Content Marketing

If you want to be effective with online advertising, you need to get to grips with content marketing.

Unsurprisingly, all content marketing is, is a digital marketing method that focuses on content—in any way. This could be an article, a blog post, an infographic, a video, an audio file, etc.

In fact, The Content Marketing Institute defines it as:

A marketing technique of creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and acquire a clearly defined audience…to drive profitable customer action.

The key to reaping the rewards of content marketing is to create material your audience finds valuable. Everything you publish should resonate with a problem your target demographic faces and also provide a solution.

You’ll also need to post consistently. It’s not enough to publish once in a blue moon and expect hundreds of leads. Instead, schedule content so that you regularly provide something that’s relevant and engaging to your audience.

It’s no wonder more and more business owners turn to content marketing. Gone are the days where marketers make annoying cold calls and sales-y pitches to promote their services. Instead, customers respond far better to valuable resources that position you as an authority in your niche. Not only does this build trust and credibility with your prospects, but clients are more likely to come to you…without you chasing them!

Why is content marketing so effective?

To understand why this marketing method is so powerful, you need to understand that consumers are always looking for solutions to their problems. Needless to say, content marketing does this in abundance.

Without overtly selling to the customer, you’re educating consumers about a solution they might not know existed.

So, this is how it works:

• Prospects find your content
• They appreciate its value
• By the time they contact you, they’re way further down the purchasing process—it’s usually just a case of clarifying the finer details.

How great is that?!

Other Benefits of Content Marketing

Content marketing provides loads of additional benefits. For one, it generates tons of material for you to distribute on your social media channels. Plus, if you’re publishing content on your website (which we strongly suggest that you do), it works wonders for improving your SEO and boosting visibility in search engines.

Let’s circle back for a sec to the different types of content you could include in your content marketing strategy.

• Infographics: These are very popular on blogs and Pinterest. You’ve probably seen one before; they tend to be long, vertical graphics that display information like statistics, charts, and facts in a way that’s attractive and easy to consume. You can easily create your own infographics using free online tools like Canva; alternatively, you could use Adobe Photoshop or hire a professional to create one.
• Podcasts: People love podcasts. They’re excellent for boosting the visibility of your brand—especially on iTunes. If you produce a podcast giving away free, actionable, and valuable info on a subject your prospects can resonate with, you may eventually notice a boost in sales and growth in your email list.
• Videos: Video marketing is massive and it’s nowhere near as competitive as other content marketing methods. Lots of entrepreneurs just assume producing and promoting videos is hard work, when in reality it’s no more complicated than any other form of content marketing. All you need is a small tripod and a smartphone with a decent camera to get going! Review products, highlight the core features of your products, give away valuable tips and advice—you name it! You can discuss anything you’d put in a traditional blog post within a video.