Creating Outstanding Website Content
When it comes to marketing, it’s hard to overstate the importance of engaging content. And although most people would probably think of blocks of text when we talk about content, there are lots of other forms of content that are just as crucial to a successful marketing strategy. This content could include social media posts, video tutorials, infographics and GIFs. Basically, content is all around us, and can be used for a variety of purposes, from entertainment to keeping people informed.
In terms of content creation, this involves coming up with ideas that would be of interest to your audience, and then creating visual or written content around these ideas. You’ll then have to ensure that people can access the content, via things like blog posts, social media posts, or online videos.
The Importance of Content
Although as a business, it’s crucial to set up a website so that people can find your brand, it’s not enough just to launch the site. Customers are unlikely to come flooding in if you’re not doing anything to attract them! This is where content comes in – if you regularly post content, this should keep your audience engaged and help bring in new business.
It’s interesting to note that, according to Demand Metric, you can bring in three times as many leads using content marketing than through traditional marketing methods. And when you consider the fact that it’s approximately a third of the price, it seems foolish not to invest at least some of your resources into content creation.
Essentially, content can help you attract more traffic to your site, increase your revenue, and simply help your business grow. And because most content is relatively cheap to produce, content marketing comes with a great return on investment. The question is, what sort of content should you be producing for your organisation?
Online Content Examples
As mentioned above, there are lots of different types of content – it’s not just about writing great website copy, blogs or articles. So if you’re not too confident in your writing skills, or want to appeal to a broader audience, it’s a good idea to explore a few of the below options:
Blogs and Articles
Because a blog, article or guide will be one of the first things people come across when they type a search query into Google, and because this type of content is incredibly straightforward to produce, blogs are one of the most common forms of content creation. It’s also worth noting that, if written well, blogs have some of the best ROI rates.
Any written content can help you engage with your audience, whether it’s to inspire, entertain, or educate them. Hopefully your copy will be a mix of at least a couple of these things, but the main thing is to provoke an emotional response. You want your followers to really connect with your writing.
Videos
Videos have been on the rise for quite a few years now, as YouTube can attest. And if TikTok has taught us anything, it’s that people like to watch short, digestible videos! These videos aren’t always of the highest quality either – as long as the subject matter appeals to your audience, you don’t need to worry too much about an expensive setup.
Videos are often a great way to create a buzz around a particular topic, and can also help you reach a larger audience quickly. Just remember that there is a place for both short-form and long-form videos, and that you should try and come up with ideas for each of these.
Podcasts
Just like videos, podcasts are becoming an increasingly popular way for people to access content. Educational or entertainment podcasts in particular are a fantastic method of engaging with your audience. You could discuss certain topics within your industry, or go off on a slight tangent, just to get your brand out there.
One of the great things about podcasts is that they’re relatively inexpensive to make, and not too difficult either. They can furthermore provide the chance to gain a following quickly, especially if you bring in guest speakers who already have a following of their own.
Images and Infographics
Although you might assume that you need all sorts of high tech equipment to create high quality images and infographics, this is not the case. If you have a decent camera, you can produce photos that, even if not perfect, can easily be edited using basic software.
If you’d prefer not to use your own images, it’s not a great idea to limit yourself to free stock photos, as you may not always find what you’re looking for. You can therefore utilise an image hosting service, which will have lots of great images you can download and edit. This will come with a monthly or yearly subscription, but will undoubtedly be worth the cost.
Creating a Content Plan
Before you start producing any content, it’s sensible to plan it first! This is because you’ll need to tailor your content to your audience, as well as the medium you’re using. For instance, with website and blog content, you’ll need to focus on branding, including targeted keywords, and letting people know about the solutions you offer.
In regards to social media content, each social platform works slightly differently, so you’ll need to come up with separate strategies for all of them. Each of the channels will have a preferred type of content too – TikTok and YouTube are great for videos, while Instagram is a good platform on which you can post images.
Make Engaging Content
Once you have a plan in place, it’s time to start making content! The first step is to come up with topics to discuss, with a focus on keywords your audience will be searching for. You can then create your content, making sure to be clear about the subject matter and who it’s being written for. Try to make it as unique as you can too, while staying on brand.
When you’ve published your content, it’s also important to regularly analyse the reception of it. Collect data on the number of page views you get, as well as your conversion, bounce, and engagement rates. This data can be used to make changes to future strategies, determining ways to improve your content moving forward.