Business owners and founders often ask us the same question: How can content marketing help my business grow?
The term has become a bit of a buzzword. Everyone seems to talk about content but many owners don’t understand why it’s important for their business, or how to go about it.
If you find yourself asking the same question, this article was made for you.
We’ll explain what content marketing is and what it can help your business achieve.
Let’s start with the basics.
What is content marketing?
It feels right to start with an official definition. And who’s better to quote on this than the Content Marketing Institute:
“Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.”
In more human terms: it’s about brands sharing stories to attract and retain customers.
Okay, that’s it. Now you know everything. You can get back to work.
Just kidding.
There are a few things you should know about content marketing.
First, it is a long-term strategy. It doesn’t work like a magic wand that brings you millions of new customers overnight. Its goal is to create a strong relationship with your audience by regularly sharing high-quality and relevant content. And like every relationship, it’s built on trust. And that takes time.
Second, focus on your audience’s challenges if you want to succeed. Rather than pitching your product and talking about how awesome you are, content marketing should focus on educating and solving your audience’s problems. If you consistently add value to your audience, they’ll keep coming back for more. As a result, you’ll win their loyalty.
Third, the ultimate goal is to grow your business. There are different things you might be trying to achieve by creating high-quality content, depending on what stage you are at and what your prospects are thinking. But it always comes down to one thing: helping you bring in new customers.
Let’s dive more into what content marketing can help you achieve (and why you should care).
Why you should care about content marketing
Your product can be amazing.
But if it’s the biggest secret on the Internet, you won’t find new customers. Or, better said, they won’t find you.
That’s where content comes in.
Here are some of the main goals that content marketing can help you achieve:
- Build an audience (who you want to be talking to)
- Boost brand awareness (what you want them to know about you)
- Generate leads (make them interested)
- Convert users (convince them to buy your product or service)
- Attract past customers (give them value to make them come back)
- Improve search ranking results (make it easier for new prospects to find you)
You might have already guessed that there’ll be different types and formats of content for each of these goals. For example, gated ebooks to generate more leads. Thought leadership pieces to boost brand awareness. Re-engagement campaigns to reconnect with your past customers.
Need help with your content marketing?
Your content outputs will also heavily depend on who you’re talking to, and when. If you want your content to work, ensure that you tailor it to the right audience. Cue: ensure you know at what stage of your sales and marketing funnel your customers are.
“What the fu…nnel?” I hear you ask.
Simply said: make sure you know what your customer is thinking.
Are they just shopping around to know what’s out there? Or do they already know about your product and are comparing it to others? Or perhaps they already decided to buy: what should you say to them now? Moz explains this topic well in their e-book The SEO’s Guide to Content Marketing.
Yet, everything that you just read comes down to one simple reason why you should care about content marketing. It’s the highest goal of every founder:
Grow. Your. Business.
And that’s why you should care.
Wrap up
If you want to generate more revenue and get more customers, content marketing is your secret weapon. With the right strategy and execution, content marketing can help you boost your sales and skyrocket your brand.
