10 BEST PRACTICES FOR YOUR CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY
These days, it’s probably not a big surprise that having a robust content marketing strategy is key to remaining relevant in today’s market. So let’s skip the “Content is King” line that everyone loves to repeat.
You have a business and you’ve heard tons of talk about the need to develop a robust digital marketing strategy if you want to become a greater significant threat to your competitors.
Recent reports are showing that companies across the globe are increasing their budgets for content creation and content marketing. This means one thing, and one thing only: whether you choose to create great, unique content or not, people will continue consuming content and your businesses will spend more on creating content.
Why you need to have a content marketing strategy
Having a solid content marketing strategy helps you:
- Generate leads
- The more people see ads, the more likely they are to convert. Remarketing helps companies place ads to people who visit your site.
- Quality content increases customer engagement
- Customers base their buying decisions after they’ve done some research, talked with their networks or visit internet resources to see how people perceive a company and their product and/or service. Creating quality content provides greater value to customers whilst demonstrating experience and knowledge.
- Good content gets shared
- Great content that provides value can be shared by others who want to pass on value to their social or professional circles as well. Likes, shared links, emailing, bookmarking and more. The opportunity to have your reach the masses has never been easier, so you need to make it as valuable as you can for your targeted audience.
- Content helps you understand your customers
- Content allows you and your team to understand the needs of your customer, you may find that the customer has different needs and values. This is a semi regular occurance, An exciting e-commerce store or tech start up launches with a specific customer persona, although a few month’s later they notice that the customer is interested in their content or product as much as anticipated. This can lead to a pivot, in which they operates with a greater niche specific mission.
Just as there are PPC and SEO services, there are also press release services. You don’t have to go to every media outlet in the country and tell them your story: get a press release writing service to do it for you. These services connect with dozens of media outlets and will publish your press release across a broad swathe of relevant publications. Popular services include PR Newswire, but there are many others.
Top 10 best practices for your content marketing strategy
Here are our top 10 recommendations to keep your digital marketing campaign up to speed in today’s highly competitive market.
Keep the content unique and engaging
With all the talk of fake news and the vast amount of spun content available online, it’s can be challenging at times to find content that’s worth reading or provides specific information relating to a topic or query.
Therefore, going the extra mile to keep your content fresh and unique in a sea of similar content will quickly help your business stand out from the crowd.
Keep your content relevant
Your local marketing strategy needs to be compelling. Going over the same boring “Content is King” talking points won’t help people remember your brand. Create content that’s compelling to your local audience and adds value to them, and you will see great rewards and dividends down the line.
Expand your Content Creation Efforts
Gone are the early years of the internet where blogs are the main forms of content. Look into Digital Media Services, Videos are a great way to provide a form of story telling and establish trust with your customers, great images are another element to consider, podcasts, interactive media, apps, and more can all be integrated into your Content Marketing Strategy.
Your content should follow a schedule
Imagine the public outcry that would have erupted in the US if Game of Thrones decided to skip a Sunday to air their show? If you’ve got a good thing going with your content, you owe it to your readers/visitors to deliver the goods on schedule.
Keep an eye on your competitors
Sure, your competitors want your business. However, they can also be useful tools that can help you cut into their market share and potentially gain a good amount of new business. Not only does it help you keep up with the latest trends, but if they’re a tough competitor, it means there is always something new you can learn from them.
Stand out from the crowd
Yes, you need to keep an eye on your closest competitors but you also want to offer a product, service or content that sets your brand apart in the industry. A point of difference can sometimes be a game changer for your business.
The numbers matter, keep an eye on them.
Just as important as it is to know how your competitors are faring, you need to read and interpret the performance analytics of your actual content. Understanding bounce rates, time of page, social shares, and much more will give you a great insight into not only your contents impact but your customers persona.
Research content distribution services
Your content may be mind-bending in terms of its quality and uniqueness. However, if noone is getting to it, it’s probably about as valuable as a used napkin on the floor. Making sure you plan and create channels of distribution for your content. Social media platforms are a great place to start along with email marketing lists, Paid Ads on Google, Facebook, Linkedin, there are also PR firms or you can engage a Local Digital Marketing Agency to get wider reach and results.
Be creative and standout!
It’s a great feeling to be able to step outside your comfort zone to do something that feels fresh and obviously unique. To be clear, we are not advocating being ridiculous or misleading to increase your click rates. However, thinking outside the box is a great way to inspire innovation within your brand and attract new clients while continuing to engage existing ones. Take a look at some of the bigger brands and see how they are taking unique approaches for inspiration.
Keep your message focused on YOUR brand.
A successful content marketing strategy entails spreading the message and creating awareness of YOUR company brand. Including other products or images that are outside your business line reduces your company focus and, in a way, cheapens your brand.
Learn to learn and grow from constructive feedback.
These days, online trolls and users that enjoy commenting on social media or blogs are a thing we digital community managers are familiar with. Lost in the sea of negative and offensive comments are the really good constructive criticisms that people leave. Sometimes, their comments sound like a complaint, but if you’re smart about it, you can use it as a recommendation on how to improve a certain aspect of your product and service.
Don’t worry about the trolling, you’ll know a solid constructive critique when you see one. Better yet, if you take the time to respond in an honest way and take action accordingly, you can really provide a boost to your reputation and business credibility.
There are many factors to consider when creating a great Content Marketing Strategy, most importantly, its an ongoing process that needs continuous updates and changes. If you and your team think structured, authentic, and creative content, the results will speak of themselves!
If this article got the creative ideas flowing or you are unsure on your business content marketing, contact us for a Free Quote on our Content Marketing Services.