We all have heard the term “Content is king ”, it was first used by Bill Gates in an essay in 1996, where he discussed that the future digital space will act as a marketplace for content. Since then, we have witnessed unprecedented growth in content creation and its marketing. But how can we use it effectively to grow our business? Let’s dive into the article to find out.
What Is the Buzz Around Content Marketing All About?
Content marketing is a simple tactic of creating and propagating informative material. This is done to either boost sales for a business, to grow their audience, or to develop their brand presence.
To understand it better, let’s take examples of two companies in the food industry. To increase their audience, one uses paid ads on TV and radio, while the other company uses content marketing tools and puts on organic content about their products.
The first company might initially see some sales growth. But paid promotions will be taken down as soon as they stop paying. On the other hand, the second company will take a little longer to witness sales growth. But their content will always remain on the internet, thanks to SEO algorithms used in content marketing.
This is the main reason for the popularity of content marketing. They are more cost-efficient than traditional marketing methods like magazine ads and television commercials. They are also a long-term marketing investment.
In addition to that, consumers also prefer them over other forms of marketing, because they are not forced over the users like traditional ads that we cannot skip.
Content marketing is the art of communicating with prospective clients without actually selling them a product. We are using a pull approach here, trying to attract customers using interactive content.
Who Can Help You With Content Marketing?
Now that you have understood what content marketing entails, you must be curious to get your hands on the techniques to utilize it. Well, some professionals can help you create a good content marketing plan.
The question is where to find these experts? You can use the basic internet browser for it. For example, a single search result for Milwaukee digital marketing agencies will land you with many marketing experts. You can search for the same in your area of business.
Why we have mentioned digital marketing agencies is because digital marketing is an umbrella term that encompasses all types of digital promotions.
If you reach out to a digital marketing agency, you are not only finding content marketing solutions, but also a host of other digital tools that will work in collaboration to strengthen your digital reach.
Content Marketing as a Tool of Business Transformation
1. Convert Your Business Into a Trusted Brand Name
Content marketing can attract the attention of customers and increase the search visibility of a company over the internet. A good marketing plan helps your content appear in all the right places where you can find potential clients.
Strong content makes people associate your company with the topic you consistently talk about. This is known as brand awareness.
For example, if you search for the best AI tools on Google, you see that a company named A appears on the top search result. You go to YouTube and find the same company on top result for AI tools.
This makes you trust their name in their business niche. It’s due to their great content marketing plan.
You have to say something valuable about your business through your content. It has to be something that differentiates you from other businesses in your niche. With a good marketing plan, your content can make you a known figure in your industry.
2. Save More Money and Resources
Small businesses want to capture the market using fewer resources and money. Content marketing is the best solution for such needs. Although the initial IT cost will be sizable, there are long-term gains in terms of customer retention and lead generation.
One Content can be repurposed for different platforms to save money. For example, write a SEO friendly blog, convert it into an informational video after a few days or a Spotify podcast.
Paid promotion requires a continuous flow of dollars into it, while content marketing only requires a one-time investment. It does not require a single dollar in the long run. This is why it’s relatively cheaper than other marketing categories.
3. Create Leads and Diversify Your User Base
Want to tap into a new customer base but not sure how to? Research is also a part of content marketing. For example, suppose your research finds out that your product is more famous among women.
Then find out the gaps you can fill to reach out to men. Study your competitors, and develop content that can target this new group.
Engaging new users and creating new leads is where content marketing works best. You can present your information in the form of videos, infographics, photos, or newsletters. The aim is to reach out to as many customers as you can and drive this traffic to your website.
4. Profits Through the Power of SEO
We have a general idea of how Bing and Google rank websites on SERPs ( search engine results pages). This means some pages will get higher preference when searching for a product in that niche. So how do you make sure that your website gets this preference?
Well, one of the factors that help companies rank better at SERPs is quality content. Produce some high-value content, and marketing tools will do the rest. This will land you among the top search results in your niche. It will likely transform clicks into sales.
5. Create a Loyal Customer Base
Regular interactions with your customers through social media increases their willingness to buy your product or service. Content marketing is a whole different game when it comes to creating loyal customers.
For example, you might be allergic to flowers but still admire their photos. Now, if you start following a particular business selling fresh flowers on Instagram, you will recommend it to friends and family, totally based on the quality of their content that you admire.
This way, a business will go on to make a loyal customer base who will always support their new products.
Conclusion
Content is oil. You need to refine it to use it in a meaningful way. A good content marketing strategy should focus on both, quality content creation and its marketing using SEO and other business tools.
Content marketing is the future of marketing. It is influential, creative, and subtly compelling. Its use will be an asset for your business in the long run.