Content marketing for startups can be a daunting task. In order to create an effective content marketing strategy, you need to be able to effectively identify your target audience, create engaging content, and promote your content. Check out the rest of this article to learn more about how to create an effective content marketing strategy for your startup.
Define your content marketing goals
Defining your content marketing goals is the first step in establishing a content marketing strategy that works for you. When you set goals for your content marketing, be clear and specific. State what outcomes you want to achieve and include metrics so you can measure whether or not you’re achieving your goals. For example, your content marketing goal might be to increase brand awareness and drive more traffic to your website. You could set a goal of increasing your brand awareness by 15% in the first month and then by 10% each month after that.
Increase website traffic
If you’re looking to increase website traffic, then you should create content that your audience is interested in. If no one is interested in your content, they’re not going to share it or link to it, and no one will visit your website. If you want to increase website traffic, create content that people want to read. This will increase your traffic as people will share your content with others.
Increase your social media following
Social media is a great way to create a buzz for your brand, but it can also help increase the number of people following you. If your goal is to attract more people to your brand, then publishing content on social media is a great way to accomplish that goal. Posting daily can help you build a strong following and can attract potential customers who are interested in your brand. You can also share other content which is already popular and gain more exposure for your brand in the process.
Increase the number of email subscribers
One of the most common questions I get asked is how to increase the number of email subscribers to a new website. While it’s true that social media plays a huge role in growing an email list, if your content isn’t relevant to your audience, you won’t gain any subscribers. Make sure your content is top notch and that it answers your audience’s questions and solves their problems. It doesn’t matter if you are a B2B or B2C company; if you are providing value, people will subscribe to your email list.
Increase the number of referrals
One of the primary goals of content marketing is to drive more traffic and increase awareness for your brand. While content can be a great way to gain links to your website, it can also help you increase the number of people who refer their friends to you. Whether it’s through social media sharing, email blasts, or guest blogging, when your audience shares your content with their networks, you can increase your brand awareness and drive more referrals.
Define your content marketing strategy
The first thing you need to do is to sit down and write a content marketing strategy. You might have a strategy already. You might have a copy of your marketing plan and need to update it. No matter what, it’s important to sit down and write an actual strategy, not a general plan. If you don’t have a strategy, you’re going to end up with a bunch of unorganized content that doesn’t help your business.
Define the purpose of your content marketing
A content marketing strategy should be aligned with the company’s goals and objectives. The goal of content marketing is to drive sales, establish your brand, and help build an audience. Set your content marketing goals before you create your content. Define what type of results you want from your content marketing efforts. Your content marketing goals will show you what to create and publish in order to achieve your objectives.
Understand your buyer’s journey
Before you create your content strategy, you need to understand your buyer’s journey. The buyer’s journey is the path a salesperson or buyer takes from the moment they become aware of a brand to the time they make a purchase. In other words, it’s the journey that leads a potential customer to purchase a product or service from you. It includes pre-sale and post-sale phases. The post-sale journey includes activities like providing support and nurturing a relationship with customers after they make a purchase.
Understand your website
You’ve created a website for your business. But have you examined how it’s performing? Is it attracting your ideal customers? If not, it doesn’t matter how good your content marketing strategy is—it won’t help you grow if your website isn’t attracting the right visitors.
Create a content plan
Before you start creating content, you need to have a plan in place. A content plan outlines what type of content you plan to create, when you plan to publish that content, and how you will promote your content. Your content plan will also include a keyword strategy, which helps you determine the best keywords to use in your content and how you will optimize your content for search and for social media.
Develop your content strategy and plan
While setting up your content marketing strategy, you should also create a detailed content calendar to plan all your content creation and publish your content at the right time. The content calendar will also help you manage your content from one platform to another. Once you have your content calendar in place, you can add content ideas to it according to their priority and schedule them to publish at the right time. This will help you consistently create and distribute great content that will help you grow your brand.
