content marketing tips - Express Writers

9 Of The Worst Phrases In Content Marketing

December 31, 2020February 5, 2015 by Adam Oakley

In the world of business and sales, words are powerful. Copywriting not only involves captivating and educating your audience, but also choosing the right words to say. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that your choice of words could cost (or earn) your company a sale. When it comes to copywriting, every detail counts. The idea isn’t to walk on eggshells with your copywriting, but you do want to be aware of word choice and the message you are signaling to your clients. Almost every word has its place and purpose, but there are several that you want to avoid when you are copywriting for sales or your website. These are what I like to call “the worst phrases in content marketing.” Content Marketing Tips: What to Avoid Content marketing may seem like it’s for everyone (see “You Don’t Need to Be a Brand Publisher To Win At Content Marketing” on Moz), but remember, there are some words in general you should be avoiding to stay on the right road. If you have these words and phrases on your own website, consider it a red flag: it might be hurting your conversion ratio. Our Product is The Cheapest on The Market. If you are in a hurry to downgrade the value of your product, the word cheap will get you there in a heartbeat. Cheap is not to be confused with affordable; affordable is a gentler and more positive way to emphasize a cost effective price point.However, cheap may bring the connotation of flimsy and invaluable. If you must include a low price point in your copywriting, stick to affordable. We Are Offering One of The Best Things Available in Our Industry. Maybe this is a personal pet peeve, but the word thing really makes my skin crawl. It is extremely vague, generic, and does nothing in terms of describing value. The word thing should be used to describe an object when you don’t know what it is, or how to even go about describing it. Merriam Webster describes the word thing as an object whose name is not known or stated.Does that really describe the product or service that you have to offer?If you are writing about a product with the goal of generating a sale, describe what is in in detail. Then focus on its best qualities — also in detail. Generic terms don’t encourage conversions. Allow Us to Serve Your Needs. Yet another vague phrase, allow us might be one of the most unconvincing terms to use when trying to make a sale. Furthermore, you are putting the cart before the horse. In order for your client to want to allow you to help, you need to describe in detail why you are their solution.Again, details matter to your clients. Don’t assume that you automatically have the sale just because you believe in your product or service. We Will Try to Resolve The Problem as Soon as Possible. If you are looking to instill confidence and encouragement in your client, refrain from using the word try. Try sounds like you will make an attempt, but there are no guarantees to the outcome.Even though there are never any guarantees in life, it is much more ensuring to your client to say that you will find a solution vs. you will make a mere attempt. You don’t want to make false promises, but you do want your client to feel confident in your capabilities. Industry Jargon Overload. While this may not be a specific word, overwhelming your potential client with too much industry jargon can easily cost you a sale. When was the last time that you were motivated to buy something because you were overly confused? I’m willing to bet never.When it comes to describing your products and services, stick to the basics. One of the rules of copywriting is to make sure that your 80-year-old grandmother can understand what you are trying to say. Of course, this does not apply for those who have a highly specific target audience that already understands industry jargon.Otherwise, make your copywriting simple and easy to understand. Free (When It’s Really Not). Free might sound harmless enough, but unfortunately it can come with negative connotation. Your clients are smart and know that almost nothing is truly free. Not to mention, the word free is often used as a bait-and-switch to lure in clients for a sale. Think about those phony smartphone commercials that promise a free service, only to find out that you must sign a contract to get the benefits.No one likes to be strung along. Unless your offer is truly free, don’t advertise as such. I Don’t Want to Generate More Business. Yet another phrase more than a word, negative and sarcastic phrases will never put your message in a positive light. This trick has become popular around the Internet, especially when you navigate away from a page and are stopped by a pop-up. If you have to insult your client into buying, you might want to re-evaluate the value of your product. Don’t Try to ‘Boil an Ocean’. If at all possible, avoid using clichés. Chances are that your clients have read those clichés time and time again, and they aren’t doing you any favors. With all of the wonderful copywriting books, tools, and online resources available, surely you can write a few words that will capture the attention of your audience. There are tried-and-true methods that were established decades ago that still apply today. Give it a try.If you can’t seem to get it just right, hire a pro. Your message will be well received, easy to understand, and help you attract business instead of unintentionally turning it away. Too Much We, I, And Us. If you take anything away from this advice, too much of you in your copywriting will never win over clients. People care about their needs and how they can use your products to solve problems. … Read more

