How to Create a Successful Content Strategy For Your Business
Does your organization have a content marketing strategy? If you’re either in the group that has a strategy but never documented it or one that has no strategy at all, we’re here to help. These days, content is one of the best ways to raise awareness of a brand, services or products among a targeted audience. We recommend that you start by setting out your mission, goals and the KPIs for success of your content marketing strategy. Goals are an important part of any marketing initiative and content marketing goals are especially important as they set out what your business will achieve from content marketing. Examples of goals include - increase in webpage traffic, improving sales or getting more leads from your website. To measure success, you can use KPIs such as page views, organic users, number of subscribers or revenue targets.
Deciding on the Content Types
What forms will your content take? Will you stick to the tried and tested blog posts or will you opt for interesting infographics and explainer videos that draw the attention of your targeted customers? As you begin creating content in different formats, you will have a number of channels to choose from to publish them. From owned properties such as your website and blog to social media properties such as Facebook and Instagram, you need to determine the right content type that visualize your company’s message and importantly, assert your position as an authority in your market. Once you have defined your content’s target audience, also referred to as a buyer persona, you can begin brainstorming ideas - including evergreen content and news-worthy content from time to time. Tools such as BuzzSumo and HubSpot blog ideas generator are a step in the right direction for anyone starting out on the content marketing journey. Over time, you will be able to arrive at the content format with the highest views or shares for your product or services.
Allocating Content Resources
Once you have decided on the content types, it is crucial to earmark the resources who will help you in developing this content. You need to finalize on the content marketing resource who will produce and maintain the content, digital tools and resources that you will leverage and your content scheduling options. The content production process needs to be outlined and audited often to ensure that you are staying abreast with the content marketing trends in 2020.
The Content Calendar: An Invincible Resource
Here are a set of questions that you should ask yourself to determine what your editorial calendar should look like.
- How frequently do you publish content and where? Do you have stuff going live through the day on your website and social media or do you publish once a week
- What are the content types that you use? Does it include YouTube videos, blog posts and social media posts
- Do you have an established content pipeline for content topic approval and publishing checks? Do you need a calendar that includes different stages of content creation?
Once you have answered these questions, you can create a perfectly robust calendar using Google Sheets or shared Microsoft Excel spreadsheets. You can even opt for a number of tools available online for creating editorial calendars.
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Marketers find themselves in poorly charted waters every time a recession hits the market. Even if you have studied marketing successes and failures of leading brands, nothing can prepare you as the circumstances are not always alike. However, one thing remains. Customers begin to set stricter priorities, reduce their spending and postpone any new investments as well.
A popular adage says, “When times are good you should advertise. When times are bad you must advertise.” In the current scenario that we are in, one thing is for certain. Advertising decisions should be made and implemented, no matter what the state of the economy. Here’s why and how!
- When you choose not to spend on advertising during recession, you are bound to lose your “share of mind” with your customers. This has the potential to bring down your current and future sales. An increase in “share of voice”, even during crisis situations such as downturns is sure to drive up “share of mind” as it is likely that your competitors are cutting budgets, consumption patterns are shifting from expendables to essentials. While a downturn is a trying time for customers and businesses alike, there is an undercurrent of stress and fear beneath that surface. If you are able to tap into and appeal to your customers emotionally, you have a better chance at “share of mind”.
- Analyzing and tracking your budgets are crucial during the recession and digital marketing allows for specific and measurable marketing campaigns. There’s no better way to identify your best performing marketing strategy, reach the audiences you want and deliver compelling ad campaigns. Together with creative merchandising and launch offers, you will be able to innovate for a successful way even during the times of a financial storm. So what are you waiting for?
- Seize market share from timid competitors. During the 1990-91 recession, two leading food chains took advantage of a fast food giant’s decision to curtail advertising spend. The food chain’s sales increased over 60% and the fast food chain’s sales actually declined.
- What’s trending online? The answer to this question holds the answer to all your online marketing queries to start with. Monitoring Google Trends and other related sites is important to know what people are asking about your industry or services at this time. You can begin creating content around related topics and your pages will be ready and available when sales picks back.
Even in the uncertain times of a lockdown, people still search for information online. It’s time to start investing in your web presence. Contact Studio1c for information. We will take a comprehensive look at your entire online marketing presence and create a customized plan suited for your business needs.
Writing an email is easy. Just answer these questions:
- What are you o ffering?
- How will it help the reader?
- What should they do next?
If you find yourself experiencing writer’s block, use these 20 ideas as inspiration.
- Share a memory of your first sale
- Highlight your most popular items
- What inspires you?
- Look back on an early learning experience
- Provide a “how-to” tutorial
- Celebrate a milestone
- Introduce one of your sta members
- Send a thank-you note
- Ask for feedback/advice
- Preview something you look forward to all year
- Let customers know how you get involved in your community
- Share a video
- Respond to industry trends or news
- Share an interesting article
- Feature a happy customer
- Provide a gift guide
- Highlight your social mediaprofiles
- Share local news/events
- Take advantage of an obscure or fun holiday
- Answer the question: Why do you do what you do?
Every day, millions of status updates, photos and videos are added to social media feeds and websites. How do you generate content that stands out from the crowd? Content that grabs attention and wows people to an extent that they begin to share it. Studies have proven that people have an inherent desire to share information, especially things that they see as useful and interesting. There’s no doubt that most information that is shared online is either - helpful, amusing or interesting.
How do you find topics that resonate with your target audience so much that they think others will appreciate them to? Simple! Target product or service based topics that provide answers, solutions and helpful advice. Try to strike a chord with audiences so they are motivated to share it with others. You can also work on something of the year for your niche too. It may be an app, a dish or even an outfit depending on your business.
A sure shot means to generate more organic traffic that is likely to be shared online is to create “how-to” type content. This addresses the most asked questions among your audience. The tips provided to make a concept or a task easier to understand gives users a good reason to share content.
A fantastic way to drum up your online shareability is to publish interviews with experts and influencers. Since people trust these experts , it makes it easier for them to trust and share the content of the post. Not to forget, these interviews or your articles need to have killer headlines that draws the reader in. Don’t be convinced by anything other than a compelling headline to ensure that readers share your post.
The obvious, but oft ignored.
On all the content available online on websites or blogs, include social-sharing buttons for one-click sharing to various social media channels. Without this, you are not likely to generate any traction in terms of shares.
Happy posting!
Are you looking for custom content solutions for your business? Studio1c can help with content development and marketing solutions for your website.
