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Ever seen some company’s logo and thought “I’ve never heard of them before, but I know what they do because of the pictures”? That’s called content marketing.
The concept has become more mainstream in recent years. Facebook and Twitter are filled with ads that tell you everything you need to know without any buying pressure on your part. People love this, which is why A Rainbow Co sent two virtual hugs per day to their prospective customers on social media in 2014.
The internet is filled with content from a variety of sources: blogs on how to get rich, funny videos, pin-up girls and ads. Content marketing combines all of that in one place.
If you haven’t heard of content marketing before you should probably give up now. You’re not going to learn anything about it here by reading this article. I can just tell you what it isn’t:
cheating the system by telling people your ideas without building those ideas up first. This is called a PPC ad which is expensive and low quality way to get your name out there that doesn’t require any real thought or effort on your part.
Instead, let’s talk about the concept of content marketing.
What is Content Marketing?
First, it’s not really marketing although companies do use the term. It’s a way to build your name up as an expert or authority in your field over time. I went to college to become a doctor because I wanted people to think of me as an expert when I visited their house for a checkup . When you get customers that come from social media research, you’re creating brand awareness. When you have sponsored posts, you’re building relationships with people after telling them about your expertise first and making them feel special . (more…) Read more at how content marketing works.
A company wrote a blog post about their experience with content marketing, and then got a nice article in the New York Times. That’s called content marketing success.
This is usually because they have created original content which is tricky to do if you’re running an e-commerce website. A quick search for the word ‘content’ in Google Analytics turns up more than 8 million results, so it’s hard to compete with that when you’re starting out.
If you want clients though, you’ll need to start creating some content on your site or blog. It doesn’t have to be huge; just something that people might find useful or interesting enough to share with their friends (usually known as “likes”).
Simple steps for Profitable Content Marketing
The internet is the new marketing battleground, and content marketing is the weapon of choice for savvy marketers. Given the success of major outlets such as Buzzfeed and Facebook, it’s clear that a successful online business is not just about “sales” anymore.
Luckily, there are a few steps you can take in order to make your content marketing campaign more profitable — by targeting areas where content has proven impact in your topic area, follower demographics, and so on. In this blog post I talk about four key ways you can get more out of your work without even spending any extra time or money on it: show up consistently; create good value; think outside the box; and optimize for search engines.
1. Show Up Consistently
Online business is all about visibility: in order to attract your customers, you need to make sure they can find you. Given that most human beings are terrible at remembering URLs, or even specific search terms, consistency across your content is key to establishing your authority as an expert in your field. In other words, keep writing about the same things that made people notice you in the first place. The most effective tactics for this are:
a) Guest blogging
b) Repurposing your old content by turning it into a video or infographic on a different platform, like Reddit or Imgur.
c) Repurposing your old content by turning it into a video or infographic on a different platform, like Reddit or Imgur.
2. Create Good Value
This step is the basis of any successful strategy in which you’re going to get your work out in the world, regardless of whether it’s content marketing or not. You can’t just show up and throw out whatever you want: all of the great ideas will be stolen by others before you can even get close to being recognized as an authority in your field. In order to stand out from the crowd, people are going to need to know that what you’re saying is worth their time.
The best way to do this is by making sure that your content is not only of value, but also relevant: if your entire blog posts are devoted to debating a particular subject, nobody will read them. If you don’t know anything about the topic you’re writing about — and it’s essential that you understand what you’re writing about — make sure to get your research into the final draft before you start writing.
3. Think Outside the Box
In order to find success in content marketing, you need to think outside of the box.
