Content Marketing Mistakes You Shouldn’t Be Making

Published on: 31 March 2021 Last Updated on: 03 September 2024
Content Marketing Mistakes

By now, most people are aware of the value that a content marketing campaign brings to your business. Given the reach and convenience of the internet, most brands are bound to hop onto the content marketing bandwagon.

The only problem here is that not everyone who hops onto trends completely understands them. Before you fully commit to a content marketing campaign, it’s important to know what you’re getting yourself into so you can avoid making catastrophic errors.

 Why Should I Consider Investing in Content Marketing?

Content Marketing

The first reason that content marketing is beneficial is that it significantly contributes to your return of investment (ROI).

ROI can come in different forms, such as a customer subscription, better brand visibility, improved brand reputation, increased inbound traffic, and customer loyalty.

Content marketing also helps establish your brand as an authority, so long as your content is of good quality. You can even become your niche’s primary source of information. When this happens, customers are more likely to remember your brand whenever they need a product or service that you offer.

Finally, content marketing is a potent means to interact with your target audience (and your target demographic). Sharing content helps you build trust with your audience and it also acts as a means to extend your reach even further whenever your audience shares your content.

Furthermore, frequent followers and readers eventually become actual customers.

Content marketing is a useful method to bolster your business’ performance, but only if you utilize it properly. It’s not a silver bullet that’s going to solve all your marketing problems.

Generally, your best course of action is to hire a content marketing agency to launch and implement your campaign properly, but for those who want to try their hand at doing their own content marketing, there are some mistakes that you need to avoid.

Publishing Content Without a Goal in Mind:

Goal in Mind

Whenever we publish content, it’s important to always have a goal in mind. You have to determine whether the goal of your content is to sell, generate leads, inform, or engage with your audience.

Your goal will determine things about your content such as your call to action and tone (whether conversational, informative, or imperative). For example, if your content is meant to sell a product, it needs to sound friendly yet informative. A post that’s meant to engage with your audience is best written in a sincere, genuine tone.

Failing to Utilize Paid Content Amplification:

The internet is currently oversaturated and highly-competitive. Content brands are constantly vying to get their message on the feeds of prospective customers.

The brand that gets relegated to the background is sure to lose out on customers, even if their product is superior to that of their competitor. Paid amplification helps your content reach your intended audience and they almost always produce quality leads. Consider the fact that even industry giants make use of paid content amplification.

This means that you should do so as well if you want to stay relevant in your chosen industry.

Forgoing the Use of Social Media Stories:

Social media stories are mobile-viewed vertical videos and images that appear outside a user’s regular feed and last only 24 hours. Storytelling will be the key to distributing your content successfully. Stories are perfect for building emotional connections with your audience because they are more casual and are mostly used as a medium for real-time engagement.

Stories also have a natural progression. This means that users can arrange their content to be more cohesive to viewers. Stories also allow users to enable their viewers to react to the story, while also helps users determine the type of content that viewers want.

Limiting Your Content Form:

In today’s market, text and image content alone will not differentiate you from your competitors especially when you consider that users are gradually shifting away from written content because of the increasing popularity of video content, podcasts, and infographics. This is especially true considering how these types of content are also searchable on major search engines.

It’s important to invest in other content channels in order to maximize your reach. This also allows your users to choose how they consume your content. The best part about this is that you don’t necessarily have to generate new content in order to fill these channels.

In fact, you can repurpose written content and simply change the channel they’re published on. An old blog post can serve as your framework for your video and audio content. Your users will appreciate the variety of your content and this variation will also help improve your website’s SEO ranking.

Ignoring Data Analysis:

Data Analysis

Successful content marketing is not just based on artistic taste and content popularity. It is also heavily influenced by data. Running an analysis of your campaign’s performance grants brands the insight needed to make informed decisions regarding content.

The numbers will help you determine which approach is better for a particular demographic. This also allows users to correct a wrong approach.

For example, if you’ve discovered that most of your users are active at a certain time, then use that data to determine the best time to publish your content. Simply ignoring the data will not only rob you of the traffic you would have gotten otherwise, but it will also convey that you’re indifferent to your audience, which will eventually spell the failure of your campaign.

 Content marketing is a boon to business owners because it grants them the ability to grow their businesses quickly. It requires a lot of work and experience to get it right the first time, but since you’re posting your content on the internet, it essentially means that as long as your website is up, your content will continue to do its job. Whether your content becomes effective or not depends on whether you do things correctly.

Read Also:

Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.

