Getting your business online with a Kwikwap website is easy. The hard work starts on the day your site goes live and you're on your way to commanding your share of the market. With so many businesses in the same industry as yours, it's easy to get drowned out in the noise.
Standing out from your competition requires more than a unique product and a great website design (although these are a great start). You still need to pull out all the stops to attract and keep customers and ensure your brand doesn't disappear among the thousands of Google search results. This is where content marketing comes in. If you have the ability to connect and engage with your customers online, you'll not only motivate them to stick to your brand but, with the right keywords in your arsenal, also push your search engine ranking up a notch.
But, how do you know what aspects of content marketing would benefit your website? Here's a quick guide, written in collaboration with digital marketing agency The Media Image, on how content marketing strategy could work for you in 2017.
Customise your website's content
You may be selling one-size-fits all products but this does not mean you should always treat your customers as non-specific groups. Take Amazon for example - every time shoppers visit their site, they are greeted with a unique home page that is customised to their individual needs and preferences. Personalised content is not only great for branding, but also allows you to build relationships with your customers, provide them with the best deals and increase your website's conversions. Welcome messages, product recommendations and sign up forms, are great ways to personalise your site and provide your customers with unique online experiences.
Create content that meets their demands
Don't just create content for the sake of content. Whether it's a blog post or newsletter – your marketing messages should keep a finger on the pulse of the latest trending topics while providing content that fulfills your customers' needs or helps them solve a problem. To make another example: South Africa's recent credit downgrade by Standard & Poor has been a popular topic on news and social media. While your customers may not be interested in how much government's foreign debt is, they will care how the downgrade will affect them. Online brands should make sure their blog posts tap into topical issues in order to create more effective content.
Market your content
If you've recently published a killer blog post, how do you ensure it gets as much love as possible? The truth is, likes and shares rarely happen organically, unless your posts are heavily optimized for search engines or your audience actively seeks out your content. If you need to boost your content, outreach targeting can help you get your content out there. Develop strong relationships with websites and social influencers in your niche and get them to link back to or mention your content. Their input will bring your content to a wider audience and drive more readers and potential customers to your website during its early days.
Conclusion
Creating and distributing content that positively influences your audience, is key to a successful website. These steps will help you develop a stronger content marketing strategy that will drive more traffic and engagement to your site.