Everybody knows that content is king. And not just any content—useful, relevant, targeted content is what you need. Okay, now what? How do you get ahead of your competitors if you’re all following the same strategy of creating killer content? Read on for five effective means to drive bottom-line results.
1. Analyze the data.
When you’re looking to create content, there are several important questions you need to address:
- Where should my content appear?
- What form should it take?
- How should it be presented to focus on inbound business?
The answers to these three questions lie in your consumer data. For example, by looking at the consumer data available via digital channels, you can find out where your most engaged audiences are spending time on the Web. (Hint, hint: That’s where your content needs to be.)
2. Create mapped content.
Using the data we mentioned above, create mapped content that aligns with your customer’s journey. Certain types of content will be more relevant at different point in the sales funnel. Thus, you want to ensure that you get the right type of content to your leads at the right time by looking at which content converts where and when in their journey.
You’ll also want to look for where along the customer’s journey product offers and calls to action have the greatest effect.
3. Use long-tail keywords.
You can find easy long-tail keywords by entering a competitive search term that users enter to find your business into Google and then scrolling down to the related search terms it gives below the search results. These long-tail keywords are not as competitive as the main keyword you entered, but they are actual keywords that users enter into Google. Sprinkle them throughout your copy in different variations in order to appeal to humans as well as Google. You’ll end up ranking higher for both the long-tail keywords and the original keyword. You should do this with your archived content, too.
Need a refresher on keyword basics? Check out our post here.
4. Write more.
Overall, longer posts—1500 words and above—perform better than short posts. Per SEO, the more content you have, the more of it that gets indexed. And the more content that gets indexed, the better it performs in search results. In longer content, we tend to use a greater variety of related keywords, which usually means more long-tail keywords. Plus, longer content gets more link-backs. More link-backs again mean better SEO, which in turn leads to more traffic, more conversions and more revenue.
Longer content also tends to get more shares, so integrate your content marketing and your social media by providing long, information-rich content that customers and influencers can share and curate for their followers.
5. Give old content new life.
Speaking of shares, you’ll drive more traffic to your site by promoting and amplifying your existing content via social media, email and other channels. But don’t just promote your content willy-nilly. Per #1 above, look at what types on content perform best on which platforms and then promote those types of content from your archives on the right platform.
You can repurpose old content, too. And don’t forget to link back to older content in your new blog posts.
These five tips give you straightforward ways to focus on offering value where it matters most, making deeper connections with your costumers and providing excellent customer service. In the ends, these lead to the beginning of a loyal costumer base that in turn acts as advocates for your brand.
Content marketing is a valuable tool for driving deeper brand engagement and building better relationships with consumers. With everyone jumping on the content marketing bandwagon, you need to find a way to differentiate yourself. Have you found other ways that work well in addition to those we’ve shared above? Please share what works for you in the comments section.
If you need a little help getting or you’re looking for more growth hacks to skyrocket your content marketing, call Filament. We’d love to help your business and your brand get noticed online.
