Why is content important?

Being listed on search results

Content is king, or so the saying goes. But in the current internet landscape, content marketing is the BUZZWORD. The way search engines are configured today is designed to boost websites with highly valuable content. Content that is high quality, highly targeted, relevant, engaging and useful. That means the if you want to get your website listed at the top of Google search, you’re going to have to put in the effort of creating content.

Adding value

By providing value via relevant help, advice, information and background knowledge for your prospective customers and website visitors, you are allowing them to get to know more about you, your competency and expertise as well as giving them an opportunity to get to know, like and trust you.

You will be able to interact with your audience, ask them questions about their wants and needs, give them the opportunity to ask you for information, and advice, and build up a relationship with them. Doing so builds trust (transparent and authentic), allows you to prove you know what you’re talking about by demonstrating your competency and expertise. Don’t pretend to be some kind of guru if you’re not, be honest and open with them at all times. It also allows you to know what your customers want and expect from you, remember valuable content answers reader’s questions and is unique to you.

If you’re going to sell anything you have to be known, liked and trusted and creating content is one of the most effective ways to do this over the long term. However you’re not going to see results overnight. It’s a long term strategy that goes on in the background of your overall marketing strategy.

A helping hand from us

Some businesses and bloggers have difficulty producing content particularly, photography and video, but If you’re interested in using our facilities and equipment for your photography, video content creation, get in touch to discuss. We can provide somewhere for you to come and get creative, away from the distractions of your daily environment. We hire the studio out hourly, half and full days to clients.

Types of content

Figure out what’s the best medium to tell your stories on, either video, audio (podcasts), written (blog), graphics, or photography (Instagram). Here are some ideas for content..

List pages

• Check lists
• Resource lists
• Lists of lists
• News lists
• Demonstration
• Series

Infographics

• How-to guides
• Researched statistics
• Timelines
• Did you know
• Flow charts

Whitepapers

• Research
• Trends
• Topical guides
• Beginner overviews
• Downloadable guides

Live Blogging

• Event coverage
• Covering fast changing situations
• Live Q&A’s

Round  ups

• News round-ups
• From around the web
• Summing up events

Q&A’s

• Q&A for interviews
• Q&A FAQ
• Informal Q&A

Opinion pieces

• Controversial posts
• High level breakdown
• Forecasting trends
• Deep dive
• New angle

Interviews

• Industry leaders
• Innovative companies
• Topical expert

Content formats

• How to’s
• Content curation
• Case studies
• Charts/graphs
• Ebooks
• Email Newsletters/Autoresponders
• Cartoons/illustrations
• Book Summaries
• Tool Reviews
• Giveaways
• FAQ’s
• Q&A session
• Webinar
• Guides
• Dictionary
• “Day in the life of” Post
• Infographics
• Interview
• Lists
• Mind Maps
• Meme
• Online Game
• Helpful Application/Tool
• Opinion Post
• White Papers
• Vlog
• Videos – screencasts, talking heads, illustrations, graphics, film roll
• Podcasts
• Templates
• Surveys
• Slideshares
• Resources
• Quotes
• Polls
• Podcasts
• Pinboards
• Photo Collage
• Original Research
• Press releases
• Photos
• Predictions
• User Generated Content
• Company News
• Announcements
• Timelines

Making content interesting

Whatever medium you decide to use, and you shouldn’t just stick to one, make your content interesting, something you are passionate about, excited to learn more about (this is a must for longevity). If it’s not interesting it’s because it’s …

• The wrong topic,
• The wrong medium,
• Pitching to the wrong audience,
• Or all of the above

Make your content:

• Informative
• Inspirational
• Interactive

Content should be made up of a combination of:

• Opinion
• Expertise
• Information
• Insight
• Access
• Passion

6 tips for content marketing

• Fulfil a need
• Consistency
• Talk like a human being
• Cannot be vanilla – take a point of view
• Your goal – to be the best in your niche

More tips

• Your content is your sales person but the close should happen all by itself
• Story ideas – get as many as possible to make them interesting
• 10 different pieces of content form one story via each of your marketing channels, Planning upfront will make it easier

How to know if your content is hitting the mark?