Begin with an editorial calendar
An editorial calendar is a tool that helps you plan your content and ensure you create content on a regular basis that your audience will want to read. A good editorial calendar will include all of your content types and show you when you need to publish each type of content. In addition, an editorial calendar will help you avoid scheduling issues and will make it easier to keep on top of your content creation. Your content calendar should also include your social media marketing and any other activities you need to accomplish each month.
Create a content plan
A content plan is a strategic document that outlines the content to create for your business and when you plan to create it. A content plan helps you stay on track and accomplish your goals. If you don’t plan, you won’t know where to start when it’s time to create your content. Use your content plan to schedule when you plan to publish or promote each piece. This helps you stay on track and plan for other priorities. In order to create a successful content plan, you need to understand your audience and what they expect from you. You also need to understand your business goals. Creating a content plan helps you answer all of those questions.
Write your content
You have two basic options on how to create your content: writing it yourself or hiring a writer. While writing your content yourself is the fastest way to get it out, it doesn’t mean you have to do it all on your own. You can enlist the help of your team to brainstorm ideas and write pieces or outsource the writing to an experienced writer who can write content that will help your audience and get you the results you need.
Organize and present your content
When you are developing your content, it’s important that you organize the information in a way that makes sense to your audience. In order to do that, you will need to create a content map. A content map is essentially a diagram that outlines all of the different topics your content covers. You can use a mind map or something more formal, like a PowerPoint template. The goal of your content map is to make sure that all of the content you create is organized in a way that makes sense for your audience.
Review and measure your results
The first step in developing a content marketing strategy is to review and measure existing content. Look at the content you’ve already created and analyze the results you’ve had so far. Determine which content has had the most impact on your business and your audience. If you haven’t already, create a content calendar so you can plan out your content creation schedule. Creating a content calendar will help you stay on track and give you a way to plan out your content.
Create the content plan
A content plan should cover the creation of new content, its editing, repurposing of existing content, and everything in between. Set up a calendar for when you plan to create each piece of content and stick to it. At a minimum, you should create a piece of content at least twice a month. Use your audience research and buyer persona to determine what types of content you should create and for whom.
Understand the purpose of the content and who will be consuming it
Determine the main purpose for your content and why it matters to the people in your audience before you create it. Do you want to inform, educate, or motivate your audience? Do you want to build trust, establish authority, or help your audience make a purchasing decision? Knowing what content can accomplish for your audience will help you create the right content and optimize it — which is covered in more detail in the next section.
Determine the frequency and length of the content
The frequency and length of your content pieces will be tied to your audience and your content strategy. Your audience will inform you of what content length and frequency works best for them. If you’re just getting your content strategy off the ground or if you’re still building your audience, you may find that your content is just getting long. On the other hand, if you’re already publishing content, you’ll want to stay away from the longer form content and stick to short and sweet content to keep your audience engaged. The length of your content will also depend on how you sell your products or services. If you’re primarily selling a subscription-based service, your content might need to be longer than a how-to guide.
Understand the content type, such as text, video, podcast, or webinars
Before creating content, you need to know what type of content will work best for your audience. Video is an excellent way to connect with your audience. If you don’t have the budget or time to shoot video, create a podcast to share your insights. Or create an informative webinar to walk your audience through your top-rated software or explain the ins and outs of your industry. The goal is to create relevant, educational content that will attract and retain your ideal customers.
Create a style guide
A style guide is basically a manual for your content. It defines how your content should be written, what fonts, styles, and colors to use, and when to break up your content to make it easier to read. When your content isn’t consistent, it can confuse your audience and make them think that you don’t care about your business or what they want.
Define the content goals
Before you create your content plan, you need to decide what content you want to create and why you’re creating it. What is your goal with your content marketing? Are you looking to drive traffic to your website, build your email list, attract leads, or something else entirely? For example, if you’re looking to drive traffic to your website, one of your goals might be to create a guide that answers the most frequently asked questions about your product or service. Maybe you’re looking to attract leads, so you might create a guide about how to make the most of your website, how to optimize it for search, and how to use your website to get found in local search results.
In conclusion, if you want to create an effective content marketing strategy for your startup, you need to focus on creating quality content, building a strong relationship with your audience, and promoting your content through various channels.
