Successful Content Marketing Strategy in 2018 & 2019
What’s the one thing you can do to stand out from your competitors?
Content Marketing.
Calling, emailing, and social media! You name it. Your competitor is probably doing it. There’s a content pollution crisis happening, but many fail to merge content marketing with brand awareness to create a unique and profitable strategy.
Companies must use an original content strategy in order to cut through the noise and stand out from the crowded marketplace.
For example, let’s compare two companies to see how a content marketing strategy can either create content pollution or brand awareness.
What do these content marketing strategies have in common?
WEBSITE
Both of these competitors have functional and well-designed websites with similar capabilities. A website with client-centric content is the cornerstone of creating an expert reputation.
Each company uses a contact form and email subscription to gather information for cold calls and email marketing messages.
This is all fine and dandy, but the average website doesn’t create brand awareness.
When done right, you can attract high-paying clients with LinkedIn using targeted connection requests that build relationships.
A cold message saying, “Hey, you should buy from me and here’s why,” will NOT cut it.
Both of these companies try to build a trusted relationship with LinkedIn connections but only Company 2 is following the content marketing tips needed to create profitable brand awareness.
How do these content marketing strategies differ?
There are three different types of content; written, spoken, and video. While both Company 1 and 2 cover written content via their websites and LinkedIn pages, only Company 2 uses spoken and video tactics to truly stand out from the crowd.
BLOG POSTS
Does your website have a blog page? Take a look, and tell me how often you publish posts. Are they SEO focused?
If you can’t answer, “YES!” to these questions, you’re missing out on an opportunity to be seen as an expert by your target audience.
Use a content marketing tip from Company 2, and post SEO-focused blog posts often and across all platforms.
PODCASTS
It is a consumer’s market. They have the luxury to access content when they want and where they want, even from their Honda Civic.
No, their car isn’t talking to them. Consumers are listening to podcasts during morning commutes to catch up on their hobbies and interests.
I don’t have time to start a podcast!
Don’t panic if you had that thought. Websites like Podcast Guests allow you to reach your target demographic by being a guest on an established podcast.
VIDEO
Video is the future. Better yet, video is the present.
Video content marketing blows everything else out of the water. It’s the combination of spoken and visual that delivers potential clients what they’re looking for.
You have less than 10 to catch your audience’s attention. This is why video is king. Video can tell a story in a short amount of time, which draws a viewer in quickly to want more.
Although you should invest in high-quality videography for your website, all you need is a phone to produce attention-grabbing videos you can share online.
CONSISTENCY
If video is king, consistency is almighty. In fact, it’s recommended that you post 1-15 times per day.
If you’re going to follow any content marketing tip, it should be this one! This is not something you can just set and forget. You must share quality content across several platforms every single day to get the attention that births sales.
When I say quality, I don’t mean producing Steven Spielberg grade videos. Quality content provides value to your target demographic.
Sharing some content, any content, is better than doing nothing, but you must think about the distribution of that message and how it will be perceived. Consistency and value will produce a content marketing strategy that sells!
After you share written, spoken, and video content regularly, you’ll develop muscle memory that makes content marketing a natural part of your daily process.
In order to stand out from the crowd, it’s not enough to have a well-designed website and LinkedIn page. Posting consistent blog posts, podcasts and videos will define you as a trusted market expert with your target audience, and result in increased brand awareness and sales.
Don’t give up hope, and keep producing.
What’s a content marketing tip you can’t live without or want to know more about? Shoot me a message and I’ll be sure to share some thoughts.
Kyle Milan is a well accomplished Industrial/Manufacturing sales and marketing professional with over 20 years of experience. He is the CEO of MFG Tribe (Industrial Marketing Agency) and Technical Sales University (https://technicalsalesu.com) and is considered the leader of Sales and Marketing Strategy & Social Media Marketing for industrial companies. He has published several articles in major news media outlets on various topics of; Inbound Marketing, Digital Marketing, Social Media Marketing & Advertising, Industrial Marketing, Manufacturing Marketing, and Entrepreneurship.
