Content Marketing Plan: 3 Tips
Digital marketing constantly evolves at a pace that many have trouble keeping up with. It’s no wonder things like content marketing and social media marketing are being approached with a traditional mindset and--surprise--not working at all. The truth is, there are some deliberate strategies to employ that will take your content marketing specifically to the next level. So what’s a content marketing plan even look like, and why does every growing business need to start using one if they haven’t already? Let’s talk about a few key aspects.
What is Content Marketing?
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room before we go any further. Just what exactly is content marketing? We’d define it as a targeted approach of delivering valued, specific content--videos, articles, etc--to potential customers in hopes of conversion. Of course, the end game is sales, but marketing to someone nowadays looks a lot different than even fifteen years ago. Why? Social media has taken over; people are more likely to trust articles and reviews than a hard sales pitch; customers crave authenticity. So the content you push out has to be relevant to a demographic, and contribute to an existing conversation. Here are a few constraints on the content you should deliver.
Time
If you’re generating awesome content, but don’t send it out to social media and other platforms until 2 AM, you’re doing something wrong. Of course, this is an exaggeration, but remember that certain content performs better at certain times of the day. News-related content might be better for 8-9AM weekdays when people are traveling to work. Entertainment-related content like bar openings, concerts, and social events might be shared and viewed more on weekend evenings.
Location
Next, think about where your content goes specifically. Will a YouTube video serve your business well (do you know if your audience even uses that platform)? How would you reach an older audience that doesn’t use social media? What websites are Gen Z customers going to? You can have stellar, curated content, but it won’t matter if no one can find it. Cultivate your image on social media by following the right people and companies. Share relevant news and keep your brand consistent. This is the best way for customers to get to know what you stand for, and will ultimately lead to sales. Stop shoving the hard sale down their throats. Treat them like they want to be treated.
Repetition
Good SEO dictates that your content should be up to date. Search engines value and rank sites higher when they’re publishing content regularly. Now, remember that doesn’t mean spam as many keywords as you can in a crappy article about something irrelevant. In fact, your site might suffer for it. Instead, start generating something worth reading and watching. It’s basically a form of free advertising when people link to your site to share something awesome your company created. Those brownie points will really add up when customers start taking your product/service seriously. All because they liked your content.
These are just a few aspects of a content marketing plan. There’s obviously a lot more out there, but it’s important that you keep these in mind when creating an outlined strategy. Check out our blog for more marketing tips!
