What is Content Marketing? How it Works and Why Should you use it to Grow Your Business
What is Content Marketing?
Content Marketing is “a type of marketing that involves the creation and sharing of online material (such as videos, blogs, and social media posts) that does not explicitly promote a brand but is intended to stimulate interest in its products or services.”
Source: OxfordLanguages.com
This Article is 100% Human Generated.
By Cathy Blood, Founder, NEST New Media
January 5, 2023 - Greenwich, Connecticut
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CONTENTS
Intro - it’s all about people
How Content Marketing Works
Google leads the ‘horse’ to water
Organic Conversion to ‘client’.
The Four Key Elements of Great Content Marketing
People First Content Marketing.
The people who come to your site aren’t just ‘website visitors’ or a nameless ‘target’, they’re people looking for answers.
Expert Articles, videos and blog posts attract people who need your help, and may need the service, product or knowledge you provide.
Content marketing is about reaching those people and developing a trusting relationship over time.
This type of marketing works no matter what platform your website is built on, but the exact way you’ll use content marketing is very specific to your business.
How Content Marketing Works - The Process
Content Marketing begins with a PERSON with a question
Content Marketing starts with a search. Somewhere out there in the world a person is desperately searching for answers.
Google (or another search engine) delivers a page of search results to that person, prioritizing the individual website pages, videos and other resources that Google thinks provides the best answer.
If you’ve optimized your content, one of your website pages might be included in those search results. But only if Google thinks that you are an expert and that your article provides unique, valuable information related to that specific search.
Google’s a bit like Hinge, it matches the two of you up based on how much you have in common.
Google can lead the horse to water but it can’t make them drink. You must influence the decision to click.
From the search results page, the searcher chooses the pages they will visit, based on the page title, URL and description that you’ve provided. You hope they choose you!
But you do more than hope, you provide accurate information on what your article is about in your page title, URL etc, and make sure that the content on your page fulfills the ‘promise’ of your page title. You write really good content on specific topics.
Your content fulfills the person’s needs, AND it’s well written and engaging
The person who visits your page should be impressed with your knowledge and expertise on the topic of their search. Your writing is clear, easy to understand and is easily skimmed. They are getting the information they need.
Some of those people read and leave. (Not every date works out!) But some of them stick around. They read more of your related articles because you’ve interlinked your content.
They’re vibing with your values & what you have to say. Your photo is on the page, it’s clear that a real person wrote the article. Your personality shines through. You have a writing style - maybe bubbly, maybe thoughtful, or funny. They are starting to feel connected to you, maybe even to like you.
The Second ‘Date’
They might bookmark your page, or sign up for your newsletter or follow you on LinkedIn and social. Or book a call. You give them all those options, and make it easy for them to reach out.
The day comes when that person needs the service you provide.
Over time (short or long) as you consistently share your knowledge, some of those people opt-in to your services. They naturally rise through your sales funnel to become clients and customers. You are the business / person they turn to first because they know and trust you. You’ve repeatedly demonstrated that you’re an expert.
The Four Key Elements of Great Content Marketing
The key to creating great content that attracts future clients to your site is leveraging your expertise to identify, write and post high value SEO friendly content that the people in your target audience are actively seeking & can’t live without. Don’t write like Chatgpt AI. Be human and share real, personal experiences.
The key to creating great content that converts is selecting the right niche topics that showcase your unique expertise, writing specifically for your audience, but with your business goals in mind.
The key to creating content that fills your funnel is including well placed, non-intrusive call to actions and opportunities for your readers to connect with you.
The key to creating great content that drives long term success is listening to & nurturing your audience, understanding their needs, consistently providing value to your people, AND paying attention to the data.
About the Author
Cathy Blood, Founder, NEST New Media
I have over 25 years of experience in digital media and content marketing. A few years after graduating from Yale University, I joined Lifetime Television, to analyze how TV series and movies performed with female audiences to value program acquisitions. That was the beginning of a long career in ‘content marketing’. With several internet start-ups & build-outs under my belt I gained under-the-hood SEO knowledge that few pure content marketers and writers possess. I launched NEST New Media in 2016 to help my fellow entrepreneurs. Learn more about me.
CONTACT INFO
Cathleen Blood
Founder, NEST New Media
Call/Text Cathy at 203-247-0360
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NEST New Media specializes in affordable SEO optimized ‘people first’ Content Strategy, Content Audits & Content Development. We’re here to help you SHOW future clients that you’re an expert and ensure that under-the-hood website issues aren’t hurting your business.
