A common place we see content marketing efforts bog down is in the actual creative process. So much time is often spent staring at a blank Word document trying to come up with that one idea that is 100% unique and a grand statement for your company or industry. And you just sit there staring…
Content marketing is most successful when it delivers relevant information to your audience—on a consistent basis—that they will find interesting or useful and will help them learn about your company or your products and services.
Purpose of Content
Content serves multiple purposes for your business, and it’s very important to keep your intended purpose for each piece in mind when writing it.
Search Engine Results: The days of manipulating a couple hidden tags to improve your search engine results are long gone. Today, we use keyword research to determine what information our audience is looking for in relation to our services and products. Then we produce content pieces to address those needs. By improving the end user’s experience, we also improve our relationship with most search engine listings. While this effort takes time to be effective, the results will be a lot more consistent in the long term as your goals also match the goals of the search engines – improving user experience.
Sales Tools: Your sales team runs into the same questions, objections and concerns on a daily basis. By building content to address these issues, you provide efficient tools for your sales staff to use in their everyday workflows. Infographics, case studies and product instructions are all examples of common sales-oriented content.
Industry Authority: Both of the above purposes, when taken as a collection, will elevate your company as a go-to industry voice. These smaller articles will set the table for when you have that “Epic” content to deliver. You will have built an audience of trusting followers and a brand as an expert in your field.
All of these content focuses can be repurposed into social media streams, blog posts, video blogs and infographics.
Paralysis of Perfection
So, don’t let yourself get bogged down in writing that perfect essay. It’s much more important to your overall success that you deliver relevant content on a steady schedule.