Why the Future of Content Marketing is Bright

December 31, 2020January 29, 2015 by Adam Oakley

As a small business owner, the concept of content marketing makes you raise an eyebrow and ask yourself lots of questions that might include: Do I really need a content strategy to speak my mind and bond with my clients? Couldn’t I just let the words flow freely? Don’t let your upcoming experiences provide the answers to these questions. Trying to convey your messages without a well-researched, documented content marketing strategy would be like trying to steer a ship without a helm. In this case you would probably drown in a sea of disparate content pieces that do not actually add value to your audience and don’t do a great job at representing your business. 6 Reasons Why Content Marketing Is Here to Stay The good news is that it’s never too late to see what successful content marketing is all about. According to a Forbes article, the content marketing industry was worth no less than $44 billion dollars in 2013. Aren’t you curious to find out what’s behind the strategies that have filled the pockets of so many individuals and corporations? Some see content marketing as an elaborated soft-sell advertising tactic, while others interpret it as a method of telling a company’s story in a unique manner. Regardless of your take on this matter, we give you six reasons why content marketing won’t be going anywhere in the near future. Give The Man Premium Content, and He Will Come Back for More. Addictive content enables you and your readers to become close. Original, palatable and relevant writing with a substance always triggers feedback from one’s audience. Naturally, in this case the key to success is consistency. Those who like to consume your stellar food for thought on a regular basis will always be hungry for your fresh topics. They will land on your page repeatedly and advise their friends, colleagues, parents and grandparents to do the same. On top of that, a constant flow of content allows you to build and maintain a solid community around your brand, product or service. According to an article published by Search Engine Journal, exceptional content facilitates a stimulating conversation between you and your public, while a strong community amplifies the message that you are trying to send through your writing. Having a Solid Content Strategy Is Like Having Money in the Bank. Some inexperienced business owners who are not familiar with the mechanism of online markets may tend to think that crafting and implementing a content strategy is a tiresome process that doesn’t actually deliver major benefits. The numbers reflected by recent stats debunk this misconception, proving that content marketing is one of the most powerful moneymaking tools that all companies can and should rely on, regardless of their size and goals, in order to increase their revenues. The fact that 90% of B2C brands rely on content marketing to inform and educate their consumers definitely proves a point in this context. Content Marketers Sharpen Their Pens and Broaden Their Horizons. According to a white paper entitled 2015 Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends- North America, published by Content Marketing Institute, this year 35% of all B2B marketers affirm that they count on a documented content marketing strategy, while 48% say that they have a content marketing strategy set in place, but in this case we are talking about an undocumented version. The same source reveals other interesting aspects, including the following ones: Content marketers now use separate content marketing strategies to target 4 audiences, on average 42% of all surveyed marketers publish fresh content daily or “multiple times per week” to fuel their content marketing program In 2015, marketers are currently working on 13 content marketing initiatives, on average The new trends identified by this source indicate that content marketing has evolved a great deal throughout time, expanding its influence and its inherent series of benefit. At this point, skilled marketers can develop, test, revise and monitor not one but four (or more) distinctive content marketing strategies designed according to the particularities of their segments of public. Another important aspect underlined by this white paper is that 70% of the B2B marketers employed by companies of all sizes are creating more content than they did one year ago. They use on average six channels to distribute their pieces of content and are always keeping an eye open for new opportunities that may take their content marketing program to a whole new level. The increased enthusiasm and determination manifested by marketers show that content is a mighty king that will never be dethroned and also suggests that a little bit of strategic thinking and in-depth research can take you a long way. All the Big Players Are Investing Big Bucks in Content Marketing. If you want to keep up with the Joneses in any field of activity, you have to identify your own role models and follow in the footsteps of the most successful giants. This doesn’t mean that you have to turn yourself into a copycat; chances are that you don’t have the resources that a major corporation relies on anyway. In this case, the key is to borrow, steal and reinterpret in a clever manner, while adapting every single idea that inspires you to your own strategy, developed according to your budget, audience and goals. Brands that we all know and love show us that content marketing is the key to reaching audiences, creating communities and achieving bigger goals on a daily basis. Let’s take a quick look at some awesome examples: Colgate has made a name for itself as an expert in its field not necessarily by talking like one, but by keeping its prospects close through its Oral and Dental Health Resource This online resource provides useful, punctual tips on a great variety of topics, all related to the mission, vision and purpose in business of this giant company that has established itself as a promoter of a correct oral hygiene. Here one could stumble across more than 400 instructional … Read more

