Content marketing is just like any other form of online marketing.
If done right, it can be really effective.
If done wrong, well, it will have the opposite effect.
But before you get into it and apply it into your blog or online business, you need to truly understand it and how it works.
No Hyping – At Least Not Anymore
Content marketing is not and shouldn’t be about hyping. You market your content not because for the sake of marketing, but because you have something of value to market.
It should go without saying that it should be worthy of marketing. Your audience is a lot smarter now.
They no longer believe in exaggerated language or hype anymore.
What’s more, they steer clear from blogs delivering hard-sell tactics. News flash: those methods don’t work anymore.
So when you delve into content marketing, make sure to avoid that.
Today’s Marketing Is about Relationships
The salespeople of the past saw a customer as a way to make a quick sale. The marketer of today needs to build relationships.
That is the essence of content marketing. Watch this short video by internet marketing expert Amy Schmittauer who gives a brief definition of content marketing.
The goal is for the customer to see you as a trusted friend and a valuable source of information. People want to feel like part of the brands they love, rather than just a number in a company’s marketing game.
The key to building relationships well is to focus on your customers’ needs. Listen closely to them and understand their problems and desires.
You can then offer the products and services that customers are already actively seeking, rather than trying to convince them to buy products they never wanted in the first place.
Content Marketing
The way savvy marketers reach their audience online today is through content marketing. Customers are looking online for information, and you can be there to provide it.
You build your expertise by providing answers and become, in customers’ eyes, an authority in your niche. This engenders trust and builds relationships. The resulting sale is a natural outgrowth of the relationship. Prospective customers visit your site because they know you’re offering what they want.
Two-Way Communication
Older marketing channels like television and print media went one way – from the marketer to the customer. Today’s communication goes both ways. It’s just as much about listening to your customers as talking, and in fact, probably more so.
Customers today are proactive in going out and finding what they want. Internet users aren’t passive like TV watchers.
Your content marketing strategy meets your customers active learning.
If you’ve listened well, you can create and provide them with the information they’re looking for, before anyone else.
Making It about Them
Today’s content marketing is even more customer-focused than that of the past. It’s not enough for your website or marketing materials to boast about your company’s successes.
Marketers have to emphasize tangible results their customers will get from the product or service and back them up with evidence supporting their claims.
If you do your homework and know your target market well, it’s not hard at all to do this effectively. Offer what they need and invite them to join the dialog.
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