esm7i You may have noticed that content marketing can be quite a rollercoaster. The content marketing industry is on a roller coaster. One minute, “content” is king. The next minute, we fear the “content shock,” which threatens to bring us down. Content marketing is a hot topic that makes any marketer question whether it’s worth the investment or if it will be replaced by something else in the future.
No need to worry: content marketing is here for good. Content marketing is no longer a term. It’s now a part of any strategy.
With widespread adoption, however, comes fiercer competition. The honeymoon period — when businesses could create great content without any further thought– is over. Content marketing is not just about creating great content. It’s also about giving your audience the whole experience.
Speaking at the Edinburgh Television Festival, Kevin Spacey told the viewers: “Give them the things they want when they want them, and in the format they want.” Kevin Spacey was referring to Netflix’s controversial decision to release the entire first season of House of Cards at once. This decision paid off in an age of binge-watching and customized TV schedules.
If you treat people with respect and don’t try to force them to work with you by testing, you will be rewarded with their loyalty, time, and attention. It’s the same for your content and, more specifically, your blog. You’ll also get more leads and customers instead of more time and attention.
That being said… what makes for a great experience in content?
The Targeted Content… Super-Targeted
It’s easy to lose your content in the sea of “10 Ways This Sloth is Amazing You Won’t Believe What Happens Next Plus Babies.” Don’t create content that competes with the existing content. Focus on who you’re trying to reach and what they want and need. Create your buyer personas, and ensure that every blog you write targets one or more of them.
Take advantage of your knowledge to create content that will resonate. Sales teams are a great source of inspiration. Who knows more about what customers want than those who interact with them daily? Your customer service team can provide valuable insight on customer issues and concerns that you could address in your blog posts (hey, content is just as much about retention as acquisition).
Use the data you have to iterate on your blog strategy continually. Uberflip uses its platform metrics to determine which topics resonate with our audience and discard those that don’t. You can also use Google Analytics to track your blog post performance. This will ensure that you consistently produce content relevant to your prospective customers and bring qualified traffic rather than useless hits.
Navigation that Makes Sense
You don’t like it when your visitors have to search for content. Neither do you. By creating a path for people to find more relevant content (instead of hoping they will stumble upon it), you can increase engagement, encourage more time spent on your site, and create an audience who loves you.
Create categories around topics your buyer personas will be interested in. For example, someone reading a blog on “10 Lures no Fish Can Resist” ‘ll find “You’ve Got Worms – Why Mother Nature’s Bait is Best.”
Try to provide a variety of content, such as e-books or videos. You can also include SlideShare presentations.
They’re not necessarily searching for a blog or an e-book but rather for answers to questions about a particular topic. You must show them the different ways that you can add value. A blog is not just a simple blog; it’s also a “Learning Center.”
When we began reorganizing our hub of content for Uberflip and HubSpot, our first reaction was to separate everything by format. For example, blog posts, webinars, or e-books. We reorganized everything after giving it some thought. We categorized content by type (such as a stream for webinars) and general topics (streams that include relevant blog posts, videos, presentations, etc.). This will make it easier for users to find the information they seek.
Share with Maximum Care
It’s frustrating when I read a blog and can’t find the sharing icons. Or they aren’t even there! It makes me slightly angry (maybe because I work in social networking).
People are busy. People are busy!
It’s essential to make it easy for people to move from saying, “Hey, this is interesting,” and clicking the Twitter, Facebook, or Google+ buttons to send their social seal to the rest of the world. We use AddThis because it is easy to implement and provides many sharing options.
Use ClickToTweet or other tools to share specific parts of your blog posts, such as interesting facts and quotes. You should find as many ways to facilitate sharing your blog content and make it easier for readers. Remember the small details, like including your Twitter handle to monitor mentions and gain followers or use hashtags where possible.
Content that works anywhere
How many screens did you look at today? In January this year, 55% of all Internet usage was done on a mobile device. This is a large number of users on many devices. If your blog’s not optimized for mobile, you’re missing out on opportunities to engage with your audience and generate leads.
If you want to provide your readers with the best content possible, it should be available wherever they go. This includes on the move (or on the couch eating popcorn at dinner and playing on their phone, even though their laptop is right next to them… Does this sound familiar? ).
A responsive design for a website or blog is a must now that users can access content on various devices. Even if your blog is fantastic, only a few of your readers will scroll, zoom, or swipe to read it. The rest of your audience will leave with an unpleasant taste in their mouth.