A Case Study In Two Pillars of Content Marketing Success

December 31, 2020January 26, 2015 by Adam Oakley

You! Yes, you over there, searching Google for inspiration to create an epic content marketing plan. I know it’s easy to get stumped with all of the information available or you might simply need a few examples of different successful endeavors from some epic companies. Heck, as a content marketer, even I get stumped (once every few million minutes). In this blog, I am going to do an in-depth case study of the most epic of the epic to inspire your content marketing. More specifically, I’ll take a look two content marketing pillars who have created the foundations of what a great content marketing strategy is all about! This should give you some basic inspiration that you will be able to take with you to your next content marketing meeting. Let’s take a look at the company that gives you wings, and the company you use to film when you get those wings. Red Bull’s Stellar Content Marketing: 7 Key Features If you aren’t a big fan of energy drinks, chances are you still know about Red Bull and can recite their slogan from memory, “Red Bull gives you wings!” Regardless of lawsuits stating the drink does not, in fact, give one wings, Red Bull’s slogan is a great example of just how this company wins at content marketing. Let’s look at a few other ways they’re a content marketing juggernaut. 1. World Records Were Broken. Can We Ever Forget the Parachute from Space? I was one of the millions that tuned in for Red Bull’s Stratos jump from the edge of space in October 2012. It was an incredible thing to watch and what a feeling of realizing you’re watching history in the making! If you weren’t one who watched or happen to know nothing about it, Felix Baumgartner did a free fall from the very edge of space and represented Red Bull. While it happened over two years ago, Red Bull is still using this highly successful campaign over at their Stratos Team website. It was a great way to not only advance the energy drink, but to also promote science and space travel. Just how effective was this jump, in sales and marketing results? An Econsultancy report said they had 900,000 Facebook interactions on jump day, and sales of Red Bull rose an entire 7% to a figure in the billions within six months. Now, I understand that not everyone can break a world record in their content marketing, but this company went to the extreme and did that—and it got them somewhere! If you have a crazy, record-breaking idea for your marketing: well, who’s stopping you from doing it? 2. Red Bull Uses Excellent Sports Action YouTube Videos. While most of Red Bull’s customers are not those who participate in extreme sports or high action events, they do know that it is a great marketing scheme. The company utilizes YouTube to provide videos to their over 3 million subscribers using different extreme sports in a video series. They have a series about racing in Seattle, as well as featuring individual sports such as mountain biking, parachute jumps, and extreme truck racing (in snowy conditions!). You can catch all of their videos by heading to their YouTube account. Prepare for some major action-packed adventures! In addition to Red Bull’s extreme sports videos, Red Bull also live-streamed events such as Lollapalooza. Those who couldn’t get to the music festival were able to watch it live on Red Bull TV, which was another great marketing scheme from this awesome company. 3. They Put Their Customers First. One of the major ways Red Bull wins in content marketing is that they always put their customers first. This is a great way to interact with their client base and make people feel welcome. While their customers might not necessarily participate in extreme sports or the other events Red Bull sponsors, their client base still enjoys watching them. The company states that the product is completely secondary. What comes first is what the customer wants and how the company can deliver and meet those wants and needs. 4. Red Bull Uses Multiple Formats for Content. Red Bull understands the need for multiple content formats because they understand people consume it differently. Because of this, the company not only uses their awesome digital marketing skills, but they also utilize a magazine, social media, images, and blogs (depending on the campaign). This is a great way to reach out to their audience in enough ways to keep reaching a significantly wider audience. You can find more about their overarching content at their awesome website, Red Bull Media House. 5. They Make Marketing More Than Just a Department. Their media house states they are not the only ones responsible for coming up with these stellar content ideas. Red Bull believes that they can get some of the best, most effective campaigns by involving their entire company. This is a great way to make sure they are not only engaging their customers, but their employees as well. Happy, engaged employees can mean major success for any business! Consider asking your employees to help come up with some awesome marketing campaign ideas or things they’d like to see from your company. Your employees are housing a wealth of information and if you neglect it, you can miss out on some pretty epic inspiration! 6. Red Bull Has a Strong Slogan. As I mentioned earlier, the incredibly memorable slogan did bring about a lawsuit (people sure can get lawsuit happy, can’t they?). Regardless, you cannot deny that Red Bull has created one of the best slogans. Why is it one of the best? Because whether you consume Red Bull or not, you know the slogan already. How many of us have it memorized? Let’s see; recite the slogan with me now! “Red Bull gives you wings!” This is a great example of creating a memorable slogan that helps people remember your company quickly and easily! 7. Let’s … Read more

The Story of Thanksgiving: Celebrating Thanksgiving Content

January 1, 2021November 27, 2014 by Adam Oakley

All you have to do is head to your local grocery store to notice Thanksgiving is almost here. There are turkeys everywhere and all of the essentials for a Thanksgiving Day meal. There is nothing quite like walking into a store and smelling pumpkin or pecan pie baking in the bakery, and my stomach grumbles at the thought of delicious food that my family plans to make. I’m sure you’re in the same boat! It is a great day to give thanks, spend time with family, and also offers a unique marketing chance for all companies (if done correctly). I am going to take a look at the history of Thanksgiving, what it has morphed into in the modern age, and the some brands who have incredible marketing strategies! Don’t worry; I’ll also give you some great tips for your Thanksgiving content and marketing. The Story of Thanksgiving: A Brief History It’s hard to miss the basis of Thanksgiving Day history when you head to your kid’s school or the local library. You see tons of adorable little pilgrims and Native Americans in their paper gear, giggling and showing off their cornucopia drawings. What is the full history, however? In 1621, the Pilgrims celebrated a day of thanksgiving to show thanks for the crops and harvest they had. They were taught how to grow crops on the land by the now infamous Squanto who helped them not only with crops, but also by being a translator between the pilgrims and his tribe. His tribe leader even donated food to the pilgrims for their festival. Historians believe it lasted three days as many harvest festivals in the 1600s did. Three days? Can you imagine three days of turkey, stuffing, and pecan pie? That would be a great tradition to re-kindle, don’t you agree? After the initial day of thanksgiving, there were a few more celebrations in later years, but it was never officially recognized as a civic holiday until the 1800s. In 1863, Abraham Lincoln declared that there needed to be a national day of thanksgiving and remembrance, and thus Thanksgiving Day was born. To make things easier on everyone (much to future generations approval) the celebration is the fourth Thursday in November. While we still celebrate Thanksgiving Day on the fourth Thursday of November, the day has seen a lot of changes. Some of our traditional foods aren’t entirely traditional to the feast the pilgrims had, but it is still fun to celebrate this long lasting holiday here in the States. Let’s take a look at the modern times Thanksgiving! Current Day Celebrations: My, My, How Time Changes There have been many changes to the holiday, namely that of football and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. People gather around the TV to watch these festivities, which is a far cry from what the holiday used to be – family sitting around a table together. People still do this, and many families have rules that the TV must go off at a certain time in order to be together and talk. However, television plays a major part in many Americans’ Thanksgiving celebrations. The hallmark aspect of Thanksgiving is obviously giving thanks for what we have. It started out as a religious holiday where people gave thanks to God for all that he provided. However, it has steadily changed from being religious to something where families discuss what they are thankful for, without attending religious services. Some local churches may have events, but nowadays the most important aspect of Thanksgiving is spending time with family. Many times this incorporates a lot of traveling whether driving or flying to meet with extended family. There are many amazing traditions that we now have in the modern era of Thanksgiving, and many hope to never see these go away. These are: Eating turkey baked in the oven with sides of mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans in different forms, pie (lots of pie), and stuffing. The meal changes from family to family and depends on the location. The South has seen more people deep-frying turkeys and many on the East Coast seem to prefer cranberries with their meals. Turkey Day football! What makes the American Thanksgiving uniquely American is the fact that we can watch our favorite sport – football. We love parades, and there is never a shortage of those leading up to and on Thanksgiving with the most famous being Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Donating to charity and feeding the homeless on Thanksgiving Day. This is something many families will join together to do on Thanksgiving and celebrate the day together at a later time. People hand out Thanksgiving meals to those in need, providing amazing charity. And of course, the day after Thanksgiving – Black Friday. The name doesn’t harken to the Grim Reaper, but to where businesses’ budgets will be after shopping is finished. Now that you know the history and how it morphed into our modern day celebration, I am going to look at a few brands that have marketed for Thanksgiving in perfect ways. The Top 6 Brands Who Do Excellent Thanksgiving Content 1. The NFL. No one can out-do the NFL when it comes to Thanksgiving Day marketing. They know that this holiday is a big day for them and they make sure to put their best forward. The NFL makes sure to use every channel of social media they can push their Thanksgiving Day games and provides schedules as soon as possible for viewers to plan out their day. In 2013, the NFL knew that if they were going to reach an audience quickly, they needed to be on Instagram. In fact, the social media site announced that it had some of the highest traffic on Thanksgiving, which makes sense as everyone wants to show off their meals. The NFL published a schedule on their Instagram account, making it accessible to their followers. Such a neat idea! This is a great example of knowing where your … Read more

