Moment of truth: I had no clue what content marketing was when I started working at Rough Draft Solutions (RDS). Thankfully, after a year of working at RDS, I’ve got an idea of what content creation strategies businesses should be using.
The amount of advertisements we see each day is excessive. Businesses are striving to show off their brands and attract potential customers, but if they are strictly relying on self-promoting ads, they are missing the mark. If companies want to make a meaningful impact on their customers and extend their reach, they need to produce value-focused, authentic, and hard-hitting content.
6 things I’ve learned about content marketing that you should know too
1. Give your customers value, not a sales pitch
Customers choose where they do business based on emotion, logic, value, and solutions. If your company’s content is only focusing on your business, your products, and your services your content may be working against you. You must produce content that relates to your customers’ needs.
Find out what your customers value, what problems they need to be solved, and what you can do to solve them. Then look deeper into your customer persona to discover what kind of content they like to read and craft your content using strategies that best fit these platforms. Are your customers blog readers? Are they tied to their email? Do they love video? If your content isn’t providing value or solutions in a medium that is relevant to your customers, it’s not working.
2. Ask these questions before writing or editing any content
As a writer or editor, it’s easy to see a piece of writing and immediately want to start changing or polishing content. A lot of times, that’s where you can go wrong. Whether it’s a blog post, newsletter, or website content, there are a few questions you should ask yourself before making any red marks.
What is the goal of this content?
What should the audience understand after reading this content?
How could this information be more focused/clear/concise?
How can I break this information into sections so that it is easy for readers to follow?
What platform is best to communicate this content?
Asking these questions is crucial to keep your content focused and customer-driven. But the questions don’t stop once you’ve published your content! To get the most out of your content, you should ask yourself how you can reuse your content either by repurposing it or by sharing it on other platforms.
3. Stay in tune with your audience
People get busy. On a particular week, certain customers may not follow your content as closely while another group of customers is totally tuned-in. Because circumstances are always changing, it can be hard to keep up with what your audience wants to read and what content they will engage with.
Frequently assessing your page’s performances is an excellent way to recognize some trends and give you a basic understanding of when certain audiences are interacting with your content. Remember, don’t feel discouraged if your content receives less engagement every once in awhile. Your audience will view you as a reliable source when you stay consistent. Don’t give up!
4. Write in a way your audience can easily understand
Customers want to know how your business can help them directly, so address them directly. Use “you” and “your” in your content, simplify technical terms as much as possible, and stay true to your business voice to make the content engaging. Double check each of these things to be sure your content is focused, simplified, and far from a snooze fest.
Talking to a customer about how your products impact the general population can be helpful. However, discussing how your products and services can influence your customers’ individual lives means more to them, and ultimately, will create a better connection between your company and your customers.
5. Understand your story and tell it
Humans crave connection. One of the most important marketing strategies your business can use is defining your business’s story. Your customers are looking for relatable and compelling stories that will tell them why they should do business with you.
Where did you come from? How did you get started? What are your values? What is your mission? Answering these questions can benefit your business, customer relations, and customer loyalty.
6. Write to teach, inform, and inspire
While there are countless businesses in diverse industries - the core principles of content marketing remain the same. The key for businesses in different industries to create relevant and profitable content is to create content that teaches, informs and inspires your unique customers. Know your industry, be the expert, and add something to the conversation by sharing your unique solutions.
Take what I have learned in the last year and apply it to your own content marketing strategies! Once you have a plan in place, it is much easier to produce quality content. For more tips on content marketing and how Rough Draft Solutions can help, check out our related posts below!
Ready to know more about what content marketing looks like for your business? Schedule a brainstorming session with us!
