Content marketing is no longer just a trendy word for hip companies, but a necessity for every business, regardless of its field of activity. Every business, from start-ups to big companies, needs a strong, realistic and professional content marketing strategy to engage the audience and get the benefits of the increased awareness it will generate.
Both business-to-consumer and business-to-business marketers create, produce and follow a well-documented content marketing plan, and the results are impressive. If it is done correctly, a content marketing strategy can transform your brand into a successful story almost instantly.
If you are thinking about the best ways to improve your content marketing strategy to generate leads and meet your marketing goals, you should consider our 10 tried and tested methods for a more effective content marketing strategy.
Think outside the box
Your content marketing strategy should include highly original material that will set you apart from the competition. Let go of boring infographics and data documents, and create your own, unique content that will make your brand recognizable among the endless ocean of nameless brands we see every day. You need to ensure that your audience knows who you are, what you do and what you stand for, so offer them content that will transform them from simple observers into active clients.
Think outside the box when you create your strategy and include unconventional content that has the chance to become viral. You don’t necessarily need Van Damme to get shares, but this is a great example of high-quality, original content that can set your business apart from competitors!
Don’t limit yourself to just a blog
If you think your blog is enough, you are wrong. Social media posts, vlogs, podcasts and even eBooks are different types of content you should include in your content marketing strategy if you want to stay relevant to your audience. People are more likely to react and get involved on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest, so don’t neglect these options when you think about your long-term strategy.
These platforms are easy to use, and they produce great marketing results if you know how to plan and make the best of your strategy. Look at the brands you love that are similar to your business and take their example when it comes to professional online marketing; you will soon see the results of your efforts!
Share your knowledge
We all know that information is not free, but you will greatly benefit from sharing your knowledge with your audience free of charge. Create educational infographics and post them on your platforms and people will notice and appreciate your efforts.
Be generous and share what you know before you ask your audience to pay for your product or service. This way, your core audience will get involved, and they will share your content, which leads to an organic increase of awareness towards your brand.
Adapt your approach
When you are mapping out your content marketing strategy, think ahead and adapt your approach to the specific needs of your brand. If you want to promote the approaching date of launching a new product, create a teaser campaign and make people eager to see what you have in store. Include image and video content that is easily shareable, and gradually build customer’s curiosity and enthusiasm. If you do this right, you will experience a successful product launching that translates into revenue.
Think about your main goal and then approach it step by step, by producing and sharing reliable, quality content on a daily basis. Keep your eye on the prize, and ensure that the content you offer your audience is customized to your specific needs.
Measure your performance
To ensure that your strategy is working you need to periodically check your performance. This way you will know if something is not working and you will be able to fix it on the go, without losing contact with your audience. Some of the main performance indicators you should look out for when creating and implementing the content marketing strategy are the number of websites visits and social shares, the bounce rate, the number of leads generated and finally revenue obtained.
You should track all these statistics to know how many users access your website, how much time they spend on it, what specific content they share on social media and how much revenue you gain from your strategy.
Keep it fresh and diverse
Stay fresh, relevant and mix and match your content! Use text, images, infographics, videos and all the other types of content available to promote your brand. Include all the possible options in your strategy and see what works best by measuring your results. If something doesn’t bring the desired results, just change it. Remember that content marketing is a creative field, so use your imagination and stay connected to the latest trends.
Don’t just post the same time of content over and over again because users will get bored and you will lose engagement and revenue. Remember that diversity is the secret to a successful content marketing strategy that pays off.
Don’t forget about video content!
Video content is the secret to reaching a huge audience in a short period of time. People are more likely to share videos on both social media and personal blogs because we live in an era where time is precious, and our attention span is limited. Your brand has a lot to gain from creating and sharing high-quality video content that audiences will most certainly respond to.
If you are worried about production and storing costs, know that there are multiple cloud storage options out there that will help you store your video materials in a safe and affordable manner.
Don’t spend a lot, spend smart
Content marketing has its costs, but you should understand that the investment you make will pay off in the long run. You don’t need to spend millions, but you do need to invest your money and time in smart solutions adapted to your needs. Don’t throw money away to create content that no one sees, but rather look at your analytics and see what kind of content works and invest in it.
Plan ahead, research and find the best platforms for sharing your content and ensuring that it gets seen and appreciated. If you create your content marketing strategy using the analytics tools at your disposal, you will ensure that you get the best results without going over budget.
Set a schedule and stick to it
Users love consistency, so provide it for them. You need to be consistent when it comes to your brand identity, your core values and the type of content you share. You need to come up with a viable content schedule for every platform you use and then respect it. If you get your audience accustomed to your posting schedule, they will become eager to see what you bring next.
For example, if you post new content on social media every Monday and Thursday and make sure that it is relevant to your audience, they will start to look forward to your posts. You should make sure you’re not just sharing content for the sake of it, and maintain a high-quality standard that will satisfy the needs of your audience. The key is to create expectations and then fulfill them, this way you will create a happy, active and involved community of people around your brand.
Encourage people to get involved
The online world is moving at incredible speed and what is cool today, will already become outdated tomorrow. Your audience is young and active, and they move fast, so make sure you keep up with them. This means providing content that triggers reactions and involvement because if your audience cares enough to react, they will care enough to buy and invest.
Make sure you create and share content that opens discussions and encourage people to react. If you are afraid of the possible negative reactions or feedback from internet trolls that lurk around, don’t worry, they have a purpose too. Here is some advice from reputed author and entrepreneur, Gary Vaynerchuk, on how to handle your brand’s feedback, both positive and negative.
When you need to boost your earnings and improve your content marketing strategy, all you have to do is follow our advice. Almost all businesses have a content marketing strategy, but very few of them get the best results they could because they don’t know how to use the available tools correctly.
You don’t need to rethink your whole strategy and fire all your marketing department if you feel like things could go better, all you should do is speed things up by making the best of every solution available to you. To increase effectiveness, you should take your time to look closely at your brand; what your goal is, what you stand for and who is your audience, and then adapt your content marketing strategy to meet these specifics.
Remember that in 2016 people want fast, fun and easily shareable content that makes them want to get involved, and this is exactly what you should provide. Choose your platforms well, provide quality content on a regular basis and encourage your audience to react and get involved with your products and brand. You really don’t need to break the bank to achieve this, but you do need to make smart investments in your content marketing strategy.
All businesses that want to increase their revenue and remain competitive in a market that is quickly evolving and changing should constantly adapt their content marketing strategy. Know your brand, know your audience and create content that speaks to them in their own language. This is the secret to a great, effective content marketing strategy that will make your business bloom and quickly develop.