7 Ways To Create Content Marketing For Buying Intent

December 31, 2020October 17, 2014 by Adam Oakley

Have you made a great content campaign, but struggle with making it successful? One of the main reasons a great content marketing setup isn’t working is simply that you might not be directly marketing for your customer’s intent and needs. You need to change this up, and tweak your campaign, but how? You can understand what your client wants by simply researching and getting to know them. I am going to walk with you to help you figure out just how to achieve this and make that incredible campaign a successful one! How Can You Get To Know Your Customers? Getting to know your customers isn’t as daunting as it sounds. You’ll find that it can actually be quite easy if you take a few simple steps and apply them to your content campaign. Here are a few excellent ways I’ve found that you can get to know your client base: 1. Send Out Email Surveys For Clients To Complete. According to an infographic from QuickSprout, a great way to get to know your client base is to ask them questions. You can always do this via social media or blogs, but you might not get the response you want or need. Instead, you should consider doing email campaigns with a complete survey. Allow your clients to answer both multiple choice and opinion questions. This will help you get several participants, as some people might prefer multiple-choice answers, and others might want to make sure their voices are heard through comment boxes. A few questions you can ask are: Do they like what your company has to offer? What do they want to see from your company? Why do they want these changes? Is there anything that makes them unhappy? What about happy? Find out if there is anything they’d suggest to make your content more effective. Ask them their favorite websites (outside of social media) to gather information from.These websites can help you tailor your content to suit your audience, especially if multiple people in your client base visit similar pages. 2. Be Part Of The Buying Process As Soon As Possible. There are several times where you might feel that things could’ve gone a lot smoother for you and the customer if they had only brought you in sooner. This is something several businesses miss the mark on, but by becoming involved in the buying process as soon as possible, you are able to learn more about your customers. This can help you see any problem areas in the buying process, and how you can make things easier for future clients. A few ways to do this are to always allow your clients the ability to contact you throughout the buying process or have them talk to a sales associate for larger products or services. This will help both of you out while also helping you learn about your customer base. 3. Pretend You Are The Customer. This is vital because it can show you areas in your business that need to be improved. When you are starting to gather information about your customers, you should take the opportunity to stand in their shoes and pretend you are interested in your product. Ask yourself the questions a customer would ask and look to see if you have the answers readily available. If you are having a difficult time with this, head over to a site you’d be interested in buying something from and think about what questions you want to ask that company. You can see from their layout whether or not they’ll have the answers, showing you any holes in your own content marketing or what you are actually doing right. Just be willing to notice when you’re doing something wrong. This is one of the best ways to learn, even if it does hurt your pride a bit. A great strategy big businesses take is creating a buyer or client persona. A buyer or client persona is a fictional “character” that you create to help you figure out what your customers want, and tweak your content for them. While this isn’t always exact, it can help direct you in the way you should go with your company. It can help you better craft surveys, getting the best information possible, and it can help you create new marketing campaigns that you can tweak as you learn more about your live client base. How Can You Market For Your Customer’s Intent And Needs? Now that you know a few ways to gather information about your clients, just how can you market to them with this information? I am going to look at a few great ways to incorporate your knowledge to better market for your customer’s intent and needs. 4. Publically Answer Frequently Asked Questions. Don’t just leave this up to your FAQ page, but actively answer them. First of all, this can offer excellent blog content. Secondly, you have the opportunity to give clients a more in-depth answer to certain questions. This might not be the case with all of your FAQs, but you might find that the more you answer frequently asked questions, the more likely you are to receive other questions from your clients. You can even consider hosting a blog series of “ask us anything” where you answer questions sent in by clients. This is not only a great way to answer questions people have, but also might help with improving blog engagement. This also offers you the ability to teach your clients through your blog, which is something that is vital for engagement and keeping a strong client base. 5. Use Your Social Media Accounts To Answer Questions. Another great way to market to your customer’s needs is to utilize social media. It offers you a great opportunity to answer questions, but it also helps you learn more about your clients through how they interact with you and what they feel is more important. While surveys can give you concrete data, you can … Read more

Are Infographics A Worthwhile Investment For Your Content Marketing?

