Content marketing is extremely valuable for attracting and engaging prospects. In fact, it generates three times as many leads as traditional marketing alone, while costing 62% less.
As powerful as content marketing is, you must avoid these mistakes to reap the benefits.
5 content marketing mistakes you might be making
1. You stick with one type of content
Not everyone consumes content in the same way. Some may be visual learners and prefer videos, while others may want to multitask by listening to a podcast during their commute. Producing only one type of content will alienate portions of your audience. Create blog posts, videos, infographics and more to appeal to a wide range of people.
Producing several different types of content doesn’t have to be a complicated endeavor. You can take the same information and present it in both written and visual format to work more efficiently while reaching more people.
2. You don’t promote it
All the time and effort you put into crafting your content will be wasted if you don’t promote it. While your company blog or resource page should be the first place your content is published, keep distributing it by posting the content on social media and through e-newsletters.
Send it out to customers and prospects who have expressed interest in the topic it addresses, and use it in other campaigns or on landing pages where the topic is appropriate and the content doesn’t feel forced. This way, not only is it viewed more often and by more people, but you are putting it to the most efficient use possible.
The video below has some great tips for posting your video content. You can also find it on YouTube.
3. You use it as an extended sales pitch
Any goals you have for your content will always stem from one major goal: growing your business. But don’t equate growing your business with solely selling your products.
Your customers and prospects look at your content for the same reason that you make it: to grow their business. Educate them first to build trust and thought leadership status.
If you do occasionally link to a product’s landing page, only do it when it fits in with the context of the piece, as including unrelated product links just for the sake of including them will feel unauthentic and not as trustworthy. You can also link to other pieces of content inside another when relevant. For example, linking to a YouTube video inside of a blog article adds additional information and increases the average time on page.
4. You don’t research what your audience actually wants
While it’s a good idea to look at popular industry websites for content inspiration and brainstorming, don’t get caught in the trap of replicating their strategy.
Track your success by using marketing metrics — such as average views, video retention and number of downloads — to learn what topics and content forms resonate the most with your audience to optimize it in the future.
The best thing you can do is ask your audience directly what they want to know more about. Include a few questions about their job title, responsibilities and business goals as well so you get a sense of who you’re writing for. No matter the topic, content will look different if it’s written for a small, Southeastern company versus a large, Northwestern business.
5. You only create content driven by trends
Yes, you want some pieces that will draw a lot of attention to your brand because it’s very important at the moment. An example of this would be something tied with current events that affect your industry, or just a hot new social media platform. But such content can be short-lived.
Evergreen content, though it may require the occasional update, is centered around topics that will always be of interest to your audience and, therefore, will stay relevant for years to come.
Though you might not see the initial interest that a trendier and timelier topic might see, evergreen content will be relevant for much longer — and the views will eventually match and even surpass that of short-lived content. Remember to update evergreen content occasionally to make sure it has the most relevant information and to improve SEO.
Conclusion
Content marketing can triple the amount of leads you get with traditional marketing alone, all while costing 62% less. Make sure you create multiple forms of content that will stay relevant for years to come and are tailored to your unique audience.
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