Statistics show 78 percent of consumers prefer to learn about a company via articles over traditional advertising. Additionally, 70 percent believe organizations that provide original content are more interested in building a relationship with consumers. Today, creating original content for your digital platforms (such as social media channels and websites) is the key to building a strong reputation and establishing brand loyalty.

Content marketing is the practice of creating and sharing material such as videos, blogs, social media posts, etc. that educate readers on ideas, products, services, and more. Content creation plays an important role in your marketing strategy, assisting in building trust and goodwill with your leads and your current customer base. Most importantly, content creation is the most cost-effective way of gathering and converting leads, costing 62 percent less than traditional marketing methods while generating roughly three times as many leads.

So, what kind of content should you be creating? The answer can vary based upon a few different factors, such as your audience, location, and the products and services you offer. However, there are plenty of basic rules to follow in creating content that will bring you success. Here are a few.

Create content that is both informative and engaging

Post with a purpose. Successful content is conversational in tone and offers the reader relevant information about your company and how you can benefit them. 68 percent of people spend time reading about brands that are of interest to them. Additionally, 80 percent of people enjoy learning about new companies through online content. But, how do you reach those that don’t know about your company/product yet?

It’s not all about you

I know we just said to create content about your company and how you can benefit the reader, but that shouldn’t be all you write about. There are several topics and talking points within our industry that your customers want to read about, and many of them don’t have to contain you. Being able to share knowledge without sounding self serving will help your position as a thought leader with your audience.

Utilize SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Optimizing your content so it’s SEO-friendly is an important part of the content creation process. To do this, research what keywords your customers are searching for online before you begin writing. There are several resources online to help you with this. By utilizing those keywords in your copy, the odds increase that your articles, blogs, etc. will show up in the search results of those looking for what your company offers.

Tie it all together

Content should play an integral role in your overall marketing plan. Not only can your content be a standalone product (such as a blog post or article on your website), it can be integrated into other aspects of your marketing initiatives. For instance, you can link to your blog in a social media post or your email marketing. By integrating these elements across multiple channels, your company presents a streamlined, cohesive marketing strategy that reaches audiences in multiple ways.

A cost-effective strategy that can provide great results, creating content is an easy way to bring new eyes to your company/product, increase leads, maintain/grow your brand, and continue to build relationships with your customers.