Beginner's Guide to Content Marketing in 2021
Priya Mishra
CEO, Corporality Global
A new year is coming for #ContentMarketing, and you might want to start your 2021 with a fresh outlook for your business. Be mindful of these seven things to watch out for to keep your Content Marketing strategy up-to-date.
But wait, what is content marketing?
Content Marketing is, as the word says, a content-focused marketing style where you create and distribute valuable, consistent, and relevant content to potential customers with the intent of getting an affirmative and profitable action.
Is content marketing effective? It sure is. In today’s increasingly digital world, content is everywhere and especially on the devices you use and interact with the most–your phone, TV, personal computer, and even transit locations.
If this is your first time to manage your content, your first time to put on your game face to challenge the world to market the things you love most, then take a deep breath and clear your mind because the first thing to do in making strategies for Content Marketing is...
7 Keys to Content Marketing in 2021
1. Create Specific Goals
If that sounded very basic, well, that’s because it is. One of the first things that you have to create is a backbone for your strategies. You have to define your niche, the kind of things you want to create. Even if you hire an entire content marketing agency, chances are this is the first thing they do on day one, too.
One of the best ways to start things off is by making a list because it can help foster creativity. Be specific on the goals you want to attain, so you wouldn’t end up getting lost in the middle of your thoughts. Focus on the things you love and are passionate about. Your content should be valuable, consistent, and relevant to audiences.
2. Find Your Voice
Your voice a.k.a. branding persona is the way you speak, how you communicate your brand to your audience. This develops an image that your viewers or potential customers will relate to and know your brand as. Take for instance, Finance outlets like the Wall Street Journal versus Spotify – these two very different brands also come with very different approaches.
Knowing how you want to be heard or seen is essential when selecting an audience. If you’re targeting Millennials for a hip and cool product, you might want to do away with a rigid structure and sound friendlier and more approachable.
3. Define Your Audience
An audience does not always guarantee that they will translate into buyers, but they are still potential customers. You want to have the highest rate of conversion possible. Again, you could make a list – types of people you could categorise and target when creating your content.
One important thing in selecting an audience is to know what specific questions or problems they have that you can address. In combination with knowing your potential customers’ questions, the use of keywords creates a closed loop that will pull them towards you – where they ask questions, and you supply answers or become the answer itself.
4. Know Your Keywords
What are keywords? Keywords are words that frequently come up in search listings that you can use as anchors in your content that search engines will more likely pull up as relevant results.
Tools like Ubersuggest are a great (and free) method to get keywords that rank high in CPC (cost per click), because these keywords are usually the ones with more value, or have higher conversion potential. Other tools may carry additional features for a small fee to maximise your keyword search potential.
5. Content Generation
Now that you know what you want to do, it’s time to generate content. Organise your thoughts by beginning with ideation. If you’re lost on where to start, check out your competitors to find out what they are doing. The best posts and content are usually the ones with both traffic and shares so you can maximise and diversify where your traffic may come from.
Video & Visual Storytelling: Visual storytelling is highly effective. Infographics, animated elements, or video clips make information easier to understand and are proven methods of capturing and holding audience attention.
Voice Search Optimization: It’s a hot feature gaining popularity with device assistants like Google Home and Alexa. Prepare by tailoring content to answer questions directly, aiming for those coveted "rich snippets".
Audio, Blogs & Social Media: In-depth information is best narrated in forms that instil rich data your customers can reference. Get your content into networks (like Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.) that will circulate your message to active monthly users.
6. Be First, or Be the Authority
Many businesses skyrocket by being either the first to cash in on an idea, or have the best implementation of one. Imagine a restaurant in Sydney that offered the first ever vegan food; people flocked to it as it was relatively new and unique.
You can do this by building your trust level or authority. Add credibility to your sources by indicating your author name or citing how you came up with a particular conclusion. You can also upgrade content in ways such as creating an extension of an existing article, providing new information, or creating exclusive content to attract loyal followers.
7. Take Advantage of New Technologies
There are hundreds of new tools and developing technologies that will only get better from 2021 onwards. AI and Machine Learning will surely step up with understanding natural human language, and Google’s algorithms now move more to better user experience and relevance on top of authority. Tools like Ubersuggest can also generate keyword ideas based on data collected from the questions people type in.
Conclusion
Keep in mind that context in content is king. These seven basic things contribute to building relevance, consistency, and value for the audience that can lift your page or website listing in the search lists.
Add more to your knowledge pool as you learn more about Content Marketing. Follow these tips and you can have a better grasp of the things that make your Content Marketing strategies work this 2021 and beyond.