Mark Traphagen

Did you check out the latest #ContentWritingChat? If not, you’re in luck because we have a recap of our latest chat! We talked all about that content sweet spot and how to create content that gets both shared and linked so you can make the most of your content marketing strategy. Want to learn more? Keep reading! #ContentWritingChat Recap: The Content Marketing Sweet Spot: Content That Gets Both Shared & Linked with Mark Traphagen Join us for #ContentWritingChat on Tuesday, December 6th at 10 AM Central with @marktraphagen! pic.twitter.com/FAYzZAPAEd — Express Writers (@ExpWriters) November 29, 2016 Our guest host this week was Mark Traphagen. Mark is the Senior Director of Brand Evangelism at Stone Temple. He’s also a speaker and author. He joined #ContentWritingChat to share his top content marketing tips with us, so you won’t want to miss the great insights he shared. Q1: How much content builds both brand and SEO value? So, exactly how much content builds both brand and SEO value? Find out what Mark and some of Tuesday’s chat participants had to say: A1: The quick answer: not much. Most content is focused either on SEO or brand building. Hitting sweet spot is harder #contentwritingchat — Mark Traphagen (@marktraphagen) December 6, 2016 A1 There has been so much emphasis on creating content for SEO or social shares, that brand value gets afterthought #contentwritingchat — Mark Traphagen (@marktraphagen) December 6, 2016 Mark’s answer? Not much. He feels most content is focused either on SEO or brand building. So many people are focused more on creating content for SEO purposes or increasing social shares, that brand building is an afterthought. A1: It doesn’t matter how much, it’s about value! Value is what drives engagement, sharing & linking. Quality > Quantity #contentwritingchat pic.twitter.com/ZNBCK1bdCm — HeyOrca! (@HeyOrca) December 6, 2016 One thing to always keep in mind when creating content is to focus on providing value. When you provide value to your audience, it’ll increase engagement and sharing. People will want to link to you when you’ve given them something beneficial. A1. Quality > quantity. That being said, it’s best to put out content consistently and regularly! #ContentWritingChat — D2 Media Solutions (@D2MediaSLN) December 6, 2016 Quality over quantity every single time! You want to put out content regularly, but everything you publish should be high-quality. Q2: Why are share metrics alone not the best measure of the value of your content? These days, so many brands are obsessed with sharing metrics. They want to know how many social shares they’re getting on every piece they create and how many shares they receive on each platform. But the thing is, it’s not the best measure of how valuable your content is to your audience. Here’s why: A2 The vast majority of content that is shared is not read, so has no brand building value #ContentWritingChat pic.twitter.com/urPXCRFvss — Mark Traphagen (@marktraphagen) December 6, 2016 Mark makes a great point when he said that the majority of content that’s being shared is not actually being read. Yikes! That means that many times people are just sharing your content without knowing what it’s all about. In the end, that doesn’t help to build your brand. A2: Most people just share without reading the content, they don’t get the value, visit the site or convert #ContentWritingChat — Brandie McCallum (@lttlewys) December 6, 2016 As Brandie said, if people aren’t taking the time to read your content, they don’t receive value. They also don’t visit your website and they’ll never have the chance to convert. A2: People can share all they want, but if they’re not LINKING to you, engaging with content or CONVERTING…who cares?#ContentWritingChat https://t.co/QUgk4nX4gv — ThinkSEM (@ThinkSEM) December 6, 2016 As Sarah said, it’s more important to see people linking to your content, engaging with what you’ve created, and converting. Social shares don’t mean that any of those things are happening. A2: Sharing is caring, but how much of it turns into engagement or membership? That’s what we’re aiming for #contentwritingchat — GoGirlsMusic (@GoGirlsMusic) December 6, 2016 Sharing is definitely caring, but it’s important to see how much of those shares turn into engagement or some other type of conversion. You want to see results from those social shares for it to truly make a difference. A2: Shares are great, but if they don’t complete the CTA, it’s wasted. #ContentWritingChat pic.twitter.com/IaQZo4jbfy — Kristi Kenyon (@kkenyon86) December 6, 2016 If people aren’t responding to your call to action, you’re missing out on money! Q3: What is the importance of content that attracts good links? How important is it to earn good links for your content? Check out these answers from the chat to find out: A3 For one thing, if content attracts good links, it’s a good measure that it was truly valuable #contentwritingchat — Mark Traphagen (@marktraphagen) December 6, 2016 A3 Earning links is a LOT harder than getting social shares, so a better overall measure of content value #contentwritingchat — Mark Traphagen (@marktraphagen) December 6, 2016 As Mark said, if your content attracts good links, it’s a good sign that it was truly valuable for your reader. You want to see people taking the time to link to your work. Earning links is also much harder than getting social shares, so it’s a good overall measure of the success of your content. A3 Our study showing that backlinks are still hugely powerful for SEO https://t.co/2o9x7o14Mv #contentwritingchat — Mark Traphagen (@marktraphagen) December 6, 2016 If you’d like some extra reading on the subject, check out this post that Mark shared. It’s a study that shows backlinks are still powerful when it comes to SEO. A3: VERY important, since links are a HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE part of “ranking” algorithms. Links = votes of credibility.#ContentWritingChat https://t.co/icdfMa5rJw — ThinkSEM (@ThinkSEM) December 6, 2016 Sarah knows link building is an important factor of SEO. She said that links are essentially votes of credibility. A3: Good links boost your credibility with Google. They also mean you’re providing quality … Read more