This is a guest post by one of our guest authors, Katrina Manning.
There are some critics who actually believe that content marketing is a waste of time. They believe people don’t bother to read content.
Except, for one thing: great content is what builds loyalty and generates a consistent following. This is called value.
Visitors aren’t going to follow your brand if all you’re doing is blatant selling. Content marketing is the soft sell. You convey your expertise in your field, and prospects trust you with their dollars. In essence, brands have become publishers.
Creating content makes sense regardless of the brand or industry. While content marketing has become an ultra-competitive field, the trick is to stand out from the crowd.
Content Marketing Strategy for 2017 & How to Revamp it
Content marketing has changed over the last few years and it is imperative that you adapt to the changing needs, in order to get a better ROI on your investment.
One thing that hasn’t changed over the years in the underlying principles of content marketing.
So how do you revamp your content marketing strategy for 2017 and beyond?
The answer lies in understanding the principles and building on it and further tweaking it for the changing content marketing landscape. It is that simple.
And, in the below 4 simple tips that we are going to discuss you will find that the principles remain the same but a slight tweak to you approach can do a lot of goodness to your strategy.
Narrow your scope
One mistake many brands make is trying to be all things to all people.
That never works in life, and it certainly doesn’t work in business.
You should not try to appeal to everyone, otherwise, you will appeal to no one.
You just can’t become an expert in everything–and, you shouldn’t take that route.
Instead, it is important to reach a niche audience that have a higher propensity for becoming leads. This is your target market based on an audience actually interested in the products and services you have to offer. In fact, these are the content marketing trends to watch.
Think of the type of person who would have a need for your products. Then, focus on quality over quantity.
You don’t have to start out by attracting mass amounts of traffic. You just need consistent viewership with good conversion rates. You don’t need clickbait headlines.
To illustrate, you might attract 1,000 random viewers–but how many of those viewers actually make a purchase?
On the other hand, you might attract 100 targeted viewers where 40 of them actually make a purchase.
That would be an ideal situation for your strategy, especially for a content marketing strategy for 2017.
So, narrow your focus. Determine the types of content your target audience wants to read. With a specific audience in mind, your ROI will end up much higher.
Write as if you are talking to a friend
In today’s consumer-driven market, people want to be treated as individuals. Even in our globalized world, people want to feel recognized. Perhaps this is the result of a digital landscape–people feel more and more like a number and less like a person.
Sure, you can go online to reach the masses, but you don’t want to sound like a robot. When writing your content, write as if you are talking to a friend.
People will tune out if they feel like they are just a number to you.
Since you have now taken the time to understand your target market, write as if you are speaking directly to them. This will help keep you focused on your overall content marketing goals.
You want to continue to keep your audience engaged while making them feel special and appreciated. If you need more help, even your grandma can understand this.
Pay attention to SEO
Content marketing is the partner of SEO.
When developing your content strategy, always keep SEO in mind. This should be thought out before you even publish.
It’s no fun publishing great content if it’s never seen. This is why you need SEO to reach your target audience and increase your leads.
Essentially, you want to look for keywords and phrases with a high search volume–that also relates to your business. If you were searching for your product or service, what keyword would you type into a search engine?
You also want to use keywords that have low competition.
For example, if you are a diamond dealer in Los Angeles, the terms “Los Angeles diamond dealer” will have a huge demand–your chances of showing up in the top search engine rankings will be diminished. Instead, look for more targeted keywords and integrate them into your content.
Of course, always remember that Google loves fresh and new content. The more value your content conveys, the better your chances are of ranking highly.
Create a unique brand voice
Notice how every brand has a unique voice?
This is part of what sets them apart from everyone else.
People want brands with culture and personality. Plus, you must have a human brand voice.
This is how people can imagine what your company sounds like. As stated earlier, this is part of helping people to feel welcome and appreciated.
Always incorporate your brand voice in word choice and tone. This will help to color your content and improve appeal towards your target market.
No one likes to read boring marketing language. They want to know and feel that there is a real person behind all of that content.
Consistent and valuable content marketing is the only way to build and increase a loyal following. Plus, search engines love fresh content that increases visitor clicks.
Not to mention, it helps to give your brand a voice, while connecting with your target audience.
About the Author
Katrina is a technical and web writer/editor with over eight years’ experience penning content for a wide variety of sites and publications such as Yahoo! Small Business Advisor, IBM, Business 2 Community etc. and specializes in SEO and Content Marketing which she caters for service companies like Build Niche Links.