Check the Essentials as You Build Your Content Marketing Plan
As a content marketing agency, we hear it all the time from clients. “We don’t have a brief for you, but we know what results we want to see from our content marketing efforts. You have the best SEO writers on your team—they can pull something out of their magic hats, right?” Of course, we can! There’s just one problem; even these accomplished, highly creative, SEO experts and terrific writers do need a starting point, i.e., a hat. You see, one hat doesn’t fit all. So, if you want doves, we need the hat that can generate doves. If you want rabbits, we need a different hat that we can plunge into for rabbits. And so on…
Zig Ziglar said, “You hit what you aim at, and if you aim at nothing you will hit it every time.” Content strategy is much like shooting an arrow. If the target isn’t clear, you’re not going to come close. SEO writers can do all the research they want, but if the content doesn’t line up with your business goals, then their work is for naught. Your SEO strategy must include the building blocks for high quality content that converts visitors into sales. Even the best SEO writers, and we have them here at MintCopy, can’t get there without information that helps them deliver content that matters to your business.
4 Elements to Include in Your Content Strategy
Your content marketing strategy must include:
- Overall plan: This tells your writer who you want to reach. It’s about how you want to provide content. You should also determine how you will measure results.
- Brand positioning: Your writer needs to know what makes your brand unique and how does it add value. Why should customers choose your brand?
- Value proposition: How does your content add value to your audience? How do you stand out with your content?
- Business case: What are you trying to achieve? How will content bring you closer to those goals?
Long-term Planning for Maximum Success with Content Marketing
Once you know what you want to achieve with your content, you can develop a long-term content strategy to give your content team focus.
- Start with auditing your content. Use analytics to determine what your customers respond to, and what doesn’t work. Find out where you can improve.
- Know your audience. Writers need to know who they are creating content for and why. Are you reaching out to a general audience for brand awareness? Do you want to grow your followers? Are you trying to earn buyers? Targeting customers at different points in the pipeline involves different types of content.
- Set goals for content. Think long-term goals that align with your vision and mission. Short-term goals should be more specific. Keep in mind that organic SEO rankings take time, like a crock-pot. If you want the juiciest, most aromatic and flavourful dish, you have to slow cook it! You need to make your SEO writers aware of the goals and work with them to determine how they will help you meet those goals.
- Develop an editorial plan. This will allow your SEO writers to prioritize their content submissions. It can be difficult to come up with relevant content on a regular basis without a roadmap. A plan lets you and the writers allocate resources toward the most critical tasks, which boosts your overall results.
Content marketing strategy simply cannot be an afterthought. To earn good SEO rankings, you must prioritize your efforts methodically. Let MintCopy, a content agency specializing in SEO and high-quality content, help you streamline your process.
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https://www.semrush.com/blog/content-marketing-strategy-guide/