Do you have the best intentions to create content but struggle to follow through? Or perhaps you have great content but don’t know the best way to share it publicly? A good content strategy takes the painful guesswork out of sharing content. Creating, planning, and delivering content for each platform is also essential in earning lifelong customers who support you.
Why taking centre stage requires a good content strategy
Studies show that 70% of consumers prefer learning about a product and/or service through content and articles rather than traditional advertisements. Many businesses recognise the importance of a good content strategy, with 72% of marketers citing it as being essential to business success. Having an effective content strategy allows you to create engaging content which motivates your audience to perform desired actions.
Here are some important considerations to be aware of when developing a content strategy:
Purpose is your director
The most important thing about a content strategy is the purpose driving it. When you’re clear on what you want to achieve as a business, creating effective content becomes instinct. Whatever industry you’re in, all businesses align in the belief their products and/or service solve a particular need, thus making the world a better place. Understanding your point of difference helps you discover the needs, questions, and pain points of your target audience. Having a strategy that takes these variables into consideration is key to achieving loyalty and retention.
Tailor content
A good content strategy strengthens your messaging across platforms. Give your audience something to gain with each platform. If your content is identical across all platforms, people will ask themselves, “Why should I follow them on Twitter if I already follow them on Facebook?” This leads to the importance in understanding the differences between social media platforms. For instance, you wouldn’t address your audience on Instagram the same way you do on LinkedIn. Instagram accommodates a styled, but relaxed vibe whereas LinkedIn is more corporate. Content strategy underpins your business communications, shaping your brand personality, the way people perceive you, and the relationship customers have with your business.
Good for SEO
Business sites who maintain a consistent content schedule are more likely to have pages indexed then those who are infrequent with releasing content. Producing regular content doesn’t automatically guarantee higher traffic. But it presents opportunities for you to rank for more keywords. As you start to rank for various keywords, other companies will be more inclined to link back to your content, demonstrating that your website is relevant and credible. Having a content schedule also gives people greater incentive to continue visiting your website – which is great for increasing your website’s position in search rankings.
Reason beyond sales
It’s been found that content marketing generates three times as many leads as outbound marketing, while costing less than 62%. So, don’t immediately ask people to subscribe to your service. Give people a reason to be interested. People who may have stumbled upon your article are usually not ready to buy; these types of content consumers are still in the awareness stage, and thus need time to become invested. When you create content, focus on educating and giving value to people, beyond a mere sales pitch. This positions you as a genuine thought leader, helping you nurture lifelong customers who trust you.
The recipe to a good content strategy
There are several ingredients involved in creating a good strategy. While it’s not possible to list absolutely everything that’s involved in making you a winner, here are some key takeaways:
Know your aim
Delineate the aim of your content strategy before you do anything else. For example, “To position our company as a leader in our industry.” Once the overarching aim of your content strategy is established, you can ascertain micro goals, which could include – “boosting organic website traffic” or “increasing social media engagement.”
Research!
Research is a central pillar to an effective content strategy. Learn about the key demographics within your audience and how they like being spoken to. This information guides you in creating content that unites your target audience with your mission.
Don’t forget editorial guidelines
What tone of voice does your brand have? Is there a specific style or format each piece of content needs to abide by? What distribution and/or promotional channels do you need to leverage with each type of content? Sticking to your editorial guidelines increase brand distinctiveness, awareness, and integrity.
Keep budgets in check
If things aren’t organised, it’s easy to overspend and lose sight of the bigger picture. This is dangerous for your business. Not watching your budget could mean you have limited funds for the remainder of the financial year, impeding opportunities. Content strategies denote a point of measurement in revealing what generates the best results. Having this oversight helps you be more discerning with your spending, leading to greater returns on investments.
Fluid workflow creates a dream team
It’s no secret that organisation saves time.
For a fluid work environment:
- allocate people responsible for creating content
- nominate times when content is to be published
- decide which channels are to host different types of content.
We also recommend that you keep planning calendars containing this information. It enables your team to have oversight on everything that’s happening, while showing that the work they’re doing is delivering tangible results.
Becoming the main event in your field isn’t easy. But a good content strategy helps you climb the steps faster.
Need help with your content strategy? The team at Elite Words are experts in helping clients become the main event through effective content strategies.
Contact us to find out how we can help you!
