As the digital marketing realm evolves, there are several techniques that emerge for better efficiency. Today, digital marketing is not what it was a decade ago and certainly, it won’t remain the same a decades to come.
One of the major key facets of digital marketing is content. Content marketing is vital for business growth whether it’s a start-up, small, medium, or enterprise company. It’s through content marketing that a business attains brand awareness and recognition or sustains its image in the marketplace.
Precisely, content marketing is the process of creating relevant content and distributing it to a target audience. Strategic content marketing can compel a target audience to take the required action. More so, it can drive business ROI, and improve profit margin, and growth.
There are different types of content marketing strategies that businesses today use to achieve several goals. In fact, over 59% of marketers today measure their content marketing success depends on the attained sales. But which content marketing strategies can businesses and marketers consider for sizeable success in 2024?
The Top 5 Content Marketing Strategies for Businesses
There are certainly an array of content marketing strategies businesses use in the modern world for different targets such as customer retention, conversion, and sales. So let’s take a deep dive.
Video Marketing Strategy
Whether you’re a start-up, small or large conglomerate, you can certainly rely on video marketing to grow your business. Video marketing is the buzz and in fact, Statista, a data platform asserts that over 3 billion people watch videos of different forms per month. Additionally, 99% of marketers who use videos to market their offerings plan to continue with it according to Hubspot.
Video marketing has taken the marketing realm by storm because of its benefits. Videos generally have a higher engagement rate compared to other forms of content. On the other hand, videos can be leveraged to educate online users about any type of offerings and they can also power any marketing campaign.
On a clear note, any business can rely on video marketing to grow, retain customers and fetch prospects. That can be through the use of live videos, demo videos, “how-to videos”, and expert interviews. Tips for creating a formidable video marketing strategy include;
- Invest in a quality camera
- Be consistent
- You can use videos just for anything i.e promoting products or services
Currently, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, and Facebook are the top video marketing platforms for B2C and B2B companies. All you have to do is identify the platforms that harbor your target audience.
User-Generated Content Strategy
Are you aware that user-generated content (UGC) influences 90% of customers’ buying decisions? UGC is relatively a new marketing tactic, but it is cultivating immense results for brands globally. UGC is generally a form of earned content. It is created by the final consumers or anyone that is not employed or linked to a business.
You can also think of UGC as testimonials or reviews. UGC is powerful in convincing potential customers to buy a product. It can drive a sales funnel and improve ROI considerably. Using user-generated content also increases brand engagement and can prove it to be authentic. Some of the major ways to earn UGC are;
- Offer quality products and services
- Motivate your audience to create UGC
- Offer customer service
- Interact with your customers
Nielsen Research indicates that 92% of consumers trust earned content more than owned content. Therefore, tapping into the power of UGC can help your business achieve its goals. You can use UGC on social media, websites, or in any other form of content like blogs. This will help your business attract new customers, generate leads and stand out.
Blog Marketing Strategy
Blog marketing or blogging is a content marketing strategy where marketers create and publish content in the form of blogs, articles, case studies, or PRs. Once utilized for sharing industry expertise, experience, or personal interests, blogging is currently a major content marketing medium for businesses.
Marketers create blogs and articles that speak about their products or services. These can also indicate “how-to” information or guides for a target audience to attain vital information. Starting a blog is an effective content marketing medium since it caters to SEO goals, brand awareness, link building, and search engine parameters.
Depending on your targets, you must start a blog with a few things in your mind. For example, target audience, goals, and competition. You should also avoid a range of branding mistakes that can cost your business in the long run. Long-form content has proven to be ideal for SEO results like traffic. That’s because it offers an in-depth guide to readers, it can be leveraged for content clustering and it is sharable.
Additionally, follow the best content structuring techniques for your content to stand out. Use keywords and optimize for voice search where possible. Create content on interesting topics and always mind its tone.
Email Marketing Strategy
Email marketing has been around for decades and it’s a marketing strategy that has proven to be effective and reliable. However, this content marketing medium can prove taxing and time-consuming when poorly handled. Generally, modern consumers expect to receive emails from brands they associate with.
However, your emails may fail to get noticed in case they lack engagement or unstrategically ran. Today there are many things businesses can do to improve the effectiveness of their email marketing strategies. Things like automation, personalization, and audience segmentation can help businesses fetch the best from their email marketing efforts.
Additionally, the use of visuals or informing your audience about the latest arrivals can keep them hooked. Another consideration is the use of CTAs for them to directly take the necessary action. You can leverage automation tools to personalize interactions and achieve efficiency. Also, remember to keep emails relatively short- about 150- 250 words. Very long emails can reduce a reader’s interest in the email.
Social Media Marketing Strategy
As a marketer or a social media manager, you must be aware that more than half of the world’s population uses social media. Social media has become a must-have for businesses of all sizes and types. However, if not keen, a business may get lost in the noise. Social media marketing isn’t to fade out any time soon because of the impact it has on consumers and businesses.
Today many consumers leverage social media to search for brands, shop, and interact with their brands. While using social media, customers learn, engage, and also get a chance to have quality time. That means that businesses can take the opportunity to create engaging content for their audiences.
Social media use by businesses is certainly becoming the cheapest marketing platform. It not only allows businesses to build their networks, but it can serve as a perfect market penetration strategy for a brand. Therefore, post interesting content, plan content in advance, and interact with your audience.
Tips for Optimizing Content Marketing Strategies
Here are a few things you can consider to optimize your content marketing strategies.
Voice Optimization
If you have a website, consider optimizing it for voice search. Not every online user is interested in typing search terms. But more and more internet users are becoming addicted to voice search. Voice search is engaging and eliminates the time for typing words in a search engine. It’s quick and offers instant answers to online users.
Personalization
Consider personalizing customer experiences if you want to run a winning content marketing strategy. Personalization helps customers to feel that you understand them and are willing to improve their experiences with your brand. Tailoring experiences has proven to improve ROI, according to 89% of marketers.
Optimize Content
Yes! The best way for your content to reach a wider audience is optimization. Whether you use a website or social media, consider including keywords to improve content discoverability. Optimized content has a higher chance of increasing traffic, improving site visibility in new audiences, and enabling a site to stay at the top of the search. Consider keyword research and understand user intent before creating content.
Follow a Content Calendar
A strategic content marketing plan must adhere to a content calendar. The following content, a calendar serves as a roadmap for achieving long-term goals whether on a website or social media. Define your goals and leverage social media scheduling tools like HootSuite, and Sprout Social among others to effectively manage your content.
Final Takeaway
Marketing evolves at a great pace due to emerging technologies and tactics that show potential in improving its efficiency and effectiveness. You may also have a content marketing strategy that may have worked for your business in the past. But tapping into the power of new trends can improve your strategy’s efficiency.
Certainly, there are many content marketing strategies that any business can consider to attain sizeable goals. In this piece, we have looked at some of the top content marketing strategies that you surely have to try out in case you hadn’t done so.