December 31, 2020October 10, 2014 by Adam Oakley

As little as two years ago, some of us said the infographic got hammered and it just wasn’t worthwhile anymore when it came to content marketing strategies. Is this true? Are infographics on the down and out, incapable of spicing up and improving our content marketing plans? Is it possible to still create quality infographics, or should we forget about them entirely and try something else? According to a recent article by CopyBlogger (and we’re talking end of September kind of recent), research suggests that publishers who leverage infographics tend to grow in traffic by about 12 percent more than those who don’t. In fact, they went so far as to present the information in…can you guess it? That’s right! An infographic: Wow! It makes you think twice about infographics, now doesn’t it? Maybe these little visual packets aren’t so bad after all? The What’s What of Infographics According to Wikipedia, infographics are information graphics. They have a pretty rich history, dating back as far as 1626 when Christoph Scheiner published the Rosa Ursina sive Sol. The very first infographic debuted in this publication and illustrated the Sun’s rotation patterns so that non-scientific minds could easily grasp the concept. Today, infographics are still visual representations of data or information. They’re a prime means of turning complex information into something almost anyone can quickly understand. Unlike 1626, today they are social media friendly. It’s not uncommon for these tidy pieces of content to go viral. They appeal to our visual senses, which often make them initially more powerful than our standard text based content. Yet, these handy marketing tools have flaws. You’d think that a content type dating back to the 1600s would be perfected by now! Then again, how many of us saw the Internet coming? And in all honesty, how many of us can accurately predict just how Google will react to the content types we choose? The Downfall of Infographics The biggest downfall to information graphics is the fact that Google can’t index the content contained within them. The same issue applies to any image we choose to use. Crawlers are not (yet) sophisticated enough to capture the words on images and index them. As is the case with every type of content out there, it’s entirely possible to produce low quality. If you’re not careful, you can create awful infographics. According to CopyBlogger, Google’s Matt Cutts had some pointed observations about bad infographics: When it comes to topics, they can get off topic. It’s not uncommon for the facts contained within them to be of poor quality. The link (or links) associated with infographics often go to sites that are completely unrelated. The link (or links) embedded in the infographics are sometimes undetectable by viewers. Cutts wrapped up his observations by concluding that in the future, infographic-type links just might be discounted or devalued by Google. So, the point is you have two outcomes when it comes to infographics: Nail it! Produce a high quality, well researched, gorgeously presented, relevantly linked information graphic. It won’t be indexed by crawlers, but it will be a one hit wonder that can be repeated with new products that increase traffic and boom your business. Fail It. Produce low quality infographics void of confirmed facts and relevant links that are eye catching but otherwise worthless. They won’t be indexed by crawlers, but they won’t be one hit wonders either. Low quality = get hammered (no, not with alcohol) and you’ll be in danger of infographic type links getting devalued. But there’s something else to think about, too. Are you infecting the Web with an unwanted virus? Second-Degree Duplication Do you have a case of second-degree duplicate content? It’s a plague that just doesn’t seem to let up, as discussed by Eric Enge and Matt Cutts. What are we talking about? Second-degree duplicate content is when a user goes to pages that all contain the same information. Even though they aren’t identical and thus identified as duplicates, they’re so similar that the user frowns and clicks the back button because the information they’re after just isn’t there. The problem with this scenario is that no additional value is being brought to the reader. No, the content isn’t duplicated, but it’s not bringing anything new to the table either! How does this relate to our discussion of infographics? Well, if you’re not careful, your infographics will simply rehash information and cause second-degree duplication, the kind that isn’t technically duplicated, but doesn’t offer anything of value either. Repurposing Content Doesn’t Mean Rehash the Same Old Same Old Infographics have taken off in the content industry as a means of repurposing older content into a new form of media capable of drawing a diverse (and fresh) audience. We’ve talked about turning long-winded copy into a handy infographic as a tactic for making your content go viral. But there’s an element that you have to consider if you expect infographics to be a worthwhile content marketing investment: Fresh perspective. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with repurposing content via an infographic, but you must offer somethingof value. This means you must offer something new. Otherwise, your repurposed content will be little more than a fancy case of second-degree duplication, and it could very well fail. Infographics as an Asset At the start of 2014, we ran a series of blogs tagged 2014 Success, and success number five was all about why you should create infographics. We even provided a brief how to that handed our readers 10 popular ways of using infographics. The truth is this content type is a worthwhile investment IF you do it right. So without further ado, here’s your short guide to creating assets in infographics: Focus on Relevancy: It’s the key to every type of content. If it’s not relevant, don’t use it. It’s really that simple! Google is not a fan of irrelevant links or content. Period. (I want to add in an exclamation point because this point just cannot be … Read more

