Content marketing has recently risen to a position of prominence within the industry. As the creator of what is viewed, liked and shared online, it is one of the prime movers of any brand or product. Filling up the voids around the all-important keywords, content adds substance to any marketing strategy and, therefore, it cannot be ignored.
As content marketing has become essential, it has also reached a high degree of professionalization. Those who engage in it no longer dabble with words and information, but consciously create powerful cocktails of useful content and subtle advertising. The next 5 tips can be found in the arsenal of any efficient marketer.
One of the most time-consuming elements of content marketing is that it constantly requires unique and new content, even on topics that have been looked at and written about many times.
While it should always be novel, it is important to distribute the same content on different social media and online platforms, forums, blogs and pages. In this way, the customer reach is greatly enhanced and the resources are put to good use.
Even on the same platform, such as Facebook, some content – particularly infographics – can merit a re-share if they have gone unnoticed the first time around. Over time, the same topic or article can be shared with minor changes in the formulation of the title. With this occasion, efficient marketers can run a small A/B testing procedure on their audience in order to learn more about the individuals composing it and the things to which they react. However, this cannot be a regular practice at it would hurt the overall opinion that customers have of the page or blog.
Receiving some kind of special treatment is appealing to humans psychologically. In marketing, that comes in the form of exclusive content. Any site attempts to produce unique content, but usually the topic and the method of approaching it is common. Exclusive content, by comparison, beyond being professionally made or written, shows true creativity and out-of-the-box thinking.
By targeting consumers and addressing in particular to those that are or have the potential to be high-paying consumers, marketing managers earn their living. Exclusive content is also a method of rewarding them.
Exclusive content can be research, infographics, images, how-to guides or videos. The essential feature is that they cannot be found anywhere else. This type of content does not need to come in bulk. If anything, wide availability hurts its status as “something special”. Instead, efficient marketers use exclusive content as an addition to their main pieces.
Content does not exist in a void and marketers should not behave like it does. One of the most common mistakes that content creators do is attempt to satisfy every need of their audience in terms of demanded content. This creates an enormous stress that is placed on the creative capacities of any marketing team, as it is required to continuously pump out high-quality content in order to appease its customers.
For that reason, efficient marketers have turned to content curation, meaning the active search of content that is related to their own. In this way, they are able to supply their audience with enough content and information without having to do it themselves.
Content curation brings benefits to the marketer and the customer alike. Spared the effort of creating similar but unique content at a constant rate, the marketer is free to devise new strategies and new types of content. At the same time, the customer is satisfied by the amount of information available and even appreciates finding out about products and topics he or she never considered. For example, an online shoe store that runs a blog on outfits, with recommendations and reviews, can link its viewers to another blog that deals in outfits and style. Together, they complement each other and better cater to the customer’s needs.
Smartphones are the new way in which people surf the web. As a result, the demand in mobile-friendly content has soared, with search engines even “punishing” websites that are not in tune in the mobile format. The way in which consumers ingest content is extremely versatile, across multiple channels.
One way in which to stay on top of the wave of mobile internet usage is by using Google Trends to establish what customers want locally. Geo-tracked, mobile usage offers more information to work with. Moreover, consumers that access a site through their smartphones or tablets have a higher bounce rate than desktop visitors, meaning that they more likely to respond to backlinks and other digital “breadcrumbs” within any form of content that leads to a product.
Companies that deal in the service industry, such as hotels, restaurants or travel agencies, live by UGC, or user-generated content. Aside from reviews, the photos, videos and comments that fans leave on every piece of “company content” means a bump in popularity.
Receiving high levels of user-generated content means that a certain brand is responsive and connected to its customers. In turn, they expect to be able to connect with brands through social media. As such, a company that is distant to its fans cannot succeed in the long term.
Twitter is perhaps the best example of UGC. The whole point of the platform is to follow others, and that is what companies are after. Any re-share or re-tweet stands for another endorsement and promotion of a brand and its products. As 59% of all respondents look to social media for recommendations before purchasing, with percentages only increasing when a younger sample of the population is used, UGC will become more and more important.
By making use of these 5 content marketing tips, marketers and content creators everywhere will be able to retain more of their viewers and to convert them into paying customers. Beyond conversion rate, they will obtain traction and wider internet coverage, particularly on social media. If content is king of marketing, doing it efficiently can only lead to growth and more income.
Cassidy Hennigan is a former recruiter. She worked in an HR department for over 7 years before turning to freelancing. Cassidy writes about increasing productivity techniques and developing interpersonal skills. On her website, Cassidy offers information about salaries and job skills for anyone interested in switching careers or looking for a new job.
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