The best way to check how effective your content is, is by measuring engagement, such as the number of comments on your articles (if you allow comments), the number of emails asking questions, how many times your content is shared, and how long people stay on your site.

Ask people to comment on posts. Encourage comments by asking questions or asking for further comment, the original article should be considered the start of a discussion

Personally reply to comments and emails to encourage interaction and discussion, and try to respond to everyone

Put link on Facebook saying ‘ check out how many comments my latest post has got, great discussion going on here’

Illicit feedback open loops at the end of blogposts, and include surveys

Create – unique content of your own

Provide unique material about a topic, niche, industry, that isn’t being provided anywhere else. Write good content to build relationships and tell a story and make it unique. People like stories. Give it your voice, your perspective, using video, podcasts, infographics, photography and the written word.

Be different to your competitors, use your USP. Be personable, transparent, share the wealth of personal experience, and provide it in a convenient medium, such as a podcast for people on the go.

It’s okay to be controversial – give it your viewpoint and don’t be scared to express your unique opinion, as long as you don’t come over to the audience as a jerk. If you highlight a problem, provide a constructive alternative.

Document – your journey

When writing content put yourself in the shoes of someone just behind you and write what you have just learned

Chart your own progress

• Your journey to build your business – moving your business online
• Your progress in a new job
• Learning a new skill – learning SEO, PPC
• Put sale techniques into practice
• Sell something different every day testing your sales skills
• Be as YOU as you can be, and be unapologetic about it

Facilitate

Provide access, curate, provide insight about current niche trends

• Current trends/techniques within your niche or industry
• Software trends, that are relevant to your niche
• Explore the topic more freely and in-depth
• Content curation and content aggregation, where you filter good quality content for your readers, this adds value for them and saves them having to troll through low quality content
• Do interviews with influential people in your field
• See what others in your niche are doing, and make a decided effort to do something different
• Write for your peers so that your content will be shared, talk about your struggles and solutions

Cover local issues

• Real estate – local amenities, history of area – reasons why it’s good living here
• Local relevant events

Getting creative – coming up with ideas

Write your ideas down when you have them, good ideas often come when you least expect them, so be prepared.

Find a balance between what you are interested in and what can make money. Take inventory of your personal goals and see where that overlaps commercial potential

Check PPC and popular searches to workout the latest article topics, also look at industry specific magazines, books, Facebook groups, discussing boards and see what are HOT topics.

Looking after your audience

Treat your audience as customers, make sure you provide value to them, and look after them. Don’t do it with the express goal of making them into customers, trust that doing the right thing will have positive consequences later down the line.

•  Always reply to comments or messages
• Say thanks
• Use names and tag people
• Share things – if you come across something you like share it
• Make navigation around the site easy for your audience, people have little patience to stick around a difficult-to-navigate website
• Decrease page load times w3 total cache and CDN content delivery network
• Get rid of annoyances on site such as pop-ups and distracting ads
• Surprise audience – give something for free
• Include transcript with podcasts or video speechpad.com
• Use high quality audio and video
  • Heil PR40 microphone
  • DSLR camera
  • We provide studio and equipment hire, so drop me an email for more information 🙂
• Invite participation – reader challenge, ask for opinion, calls to action – get people involved
• Get personal – infuse your personality and life to get deeper connection
• Provide unique content such as provide case studios, experiments, income reports etc
• Proof read content before you post it (do as I say, not as I do).
• Remember who you are and who you’re serving
• Always over deliver

Summary

So there it is, content is so important for any business, big or small, in the modern day  internet. Start creating, and producing content that helps your audience get to know, like and trust you. Build relationships that start remotely and progress to lasting value exchanges. Build your Brand in your prospects mind, by engaging over and over with them. Without this interaction, you’re nothing but a commodity with no discernible value that can’t be taken from any of your competitors.

Drop me an email if you would like find out more information about our studio, equipment hire. Ideal for businesses, and bloggers alike. We have lighting, high quality DSLR camera equipment for photography and video, backgrounds and studio space. Ideal to fuel your creative juices. Please share this article with anyone you think will benefit from it. Also you can find out more about it here.