How to Make Content Marketing Work for you

Have you been posting your services/products across Facebook, Linkedin, Instagram, Tiktok, but is still not getting enough TRACTION for your business?

The reality is, there's content that just doesn't hit the mark, and it's like playing a guessing game to keep sharing it (and an utter waste of time).

Content marketing is involves creating and sharing various content to attract customers and promote engagement – with the ultimate goal of

driving SALES and CONVERSIONS by use of graphics or information

that RESONATE with your target audience.

That being said, you cannot possibly just keep releasing content with no viable strategy or reasoning.

Quality content helps ENGAGE potential customers by providing them with interesting and informative material they can relate to and interact witah. Thoughtfully-crafted articles, videos, infographics, and other content types give users an easy way to keep up to date on topics related to their needs and interests, while also encouraging engagement with your brand.

Quality content also helps build TRUST between you and your audience. By delivering consistent quality content over time, you establish yourself as an authority in the industry, which can lead to greater CUSTOMER LOYALTY and higher conversion rates. Do note, however, that it's important not to be overly salesy when creating content, but strategically achieving this balance will also allow you subtly integrate product messages into your stories, without coming off too strongly as "just" another advertiser trying to push their wares onto unsuspecting readers.

When implemented correctly, content marketing can be a powerful tool for increasing BRAND visibility, boosting search engine rankings, driving SALES, and so much more. To help you get started, here are some key points to make content marketing work for your business in no time:

1. Define Your Target Audience

To effectively use content marketing, you must first account factors such as age, gender, interests, needs, and behaviors. This will help ensure that your content resonates with your intended readers and drives them towards conversion. How can you do that?

- Analyze Your Existing Customers: Look at the DEMOGRAPHICS and BEHAVIOURS of your customers to get an understanding of who is currently buying products or services from your business. What age range are they, what gender are they, and what other traits do they exhibit? This will provide valuable insight into the type of people you should be targeting with your content.

- Conduct Market Research: Market research can help identify potential new customers for your business that may have been previously overlooked. Look into industry TRENDS, competitor activity, customer needs/wants, and potential audiences for specific content types.

- Develop Personas: Once you’ve identified key demographics from existing customers and market research, create personas around those specific segments. These personas should include information such as age, gender, interests, profession/career status, lifestyle habits, etc., all of which can help inform the content you create to target them effectively.

- Monitor Buyer Intent: Pay attention to how buyers move through their journey from AWARENESS to PURCHASE decision-making – this helps determine where and how often to engage with them in order to drive conversions most efficiently. Tools such as Google Analytics can provide great insight into customer behaviors so you can tailor content accordingly.

- Engage on Social Media: Don’t underestimate the power of social media when it comes to getting to know your target audience better! Use platforms like Twitter and Facebook to join conversations about topics relevant to your brand or product – this gives you an opportunity to LISTEN directly from users about what’s important to them and how you can better serve their needs with your content marketing strategy.

2. Select a Platform for Marketing your Content

Once you’ve identified the customers you want to reach, it’s time to select a platform for your content. Each platform comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages, so choose one based on where your audience resides or which platforms offer features that best suit your business strategy.

3. Develop a Content Strategy

Now that you know who you’re targeting and where to post your content, it’s time to create an effective content strategy in order to maximize engagement and conversions. A well-planned strategy should include topics related to the brand/product/service being sold; keywords that attract organic traffic; and an editorial calendar with planned posts for each month.

- Determine the GOAL of your content strategy: Having a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish with your content marketing is essential. Goals may include raising brand awareness, increasing website traffic, generating leads, or boosting sales.

- Create an editorial CALENDAR: A detailed editorial calendar helps keep you organized and ensures consistency throughout the content creation process. Include deadlines, topics, format types (e.g., articles, videos, images), dates for publication, and target audiences for each piece of content planned within the calendar timeframe.

- Distribute quality content REGULARLY: Posting relevant, high-quality pieces on a regular basis not only helps build trust with customers but also keeps them engaged with your brand over time as they anticipate new offerings from you each month or week (depending on frequency).

- Monitor & ADJUST as needed: Track progress by measuring measurable goals against KPIs such as website visits, leads generated, conversions made, etc., then adjust strategy accordingly if necessary in order to maximize results.

4. Optimize Content for SEO

Search engine optimization (SEO) is essential for making sure your content is seen by the

right people on the right platform at the right time

Optimizing each piece of content according to search engine algorithms will help make sure they appear prominently in relevant search results, so more people can find them, and you, easily.

5. Track Performance & Measure Results

Finally, tracking performance and results are key to any successful content marketing.

You cannot manage what you don't measure.

Monitoring metrics such as click-through rate (CTR), total shares per post, bounce rate & average session duration will give you valuable INSIGHTS about how well your efforts are paying off, allowing you to make adjustments when necessary.

While all these may seem tedious work, keep in mind that Rome isn't built overnight. Content marketing is a slow burn strategy that when done strategically, will definitely reward you and your business with the right clients right on your door.

Some useful links:

• Tune in to the Better in Business podcast Spotify | Apple Podcast | Youtube