Content Marketing - Why Your Business Needs It

Content marketing can give your business a great boost. With it, you can engage your audience, build a large following, and boost leads and conversions. Discover the content marketing strategies you can take advantage of.

The Internet has taken over the world of commerce around the globe. Online marketing strategies now play an invaluable role in reaching the target market, generating leads, and boosting opportunities for sales. It is comprised of a variety of strategies, from email marketing to search engine optimization (SEO).

Content marketing, though often considered a part of SEO, is a digital marketing strategy in its own right. It is one of the most effective tools to add to your advertising tool belt and can benefit businesses of all sizes -- from independent sellers to big brand names.

By adopting this strategy, your business will gain a powerful weapon that can skyrocket your business to success.

Advantages of Content Marketing

Content is the flesh and blood of every website. While web design dresses your website with the necessary trims and frills to attract visitors, your website will do nothing more than look pretty unless it has valuable and usable content.

With content marketing, you can:

• Complete your SEO strategies

SEO is a multifaceted approach to attracting the notice of web crawlers and online users alike. It focuses on optimizing the functionality of your site and strategically inserting keywords across the various web pages. To accomplish these tasks, you need content as a foundation for your strategies. Content is the platform on which you install the keywords to lure potential consumers. More importantly, it provides answers to your customers’ questions and solutions to their problems. After all, why do consumers go to websites if not to acquire information about the goods and services they need?

• Build a solid online reputation

With well-crafted content, you can showcase your expertise and authority on the subject matter relating to your field and present yourself as a trustworthy source of information. All three qualities are among those most valued by Google, the leading search engine around the world. Great content will do more than boost your search engine ranking. It will also increase your brand reputation.

• Generate more leads

Quality content allows you to reach your target market and raise brand recognition. With it, you tell potential customers that you have what they’re looking for. Additionally, the reputation you’ve built will inform them of the reliability of your brand.

• Enhance customer relationships

With content, you can educate your customers and allow you to engage with them. This is especially true if it is amplified when shared through social media. Engagement improves your relationships with your customers.

• Increase opportunities for conversion

If a company plays its cards right, they can take advantage of their web content to attract paying customers.

Types of Content

There are various forms of content. Here are some of the most common ones and what benefits they can give you.

 

• Service Pages

Service pages contain basic information regarding your company. They offer salient information regarding your business, including:

1. Your company history, values, and objectives.
2. The products and services your company offers.
3. Characteristics or offers that make your company stand out from others.
4. Procedures and/or strategies your company observes to do the job.

As a rule, your business website should dedicate one page to each product or service you offer. Be sure to insert keywords in every page; but don’t overdo it. One or two mentions in the content itself is enough. The keywords you use should be the product or service you’re advertising and use variants for other mentions.

For example, if you’re advertising your dress shop, you can use the following variations including:

1. Dress store.
2. Dress store/shop + location.
3. Clothing store/shop.

Service pages inform visitors whether or not you can give them what they’re looking for. Making this information accessible can encourage them to go further along the buying funnel.

Update your service pages when and wherever necessary.

• Blogs

A blog should do more than just inform. It should educate and inspire. With every post, you must present to the readers that you have the knowledge and expertise in your industry. This is the platform you use to give them information they can use, including:

1. Guides - Guides are in-depth discussions about certain subjects (e.g. A Definitive Guide to Profiting from Your Blog).
2. How-tos - How-tos are blogs explaining how to accomplish certain tasks (e.g. How to Clean Your Air Ducts).
3. Listicles - Lists of relevant and useful resources, samples, characteristics, or factors of certain subjects (e.g. 7 Ways to Style a Dress).
4. Tips and Tricks - These types of articles give advice or lifehacks that would make life or certain tasks easier for the reader.

By offering your audience valuable and free advice, you assure them that your goal is not solely to make sales but that you care about them and are willing to meet their needs.

Do not treat your blogs as you would a service page. Though they are meant to lead your customers to your offers, you should not rub it so hard into their faces and put them off. If they find value in your blogs and the information you’re willing to share with them, your customers will eventually trust you with their purchases.

Update your blogs regularly, once or twice a month. Also, do your research, fact check so as not to spread misinformation. Doing so can cost you your reputation and the trust of your audience. To attract the attention of both search engines and consumers, your blogs should be fresh and well-researched.

A good blog is informative, easy to read and understand, and engaging. Create captivating headlines to catch their attention and write naturally to impact your audience and make a good impression.

• Infographics

Infographics are akin to blogs, except they use images and graphics to illustrate the content. You can create an infographic alone or repurpose a blog. Infographics make information easier to digest by breaking it down. It also caters to visual learners and appeals to a wide range of audiences. Add charts, data, and statistics to make it more effective.

• Podcasts or Videos

Podcasts and videos are powerful tools that can be used to communicate to a wide range of people. Creating these types of content may look challenging, but they are not as difficult as you might think.

All you need is:

• a quiet room;
• a clean setup (for videos);
• a microphone and/or recorder;
• a camera or a smartphone with one;
• editing software.

 

You do not need to be technically savvy or use complex gear to make it work. A smartphone with video and recording capabilities will suffice with the help of a free audio or video editing application.

If you have a blog, you can repurpose a post and turn them into podcasts and videos. Post them on online platforms like SoundCloud (for podcasts) and Youtube (for videos).

Practice your speaking skills if you need to build confidence. When you record, try not to be too stiff. Relax and pretend like you’re having a conversation with your audience. Who knows? If your content becomes viral, you can boost your audience to the millions.

Content marketing can give your business a great boost in both lead generation and sales. Of course, you do not have to do it all on your own. You can hire a content marketing or local SEO expert in your area. Along with Triforce Media and VN Web Group, Local SEO Search is a local SEO expert in Vancouver. These agencies can help you achieve your goals and make the most out of your content.