Content Marketing – Are You Doing It Right?
If you’re one of those businesses that think that your amazing product will speak for itself and therefore sell for itself, we have news for you. It’s not 2005 anymore. These days, you need to be able to have a real connection with your audience, and the majority of your audience is online. It is absolutely vital for your business to be able to instantly connect with your online community.
Some of the most common content marketing platforms include sharing valuable information either through blogging or video sites like YouTube. Is your business taking advantage of all the benefits content marketing has to offer?
Have you set specific goals?
With any marketing strategy, the first step is coming up with both short and long term goals. If you haven’t, then you are like a driver with no GPS wandering aimlessly until they arrive at their destination. Wander no more. Decide what success means to your business. What do you hope to accomplish with your content marketing? This will determine what your strategy will focus on (driving traffic, getting leads through online form submissions, enhancing brand awareness, etc.) A powerful content marketing strategy can both generate leads and facilitate SEO.
Do you know who your audience is?
Right after you establish your goals, you need to make sure you have a really good understanding of who your target audience is. Determine basics like age, demographics and then dive deeper. What are their likes and dislikes? What are the most frequent questions they ask you or your team? Now is the time to leverage your employee’s knowledge and find out more about your customers. Need more help? Send out surveys, email blasts, etc. and do whatever you can to get a better understanding of who you are marketing to.
Are you providing useful content?
As a business, no doubt one of your long term goals is to bring more revenue. When developing your content, however, that is the last thing you want to think about. Your content is not focused on revenue; it is simply focused on the customer, their needs, desires, questions, etc. Your purpose online is to provide them with content that is valuable to them. When your content is useful, it is more likely that your content will be shared. No one likes feeling like they are being sold to. Explain what’s in it for the reader and why they should continue reading on. Get to the point right away. Focus on authentic, relevant, high quality content that reflects your business ‘personality and brand. If using a blog, be sure to offer behind the scenes of the company – this helps build relationships with customers by allowing them get to know you on a personal level.
