Content Marketing Strategies Working Magic for Today’s Businesses
Like technology, marketing is always on the move. This is
especially true when it comes to the web where it seems as if new start-ups
arise every few months with quite a few smashing their way into the headlines.
You might be surprised to learn that it isn’t million dollar Super Bowl
commercials or full-page ads in The New York Times that are helping businesses
work magic online, it is actually a bit of wizardry we like to call: content marketing.
That’s right, more than ever before marketers of all stripes are
getting on board with the need for quality content after first a voracious
Panda and then a sinister Penguin made us all take notice of Google’s mighty
hold over organic search. However, we need to be aware that today’s top content
marketing strategies are about a lot more than just attracting Google’s users
because today there are more than 2 billion people using the Internet.
Throw Out Those Junk Websites and Get to Work
Serious entrepreneurs know that Google isn’t kidding around. They
have been relentless is eliminating junk sites from their index and continue to
lean hard on those sites that want to ‘scheme‘ their way to the top of the
search results. This is bad news for those who simply wanted to have a low rent
money-maker they never look at, but for those who wanted long-term success, the
good news is that it is not nearly so hard to achieve as you might think and
the benefits go far beyond Google.
Why? Because when you create content that engages your visitors
they keep on coming back. This is the heart of what a service like Mike &
Troy’s ArticlesOnTap.com is all about so this really isn’t news for us. What is
news for us is that people are now finally embracing the very real and present
need for change.
That is a crystal clear statement and it lines up with what we have been
saying here on Top Marketing Strategies for quite some time. Lousy sites with
poor content that are still trying to get by on tactics that have barely
evolved since the 1990′s are definitely going to get washed away. The time for
change, despite anything anyone says to the contrary is now. That means no more
excuses and ignoring that election year hype about the economy.
Economy Looking Bad? You Might as Well Use the Opportunity
Ah, the economy. The great excuse for many to slow down their
online efforts and try to pinch pennies. The job market is weak, the dollar is
down in value, inflation is rising and the future isn’t all roses and sunshine.
Well, guess what? Well-planned content marketing strategies still work and they
may just work even better during tough times when more people are looking for
the kind of low-cost entertainment the web can provide them with.
If you run a company, you need a blog, but you need more than
that. You need a well maintained blog regularly updated with fresh content that
encourages people to keep coming back. 2012 is not the time to start scaling
back your blog or slowing down on social media. Sites like Facebook, Twitter
and YouTube are going to be getting more traffic, not less. People may give up
a lot of things when times are tight, but the odds are painfully low that they
will give up their smart phones with web browsing, much less their internet connections
at home. This is why Hollywood keeps making movies through wars, recessions and
even the Great Depression – people need a good way to spend their time.
So don’t let the hype about the economy being weak slow down your
content marketing efforts. Content is free to your visitors and that means they
aren’t going to think twice about engaging. Every time they read and engage
with the content you’ve created for them they get that much closer to not just
remembering your brand, but becoming a loyal customer. When the economy
inevitably jumps back up and they have money to spend they are going to go to
the businesses they already believe they have a ‘relationship’ with. Those
businesses that realize this now are the ones that are really going to flourish
once
Examples of Successful Content Marketing Strategies in Action
In order to really understand just how powerful
good quality content and SEO Agency is for pulling in a target audience, we need to take a
look at a few companies that are using it the right way right now. To do that,
let’s turn to the tech sector. You might think that these companies would
understand, embrace and leverage content like nobody else, but you’d be wrong.
In fact, as shocking as it might seem, even though this industry should be the
first to start using anything new, several are far behind those that are taking
the lead right now.
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As you can see, it is not just those of us in the Internet
Marketing crowd that are not living up to our potential when it comes to
content marketing strategies. Big corporations are dropping the ball, too. Yet,
there are some in the tech sector who are using engaging content to reach out
to their audience and finding real success with it, as Cohen tells us. Let’s
have a look at a short list of these companies she points out and see what it
is that they are doing right so we can learn from successful marketing being
used today.
KISSmetrics – This first example is a company that offers online
analytics for ecommerce sites and other websites. They target an audience that
is looking to achieve a higher percentage of conversions by providing an array
of tips and tricks members of that audience can put to work right away. Because
of that, they have gained a very powerful reputation among influential folks in
the tech industry. What does that mean? It means that readers find KISSmetrics
to be an authority within their niche and they come back for more plus they
sign up to be notified of new blog posts as they go live. Now that’s some
seriously effective marketing, isn’t it?
