Your Content Marketing Strategy: Start Simply, But Do Start!

One of the easiest ways to establish credibility and build authority for you, your business and its products or services, is by being vigilant about including content in your overall marketing strategy.

Creating a content schedule is not difficult, nor does its execution need to become a chore, but once you see the results you will come to see just how effective it is. But you’ll never appreciate good content management until you actually get under way.

Many of my consultant clients already appreciate this, and it is reflected in the monthly recurring orders they have with me for a combination niche related general topic articles, blog posts and press releases.

Regular Content Gets You On Your Clients’ Radar

Website content – including general-topic articles, videos, podcast recordings, and authority blog posts – can be the easiest and least expensive ways to generate leads, engage customers and build a solid online presence.

Content marketing works because Internet users are increasingly looking online before making the decision to purchase, to pick up the phone, or to send an email for more information. If you’re feeding your website with quality, original and relevant content that includes the targeted search terms that your prospects are using, then your site will be delivered to them in search results.

And they are asking their peers for opinions on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn.

As social media channels and mobile technology continue to develop, it’s important to review your content marketing strategy regularly and make any adjustments to ensure that you continue to deliver the type of content that your target consumers need, on the topics that interest them.

• Know your audience: Identify your target audience and understand their needs, interests and motivations. Activate your social network by posing questions, links and photos. Read your fan or follower feedback and observe which posts receive the most number of Likes, comments and shares. Social media activity can indicate topics that are related to your business or product.

• Maintain high quality: Poorly written or executed content can hurt your business reputation and lower search rankings. Hire a video editor or a content writer if you don’t have the time or skill to create quality videos and articles. Determine and use the appropriate tone for social media content, blogs and reports.

• Develop content variety: Consider creating articles containing lists, a roundup of resourceful links, product comparisons and a Q and A on an important topic.

• Share content: Devote regular time for updating social media properties and determine the best times for sharing content in each network. Tip: Create and share useful content rather than promotional and obvious sales copies.

• Engage and listen: Online conversations taking place in social networks, forums, discussions, blog comment threads and product reviews provide valuable topic ideas for content marketing.

The attention span of Internet users is short and fleeting. Neglecting regular content marketing can turn your fans, followers and site visitors cold as they focus their attention on more current content elsewhere.

I believe that an effective content marketing plan should include a 4-month content creation schedule with a list of topics to be covered. This can be modified to include news-related posts and press releases that ride of current news stories.

Set delivery schedules for your team or obtain the services of a content writing specialist who can take care of creating articles specifically for content marketing.

Your content strategy does not need to be complex, it might be as simple as each month:

• Add 4 news/industry related posts to your blog.
• Rewrite these and publish to your Facebook or LinkedIn page (linking back to a relevant product/service you provide)
• Add 4 general, niche-relevant articles to your site
• Rewrite each of these and publish them to an article directory.
• Write and distribute an online press release.

Your might then decide upon further leverage:

• Create a PDF of the press release and publish it to a document sharing site.
• Add a PDF of the published press release to your website (blog or news room)
• Video yourself reading the news/industry related posts, publish to YouTube and embed this on your site.

By starting the process with a plan, and quality original content, the opportunities for further leverage, for minimal expenditure, are amazing.

If you need help creating a content marketing strategy for your business, contact me!