Creating Online Content for Your Business
You’ve heard it from your friends and other business owners: If you want to be a successful brand or agency within your community or if you’re looking to branch out into a new market, you need to create amazing online content. But, where do you start? What is content marketing?
Content marketing is a marketing technique of creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action. – Joe Pulizzi, Content Marketing Institute.
In other words, you create valuable content – such as blog posts, social media posts, press releases, etc. – which engage with your business’s specific target audience, driving potential consumers or clients to action. If you’re unfamiliar with how to create online content, don’t worry. We outlined a few content marketing strategies that will help your business develop a good online presence. Have more basic content marketing ideas? Comment below!
- Write Blog Posts – Writing and consistently updating a blog on your website is a great way to generate online content for your clients or customers. Your blog posts should be at least 300 words long and should contain searchable keywords. Blog titles should not exceed 60 characters. When creating a blog post for your website, you should concentrate on writing about appropriate topics. For example, if you’re a car mechanic, your blog should focus on providing industry relevant content – such as how to check your oil, how an car engine works, or how to stay safe on the road. Lastly, your posts should be concise and easy to read.
- Invite a Guest Writer – Once you have a well-establish blog, don’t be afraid to invite a guest writer to write for your blog. A good guest writer should be an expert in their field. Not only will your website benefit from their expertise (i.e. increased traffic), but your guest writer may attract additional clients or potential leads. Think of it as establishing a symbiotic relationship with other industry leaders.
- Post to Social Media – As a small business owner, it’s no longer optional for you to create social media profiles for your business. This means you’ll need to post to multiple social media accounts at least once or twice daily. Social Media acts as a great inbound marketing resource for potential customers or clients. It also will help you connect with your current customers or clients, providing a critical space for good public relations.
- Comment on Other Blogs – How do you get the word out about your blog and business? Comment on other industry leader’s blogs. Do not pitch or sell your service/product. Simply state how their blog post helped you or provide additional information with your industry expertise. When you establish a good relationship with other bloggers, you may invite them to write a guest blog for their website, or they may invite you to do the same!
- Research Keywords – Do you know what keywords are relevant for your business? You should be conducting keyword research at least twice a month, perhaps more often if your industry is subject to change frequently. What keywords are your customers searching for? What’s currently relevant in the market? Knowing this information can help you create up-to-date online content for your business.
- Write Press Releases – If you have an important announcement concerning your business and your community, write a press release for a local online newspaper. You can always recycle your press releases as a blog post. This content marketing strategy allows your to reach a wider audience in your community.
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