Content Marketing FAQ
Whether you’re launching a new brand and want to get the word out or you’re looking to supplement your business’s traditional marketing plan, you might be wondering how content marketing can help. Get to know what this type of marketing entails and find answers to some of the most frequently asked content marketing questions.
What Is Content Marketing?
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Content marketing centers on producing useful, relevant, and valuable content for your target audience, which generally includes both current and prospective customers. Most content marketing strategies include written, video, or image-based content, and many incorporate all three forms seamlessly.
While it can boost your company’s sales, content marketing isn’t salesy and doesn’t come across as spam. Instead, it focuses on adding value for the reader while positioning your business as a helpful, knowledgeable, or dependable partner.
What Types of Businesses Can Content Marketing Help?
Small and large businesses in virtually every industry use content marketing to their advantage. From major consumer brands and retail stores to tech companies and service-oriented businesses, content marketing can help you reach out to your target audience.
Both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) companies have developed successful content marketing strategies. The techniques and goals vary between B2B and B2C companies, but that doesn’t make content marketing any less effective.
How Can Content Marketing Benefit My Business?
The beauty of content marketing is that it serves multiple purposes. Depending on your goals and the type of content you create, it could boost your brand in several different ways.
First, content marketing can increase awareness of your brand, especially if the material you produce has an educational angle. As customers get to know your brand and the value that it provides through high-quality content, you can also increase customer loyalty. As you grow your brand’s base, you can also generate website traffic and drive sales.
Can Content Marketing Generate Leads for My Business?
With the right strategy in place, you can use content marketing to generate a steady stream of new leads for your business. While most brands offer content like blog posts, articles, and videos free of charge, they also create high-level content, such as white papers, case studies, and eBooks to serve as lead magnets. Then they require readers to opt in to a mailing list before gaining access to the high-level content.
Once you’ve gained permission to email interested customers, you can introduce your leads to your sales funnel. As your leads discover and engage with your other content marketing efforts, they may convert from potential to current customers.
What’s the Most Common Content Marketing Mistake?
For most businesses, the biggest content marketing mistake is jumping in without a coherent strategy. Like any type of marketing, you need a plan to get the results you want from content marketing. Launching a blog and producing posts regularly may never help you achieve your objectives if you don’t know what you want to accomplish or how to get there.
To develop an effective content marketing strategy, you’ll need to understand who your target audience is, what kinds of content they want, and how your brand can offer the greatest value to your audience. Many businesses opt to create buyer personas so they can get to know their target audience and design content that’s sure to resonate.
What Type of Content Should My Business Create?
While the right content balance varies from business to business, most brands consider a few essential types. Blog posts and articles tend to top out around 1,000 words and usually help readers understand how and why to use your product or service. Case studies, white papers, and eBooks are substantially longer and typically feature original research related to your industry. Infographics and videos generally explain and illustrate concepts that you simply can’t convey via text. Depending on your brand’s goals, you might include one, two, or all types of content in your strategy.
How Much Content Should My Business Produce?
Just as content type depends on your unique brand, so does content frequency. A lifestyle brand may benefit from developing and sharing short snippets of content daily, while others may get more value out of creating long-form content once a week or twice a month.
No matter what type of frequency works best for your business, however, strive for a consistent schedule. A regular schedule will boost your reliability and ensure that your audience anticipates your content.
Is Content Marketing the Same as Social Media Marketing?
These two branches of marketing aren’t the same, but many businesses integrate their content marketing and social media marketing strategies. This synthesis helps brands ensure that they’re optimizing their marketing efforts.
While content marketing encompasses written, graphic, and video material that can live on your company’s website or any number of other places online, social media marketing takes place strictly on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Many social media marketers build their editorial calendars around sharing links to content that their brands have created, as this practice can drive views and value.
How Can You Measure the Results of Content Marketing?
When you invest in a content marketing strategy, it’s essential to track the results and determine your return on investment (ROI). As a general rule, your goals determine the metrics you’ll track as you assess results.
For example, if you want to increase brand awareness, you might track website traffic, bounce rate, or social shares. If you want to generate leads, you’ll track the number of leads, conversion rates, and average time to close.
When Will I See the Results of Content Marketing?
Far from a short-term effort, content marketing is a long-term strategy. While you’re likely to see more social shares and new leads within the first few months of implementing your campaign, your ultimate goals should be long-term. Since your content can provide value for many years to come, consider it an asset that you’ll be able to use to build loyalty, generate leads, and drive sales far into the future.
Ready to get started with content marketing? Contact the experienced CopyPress team for expert-level content strategy and production.
Anna Sonnenberg is a digital marketer who specializes in paid social strategy, social media management, content strategy, and email marketing. For over five years, she has run Sonnenberg Media, a digital micro agency that works with small businesses in the natural food and beverage industry, health and sustainability market, and travel space.
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