Have you ever wondered what the secret sauce for a successful online strategy is? It is not social networks, blogging, SEO, or good content alone. It is content marketing — a combination of it all.
Today, content marketing has become more than just a buzzword. In fact, 99% of B2C marketers in a survey said that their content marketing is successful, even if minimally.
Whether you realize it or not, it’s everywhere.
This very article you’re reading right now is part of a brand’s content marketing strategy.
So, why has content marketing grown so exponentially in popularity?
Here’s the thing: it’s a very effective way to:
- Build brand awareness
- Generate quality leads
- Boost revenue
- Retain customers
More importantly, it is something the modern consumer expects. The new, digitally-conscious consumer is constantly connected, app-native, and will look up your brand on the internet before buying from you.
Ready to learn more? Below are six content marketing tips that will help you keep the modern-day consumer engaged.
Content Marketing Tips for Marketers
Here are the best content marketing tips that you can implement to grow your brand.
1. Publish Both Evergreen and Trending Content
There are endless possibilities of content to share on the internet.
However, living in these times of content overload, you’ve got only so much time to impress consumers.
According to a 2019 study from the Technical University of Denmark, our global attention span is dwindling quickly due to an overabundance of information.
In this light, you must make sure that what you’re posting is what your audience wants.
A great content marketing tip in this regard is to post both evergreen and trending content.
Evergreen content is that which continues to be relevant long after being published. Such content is timeless. For instance, an article that talks about the benefits of exercising will land the publisher clicks in 2015, as well as in 2021.
Trending content, on the other hand, is that which concerns topics popular only for a limited period of time. Such content is focused on current-day events and trends.
For instance, here’s what Netflix tweeted during the #BlackLivesMatter movement:
So keep an eye out for trending topics in your space at all times. If there’s a hot topic, post about it.
Also, whatever the topic may be, make sure that you publish nothing short of top-notch content as it reflects your brand’s authority.
2. Use the Right Social Media Management Tools
Today, most brands have a social media presence, and for a good reason.
However, managing your social media presence can be quite complex and time-consuming. There is so much to do and so many different platforms.
Thankfully, there are many social media management tools that can make your life easier. These tools can help you monitor social engagement, schedule posts, analyze performance, and manage many different platforms at once.
And there’s more.
One of the biggest advantages of these tools is that most of them have mobile applications. Thus, they can be easily used to work remotely. A handy content marketing tip here is to schedule your posts so that they’re published at the right times.
3. Use Search Intent to Optimize Outreach
This is one of the least spoken about yet one of the most effective content marketing tips.
A great way to understand what kind of content your audience wants is by trying to figure out the search intent.
This makes the content ideation process easier and also helps you grow your rankings in the SERPs faster.
How, you might ask?
When you write content by keeping the search intent in mind, it has a higher chance of being discovered since you’re strategically placing your brand in front of prospective leads.
Search intent can fall under four main categories:
Informational
In this case, the searcher is looking for information.
This can include the answer to a simple question such as, “Which type of shoes are best for running?”
To optimize content for such intent, add “intent modifiers” in strategic positions such as headings and subheadings, URLs, page titles, and descriptions. These are words that people add to a base keyword to narrow down their search.
Intent modifiers associated with informational intent include how, which, what, who, guide, tutorial, article, resource, etc.
Navigational
Here, the searcher already knows what website they’re looking for.
If they have this type of intent, they will probably already know about you or your brand.
To rank well in such searches, you should have crisp and clean homepages and landing pages. Make sure that you’ve clearly stated what your company does and who it caters to on these pages. Additionally, add your brand/product name in headings, page titles, and meta descriptions to further improve your page’s SEO.
Commercial
In this case, the searcher already knows what product or service they need but has yet to finalize the brand.
Here’s an example:
To ensure that your website is optimized for this search intent, include a clear and detailed product or service descriptions. Additionally, try to put out content that focuses on your brand’s and product’s USP.
Transactional
Transactional queries involve searchers who are dedicated to performing a certain action, such as buying a product or signing up for a newsletter.
It is important that your website is structured in a way to keep these searchers focused on the main outcome — for instance, buying.
You can use lists, bullet points, and white space to increase readability. It is also important to include clear and compelling CTAs wherever you can.
4. Get People to Share Your Content
Social sharing is one of the most effective content marketing tips that you can implement for your brand.
If one of your readers likes your post, they can share it with their circles, and that can help you grow your reach and engagement.
Simple statements like, “Liked this article? Give it a share!” can help your articles get more views, which can improve your rankings too.
What’s more?
Another great way of expanding your content’s reach is by collaborating with the right influencers. This is undoubtedly one of the best content marketing tips.
An influencer is a person with authority, expertise, experience, and sway in a particular niche. By collaborating with an influencer, you can get your content to reach a huge set of people at once.
Let’s take a look at an example of a brand that has used influencer marketing to its advantage.
Back in 2016, Pepsi unleashed a global campaign that involved putting about 200 custom-designed emojis on their cans and bottles.
The purpose of the campaign was to demonstrate that these specially-packaged bottles can make your summer activities more enjoyable.
What’s more?
Pepsi came up with the hashtag #SayItWithPepsi and had influential creators develop original content about the emojis.
And that’s not all.
Next, Pepsi chose the best-performing content and had 40 secondary influencers share it with their audiences.
This campaign generated more than 46M impressions, and yet again, proved the remarkable power of influencer marketing and social sharing.
5. Optimize All Your Headlines
Like Will Rogers once said, you never get a second chance to make a good first impression.
It won’t matter how great your content is if it doesn’t have an appealing headline.
What’s more?
If Google notices that people aren’t clicking on your links, you might begin to see a drop in your rankings.
This is, thus, one of the most important content marketing tips that you should implement to improve your SEO.
Including your article’s main keyword in the title is a prerequisite for optimizing your blog post. However, it is also important to modify it for user intent.
What’s also crucial is for your headline to be catchy.
Given below are four examples of ways in which you can accomplish this:
- Ask a Question: Are you Making These Blogging Mistakes?
- Make a Promise: Learn How to Grow Your Blog in 3 Months!
- Include a Call-to-Action: Take Control of Your Life by Starting a Blog Today!
- Pose a Challenge: Can You Monetize Your Blog in a Year? Here’s How…
Apart from the headlines, you should also pay attention to your content. Make sure that it’s up to the mark and free of grammatical errors. For this, you can use tools for content writing that can help you improve your content and help you write engaging copy.
6. Leverage Email Marketing Effectively
This is one of the most underrated content marketing tips out there. 2019 saw as many as 3.9 billion email users, and the number has only increased since then.
What does this mean for you?
It means that email marketing is still a powerful and productive way to connect with your audience.
And guess what?
It’s very personalized too.
How?
When you write a post on one of your social media channels, you address it to your audience as a whole. With emails, you can segment your audience into lists and send each list a personalized message that resonates with them.
The best thing about this content marketing tip is that there is no guesswork involved. You can easily get a picture of how well your email marketing campaigns are performing through your email platforms.
Final Thoughts
With the increasing volume of content, it is getting harder to stand out in the digital world. That being said, content marketing can prove to be a goldmine for your brand if you do it right.
The key to ensuring your strategy works is to follow these content marketing tips at all times. For starters, you should publish the right type of content. It is also necessary to keep close tabs on user intent.
What’s more?
You must also optimize all of your headlines. Then, get people to share your content.
And lastly, don’t forget to capitalize on email marketing.
Do you have any questions about these content marketing tips? Tell us in the comments section below.
