By Natalie Saumure at Business 2 Community:
Most companies now understand the importance of maintaining a strong online presence, the constant need to provide worthwhile and fresh content, and the benefits of nurturing client relationships online. So inbound marketing, SEO, and content marketing are all in great demand as we strive for greater sales conversions online. But it is no surprise that there is a tone of competition for your audience’s attention (just because you publish something, doesn’t mean they’ll see it!).
So, how do you publish your creative content and promote it so your target audience will see it and more importantly, convert? Below are tips on how to make your content more easily found online. But remember, this won’t happen overnight. On average, it takes roughly 4 months for the average release to accumulate most of its views.
Check out 5 Rules to Make Your Content Great for additional advice.
1- Create an Editorial Calendar to organize your content/thoughts and publish timely and relevant information that people are looking for. By planning your content ahead of time, you ensure that it aligns with your goals and other marketing activities, such as events or campaigns.
2- See what’s trending in your industry by writing an article that shares and comments on other people’s content. If you can’t think of anything to write about, don’t sweat it. Take a look at what some other’s people in your industry have been talking about and share some of their insights along with yours (don’t forget to give those sources credit!).
3- Share, share, share your content! If you use social media networks on a regular basis, you this to your advantage and post updates about the content you just published. You can even post other relevant items with a link to your content as well to further penetrate your market. Tip: Join relevant groups (i.e. on LinkedIn, Facebook, etc…) and post your content and share/comment on other content as well. Just don’t be spammy.
4- Open up conversations. At the end of your article, ask an open-ended question to engage/interact with your audience. The more comments your article gets, the longer it has the potential to stay under people’s radars.
5- Write headlines that will get more clicks. First impressions matter! The title of your article is extremely important because it is the first thing that a reader sees. There is nothing worse than reading a dry/boring headline. Note: Your title should not be too long as most search engines only pull 65 characters. If your title has to be longer, optimize your page with a creative meta-description to briefly explain your article. Check out these Nine Elements of On-Page Website Optimization for further assistance.
6- People love pretty images. There is nothing worse than reading long content without any breaks for visuals.
7- Include a CTA. A CTA within your posts encourages readers to interact with your brand and nurture client relationships. Some tips for creating good CTAs are: use numbers, use action words, keep it brief but enticing, use practical language. Don’t overload the reader with too much information in the call-to-action. Give just enough information that they are clear on the offer, but not too much that it gives everything away. Create curiousity so that they click. Check out 4 Ways to Get More Clicks on Your Calls-To-Action for more information on designing great CTAs.
8- Add relevant keywords. Being specific about your keywords makes the search interest more qualified in viewing your content. Remember to properly incorporate these keywords into the content of your article.
No other field really demands the value of sharing than this one. :) Content visibility games the product or business you are selling as data which will keep on perpetuating forever in the information space, enough for someone to pick it up on it. It also anchors its physical counterpart, by involving its geography into the rigor and the kinesics of cyberspace, to make it more functional, involving and dynamic. Meaning that, say, the store wouldn't just be this dusty stump on the edge of the earth, but something that is active and forever relevant in the consciousness of your potential buyers. Which is to say, online marketing must be given the effort it deserves.
ReplyDeleteMamie @ Focused Local Marketing