. That way, the statistics, and numbers are accurate, and it's easy to judge the merits of each one individually.
Stay Consistent with a Publishing Schedule
One of the most troubling challenges faced by any content marketing team is how often to publish. It takes consistent effort to build an audience, and they will want a steady stream of pieces before they become regular readers.
Right from the start, settle on a schedule and stick with it. It's worth starting slow and then building up if necessary. If two posts a month is all the team can handle, begin at that level. As the results take on a head of steam, reinvest more money into the project and readjust the schedule to increase frequency.
Amplify and Distribute
Another area of concern is having all the best tools for the creation and distribution of content. The best idea is to spread content far and wide. Your target audience will get notifications, and it may be worth boosting the posts. New posts always have the highest value, so once you publish is an excellent time to cash in on the freshness factor.
Amplifying happens when you pay for promotions, or when you get an organic boost. It's worth cultivating relationships with influencers. They have vast audiences and can get your post out to a ton of people fast. Those followers will amplify the message even further.
Successful campaigns get tons of shares and visits. What matters most is that the effort also results in conversions and makes a profit. That's the only way to justify the cost.
Dedicate to the Content Cause
Stay true to the cause and keep producing world-class content. Content marketing is the preferred strategy in every industry. It may take time to get a foothold, but once the positive results start to come in, the pay off is sustainable.
It's possible it will take as long as six months to see a positive return with organic traffic only. To make things speed up, consider adding a significant social advertising budget. The primary social networks have vast audiences, so targeting them through paid ads saves time and boosts the overall influence of your content marketing fast. That will speed up the time it takes to establish a successful campaign.
About the Author: Rodney Warner
Rodney is the founder of the Los Angeles Web Design Agency Connective Web Design. You can find him on Instagram.