90% of the business to business marketeers use content marketing to make online sales, this is one of the findings in the research done by AC Nielsen in the US. The content marketing tools they were referring to contained blogs, white papers and video’s. It is expensive, hard work and time-consuming. But it also generates al lot of sales or leads for your company.
The Psychology of Giving and Buying
Research tells us that if you give away something for free the other is more likely to buy something from you. We like to give something in return. So if you give a free white paper or advice on your blog they feel the need to return the favor. So if you ask them to join the newsletter the conversion will be much higher because you gave them something first. Before you know it, you got yourself a worthy lead.
People Love an Expert
Online is like a war zone, there are so many businesses seeking the attention of the customer it can seem hard to stand out. But, if you make good use of content marketing you’ve got a much better chance of showing your expertise and therefore gaining the trust of your potential clients. If they read a really good article and for the fourth time they see it is your company who wrote it, guess who they are going to turn to when they need advise? In fact, you might even earn yourself a bookmark.
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Google Loves Fresh Content
So, it’s a simple question – are you frustrated because you are not yet showing up on the first page of Google? Then it is time to start blogging. Unique and valuable content is highly appreciated both by Google and the customer. Going straight to the source is easy when it comes to Google. Google’s very own Search Engine Optimisation guide, clearly states it’s love with content:
““…..following the best practices outlined below will make it easier for search engines to crawl, index and understand your content.”
Here are some best practice tips directly from the source
• New content will not only keep your existing visitor base coming back, but also bring in new visitors.
• Creating compelling and useful content will likely influence your website more than any of the other factors discussed here.
• Organic or word-of-mouth buzz is what helps build your site’s reputation with both users and Google, and it rarely comes without quality content
• Designing your site around your visitors’ needs while making sure your site is easily accessible to search engines usually produces positive results.
Fresh and original content on your blog will kick start your rankings.
Social Media Loves Content
People spend most of their time on social media. If you have good or funny content, it is likely to be shared.
This has two benefits:
- Google will index your website better if there is a lot of social activity, so again higher on the google search results.
- A lot of people will see your content and brand if it is shared across large social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.
How do I Start with Content Marketing?
Ok, so you are convinced that content marketing is the way to go. There are a few steps to take:
- Choose the topics of the area of your expertise (and use Google keyword analyse to find out of there is any need for it)
- Make sure that there is a conversion (for example; download the white-paper, join the newsletter, make an appointment etc.)
- Make a content plan: which subjects do I post on which days (also read our blog about the best time to post in social media)
- After a month look at your Google analytics to find out what worked and what didn’t work and adjust your content plan to that.
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