Instagram – This is the
next company cited by Cohen and anyone using social media knows all about it.
It lets people with a smart phone take a photo and spread it all across the
social web. The people behind Instagram understood that people want to use
these photos to tell stories about themselves and the things they love, so that
is what their blog helps their users do. They say a picture is worth a thousand
words and this is one company that used that concept to their advantage. Every
weekend, they have a project encouraging users to take photos they can match to
a hashtag using instructions Instagram provides via their blog. The result is a
ton of interactivity that can go viral in a heartbeat. Again, content marketing
genius at work!
Eventbrite – This next
example is a web-based tool that event creators and those attending events can
use to get everything organized. On Eventbrite’s blog, the focus is the real
people behind the events being organized via the tool. Because their blog
highlights event organizers and talks about their events, people from around
the web find it interesting. Event organizers love it because it spreads the
word about what they are trying to do. Everyone wins.
Buffer – Cohen also tells
us about a web tool that allows users to schedule posts for social media so
they will go live during “prime time“, the time when the largest number of
followers will see them. Companies and social media users who want more likes,
mentions, shares, re-tweets and followers are the target audience for Buffer.
The philosophical tone of Buffer’s blog is what makes it interesting because it
strives to educate and entertain readers with insights into how our brains work
so they can better understand human behavior and how it impacts their success
with using social media.
Wix – This final example
from Cohen is a site that allows its users to create a gorgeous Flash or HTML5
websites even if they have no previous skills at doing so. Wix succeeds because
it takes the dread out of building an advanced website, instead making it fun
and imaginative. Fun and informative articles, some even using infographics,
are what Wix’s blog focuses on. They’ve managed to make new technology exciting
instead of intimidating and this is certainly a great way to engage people.
What is It That Makes Content Marketing Work So Well?
In case you happen to be wondering what all the fuss is about,
let’s cut straight to the point. To answer the question of why people go online
in the first place, we turn again to Kuenn who referenced a recent survey from
a public relations firm named Ruder Finn. That survey showed that while there
are a few reasons people go online, three of these stand out. We want to go
over these 3 reasons people use the web:
1. To Learn – This is the first and most powerful reason people
are coming online. They want to educate themselves and they want to research
topics they care about. They also want to stay informed on the latest news that
affects their lives and ties in with subjects that interest them.
2. Have Fun – People want to escape from the doldrums of
day-to-day life once in a while. They come online to pass the time when they’re
bored and to be entertained. They might want to laugh or be fascinated, but the
bottom line is that they want to enjoy themselves and the time they spend
online.
3. To Socialize – As the popularity of sites like Facebook and
Twitter suggest, people want to connect with one another. They want to share
things they like, discuss subjects that interest them and, in the end, feel
like they are part of a larger community. This is a set of basic human needs we
all have.
As you can see from the list Kuenn shared above, people are not
coming online to be tricked, manipulated or convinced to buy things. They are
not coming online because they have to, they are coming because they want to.
They view the web as a place of learning, fun and a great place to socialize.
Companies have to begin to understand this better and so does the average
entrepreneur. Once we understand how we can teach people something, show them a
good time and help them make new friends, we will succeed in business. That is
why content marketing strategies that realize the true nature of the web today
are working so well.
This is an elegant summarization of precisely why content marketing is
so important. It tells us that harvesting millions of visitors is not nearly as
good as genuinely engaging a few hundred people. After all, they are the ones
who will use the same social media platforms we reach out to them with to
spread the word about our companies as well as the products and services we
sell.
The Need for Making Smart Choices in How We Invest in Marketing Today
Knowing you need to start embracing better marketing and figuring
out the best way to do this are two different things. Dumping money into
marketing can work, but the top content marketing strategies that have
succeeded for leaders in any industry are based on considering the needs of the
audience, calibrating an intelligent plan to meet those needs and then
delivering the very best your company can. Even if you are a solo entrepreneur,
this strategic approach is important to keep in mind. Check out what Carroll
from Search Engine Journal tells us:
Do You Really Need to Become a Content Publisher to Succeed?
The answer is yes, this has to become an important part of your
enterprise if you want to be successful online today. Large corporations are
realizing that it needs to be done, but small enterprises can move more quickly
so use that to your advantage. If you are worried that you might be behind the
curve and late to get on board, then remember this from Kuenn:
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