What is Content Marketing?
How to revolutionize your business
Think of content marketing as an investment. When you “invest” in a robust content plan – it will increase the likelihood of your audiences engaging with said content.
Implementing a high-quality content strategy is easier said than done – brands may not be aware of trends or avenues that can help them achieve their business goals. Additionally, some may even be overwhelmed with the number of platforms and types of content marketing that exist which results in resources being stretched thin.
These “investments” are necessary when you are looking to transform your business.
So, what is content marketing? How can you create a plan around your business goals and audiences? I am here to simplify it for you. After reading this guide, you will learn:
What content marketing is and why it’s important.
Different types of content marketing and how they can complement each other.
What is content marketing?
Content marketing is introducing ideas or topics to your audience to spark interest in your brand and what it can do for them. These types of content are audio, visual, and/or written messages intended for your audience.
Whether you are new to creating content or looking to revisit your existing strategy, it is important to know content marketing is integral to establishing trust with your audience while also showcasing your authenticity to your audience. The goal here is to build a community with your target audience.
Why is content marketing important?
Content marketing is your chance to meaningfully engage in your audience’s conversations, answer their questions, and establish yourself as an industry leader.
When you invest in high-quality content, here is the ROI you can expect:
Establish trust with your audience: When your audience trusts you, they will turn to you for your products, services, and information.
Establish authenticity with your audience: You know your content is good when it resonates with your audience and is simply relatable to them. This is your chance to be a positive influence on your audience – don’t b.s. them.
Establish authority: When you have your audience’s trust, this is your time to establish authority. Show your knowledge in your industry and as a thought leader.
Generate leads and sales: High-quality content can lead to high-quality leads and more sales. A strategic content plan is a key that will unlock growth for your brand. This is what happens when you have an audience who has trust in your brand.
Educating your audience: The more your audience learns about your brand, product, or services, the better, right? When you educate and provide them with tips and best practices, they will likely turn to your product/services.
What are types of content marketing?
When implementing a content plan, you will want to evaluate the appropriate avenues that reach your audience effectively. After doing some research, here are just some of the avenue options you and your brand can explore:
Social Media
It’s no mystery that people are addicted to social media.
As of January 2022, there are 3.96 billion users across all platforms while the average person bounces around seven platforms and spends 95 minutes per day – Sprout Social reports.
While platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter have been around and previously dominated the social realm, TikTok has grown substantially and is now among the most popular platforms. Just see for yourself…
Being active on social media is a must for your brand these days. Leveraging photo and video content is an excellent avenue to grow your brand and reach your audiences. Whether you are looking to grow your brand or discover the conversations your audiences are having, you absolutely should be looking to social media.
Whether you're leveraging paid social (targeted ads, promoted posts) or organic social, it's important to stay consistent and relevant to your audiences on each platform.
Web / Blog
You likely already know your website tells your audience everything they need to know about your brand and product/services. What you may not know is you can reach a larger audience by simply optimizing your website so Google can rank your pages higher – making it easier for your audience to discover your brand.
Some of the aspects of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) include:
Improving the load speed of your pages.
Ensuring your site is mobile-friendly.
Keyword optimization.
Web content also involves blogging. Implementing a consistent blog strategy is your chance to educate your audience on your brand and to help your site ranking efforts within Google. According to, DemandMetric, businesses that blog produce 67% more leads monthly than those who do not.
You may also notice a couple of ads at the top of Google’s search engine results page (SERP) or even display ads you see on other web pages. These types of ads fall under Search Engine Marketing (SEM).
PR / Media
Leveraging PR and media outlets to amplify your brand awareness can go a long way when generating leads and capturing the public's attention.
This owned media outlet is great at maintaining personalized relationships with your audience.
You may utilize this tactic for newsletters that go hand-in-hand with your blog content. You may also use email campaigns for promotions, consumer feedback, and other newsworthy topics within your business and industry.
These are just a few of the many pieces of the puzzle when creating content. Some tactics may work better than others, that's why doing some research and testing to determine which avenues are best for you and how to implement them.
How to create a content plan?
If you are looking to implement your plan or discovering how to incorporate fresh ideas, keep reading as I will guide you through the process of implementing a robust content plan. These are some questions you will want to ask yourself along the way:
What is your goal?
Are you looking to promote a particular product or service? Or just trying to increase brand awareness? Once you have decided on your goal, you can begin executing your content strategy.
Who is your audience and where are they?
Who is the audience you are targeting with your content? Additionally, how many different audiences are you looking to target? Brands typically have different types of customers and some types of content may not be appropriate for certain audiences.
This is where you will want to conduct research and discover where your audiences are and their habits (e.g., what social media platforms they are on, how much time they spend on them, and other avenues they may see the content.)
What do you consider success?
When determining the success of your content plan, you will need to tie it to a numerical value. Whether it’s impressions of your content or engagement with your content, you need to determine what metric you will use to measure the performance of your content.
The possibilities are endless – so is your ROI
While creating a content plan can be overwhelming, you will learn about your audience and how to reach them. Just remember to:
Continuously test different methods and strategies
Measure your performance
Optimize content
Repeat
Once you have the above down, you will be well on your way to success. It may be cliche, but content is king and that is how you get ahead of your competition.