Content Marketing

Content marketing is the currency of marketing today. You have to tell your story and engage your audience with content in order to reduce overall marketing and advertising costs and create a long term asset for your business cost effectively. If you have been avoiding building content because it makes your head hurt, you really need to get over it, get creative (or hire someone who is) and make it happen.

Content marketing is a type of marketing that involves the creation and sharing of online media, including blogs, social media posts and even video and audio that focuses on subject matter relevant to your customers’ interests. It is not for pushing a brand, but is rather a marketing tool based on consistent content to attract a clearly defined audience.

Marketing with content is the most cost effective way to market today and to build a powerful marketing asset for tomorrow. With any form of advertising you have to continue to pump dollars in like gas into your car. But content marketing is like a solar powered car with panels on the roof. Once you have some great content it can bring in relevant traffic that converts for years to come, without paying for a single click. You can promote and repost it on Social Media as well as use it in a variety of ways by repurposing. For example, a video or podcast can be transcribed, a sales presentation can be shared on slide sharing platforms, a set of articles can be combined into a powerful ebook, and graphics or even spreadsheets can be turned into infographics. Once you get the ball rolling with content marketing it gets much easier and fresh content can b created or spun off in a variety of ways to build your online presence and SEO footprint.

Content is perhaps the most important element in your digital marketing toolbox due to its importance for SEO and conversion. Your stories and pieces from reports to checklists must be compelling and the topics you write about must engage your target audience in your particular industry. A great lead magnet that helps convert folks on your advertising landing page is really just a PDF of great content built to give your prospects exactly what they are looking for as a first step with you.

Developing content is necessary for showing thought leadership in your industry and even for simply creating a conversation with your customers. Well-written informative content does not need to use fancy words, blogs in particular are based on clear concrete information that incorporates keywords and solves problems and answers questions. If you can’t answer questions in your marketplace, then you do have a problem that needs to be addressed. But if you ignore content marketing completely, Google and ultimately your customers, are going to ignore you in the search results.

If you dislike reading, or don’t want a lot of content on your site, here is something important you need to know. You don’t have to just slap a huge article on every web page! Start with a highlight box, images, graphics or video and let the bulk of the content with bullets and imagery sit lower on the page if need be. Use blogs to house the bulk of your content and build up your link profile which is a completely natural way to do things. So you can keep portions of your site light and simple, no problem. But if you do not put content anywhere on your site, then Google won’t put you anywhere in its search results, and your customers won’t put money in your bank account. It’s that simple.

And here’s the kicker that really gets me. Every minute that you aren’t in the running with your online presence, somebody else is taking those customers from you one by one and pulling away from the pack. You know they are and yu probably know who they are. So what are you going to do? If you’re 5 years from retiring and don’t care about the resale value of your business, then yeah maybe its not worth it. Go take a nap or read about the best places to retire. For everybody else reading this, do you think technology is going to slow down? Do you think waiting will make it any easier? Do you think if you just sit there and wait longer that your business will magically land enough customers to secure your future?

Wouldn’t it be cool to have enough folks coming to you that you could pick and choose who you worked with? You could choose the folks you know will get great results and be raving fans of your business. Then your content marketing will help breed even more great referrals that are that specific ideal type of customer. The ones who are less interested in the lowest price but more interested in exactly how you do things. So YES you can handle the growth, you can easily just apply what you have to better clients and better results and you will grow in a good way, not that way that drives you crazy and can waste your time and profits now.

So, an integrated marketing strategy must include content marketing if you want to portray your business as a thought leader, innovator or simply to build a highly profitable and fun business to work in. It defines and strengthens your brand, and creates more opportunities for you to be found by the right folks through search marketing and social media strategies. Ultimately it will lead to more good leads that are ready to buy from you because they understand how you do things before they even contact you! Content marketing is also the backbone of your social media campaigns which will amplify your content into a whole new audience.

Consistent content allows you to provide links on your social platforms. Combined with engaging headlines this content brings readers back to your site. They already know what they are looking for or may need soon and now they can get the answer from you. The content on social media is also shareable, expanding your potential audience and readership by the thousands. And if you don’t have active social profiles, then running those potentially high profit Facebook ad campaigns is going to be a waste of time.

As mentioned, blogging is a main driver when it comes to content marketing, but just as important are videos, audio and photos, which can be SEO-infused. Infographics and charts are also a great way to engage potential clients.

Sacramento SEO for Growth understands content marketing and has team members fluent in developing the types of content described here as well as guiding you in the right direction and mindset to do your part effectively.  So what are you waiting for?