15 Awesome Tools To Assist Your Content Marketing

June 19, 2024August 15, 2014 by Adam Oakley

Content pieces are the indispensable aids that highlight the cool factor of your company, products and services, increase brand awareness and customer loyalty and help you get (and stay) on the same page with your prospects. But unless you are commercializing your product—whether it’s the fairy dust that can prevent aging or sleek cars that run on tap water—chances are that you have a lot of competition in your sector. Why Should You Invest in Content Marketing Tools? A customized, cohesive content marketing strategy can help you separate yourself from other players in your field, reflect the best features/most notable benefits of your products and interact with your target audience in an ideal manner. In this context, great storytelling skills could guarantee your success. You may ask: what makes a good story? While your merchandise may be truly mundane, the story of your company and the message that you’re trying to send to your potential buyers should be anything but tedious and unoriginal. A Plethora of Handy Tools for Every Conceivable Marketing-Related Problem Maybe you’ve got a mean case of writer’s block. Perhaps you don’t speak SEO or don’t know how to adapt your content flow to the real necessities and expectations of your audience. Maybe in the absence of awesome content distribution strategies, your web writing looks like a crowned king who is yet to find his influent queen. Last but not least, maybe you’re the real ninja of words, but can’t or don’t know how to measure the success of your current content marketing strategy. Regardless of the real root of your problem, a great variety of content marketing tools can enable you to overcome any challenge and step up your marketing efforts the easy way. What Are the Main Categories of Content Marketing Tools That You Should Focus on? According to an awesome infographic introduced by ClickZ, content marketing enhancement tools can be broken down into 5 main categories, based on the specific purposes that they have been designed to serve: Content research Content organization Content creation Content organization Content marketing analysis It is advisable to use at least 1 or 2 tools listed in each category, to make sure that all your everyday tasks, ranging from extensive research that represents a major first step to content marketing analysis, are absolutely flawless. 15 Excellent Content Marketing Tools That Will Help You Steer in the Right Direction Most content marketing tools are free or almost free. If you need another great reason to put them to good use, think about the fact that everybody else is already doing it. Without any further ado, here are 15 excellent aids that every online marketer needs in his life. Quora. One of the most popular sources of knowledge, Quora is one of the basic tools that you should use while doing your homework. By simply selecting the topics that actually interest you (technology, luxury fashion, economics, history, psychology and so on) and following them you can stay in the loop and expand your knowledge database. Moreover, Quora defines itself as an accessible place to create new content and share existing pieces that float around the Internet. Content Forest. Do you feel lost in the middle of a thick, dark forest of unwritten thoughts? If so, you should know that you can actually exit this labyrinth by using Content Forest, a handy end-to-end, complete marketing solution that ensures the hassle-free automation of all your daily operations, ranging from content creation to marketing and analytics. Flexible, modulated and powerful, this tool could become a valid substitute for your marketing consultants who are costing you a small fortune. Pinterest. A great image is more valuable than 1,000 carefully chosen words. This is not a cliché; it represents the mechanism that made Pinterest so popular in the first place. People like to collect and organize images that reflect their style and aesthetic demands. Why wouldn’t you turn this hobby into an activity that could boost your content research efforts? Analyze different boards and create your own to become a cool trend scout and find out how you could put your products and services in a different light, to increase their power of seduction. Curata. Content curation is one of the hottest trends that you cannot afford to ignore. If you are an avid collector of rare written gems that are only a few clicks away, give this useful tool a try to achieve business success in 3 easy steps. With Curata, you just have to find, curate and share first-class web content that can truly make a difference in the lives of your readers. Contently. In case you are interested in finding the ultimate storytelling platform, remember to check out Contently. This handy tool ensures a win-win situation for brands looking forward to perfecting their marketing strategy and also for freelancers who are eager to get new assignments. Driven by the desire to create a “better media world” governed by great content and not by mercantile goals expressed via more or less compelling ads, Contently arms brands with all the tools and the talent that they could ever require to compete with the most gifted and influent publishers. Storify. Your images are breathtaking and your calls-to-action are compelling. Your body copy is 100% unique and your headlines make your visitors ignore the fact that curiosity killed the cat. But what is all these essential elements don’t add up? Use Storify to glue all the pieces together and create an awesome whole. You just have to collect media online, publish the best pieces on Storify, share your content with the whole world and go viral. In addition, a Storify VIP subscription would enable you to unlock real-time updates and additional customization options that could come in handy, when it comes to telling a convincing story about your brand. Percolate. Percolate defines itself as the complete content marketing software that is good enough to provide great answers to all your daily web writing-related problems and concerns. … Read more

