Content Marketing [Beginner’s Guide]

67 percent of users immediately cancel the purchase process when shopping online if they do not like the content marketing strategy. That’s what Adobe’s “Consumer Content Survey 2018” says and declares content directly the “Brand Killer No. 1”.

What does that mean? Quite simply: people are not stupid.

You notice when a text was written for Google and not for the reader. Even Google has noticed it for years. The times of generic text deserts, flashing online banners and pointless click baits are over.

Another number from the Adobe study: The worst thing for users (44 percent) is when texts are poorly written or simply too long… Okay, let’s get down to business!

What is content marketing?

Content marketing and SEO is a strategic marketing concepts aimed at creating and making available valuable and relevant (online) content.

The goal: is to attract a certain target group, encourage them to buy, and bind them permanently to a brand, company, or service.

As online marketing guru and founder of Institute Joe Pulizzi puts it:

Content marketing is not a campaign—it’s an approach, a philosophy, and a business strategy.

At the end of the day, of course, it’s all about whether something sells or not. But first of all, the potential buyer’s fundamental interest in the brand itself must be aroused, long before the actual product is discussed.

Why is there content marketing?

Today’s customer wants one thing above all: to be taken seriously and valued as a person. That’s the basic idea.

Most people today are no longer receptive to simple advertising messages. And being informed is the first virtue of the digital age. It is precisely in this breach that content marketing jumps. It doesn’t matter whether it’s online or offline.

So why is good and beneficial?

It increases the reach of your website content
It increases sales and awareness of your brand
It creates customer loyalty

What types of content marketing are there?

Content is about giving before you take. This distinguishes it from mere advertising, where it is clear from the start that a product is intended to be bought.

But what is this gift? It’s simple: great content.

There are many types of online content, so you should first do some research into what type is most relevant to your audience.

Here are some examples of content types:

eBooks
white paper
studies
blog posts
podcast
Infographics
checklists
trial versions
trial subscriptions
Emails (newsletters)

Depending on the industry, product, and target group, the content can take on very different forms. It can be informative, humorous, or more advisory – or a mixture of all of these.

The so-called Voice & Tone of your brand must therefore be defined in advance. In this way, future customers already have a feeling of what experience they can expect from the future product.

The aim of all this is to establish a * *exchange ** with your future customers that is as long-term as possible and to generate brand awareness.

Content is about the first impression and it has to be something special.

Anyone can research, compare and evaluate today. Corresponding portals have long been among the most-visited websites ever.

Stick out from the crowd – but how?

Develop a content marketing strategy

After the content audit, i.e. the actual analysis of your website, an efficient content strategy is developed in order to market your existing and new content.

No matter how interesting and high-quality your content is, it is of no use if it is not found by the right target group.

But do I really need a content strategy?

The answer is a resounding YES!

After all, your content should be seen, read, heard, and – most importantly – shared.

A successful content strategy understands what your readers want and need, and focuses on meaningful, educational, and relevant content.

Creating content without purpose can not only take up valuable time, it can also result in unnecessary costs.

If you decide on a suitable strategy before the actual content creation, your brand will receive more essential content and readers will trust you more.

In 6 steps to an effective content strategy

Even if it all sounds rather complicated, just don’t despair. To make it easier for you to develop a content strategy, we have summarized 6 steps for you.

1. Set your goals

Start with a goal. Because when you have a final goal in mind, you stay focused.

There’s no point in producing content just for the content.

At this stage, you should also use analytics and content marketing tools to generate relevant data, such as: B. the number of page views, conversion rates, social media shares, etc.

2. Determine your target group

Get to know your target group.

Where and when do your readers spend their time online?

What do they spend their money on?

How can you solve their problems?

This step is where content mapping comes into play. This is a process by which you prepare your content for different target groups.

You think about who your personas are in advance.

Personas represent typical representatives of a target group. A persona has goals, values, expectations, and desires, behaves humanly, and helps to make assumptions about customers.

So, once you’ve identified a persona, the content is tailored to them and they’re taken on their journey of thought — from the moment they discover your product to the moment they buy it.

3. SEO and keyword research

After your target audience is determined, it’s time to research and find keywords that are relevant to your audience.

This is because they will form the backbone of your content and help it get more traffic and better SEO rankings.

4. Analyze the competition

Once you have defined your target audience and found the relevant search terms, it is advisable to analyze the content of the competition. Take a look at what she does – and more importantly, what she doesn’t do.

Study the topics, keywords, and length of content on their website or other sales channels.

TIP: If you see that your competition has poor or no content in certain areas, you can fill these “gaps” with your content.

But don’t forget: this should always be relevant to the target audience.

5. Choose the sales channels

Don’t let the numerous sales channels confuse you. Choose the ones that will appeal to the right readers.

6. Create a (social media) editorial plan

After you have selected the appropriate sales channels for your content marketing, create a (social media) editorial plan or an editorial calendar.

Such a (social media) content plan is often used by companies, bloggers, and publishers to manage the publication of content in different media in a structured way, e.g. B. in blogs, newspapers, and on social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.

This allows you to determine where and when your content will appear. It also helps you to be consistent in content creation.

By following these steps, you can create a content strategy that creates great value for your target audience.

After you have selected the appropriate sales channels for your content marketing, create a (social media) editorial plan or an editorial calendar.

This allows you to determine where and when your content will appear. It also helps you to be consistent in content creation.

By following these steps, you can create a content strategy that creates great value for your target audience.

Conclusion: good content marketing and SEO can transform your brand

Successfully implemented, creative content marketing and the right tools can set you and your brand apart from the competition.

The many steps and information can be intimidating, especially for content marketing newbies (beginners), but again… DON’T PANIC.

Remember that even the largest and most successful companies had to start somewhere.

We hope that our tips have made it easier for you to get started with content marketing and that nothing stands in the way of creating a suitable strategy.

Because if you are motivated, believe in your brand, and always keep your target group in mind, nothing can go wrong.

Just get started and have fun! 🙂