Content marketingās PR has its ups and downs. Itās been proclaimed the king of marketing universe on one day, to be questioned as an efficient marketing strategy on the day after.
But you know what? Don't fall into articles that proclaim the death of content marketing. Seriously, don't fall for it. Itās not true.
I donāt write it because Iām a content writer, and I firmly believe in the immortality of content marketing. I write it because Iām a content marketer and I see business benefits it brings to our business every day!
Thatās why today Iād like to focus on the definition of content marketing and how we can use it in 2017 to make sure we are seen and heard by our audience.
What is content marketing
If you asked me about the definition of content marketing, Iād say:
Content marketing is a type of marketing that stimulates interest with a brand and its services by creation and promotion of online articles, posts, podcasts or videos. It helps to attract right audience and drives profitable customer actions, but at the same time builds brandās credibility and helps to gain customer loyalty.
A very important part of content marketing is that it mixes a couple of marketing strategies into one. For example, content cannot be efficient without search engine optimization or a social media strategy.
The secret of content marketing is to provide valuable, relevant and consistent content. It means that every time you publish a podcast episode, a landing page or simply a blog post, it should be packed with useful information in an easy-to-read form.
How content marketing works
Sometimes I can hear that content marketing doesnāt work because a company has a blog, they post regularly, a lot of effort is put into this work, but the blog doesnāt sell. So, after a couple of months of hard work, this company decides to stop the project and shut down a blog.
OK, so let's say this straight: content marketing doesnāt sell. You know who makes sales? A salesperson or a sales team. Content marketing is much more complicated.
It helps to spread the word about the company at first and helps to build an audience that is interested in topics that are described on companyās website. It also helps you to show yourself as an expert in your field. And hey, who wouldnāt like to buy a product or service from an expert?
This is how content marketing works.
When I had a chat with John Hall, the co-founder, and CEO of Influence & Co. in my Business Sidekick podcast, he said a very important thing:
Content marketing, at least in our view of it, is the best way to stay on top of peopleās minds at the right time. So when they are making a buying decision, itās your company that they think of. If you come at it from a sales standpoint, then you lose that. And you lose the trust that they naturally come to you initially. The first person that comes to mind isnāt the person who just keeps selling you. Itās, the first person that helps you.
Thatās why, let me repeat, your content marketing goal should be publishing valuable, relevant and consistent content. There is no one formula for content success, but if you ask me, Iād say that your posts should cover one topic in depth and offer actionable steps to your readers.
āHow toā types of posts are the most likely to be shared by social media users!
The definition of content marketing in 2017
In 2017, the Internet is saturated with high-quality, valuable content. Most companies have blogs, there are dozens of podcasts or Youtube channels, so itās very difficult to publish your content and stand out, right?
Hereās how John Hall sees the role of content in todayās Internet:
Right now thereās a lot of content, but thereās still a ton of value out there. I donāt care if thereās a billion or if there are twenty hundred billion pieces of content. All that matters is that are you getting the right eyes to view the content and it doesnāt matter if thereās a ton of content out there.
So everything in content marketing is about hypertargeting and delivering content that will be interesting for readers and potential customers. In other words, you need to have your content marketing personas and be able to tell which topics will be interesting to them.
Of course, it will take some time until your content ship takes the right course, but hey ā embrace failures, they help you to develop.
But how do I start, you could ask.
OK, hereās an example.
Letās imagine that you have an online store and you sell products that are under ten dollars. As as you can imagine ā itās almost everything you can imagine!
Your first step is to document your strategy: what youāre trying to accomplish, your primary goal and secondary goals. You need to know what you will measure after six months and what you are going to measure after twelve months. It needs to be clear at the beginning; itās your starting point.
Your next step is to make sure that your content strategy is consistent with your brandās voice. You must know why youāre doing what you do and ensure that your communication leads around that āwhy.ā
For example, if your product was made to solve a problem, make people more productive or efficient, you should write about these topics.
In the meantime, itās great to build a community around your blog or podcast. Promote your content on social media (you can hypertarget it on Facebook or Linkedin), find your potential audience on forums and groups, or send .
Focus on giving value
Thereās still a ton of value in content marketing, and there will always be a value, itās not going to go away. It may change slightly but thereās always be a need to educate an audience that youāre targeting, that needs to learn about the area youāre in.John Hall
Content marketing is every brandās business card. Everything, starting from website design and landing page copy, through resources like reports, ebooks or additional tools, should show brandās personality and willingness to help.
Your goal is to show people that youāre not only willing to sell, but also that youāre passionate about what you do, and you actually care about your customers and readers.
And as long as you bring value to their lives, they will repay you with trust and loyalty and eventually will become your customers.