How to Avoid Content Clutter

January 1, 2021July 16, 2014 by Adam Oakley

Great content is a top way to get in Google’s favor today. But with all the content variations you could and should publish, how do you correctly sort? Blogs, articles, web pages, landing pages—don’t pile ‘em up and forget to organize! Avoiding content clutter amounts to a basic principle that we all learned at a young age. Do you remember your mom or dad telling you to put your toys away and clean your room? The idea was to put things where they belonged, thus cleaning up your space. Well, to avoid content clutter the same principle applies. You need to know where all of your cool toys go and properly put them away after you’ve played. Your Cool Content Toys We all love show and tell! It’s time to show off your super cool content toys. So whatcha got? Well, here are a few of the toys that should be somewhere on your website floor, and if they’re not, you better get them: Niche and product specific content: Back in the day when businesses marketed on a local level, competition was fierce. The Yellow Pages and highway side billboards were prime advertising real estate, and the potential audience pool was seen as huge. Successful marketing took specifics. Imagine how much more important this is today. The Internet isn’t local; it’s international. Your potential audience pool is a lot less pool and a lot more ocean. Niche and product specific content are essential content variations you must utilize. So if you haven’t already, focus on reaching you sales goals by creating various blogs and content for precise products and niches. Storytelling your way to sales: According to Forbes, “storytelling is used to create an emotional investment” in marketing content. The ultimate goal of storytelling is to make the audience pay attention. Emotionally charged headlines grab attention. Investing the readers’ emotions as they read keeps them reading all the way to the most important part of your copy: the call to action. Storytelling is a good start, but it isn’t a standalone toy—it’s like the hot wheel that needs a racetrack. You also need to organize your content logically. Otherwise, your audience won’t have a clue. Well-organized content: Structured content can break down into a lot of detail, but for the purposes of this post, we’re going to focus on the big picture: your publishing platform, tags and categories, SEO, and meta tags. Your publishing platform: Get a good one. It should be easy to use, easy to understand, and capable of basic search engine optimization features. A recommended and epically popular platform is WordPress. Build in SEO: Most publishing platforms hand you simple SEO tools. For example, WordPress sports several plugins that offer full site, per web page, and per blog post optimization options including keyword and meta information insertion. Utilize tags and categories: This takes a little finesse. You create blog categories and tags to logically sort and label your posts. The trick is to keep it simple. Each post should fit into a specific category, not a ton. And each post should carry relevant tags, not every possible tag under the sun that applies just a smidge. Your audience will use your categories and tags for search purposes. Keep them simple and highly accurate. Don’t be afraid of meta tags: Wait just a minute! Am I talking about HTML? Yes, I am, and it’s nothing to be afraid of! I’ve seen people react to meta information like these little tags are the gigantic spiders just in from the Forbidden Forest of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. There’s nothing to be afraid of, folks! Meta tags are easy to use, and they structure the big picture of your content. Don’t be without them! Tap into the power of a monthly newsletter: Use a monthly newsletter to pull together your best blog topics and send them out to all your clients. It doesn’t matter if these people subscribe to your content updates and social media channels. You should still leverage the power of a newsletter because chances are they’ve been too busy to catch everything. In fact, they likely missed that one topic that was just for them. Help them out. Hand them a monthly newsletter. Get the most mileage out of your content: Use social media. Share, share, share! Think of shares as miles. For each share, you gain a mile of exposure. The more miles you gain, the farther your content traveled, and the more area your message hit. Always Put Your Toys Away To cut down on clutter, you have to put your toys away. Copyblogger points out that we are all “searchers” seeking the best way to solve our problems or satisfy our desires. We make split-second decisions about clicking on a headline, and the last we want to do is trip over a scattered mess of toys the moment we land on a website. Now, putting your toys away isn’t just about putting up your content when you’re done. No, it’s about putting it where it belongs. That means completing the following steps logically: Sorting: Meticulously order your content. Ensure that the how and why of its labels and the display make sense to the audience. If it’s not organized, it’ll just look like endless, chaotic, and unhelpful clutter. Publishing: Be sure your content is proudly published. Build in SEO, use the tools provided by your publishing platform, and don’t be skittish of meta information. Publicizing: Maximize your miles. Use social media. Publish a monthly newsletter. Don’t just publish and hope it gets to the right people—publicize it straight to them! It’s a content jungle out there, and your audience won’t hesitate to ignore less than stellar content because if you can’t provide it, someone else will. Your goal should be to display your best toys proudly, as they relate to your uniqueness; i.e. avoid content clutter by putting the proper tools in the proper place.

Does Content Rule The (Online) World?

January 1, 2021July 9, 2014 by Adam Oakley

What comes to your mind when you hear the term “online content?” You might think of anything from the content populating your website and blog to social media presence, and you would be right. Online content is basically everything you put online. It can include your website, blog, social media posts and shares, and even e-commerce. It’s everything floating around cyberspace with your name on it. So if online content were to rule the (online) world, how lofty would your throne be? A New King Ascended the SEO Throne In 2014 If you’ve asked why it’s important to publish content online, you’re not alone. Many business and brand owners have posed this question. Isn’t it enough to create eye-catching graphics, slap those puppies onto your website and social channels, and let them do the selling? After all, good marketing happens when the product or service sells itself, right? If this were 2010, and if Google were still supporting old SEO tactics, you’d have a winning strategy. But it’s not. It’s 2014. Google’s beastly search algorithms are poised to shred online presences clinging to old habits while increasing rankings for those that play by the rules. The new rule is that content is king. 5 Types of Content You Can’t Do Without Content comes in all sorts of flavors. It can be short or long. It can be black and white, gray, or colorful. It can take on whatever shape you need. It is 100 percent customizable and capable of achieving whatever you need, if it’s crafted with skill and care. Although the current content menu on display at copywriting agencies all over the net is sizeable, there are five types of content you simply cannot do without: Blog posts: Blogs are super important to businesses and brands. Your goal should be to blog at least a few times per week or month. Each topic should be relevant to your specific products or services. Be educational and informative versus sales oriented when blogging, but don’t be afraid to subtly point out the benefits or value your product or service brings to the table. A meaty blog packed full of solid material hands your audience the ability to be well informed and educated. They are much more likely to buy from an industry expert versus a company that focuses solely on conversion. News: Your business is constantly growing. Show your growth by creating and sharing interesting news content. Press releases are a great way to tackle newsworthy topics. Don’t shy away from posting news from your industry as well. News content has the ability to position your business as a subject matter expert that is in the know and in touch with current news and trends. Timely: It’s vital to ensure your content is timely and properly positioned. For example, displaying outdated news or information on your site’s main page will give the impression that you’re not prioritizing. In fact, the audience might conclude you are outdated and unworthy of attention in the now. Take the time to inventory your content. Either ensure it is timely and that old information is positioned in older, dated content for those conducting research (recommended), or weed it out completely. Products and services: The goal of your online content is no doubt to develop interest in your business and compel the audience to take action. Therefore, your copy should include enough of an explanation about your products and/or services to generate audience appeal. They should know enough to either want to research more (via your online presence) or contact you. Always take care in deciding how much information you will present about your products and/or services. You don’t want to overwhelm your audience with so much info that they lose sight of the value you’re offering. Social media: It’s the “in” thing of 2014. Social media and search engine rankings go hand-in-hand because the strength of your social media will affect the strength of your overall rankings. Building this type of content is an absolute must. The key to creating killer social media is in crafting the sort of content people simply must share. This requires interesting and fresh content. Variety is vital. Give your audience a generous mix of both serious and entertaining material while keeping self-promotion to a minimum. 6 Tips for Writing Killer Online Content According to Social Media Today, we’ve reached a point in the content marketing industry where “the line between writing [killer] SEO copy for search engines and engaging copy for humans has all but disappeared.” It sounds silly, but writing for humans means you’re writing for search engines and writing for search engines means you’re writing for humans. Confused? Don’t be! It all boils down to the basic ingredients of killer content: Get to the point. Don’t beat around the bush. People don’t have time for that. They want value, and they want it now. They are inundated with information at an alarming rate. Get to the point quickly or risk losing their attention. Keep it tight. The majority of your audiences are likely using mobile devices, which means they’re viewing your content on a compact screen. Make your copy user friendly by keeping it tight. Sentences and paragraphs should be short and concise. Headings and subheadings should be easily visible and contain the main point of the text beneath them. Don’t be shy. You must compel your audience to take action. Don’t be shy! Tell them what to do. Make each call to action logical and blunt. Ensure copywriting from one web page to the next transitions smoothly. Be professional. There’s nothing wrong with a little entertainment value, but your copy should reflect your professionalism. Tap into personal stories, funny anecdotes, and peppy wording, but don’t go overboard. Oh, and don’t misspell words either. A typo or two is understandable, but if you display a pattern of misspelling, people won’t take you seriously. Stay active. What’s the old adage? “A body in motion stays in motion.” The … Read more

