Industries of all shapes and sizes now rely on digital tools to reach their target audiences. Yes, digital advertising is still around and helps brands connect to people via online and mobile ads, but it’s just not enough on its own. Online audiences are becoming more suspicious of ads, for one thing, and they’re also beginning to expect more personalized, enhanced content from the businesses they support.
This is why content writing matters. If your client base does research online – which they probably do – you need engaging, informational, well-written content. Period. Here’s how to start.
First, an overview. Content marketing relies on social media posts, videos, blogs, articles, landing page copy, and more to reach audiences on internet browsers and mobile devices. This content is catered to specific viewers so you have a better chance of giving them relevant information. Content marketing just couldn’t exist without content writing, which is the process of creating all this content from scratch.
Content writing uses catchy headlines and click-worthy material to help you catch your customers’ eyes. This gives you a better opportunity to get leads, build relationships, and boost customer engagement, because it inspires viewers with words and images that mean something to them. Content that uses your company’s specific tone and voice works double well because it also helps you establish a strong brand presence.
Key components of a strong content marketing strategy include:
Focusing on most, if not all, of these outlets helps you broaden your reach, understand your audiences better, and diversify your content.
You may think this kind of marketing just isn’t relevant to your audiences, but most people now get their information online – so your targets are probably doing it too. Here are a few facts to keep in mind:
Content writing is pretty affordable since you’re not paying for ads, and that’s true even if you hire a writer or pay for an outside content service. The ROI can be huge since you are making more meaningful connections with people via personalized, exciting, informational copy. That means you can likely benefit from creating and posting excellent content whether you’re a landscaper, artist, university, software-as-a-service provider, interior designer, or in another space entirely!
No matter the industry, there are a few simple steps companies and their leaders can take to get started creating expert, engaging copy. Here are six ways to begin your content marketing adventure:
A great way to start is to look at what your competitors are doing. Check out their social media accounts and blogs if they have them. What’s their approach? What kinds of content do they post? Are their customers commenting and engaging with them? Take lots of notes.
It’s perfectly fine to start small. Consider adding a blog section to your website and creating a few blog posts on topics relevant to your audiences, such as how-to articles, staff profiles, or other information about your business. Create social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and post the links to your published blog posts on these outlets. Make sure to include hashtags that people would search for. Then, you’re already driving traffic back to your website and attracting new followers.
Once you see how it works, assess how long it takes to get through this process and who is involved. Create a calendar outlining everyone’s responsibilities and deadlines. There should be deadlines for writing, editing, and design, if applicable, and then the final date when you’ll post the content.
It’s not difficult to make things interesting. On social accounts, try posting a question or poll that will engage your customers. This can be a fun activity for them to do and gives you lots of insights into what they care about. After you ask a question and gather responses, post the results to further engage people. These simple gestures can really help customers feel connected to your brand and show them that what they think matters.
You have outlets for content, a calendar, and a team behind it all. How do you know if it’s working? Assessing success goes deeper than seeing a sales spike. You need to set up ways to track information on your website, social accounts, blog, and email newsletters. Data will tell you how many people clicked on your content, if they clicked back to your website, how long they spent on a page, and even demographic information. Don’t miss out on such valuable opportunities to get to know your customers’ online behavior.
Sometimes you need to ask for help when you just don’t have the resources to start an inbound content marketing strategy. Business leaders who know they lack the time or staff to effectively keep up with their content plans may find it’s more than worth it to hire a content writing service! The right content team gives you well-written, SEO-friendly copy that will spice things up and get your content noticed.
We’re here to do just that at ContentBacon. Our expert marketers, writers, strategists, and designers help you craft the right approach to reach your industry-specific audience. We can help you increase your traffic and build a strong online presence. Contact the ContentBacon team to get started.