Start Your Digital Content Strategy With These Tips
There is a lot of talk of who reigns in marketing. Content marketing in recent years has been said to take the crown as king. And for a good reason. A content strategy is the plan for disseminating information that connects a business or organization with their customer in a way that is serves many purposes. It can be educational, resourceful, has the ability to demonstrate knowledge or expertise, and can often be long-lasting.
The different ways have a content strategy work for your business have increased dramatically with the rise of the digital and mobile marketing and promotions. With more possibilities of connecting to customers, however, comes the fast-paced changes in technology and many questions about the best way to utilize the tools and channels available. Keeping your content relevant is vital to keeping your business thriving on the web. So what do you do?
Know the Why
The key to effective content is to know exactly why you are including certain information, images, and words in your digital marketing. Why do you bother with social media platform or email marketing? Who are you trying to reach? Answering these questions in-house or with a marketing partner will cut out unnecessary time, wasted marketing dollars, and ultimately, trim back on non-effective digital marketing. Don’t forget that the main point is to bring potential customers back to your site and improve their experience with your business. When it comes to any new digital platform, whether is is social media, marketing automation, or Facebook ads, use them with a purpose and goal defined in advance, rather than setting up accounts and then wondering what to post and who to reach.
Focus On Value
The internet gives customers the chance to self-educate and make decisions on their own easier and faster than even. Because the customer decision-making process has evolved, so does how your business communicates. How your business is presented online and what information you share is going to be the difference-maker in how a potential customer decides if your solution is the right one for them — no matter if it is accounting services, what you offer on your menu, or if your brand of vodka appeals to them.
Before reaching out to customers, there are some technical tasks that can improve your content marketing efforts. The first step is to communicate to Google that your site is relevant and frequently updated. Begin by evaluating your current website: Are there relevant keywords and phrases being used in every section on your website and in your blog posts? How much traffic is each keyword generating to bring people back to your site? Use Google AdWords to research and stay on top of which words and phrases are trending that will boost your SEO performance, and ensure that your site is being shown to potential new customers. Google AdWords will show you how many average monthly searches are for the terms you are researching so that you can determine which one is the best fit for what you want to say. More searches means more people are looking up that keyword, but ones with less searches may actually end up being more specific to your service or product, so choose wisely. AdWords Tools will also tell you how competitive it is and how much that keyword would cost should you be interested in running ads leveraging that word or phrase.
Focus on improving the customer’s experience before increasing traffic to your site. Increased traffic is only positive when satisfied customers and sales are increasing. The same concept should be applied to online advertising. One ad with relevant keywords is more effective than two ads without. Improving the value of the ads will help keep your ad budget to a minimum.
Know Your Audience
Keep in mind that if someone is visiting your website it is because they need help, they are looking for a solution, or are looking for a specific piece of information. Sometimes, they may not even know what it is they are looking for. Words they are typing in the query box will often not be technical terms. Position yourself as the expert and show that you can break down the information in a way that makes sense to the average person. Keep your content concise and simple. Google looks for the best overall content, which includes both up-to-date industry jargon and simple terms, making your website accessible to everyone.
Content strategy is a task that demands time and thoughtful planning. From the beginning of your content marketing project, commitment is a must. If it is too time consuming, consider investing your resources to get help. Build a team that can help you align your content with the latest trends and customer desires. At Sinuate Media, we use content strategy to ensure that you are the expert in your field, promote more sales, and bring back customers to your website.
