In the land of internet marketing content is king. Content marketing has been around for a few years now, but 2013 is being called the year of the online writer because it’s finally being recognized that content isn’t just words on a webpage. It’s the creative and strategic process behind it that matters.
Just as a King looks to his trusted advisors to make a good decision, behind every good piece of content is a trusted writer. Content is more important than ever and that’s probably not going to change anytime soon. We could write novels about this topic, but today’s internet marketing tip will focus on the three main reasons why content wears the online crown and how to use it to make your subjects happy.
Content Drives Traffic
Content is a part of each component in an internet marketing strategy. In the simplest form, the goal of internet marketing is to get you customers online and you can only do this if your content is working for you. Your content must use keywords. A King likes to be rich, right? Keywords are the gold sprinkled throughout your content that makes it valuable to the search engines. Keywords tell search engines who you are and what you’re about. The better your content is keyworded, the more likely it will be found by the search engines and included in the SERPs (search engine result pages).
There are tools you can use, like the Google Keyword Tool, to research the words and phrases people are typing into the search bar. Once you identify your keywords, you can use them throughout your internet marketing strategy. By focusing on these keywords for awhile, you will then start to rank higher in the SERPs. If people are finding you then you will have more visits to your website.
Content Provides Valuable Information
Once those visitors are on your website, you want to grab their attention and provide them with good information relevant to their search. When you go online to search for something, what are you hoping to find? It’s doubtful that you want a sales pitch, flashy advertisement, or latest scheme. You also don’t want something completely irrelevant to your subject. For example, if you’re in the market to buy a new home and are searching for white houses, you don’t want to have links to our nation’s White House show up on your screen. You want information that is relevant and valuable to what you’re searching for.
The content you provide can come in many different forms:
- A page on your website
- Ebook
- Whitepaper
- Blog article
- Video Tutorials
- Email Newsletters
- Press Release
- Social Media
Content becomes valuable when it answers specific questions, discusses topics specific to your industry, and is actionable. If people like what you are giving them, then they will keep coming back for more. This is good news for your business because if your content is bringing people back to your site, then they will hopefully turn into a customer. It also begins to set you apart as a credible source in your industry.
Content Builds an Audience
By balancing the way you write content so it’s engaging and relevant to your readers, but also written in a way that gets you found by the search engines you are ready to start building relationships through multiple internet marketing platforms. Once you create a good piece of content, start sharing it! Just as a king is known by his subjects throughout the land, your content can be too. You can do this by:
- Blogging, Blogging, and More Blogging
- Keywording all pages on your website
- Spreading content across social networks
- Writing press releases about your latest Free Offer
- Sending email newsletter promotions
- …and anything else you want to give a try!
Once you start creating content and sharing it with your audience, don’t stop! Fresh content keeps the search engines happy and customers engaged. The more quality content you provide, the more people will get to know you, like you and trust you. Here's what Gary Vaynerchuk, best-selling author and businessman has to say:
You probably want your internet marketing content to act more like a King Richard the Lion Heart than a King Henry VIII. You want your content to have the best interests in mind for your kingdom, instead of acting irrational and irrelevant, like King Henry VIII did beheading many people - or in this case, cutting off any promising internet marketing leads you had coming your way. Content is King and it’s going to reign in internet marketing for years to come.
Teaser: If Content is King, then Video is Heir to the Throne
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