In the digital age of 140 character tweets, 10 second snapchats and trending hashtags it is vital for content to be concise, relevant and valuable to the target audience or market. With so many snippets and short bursts of information, engaging with users effectively and nurturing those connections is an important marketing tactic to any business.
Marketable content is everywhere – on your websites, social media sites, in videos, images, reviews, blogs and discussions and even the news. It can be generated from businesses, industries or user-generated content (UGC). Establishing what kind of content generates interaction, how it is accessed and who accessed it is one way of not only producing valuable content but making it as relevant and accessible to your target market as possible.
To help you with your marketing, we have assembled a list of 8 things to include and remember when using content marketing:
This isn’t an all you can eat buffet.
You don’t want consumers having to take an antacid because they’re struggling to digest your content. There’s a lot to be said for being clear, concise and consistent. Clarity can often make a difference between your content – just because you can multitask doesn’t mean you want your customers to have to. Think about who you or your business rely on – would you if they were flaky and unintelligible?
Nobody likes a pigsty.
Stay organised by determining a content marketing strategy. Whether your goal is generating content to drive website traffic, or to launch a new product, having a goal outlined with a set deadline hones in your marketing tactics. It also allows for clear analysis of your marketing process and the results yielded. Organisation is the best way to set yourself up for success, to ensure you are managing the marketing.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket!
Make use of all the resources available to you – don’t just market content through PR, advertising and great writing. With 2016 producing 3.4 billion users online and 2.3 billion social media users, these resources are just as essential. Create strong keywords, inbound and outbound links for SEO, use social media pages to engage with users and what they are talking about and go visual. By 2019, it is predicted that 80% of the worlds internet traffic will be video. Get online, engage, and get creative.
Reuse, Recycle, Relax…
Repurposing old content is not only a way to enhance SEO rankings organically, but also a way for brand consistency and boosting already highly performing content. It can remind you of what’s changed since, suggest new ways of generating traffic and reaching new users, encouraging uniqueness.
Don’t be a one-hit wonder!
Generating creative, clear, concise and consistent content is difficult – but don’t throw all your efforts into a one-time strategy. Create “evergreen” content that can roll on like a series, because as time goes on and interest grows, it will keep users coming back for more. This ensures not only consistency in content value, but also in revenue generation for the future.
Keep your ear to the ground…
Check up on your competitors. Watch what they’re doing, how they do it and why it’s successful. This will keep you in time with the trends, and ensures you don’t fall behind – you can then counter back with your own sassy strategy. This also involves listening to what consumers have to say, and taking advantage of the subsequent UGC. Statistically, 85% of consumers trust user-generated content more than the brands’ content . Think of that. Consumers are more likely to put faith in other consumers than to put it in your brand. Use that to your advantage.
Don’t live in a fool’s paradise.
Make sure you are measuring the effectiveness of your content marketing strategy. Don’t be content to sit back and let it succeed – check it to see what’s been successful and what need’s work. There is always room for improvement, so use the analytical tools out there to gather data for review. If you’re not sure how, we are here to help.
Be careful not to overplay your hand.
“Storytelling” is vital in content marketing. Ensuring your content isn’t bland and limp – it flows and tells a story. It’s also vital to take care that you don’t over-do it. Sometimes content can’t tell a story. Content can tell a story, or it can provide a valuable purpose; make sure you know your content well enough to tell the difference.
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