Bill Gates first said that Content is King way back in 1996.
He also said this: “Content is where I expect much of the real money will be made on the internet, just as it was in broadcasting.”
Whether you like Microsoft or not, the man certainly knows a thing or two!
If you look at the history of the internet and where it’s going, along with the changes to Google’s algorithms that focus on great content, it’s clear: Content is definitely King and will remain so.
This means that you have a wonderful opportunity to do a lot with the content you publish – to establish yourself as the expert in your field, to help your audience and a whole lot more.
Here’s what creating amazing content can do for your business:
Educate your Audience
Once you know your target market well (and we’ll get onto that soon in the challenge), you’ll know what they need help with, what their pain points are and how you can help.
Then you can create the type of content they enjoy on the subjects that really help them.
You can also direct the content to point towards what you offer as a possible solution for them. For example, if you are an SEO specialist, you could write a blog about how SEO can increase the visibility of your audience’s sites and bring in new traffic and potential customers. Then at the end of the content, have a strong call to action to your services and how you can help.
Become the Expert
The more content you publish and the more you grow your audience and genuinely help them, the more you’ll get to be known as an expert in your field.
Not only does that give you a huge credibility boost, it will also do the same for your business.
Publish content in a variety of different formats so you spread your message further and reach a wider audience. Not everyone likes to read. Some people are more visual and prefer to learn with video, while yet others like to learn by listening, so the more formats you can publish in, the bigger the audience you can grow.
Establish Relationships
When you share information with your audience, right from the very first email, blog post, or social media update, you’re beginning to build a relationship with them, especially if you write with bags of personality and use personal stories to illustrate your points. People will begin to feel as if they know you over time, and that’s a very good thing.
You’ll have heard that people need to know, like and trust you before they buy, and with great content, you’ve already got the first step.
Build Customer Loyalty
When you give information to your customers about the products they’ve bought from you, even after they’ve purchased, you can really boost customer loyalty because people feel like you genuinely care.
Check in with your customers after they’ve bought to see how they like their purchase, send surveys to find out what can be improved, and even provide additional resources that they weren’t expecting, based on what they bought.
They’ll love you for it and they’ll be loyal to you, and more likely to recommend you to their friends and colleagues.
Encourage Engagement
When you share great content with your audience and ask questions, it encourages engagement.
Invite your audience to respond to your blog posts and when they do, don’t ignore them – reply to them and get the conversation going.
Use a proper return email address for every email you send out and invite people to respond to your email messages.
Ask them to come to your forums and groups on social media.
Build an engaged community that trusts you, and you’ll never struggle for ideas on what content to create or what products and services to sell. Nor will you struggle to find people willing to buy from you.
Build Your Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO enables search engines to find your site, so that they can recommend it to their customers who are searching for your content.
The more you follow the guidelines put out by Google when creating your content the more likely they are to send you targeted traffic.
Here’s a superb guide from Moz on getting started with SEO: https://moz.com/beginners-guide-to-seo.
Boost Your Growth
When you use the right content, at the right time, in the right places your business will grow in all the ways that matter. You’ll grow your audience, your customer base, your reputation, and your revenue.
What’s more, content is a real business asset that you can continue to build on for years to come. The content you produce and publish today will continue working for you for years to come, and that’s why it’s so important to have a content marketing strategy.
Action Point!
If you’re not familiar with SEO basics, have a look at Moz’s article above, and you’ll have a great start in moving your site up the search engine rankings.
Look at the points above and think about where in your business you could apply them to grow your audience and establish yourself as an expert.
Want to share what you’ve come up with or ask a question? Comment away, and I’ll reply!
Okay, that’s it for Day 2. Tomorrow we take a look at why you need a content marketing plan.
Don’t want to wait? Prefer to get all of the 30-Day Content Marketing Challenge posts in one place, so you can work through at your own pace? Here’s a link to all of the challenge lessons: https://creativeblueberry.com/30-day-content-marketing-challenge-catch-up/
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