Understanding Content Marketing: Techniques and Benefits for Businesses

In today’s world, marketing is more than just advertising. Marketing has evolved to include a variety of methods that help businesses grow and get their message out into the marketplace. One of these modern techniques is content marketing. Content marketing involves using content-based assets like blogs posts, articles, videos or podcasts to build trust with potential customers. Blogs are an especially popular form of content because they are relatively easy for business owners to create and manage while providing a high quality user experience. We often see micro blogging in the form of social media posts and multimedia sharing on various platforms that each benefit businesses in different ways.  In this blog post we will discuss what content marketing is, how it works, some key benefits for business owners, and some tips on how to get started!

How content marketing works

Content marketing is used to reach a customer’s mind through their heart and desires. It focuses on creating engaging, quality online material that attracts readers/viewers into the business’ sphere of influence.

This method of marketing uses different tools to help your audience get to know you, like you, and trust your business. Content marketing covers an array of different content types including blogs, videos, social media posts, and more.

Let’s take a look at some of the content marketing techniques.

Content Marketing Basics:

Content marketing can be done for profit or non-profit organizations; small businesses often use this technique in addition to traditional advertising methods.  In the coaching industry, content is one of the primary keys used to connect with potential clients, while educating them on the coaching process and benefits.

Some of these methods that help businesses grow and get their message out into the marketplace include:

– blogs

– videos

– podcasts

Blogs have been found to be one the most effective form of content marketing, and it is estimated that 60% of people in the US are reading them on a monthly basis. Blogs can cover anything from business tips and tricks to industry news or updates.

They are a popular form of content because they provide high quality user experience and it is relatively easy for business owners to create them while managing them in the long run. Videos can be uploaded onto a company website to help diversify the type of content the reader/viewer receives and it enhances the overall experience for the reader.

The blogosphere has been around for a long time, and it is one of the most popular forms of content marketing. If done correctly, business owners can write helpful blog posts to help their target customer base in an attempt to establish trust with them, moving the reader along the path of the customer journey and one step closer to achieving their goals.

Podcasts are another form of content that business owners often use in order to gain more exposure and drive traffic back onto their website. Since people learn and engage with content in different ways, it is important to have a variety of content that business owners can use in order to tell their story.

For those business owners are are a bit more camera shy, this is a great way to get their business out into the world without having to be in front of it.

Making an impact with your content

In order for content marketing to work, you have to produce quality and relevant content that will engage your audience. You need a plan or strategy to create this type of content before you can get started doing any kind of marketing with it. It is important not only for the business owner, but for the audience, lead, and customer.

This engaging or informing content is what business owners need in order to show the audience that they are knowledgeable and trustworthy. You must know your customer, so this means being present on various social media channels, understanding what makes them tick, when it comes to products or services offered by the company.

For those business owners who have been struggling with marketing, focusing on their message will help with connecting to their audience and using these techniques will get the results that they are looking for.  If you feel like you fit into this category, it is important that you begin focusing your efforts on content marketing.

Look at it this way.

Producing content is a business owner’s way of telling people the story behind their business, what they do, why they do it–and how you can help them! This means share with their audience all the knowledge that they have gained through experience but also show new ideas or techniques on how to manage business in ways that the audience may not have thought of.

Making business content marketing a priority is an important factor in the success of any business owner and their company. If you are able to find out what is appealing to your audience, then there’s no doubt that it will lead to more revenue for you! Content marketing techniques can be used by business owners who feel like they aren’t quite ready for a full-blown business campaign. It can be an easy way to use free and inexpensive methods for getting the business message out there, as well as providing more opportunities for success!

Content Marketing Techniques

Here are some content marketing techniques:

· Blogging – This is one of the most common ways that business owners engage their audience and share information about their services and their products.

· Social Media Marketing (SMM) – This is the act of marketing business messages through social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

· Video Marketing – Videos are an excellent way for business owners to reach a wider audience with their business message in creative ways! Businesses can create short videos that tell stories about how happy clients have used their products or services to solve their business problem.

· Email Marketing – Emails are one of the best ways for business owners to get in touch with their current and future clients, while also staying top-of-mind when they need a business solution!

Ask yourself is you are using any of the content marketing techniques and if so, which ones.

Benefits to content marketing

There are many benefits to content marketing including:

· Increased visibility on search engine rankings – When businesses create valuable content that answers a question or provides information about their business, they are likely to rank on the first page of Google search results.

· Improved customer engagement – When businesses provide customers with content that is interesting and valuable to them, it can lead to increased repeat business from those customers. In fact, research has found that 72% of marketers see an increase in customer engagement with content marketing and 60% of B to B marketers see an increase in sales.

· Improved business visibility – When customers are interested in a business and they want to learn more.  Content marketing provides the business with another opportunity to be top-of-mind by publishing compelling content that is informative for customers. Content can help businesses become a trusted source of information even when prospects don’t know much about the business.

SEO – (a completely different topic that we can dive into another time) There are many benefits to having a business website rank highly in the search engine results pages because content has been optimized for SEO. This is possible when business owners publish engaging, relevant and informative content that shares keywords with other websites on their subject matter.  In many ways, this benefits the business for many years to come because the keywords attract interested leads while they are actively searching for information on a specific topic.  This is one way that business sales are increased.  Leads are more receptive to information when they are in the process of wanting and acquiring more information.

Content marketing isn’t just about blogging! Content can be delivered through text, video, audio, images, social media and more. It can be about business products or services, as long as it is relevant to your target audience

Overall, it’s a great way to get found online! This includes finding prospects who are searching for the business based on keywords they use in search engine queries (a very targeted way to reach your audience, right were they are)

– Content marketing has been defined as “the process of developing content which is valuable to the business’s customers or prospects, and then distributing that content through blogs, social media channels, online ads etc., with the goal of acquiring new leads and ultimately sales.”

Best things about content marketing and why you should start using in it in your business

One of the best things about content marketing is that it’s completely measurable. In business, we’re always looking for ways to measure and improve what we do

– There are many benefits of content marketing including: an increase in brand awareness; increased traffic to the business website, leads generated from prospects interested in the business products or services (this can lead to sales). And content marketing makes all of this measurable.

– Content marketing usually costs business owners less money than traditional advertising, because it’s done with content and not a hard sell approach like online ads or print media (although these are also good options for business).

– You can find information about content marketing in this blog post  and even more detailed information in the course I have called “Crush It With Content”

Just click here to get started

Now that you know what content marketing is, its techniques, and benefits, it’s time for you to take action in your business.

– Want more information on content marketing in business? Click here for to learn how to crush your business goals with your content.

I hope you have found this helpful.  If you want me to write a blog post about any specific topic or have questions, make sure to post them below.