The Write Era: Why & How Today Is the Day of Online Content

December 31, 2020May 27, 2014 by Adam Oakley

As sad as it may be, the times are quickly moving away from print and heading towards online content. It is more expensive than ever to get something printed because of the decline of the printed word. This means one of two things: 1) either you can spend a lot of money participating in antiquated methods or 2) you can save money and get a lot of bang for your buck. Online content is a great way to gain access to a wider audience and a much wider audience than you got with paper content. This blog is going to explore why today is YOUR (and our) day; the day of online content; and how this powerful tool can benefit you. Let’s Clear Up The Myths, First The Internet isn’t the swamp monster. It isn’t here to destroy everything you hold dear. In fact, it is here to promote what you hold dear and make it successful. Your business is close to your heart and you want to see it succeed; the best way to do this is to jump into the 21st century with both feet. Once you’ve jumped in it is time to get ready for some awesome results! How Can Online Content Work For Me? Simple. It can bring in more customers than you could have dreamed of when you were relying on print content. All someone has to do is type in a keyword with the location and your business will show up on Google’s results page. Did you realize that one simple investment into an online press release can be instantly published to over 4,000 online media locations? Pretty awesome, huh? This is what online content can do – it can get you more coverage than ever. It is super exciting! What Types Of Content Do I Need, Sensei? Let’s take a quick look at a few forms of content that will be excellent for your business: 1. You’ll Need A Blog. Have you watched the latest Sherlock series? If not, we are sure you’ve at least heard of it. In the series, Sherlock’s cases come to him not just from the police but also due to Watson’s blog postings. Sherlock tends to scoff at the postings, but the reality is not everyone is keen on the different types of pipe tobacco ash out there. Watson understands how important a blog is to a small business and he utilizes this so that he and Sherlock can actually afford their rent payments for that London flat. Just as it is important for Sherlock’s consulting detective business, blogging is important for your small business. It is a great way to interact with your customer base and provides you with an amazing way to give updates on what is going on in the company. If you are worried about staying up with a blog or writing great quality, you can always hire a copywriter who is trained in SEO (search engine optimization) and will craft excellent content for your site. 2. Online Press Releases Are Very Important. Just as in print, press releases are still crucial to a successful business. These are great ways to let everyone know what your company is up to and what to expect in the coming year. It lays everything out in a professional format and is easy for news outlets to use. The main change to the modern press release is the need for it to be social media ready. This is crucial when it comes to anything written for the Internet, which you will see in the next point. 3. Let’s Talk Social Media. If you aren’t on social media, now is the time to create a profile. It isn’t as terrifying as news outlets make it sound and, in fact, is very crucial to a successful small business. You don’t have to be an expert in using social media; you can have someone else in your company be in charge of that aspect. Just find a person who knows, and understands social media, and ask them to take over. The most important outlets are Facebook and Twitter, though many companies are finding Instagram and Pinterest to be very beneficial, as well. Social media gives your client base a way to interact with you and your company, and also provides you easier access to advertising specials coming up in your shop. It is important to remember to use this to your advantage but don’t abuse it (i.e. Don’t over-share on social media). 4. Don’t Scoff At Email. Email campaigns still bring in a lot of success for many a small business. Reports show that people are checking their email constantly throughout the day and many of us check our email when we are still in bed. We wake up and check our email on our iDevices. This is a great opportunity for you to create marketing campaigns that will lead to some awesome sales for your company. Again, don’t abuse this excellent tool! Learn how often your customers expect an email from you and don’t go over that expectation. You don’t want to annoy them into avoiding or unsubscribing from your email updates. 5. Does All Content Have To Be Long? No! Short content is honestly one of the best approaches to having a successful marketing campaign. Shorter content is also one of the best ways to go viral, according to Quicksprout. You can hire graphic designers to craft short, sharable content like an infographic. These are really handy tools to use for Internet content, as they tell about your company and highlight the important information you want customers to know. You can also do videos, write shorter articles, and even repurpose your content to make it last longer. You don’t have to be constantly creating new and unique content. Utilize the content you’ve already crafted and you will get a lot of mileage out of it! It’ll also save you significant amounts of time. The Internet Is Good, Use … Read more