Content Marketing for Small Business Done Right

Creative content isn’t a fad in marketing for business – it’s a necessity. More companies than ever are using social media, blogs and newsletters to engage audiences – and for good reason: consistent content marketing paired with a solid content marketing strategy, allows you to position yourself as a thought leader, perfect your brand voice and build trust with your audience. 

70% of people would rather learn about a company through articles rather than an advert.

DemandMetric

Marketers who prioritize blogging efforts are 13x more likely to see positive ROI.

Hubspot

About 75% of B2B and B2C marketers have a content marketing strategy. 

SocialMediaToday

How to Map Your Content Marketing Strategy

To maximize the reach of your content, you first need a plan. Your content marketing strategy will be your roadmap – the why of every piece you create, and the way in which you distribute it. But to clearly define the why, you’ll first need to examine the who, what, when, where, and how. 

Who is your audience?

Understanding your audience is the key to creating content they engage with, and ensuring that they see it. Creating a customer profile using audience insights gleaned from social media, website traffic, face-to-face interactions, and demographic analysis can help you better understand what your audience is looking for, the kind of content they are already enjoying, and which platforms they spend the most time on. 

Google Analytics and Google Search Console are invaluable tools when dissecting your keywords and understanding who your audience is.

What’s more, nearly every social media platform has an analytics feature. Don’t let those free tools go to waste!

You can easily analyze buyer behavior to learn what pieces of content are adding value to your brand and bolstering your content marketing strategy.

What do you want your content marketing strategy to accomplish?

Interesting content does at least one of three things: engage, entertain and inform. Which of the three it does, may depend on your particular brand voice, your industry, and the platform you share it on.

It will also depend on which one of your campaigns it will be used for. For instance, if you’re running an email marketing campaign to promote a networking event, your goal may be clearly outlined with the intent to inform your audience of the value of the event and encourage attendance.

That strategy will look and sound different from a social media campaign to encourage the same behavior. Make sure you have your copywriting on point, as different mediums of outreach require different messaging.

When will you distribute content?

Determining when to send out your content will also take bit of legwork. Working backward from your goal can help you create a calendar that will keep you organized, especially if you’re running multiple campaigns on multiple platforms.

Use your analytics tools to determine when audiences are more likely to be active on certain platforms, to better target your copywriting and posting strategy.

Where will you distribute content?

It can be overwhelming to delve into the world of digital content distribution without an idea of which will benefit you the most.

Use Google Analytics to map out user profiles, website traffic habits and buyer behavior. Then use your audience profile to choose the platforms that will benefit you most, and cater your copywriting and content strategy to it.

Depending on your industry, social media platforms are ideal places to share your content. Your followers and subscribers are people that are already fans of you, your brand or your product! Make sure you’re consistently engaging with them on your social media platforms, as that’s a free platform to convey your message to an audience that already loves you, and may even be happy to advocate for you through sharing or tagging your company page.

Keep in mind, different content thrives on different platforms. Instagram is a visually-based platform – perfect for if you’ve got stunning pictures or do a great deal of team events. While LinkedIn, blogs, articles and videos can establish you as a thought leader in your industry.

How will you sound?

Understanding your brand identity and what kind of voice you want to establish is one of the most important parts of not only your content strategy, but your marketing strategy as a whole. Take the time to map out your brand identity – take a look at others in your industry and what they are doing, and how you can set yourself apart. 

Next Steps On Your Content Marketing Journey:

Mapping out your strategy, creating your content, and distributing it is no small task – but it is an invaluable part of any marketing plan. To make sure you get the most out of yours, keep the following in mind:

1. Create a team. Whether using an in-house marketing staff or outsourcing your content creation to a copywriting service, having a group of people who understand your voice, your goals and your schedule, ensures consistency and quality.
   
2. Keep it going. Keeping up with creating content and posting can feel like a chore when you’re balancing all of the other aspects of running a business, and it’s easy to let yourself fall behind. But this is where having a team of creators pays off in spades. The only way for your content marketing strategy to accomplish its goal is to plan it out and stick to it.
   
3. Use what you have. Once you have a portfolio of posts, you can reshare, recycle and repurpose it for other platforms – which means less work and more engagement. 

From planning to creating to posting, your content marketing strategy is dependent on solid copywriting, consistency and tracking. Keep in mind that the more you create, the more you can share, meaning you can better gauge who your audience is and what they’re wanting more of.

As a small business, your relationship with your audience is your livelihood – and content, when done right, gives you a direct line to their hearts and their heads.