Dominic
In digital marketing, there are several strategies that help businesses of all sizes to gain brand awareness and differentiate themselves in the market. This is the case with content strategy which involves the creation and distribution of relevant and valuable content to your target audience, with the ultimate goal of driving consumer action. It uses content as a tool for discovery, information, sales and relationships with the public of a company. If you are still wondering if investing in this type of marketing is worth it, here are some benefits that should convince you.
FIRST OF ALL, WHAT IS A CONTENT STRATEGY?
Content Marketing is a strategy to attract and educate audiences through the production and delivery to market of relevant and informative materials, which will help your customers solve their problems or meet their needs, and will present your product as the good solution. This strategy aims to solve customer problems and generate value for your business, allowing potential customers to receive relevant information when they need it most.
Unlike traditional media, which works with advertising or relies on strategies that interfere with the user experience, content marketing aims to attract consumers organically. In concrete terms, customers will be more likely to reach you by having access to quality content, written by an expert who will improve your ranking in search engines. The entire content marketing ecosystem can be summarized in the following points:
- Understand what type of content your target audience is looking for;
- Create high-quality content that continuously informs, engages and, where possible, entertains;
- Analyze incoming website traffic to find out what type of content attracts Internet users to your website;
- Make changes to high quality content, depending on the results obtained;
- Use the right content distribution channels to optimize their distribution;
- Optimize content using SEO techniques so that they are easier to find on search engines;
- Update and reuse existing content on an ongoing basis;
- Publish a periodic newsletter and increase the mailing list.
WHAT ABOUT ITS BENEFITS FOR YOUR BUSINESS?
Content strategy brings several benefits to businesses throughout the sales process. If the content is well structured and worked on in relation to the different stages of the buying journey, it is possible to have a differentiated relationship with your customer, in addition to increasing the results of your business organically. So in terms of benefits, a good content strategy:
1- IMPROVE THE RANKING OF YOUR BUSINESS
One of the most striking benefits of content strategy is the ability to improve your business’s ranking in Google search results. According to 2019 data from Trends, 80% of internet users use Google to search for information. This means that being present in the first Google search results is the gateway to new leads.
When searching for a specific keyword, the user finds several sites that meet their request. Therefore, with a good ranking, it is possible for your site to rank among the top search results, promoting clicks and eventually organic conversions. To get more traffic to your website through content, content marketing activity also includes sharing content on social media. For positioning purposes, Google takes into account the social presence of the content.
2- INCREASE THE REACH OF YOUR BRAND
As explained above, the strategy improves the position of your page in search results on Google. Thus, in addition to increasing organic conversions, it is possible to broaden the reach of your brand, since now more and more people will be able to come into contact with what you have produced. This increases business opportunities and the chances of expanding your customer base. The more a customer engages in meaningful conversations with the brand, the more eager they will be to follow it.
3- EDUCATE YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE
Well-designed content can educate the target audience and prepare them for the act of buying. So when users find your content, which should be educational and advisory, they begin to understand what their real needs are and what types of products and services are most relevant to solving their problems. Thanks to this, leads are prepared for the act of purchase, thus reducing any risk of major objection.
4- MAKES YOUR COMPANY A BENCHMARK IN THE MARKET
With well-ranked quality content, it is inevitable that your business will become a benchmark in the matter. In fact, your potential customers and other market professionals will see your business as a source of relevant information, thereby transforming the way you are perceived.
5- GENERATES A RELATIONSHIP OF TRUST WITH CONSUMERS
By becoming a market reference and an excellent source of information, it is easier to generate a relationship of trust with your customers and prospects. Which relationship can be maintained thanks to a good communication strategy, including after-sales, in which it is possible to retain customers by offering additional content likely to further improve customer satisfaction because consumers only buy from of people and businesses they trust. With content marketing via online video animation, you are literally showing your audience that you know what you are talking about, thus strengthening the bond of trust between you.
6- REDUCES THE COST OF CUSTOMER ACQUISITION
For a consumer to become a customer of your business, there is a financial effort to be made. Certainly, it would be unrealistic to think that content marketing does not require any expense. But one piece of well-optimized content is enough to attract or retain multiple leads at the same time, reducing costs. Therefore, the more leads you attract with the same content – that is, by having put in the same effort – the lower the cost per customer converted will be. If the customer costs your business less, when it comes to purchasing, profitability will be increased and sales targets will be achieved in a shorter time.
WHAT TYPES OF CONTENT ARE DEVELOPED?
In a content and SEO strategy, there are several options for developing content, whether simple or complex.
Simple content consists of blog posts, which are usually provided free to users, without the need for them to register with your site.
More complex and richer content requires the creation of a landing page to capture information, the user providing information relevant to your business such as name, email, contact information, location , in exchange for access to your content. This rich content is often more comprehensive and relevant, to gain the prospect’s attention and trust when filling in data on the landing page.
For an effective content strategy, you can develop the following options:
- Blog posts
- Electronic books
- Podcasts
- Webinars
- Social media posts
- Case studies
