Utilizing digital technology can serve as a great conduit to expedite the process of making a business prominent. It is a major challenge, but it also provides an incredible opportunity. Some people feel as though they only have limited time to make significant progress, but with enough hard work, a dream can become a reality.
Content in today’s digital age travels quickly and is a major part of a multi-faceted process. The first step in this process is creation.
Creating Content
All content begins with an idea. Do not be afraid to let your creative juices flow. An idea that may seem stupid may be the next popular fad. When you are starting with a brand-new topic, coming up with an idea can be relatively easy. However, after countless blog posts, the process can eventually become cumbersome. Content comes in many different forms, and you shouldn’t limit yourself in any one area.
Visual content, for example, is something that is particularly engaging because it is pleasing to the eyes. Not everyone has the skill to create engaging, visual content on their own but there are tools that exist for your benefit to assist you. Whether it is memes, animated GIFs, infographic or any other form of media, there is no limit to what you can do.
There is also content in the form of writing. There are lots of tools that exist to make writing easier, but the most important aspect of writing is consistency. Writing can actually accentuate content in other areas and create even more engaging experiences for people to enjoy.
Once you have an idea of what you want, the next step is to manage that content effectively.
Managing Content
The key behind effective content management is to meticulously plan a strategy. Content management and tracking is most often associated with IT. However, it involves the whole of the enterprise, and a strategy is needed in order to effectively manage analytics. A metadata strategy is also needed so that you can make an easy experience for your customers or clients to find the content.
Next, you are going to have to decide for yourself exactly how you plan to manage the content and who will have to bear the burden for getting that content published. With this, there are key questions that you will have to ask of the company. For example, who will be reviewing the content in order to ensure that it is aligned with preset goals? What decides which content will be deleted and which content can be repurposed?
Collecting and consolidating the actual content is also another major step. This is because all of the important data, along with the metadata is what content consists of. Therefore, you should be able to access all of that important information seamlessly. Make an inventory of the content to make management an easier process to handle.
Marketing Content
Marketing content is more important than ever, especially in today’s rapidly changing environment, evolving SEO algorithms and the new relationships being fostered between the business and the consumer.
SEO algorithms have started to handsomely reward sites with more content. Search engines are constantly maturing, and content creators are slowly devising strategies that will get them towards the top of search results. There isn’t room for everyone, which means that unique content will have to reign supreme.
Google, for example, has placed heavy emphasis on sites that not only produce quality content, but consistent content. If there are any indications that a site may be dead or not being updated with new information, expect it to be placed towards the back of search results. Experts in the industry such as Lindsay Guion have become familiar with the importance of this aspect of marketing, and other companies have taken notice.
You cannot effectively market content if no content is being put out at all. Content is what sells, and brand awareness will gradually increase with each relevant post. Well-researched content will also educate any audience about the industry as well as potential benefits that can be provided.
Distributing Content
Distributing content entails promoting content to the online audience through various channels of media. Typically, this distribution is divided into three subcategories.
There is owned content distribution, which includes the distribution of content to web properties that you already own. Examples like this entail blogs, email newsletters or social media posts.
Then there is earned content distribution, which is the process of third parties distributing content through press coverages, product reviews or guest article contributions.
Finally, there is the paid content distribution, which as the name suggests, has you paying for the content to be distributed. This payment can take various forms, but a cost-per-click model is the most prominent method. Lindsay Guion, an expert in the industry, has obtained vast experience of media and the various methods of which it is shared.
Content marketing and content distribution are often used together, but they are not the same thing. They differ in the objectives and the way in which audiences are targeted. Content promotion focuses on sharing information to the general public. Content distribution aims to send content to a specific clientele.
That should give you a clue as to what your objective should be in distribution. You need to be analyzing your target audience and see which groups you are trying to cater the content to. Not everyone is going to be interested in your content because they are not familiar with the industry. Therefore, you should start with people who are and gradually work towards bringing new people on board.
If you do not focus on your audience, you will only end up wasting valuable resources. Understand your audience, rethink your approach to find better content distribution methods and be meticulous as to which methods you will use to actually get the content out. Paid social media advertising is one such popular method.
