Content marketing involves creating, sharing, and curating information on media outlets in order to attract and retain customers. Businesses stimulate customers by relaying important, relevant information while also letting them know they care about who they are as people.
But content marketing is so much more than just funny anecdotes. Content marketing is a way of communicating with the public without the act of selling. With the amount of competition in today’s business world, buyers are smarter than ever! Customers want to use their time and resources wisely, and content marketing allows businesses to prove to their customers that they are worth investing in. With the thousands of marketing messages people get per day, what will make them separate your company’s messages from the spam?
CONTENT MARKETING PROVIDES USEFUL & VALUABLE INFORMATION
When creating and publishing content, it’s important to focus on what is most useful to your audience. Let’s say you own a residential building contracting company. Although your motive may be to get more customers to hire you as their home building contractor, it’s vital to include marketing content that reaches beyond the benefits of hiring you as their contractor. You may want to include topics such as, “Ways to Budget for Your New Home”, “Things to Consider When Moving to a New Location”, or “Sustainable Moving Practices to Save Money & Reduce Waste”. While these topics may not be directly related to your business promotions, these are topics that your potential customers might search for when thinking about moving into a new place.
Essentially, your content should provide solutions to common problems or issues. The use of metaphors, storytelling, and situations that your customers can relate to will help to frame your content as a go-to resource that people will share with others.
CONTENT MARKETING CATERS TO ISSUES AUDIENCES CARE ABOUT
If your business is in a location close to an ocean, chances are the people in that area care about the ocean and what happens to it. If you post and share information about beach clean-ups, fishing practices, or even news related to the oceanic wildlife, you will begin to attract a specific audience that appreciates the content you are sharing. This is a definite way to create awareness around your business and become a visible player in the issues at heart.
Carefully examine the type of audience your business caters to and determine what it is they care about. If the public’s opinions are aligned with your company’s values, begin identifying your business as a representative of the cause and a contributor to the solution.
CONTENT MARKETING CREATES TRUST & EXPERT REPUTATION
Consistency is key with content marketing. When you consistently deliver quality information, customers develop trust that you have their best interest at heart. By paying attention to your audience, you will consistently post relevant information that will form a pattern of recognition. People will begin to see you as an expert in your field, and therefore develop even more trust in you.
It’s important to have a plan for your content marketing and develop a strategy. You will not build trust and expert opinion by information-dumping on your platform. Be thoughtful when posting on your media outlets, and if you have the resources to hire a marketing professional, it would be beneficial to do so. Please feel free to contact us if you would like to know more about this topic and how it relates to your business.
Finally, when in doubt, remember that everyone enjoys a little bit of humour. Humour establishes rapport, and can be a great way to diffuse or introduce difficult information. People like to do business with people they like, and if they associate your business with humour and happiness, they will most likely think of you more often when it comes down to making business decisions.