Content marketing is the production and sharing of free content that is interesting, helpful information which are audience-focused materials that aim to ultimately increase leads and convert them into customers — and then customers into repeat buyers.
What it boils down to is providing customers with information — ideally backed by data or your unique expertise — that educates them and enables them to makes their own decision about what they are searching for. You could use many different tactics to support your content marketing goals, which include whitepapers, videos, eBooks, email newsletters, social media posts, and yes, blogging. Each one serves its own purpose in the bigger content marketing-scheme, but they all contribute to the end goal of building trust and reputation with your audience / prospects. These "tactics" are usually accompanied with an opt-in form to enable leads to submit their details. Blogging, on the other hand, involves posting regular content of a particular topic of a website and is updated regularly to keep that website fresh and interesting. Blog content is displayed chronologically, so you’ll always find the most recent content first. The goal here is to communicate with your audience, whether you’re promoting a product, providing valuable knowledge to your readers, or working to establish your organization as a thought leader. And it’s an important tactic within the greater content marketing strategy. So content marketing is actually the umbrella term under which blogging is included. As a result, there’s often a lot of overlap between the two. For many brands, blogging is an essential way to bring value to readers, which is why it’s considered a great starting point for any content marketing strategy. The Benefits of Content Marketing and Blogging Content marketing is one of the most effective ways to reach new customers. It drives traffic to your site, helps establish you as a leading voice in your industry, and gives audiences useful, actionable content that they need to solve their problems. Content marketing as a strategy is important given how much the customer’s buying journey has changed. Nowadays, as you know, the easy access to information on personal mobile devices, has enabled the customer to be better informed for their decision making, and that the majority of the purchasing decision is already made before they talk to anyone in your company. This means that you need to reach them in multiple ways — to influence that decision. Content marketing gives you that power, and if done the right way, builds genuine trust with your customers. Content that is smart and helpful, brands your company as a go-to, expert resource. Blogs and other types of content continue to generate traffic long after they’re published. Blogs are a lot like a gift that keeps on giving. According to HubSpot, 1 in 10 blogs are compounding, which means that these blogs help increase website traffic through organic search over time. What’s more is that though compounding blog posts only make up 10% of all blog posts, they still generate 38% of all traffic. The key to creating blog posts that continue to bring organic traffic to your site long after they are published is to focus on topics that will remain relevant to your target audience forever. This is what we call evergreen content, and it can help you get the most out of your blogging efforts. The following are some benefits of content marketing and blogging when they are done right: Better SEO When you produce high-quality content consistently, you give Google more opportunities to put your page in front of people who are searching for topics in your niche. Content marketing benefits your business by improving your SEO and therefore your visibility. Increased Website Traffic With consistency in delivering great content comes increased website traffic. The more relevant and valuable content you create in your niche, the more people are likely to find your website, and the more likely they are to keep coming back for future questions. The more website traffic and repeat visitors you get, the more your overall website traffic can grow over the long term. More Leads By providing information that offers readers insight into your products or services, you give them the information they need to become a customer. Content about your products and services as well as about your area of expertise helps to build trust, which helps to generate quality leads for your business. More Sales Creating content that engages your readers helps to increase your lead conversion, resulting in more sales for your business. Also, given that more and more people are blocking ads on their browsers, content becomes the most vital way of communicating the value that turns readers into buyers. The thing about great content is that it’s non-disruptive and naturally invites members of your target audience to engage with your business. Enhanced Brand Image Good brands often earn the respect of consumers before they even make a purchase, simply through the quality of their content. In this age of globalization, brand image is everything, and content facilitates brand image. With great content, you put yourself in control of your business’s reputation and brand identity. Increased Brand Loyalty Brand loyalty is the bullseye. Content helps you gain customers first by converting readers to first-time buyers, and then continues on to influence those first-time buyers to become repeat customers. Over time, content helps you cultivate among your customers an affinity to your brand and a preference for yours over your competitors. Stronger Social Media Following People will share your content if it solves a problem or satisfies a need. When a reader finds your content helpful, they share that content others who might find it useful and before you know it, you gain more followers on social media who are eager to listen to what you’re saying. Improved Customer Relationships Customer relationships have always been important, but are even more important in the digital age because several people rely on the opinion of other people to make purchase decisions. Content is a great way to address the needs of your customers and tackle any form of issues they might be having with your product or services. Use FAQ pages, blog posts, and other online resources to provide a superior experience for customers, who won’t be able to help themselves from spreading the word about your business. Better Brand Recognition Content is one of the best ways to make your brand so familiar that buyers in your niche are naturally drawn to you when they’re searching for solutions in your niche. As buyers are becoming more careful about what they purchase, content is a great way to maintain top-of-mind status with audiences in your niche. More Brand Credibility Reviews and testimonials are one of the most popular forms of content among people looking to make a purchase decision. People want to know about your brand and how it has helped others before committing their money. One great way to convey your value and reduce risk for your audience is by sharing insightful and honest content about your products/services through testimonials. Faster Lead Conversion One of the best ways to speed up sales funnel activities and convert more leads is through highly targeted content. Crafting content that is relevant to your prospective buyers will help them make up their minds faster. Conclusion These benefits of content marketing and blogging aren’t exhaustive in any way. However, they’re enough to help you understand why the cliché ‘content is king’ will remain one of the most relevant phrases in the world of digital marketing. Still, you can only reap the benefits of the content you produce or blog by delivering relevant and valuable information consistently to audiences in your niche. |
AuthorNicholas Joseph Lim and guest writers contribute the latest on internet marketing strategies. Archives
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