Introducing content marketing for small businesses
Content strategy is about as buzzwordy as we get. But what does it mean in practice?
Content strategy means planning out and putting out the kinds of content that your customers want to see online. In most cases, we’re talking about an active business blog on your website, or regular email newsletters.
Like everything we do, content strategy is part creativity and part data-science.
We’re creators of standout online content with SEO at its heart. The science gets you higher in those all-important Google search rankings, and the creativity wins you customers who are on board with your online brand.
Talk to us about boosting your website with:
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Main page content
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Landing page content
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Blog posts and feature articles
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Email marketing content
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Image content (including custom illustrations and infographics)
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Video content (like this bad boy).
We’ll also back it all up with regular reporting to show how well your content is working, and the real value it brings to your business.
And as with our website builds, you decide how involved you want to be in your content strategy. Choose between us consulting on and you creating your blog posts, for example, or us handling everything for you from start to finish.
Why content strategy matters to small businesses
Many small business owners think their job is done once they have a website up and running.
We disagree.
The reality is that Google doesn’t like websites to stay static. Google loves updates. Why? Because it wants fresh, unique and relevant content that it can show to customers whenever they search online.
Not sure where to begin with content strategy? Try these starter questions on for size:
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What are the top 3 questions our target customers would ask?
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Where would they go to find those answers?
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Where could we fit in?
Content strategy solves this last question.
Done right, it will benefit your small business by:
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Growing your online presence, and your brand as a whole
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Positioning you as the go-to authority online for your area of expertise, and building customer trust as a result
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Driving the kinds of customer behaviour (online orders, bookings, etc.) that have a direct impact on your bottom line.
Sound about right for your small business?
Multimedia content marketing, minimal budget
You’ll notice that content strategy isn't just about text. It includes images and video as well.
This is important because Google Images and YouTube are respectively the world’s 2nd and 3rd most popular search engines.
They’re also areas where micro business owners – with the right mix of content strategy and SEO – can really steal a march on their competitors.
Let's take a real-world example. Rob runs a vinyl record shop. He has a basic website with address details, and a blog where he writes reviews of latest vinyl issues.
There's nothing wrong with either of the above. But if Rob wants to grow his business beyond his current following of avid audiophiles, content strategy is his way to branch out and bring in more coin.
Yes, vinyl reviews are great for collectors, but what about the growing audience of younger customers who are total vinyl novices but feel compelled by this world of 45s and belt drives?
In Rob’s case, sharing a series of 'hi-fi for dummies'-style video guides on YouTube would be especially worthwhile because:
1. YouTubers love music – more music is played on YouTube than all the music streaming services combined
2. YouTube is the place to go for how-to instructional content.
"Wait a minute. Online videos for my small business? Sounds expensive."
Trust us – you’d be amazed at what you can achieve with your smartphone and a £100 gimbal these days.