Let’s face it: traditional content marketing tactics don’t work anymore. Media consumption is at an all-time high, cynicism grows over brands weaving advertising into their messaging, and screen time has invaded every aspect of people’s lives thanks to the ongoing pandemic.
So, what does that mean for you and your business? It means the digital content you create must fit the exact criteria your target audience is looking for. Because if it doesn’t, they’ll find more relevant content just a click away.
Don’t just add more clutter to the constant stream of content. Stand out from the crowd and make content that’s not just buzzworthy, but that actually builds your audience, attracts quality leads and grows your ROI. Here are our top three tips to get you started:
1. Make the Right Kinds of Content
Today, the types of content you’re creating matters more than ever. You already know that different demographics of people consume very specific styles and formats of content on topics that closely match their interests. But have you applied this knowledge to your content marketing strategy?
If you’re not catering to your ideal client’s favorite types of content, you’re missing an opportunity to engage with entire segments of your audience. Plus, you’re probably wasting a lot of time and money creating content that’s not converting as well as it could be.
That’s why content marketers need strong tools to know what topics the people they’re trying to reach actually care about. With the right data and insights into your audience’s content preferences, you’ll know whether you should publish more long-form blog posts, invest in creating ebooks, or launch a full-scale podcast.
2. Repeat Your Message More Than You Think You Should
The classic marketing rule of seven says a person needs to be exposed to your product or service seven times before they take action. Did you know that marketers in the movie industry developed this principle almost a century ago? So why are we still following advice from an age before computers were invented and content consumption became primarily digital?
Today, there’s exponentially more noise, not only from your direct competitors, but from other platforms, influencers, and priorities. According to a recent Statista survey, the average American spends 451 minutes, or nearly 8 hours a day, consuming digital media. It’s safe to say that an average consumer absolutely has to see your brand in any shape or form much more than seven times before they’ll actually engage with you, much less convert.
Still, it’s up to us—the content experts—to get the message right and to make it engaging and relevant. Some might argue that modern consumers want to do things their way in their own time. This is somewhat true, but don’t be fooled: the not-so-secret ingredient to memorability is consistency.
Consistent content messaging, formats and styles gives digital natives a level of comfort they’ll gravitate towards. For example, if your business or client wants to do monthly live AMAs (ask me anything), schedule them at the same time on the same day, and cross-promote the event with the same style of social post or promo ad. Once your audience catches on, they’ll be more likely to tune in and your numbers will organically grow.
3. Be Consistent, with Razor-Sharp Focus
Content marketing strategists often burn out because they’re trying to be everywhere at once all the time. Which, given the pressure to keep a genuinely engaging audience and produce results, is an understandable temptation. So it’s worth saying again: consistency is more important than frequency. If your brand message is consistent, then it will land with the right people in a more natural, less time-consuming way.
Consistency with content topics or distribution channels alone is not enough. You need an appropriate mix of meaningful topics, styles, formats and distribution to get your message across. Do this, and you won’t have to repeat yourself as much, because you’ll stand out with your relevance and authenticity.
Our tip? As you develop and hone your content marketing strategy this year, pinpoint the one thought you want to resonate with your potential customers. That one thought is your “North Star” guiding your content creation, and pointing you towards the content that will be the most meaningful and engaging to your audiences.
Of course, over time and in different markets, your message will change and evolve. Knowing how and when to adjust your messaging is a puzzle that you don’t have to solve alone. Which leads us to our final piece of advice…
Bonus Tip: Use Data to Understand Your Audience’s Preferences
One of the most innovative ways to revitalize your 2022 content marketing strategy is with reliable, proven data. Data that shows the full picture can be quite shocking at first, especially if it’s new data we’ve never seen that reveals some hard truths.
For example, say there’s irrefutable data showing that your audience is interested in a niche topic that’s not discussed sufficiently by anyone in your competitive landscape. That’s a clear signal (not a criticism!) that topic should be part of your content marketing strategy.
With the right tools, you can use more complete and exact data to understand exactly what kinds of content—including styles, topics, and tones—you should create if you want to see higher ROIs. Contrend is one of those tools. The AI- and ML-driven platform turns raw data into actionable recommendations, insights and ideas to stimulate great content ideation and production.
Want to learn more? Contact us today for a free platform demo.