View all posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related

Offline Auctions

Tending to Your Needs: 5 Key Differences Between Online and Offline Auctions

Auctioning is a popular way of selling and purchasing various items. But, what are the differences between online and offline auctions? In the past, all auctions were conducted offline. The development of the internet has led to the rise of online auctioning platforms. Companies that provide auctioning services have embraced modern methods while still keeping the traditional live auctions. To get an overview of the services provided by such companies, visit equifyauctions.com Curation: In offline auctions, experts examine and curate the items to be auctioned carefully. Customers can also inspect the items and even test them (if applicable) before the bidding process begins. This assists them in making informed decisions about the items placed for auction. On the other hand, it is rarely possible to test an item on online auctioning platforms. Online auctions are also accessible to global audiences, whereas offline auctions are only available to locals and people living nearby. Bidding: To bid in offline auctions, you must be physically present. Conversely, online auctions only require internet access. This means that you can bid from anywhere provided you have access to the internet. In this regard, online auctions have the upper hand over offline auctions because of the wide variety of items available. For instance, you can bid for a car in Britain while living in the US. Bidding online has an advantage in that prices may be cheap if you are first to the auction. On the contrary, it can also be expensive to acquire a product when the bidders are several, given that many people find bidding over the internet to be convenient. Payment: In live auctions, payments are mostly made in cash. Since the buyer is likely to meet the seller one-on-one and you pay for what you see, issues regarding payments are very rare. In online auctions, there are no guarantees overpayments. Issues arising from faulty items, and in severe cases, non-delivery, are likely to occur. However, there are some platforms with a credibility that use secure payment platforms. Such platforms also compensate you if the bought items do not meet the desired standard. Trustworthiness: Offline auctions are renowned for their utmost trust. Online auctions, on the other hand, have some work to do on this front.  As mentioned above, the trust issues originate from payment and delivery. Conclusion: Online platforms have been cited by many as the future of auction. This could be the case, mainly because they are convenient and give you a broader audience. However, there are several challenges that need addressing. These include: People will always have reservations about risking their money. This means that online auctions have to implement methods of safeguarding client funds. There is a need for creating a means of verifying the existence of an item, clients should also be able to inspect the condition of the item before committing their funds. That being said, you should thoroughly research a reputable auction house before buying or selling an item. Read Also: Cost Of Living In Seattle Is Property Investment Still A Good Way To Make Money?

READ MOREDetails
Email List

3 Easy Ways to Grow Your Email List

The email marketing industry is expanding and there is growing competition between brands: they all want to get people’s attention. Sometimes, acquiring more subscribers seems hard. If you are looking to grow your email list, we have three easy ways maybe you never thought of.  Whether you offer a service, product or content is the product, use these tips to add more subscribers to your database and become more successful at email marketing. Why you should grow your email list There are good reasons to build your email database. It can be an instantaneous way to reach the people who want to hear from you. Also, it’s cheaper than advertising or mass mailings. Every marketer wants a large email list which is understandable. In general, the more people you reach, the better results and this has never been more true than with emails. The typical ROI for email is $42 for every $1 spent. However, before you try any email list growth strategy, remember it’s not always about the numbers. You want true engagement and a long-term relationship with your audience. To build that, focus on adding real subscribers to your list – people who genuinely want to connect with your brand. How do you do that? Let’s get into three ways to grow your email list without much effort. Is it easy for someone to sign up? Many organizations and freelancers have only one sign-up form and you’d be surprised how much you have to search the website to find that form. So, the first tip: make your email sign-up visible and easy to find. For instance, you could place it at the top of your website and not buried down by the copyright notice. Also, avoid making the text so small that someone can’t read it. Instead, let your signup form be the first thing people see when they land on your platform. Are you promoting your email list on your social media channels? Maybe you’ve been working hard to gain followers on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. There’s certainly inherent value in this, but a lot of marketers make the mistake of not cross-promoting channels. Who’s to say that someone can’t follow you on Facebook and be a subscriber to your email list? Just remember that people will frequently leave social media channels for one reason or another. You don’t want them forgetting about your brand and what you offer, so do your best to get them on your list. Post periodically on social media and invite people to subscribe to your emails. Your newsletters’ content should have real value and be unique from your website or social media content. This is a great incentive to gain an email audience. Plus, you can think outside the box to gain new followers. Maybe you can run a contest or offer a freebie, such as an e-book to anyone who signs up – whatever you think would entice your audience. Do you include an email subscribe button in every email you send? Word of mouth is the best marketing.  If someone on your list really likes your email and forwards it on to a friend, they need an easy way to subscribe. A “subscribe” button makes it simple by saving them the trouble of looking you up, going to your website, and finding your form. So, at the end of every email you send, include a call-to-action. It could be as simple as: “Did you get this email from a friend? Get yours” + “Subscribe” button. The more convenient you make it for people to subscribe, the faster your email list will grow! Also, it doesn’t hurt to encourage your subscribers to forward your email. Some of them will do that and that’s a great way to grow your audience. It’s not all about numbers Now that we’ve gone over a few easy ways to grow your email list, it’s important to keep in mind that it’s not all about numbers. There is another aspect to growing your campaign: email list quality. Gathering lots of subscribers is great for email marketing, but you have to make sure those subscribers are real. You may be asking, “Well, why wouldn’t they be?” In the world of email marketing, there are quite a few types of emails that degrade your sender reputation. A sender reputation is a score that every email sender has. It’s the rating Internet Service Providers use to determine your behavior as an email sender. Some of the factors that influence your sender score are: your bounce rate your overall engagement: open and click-through rates are vital metrics the number of spam complaints and unsubscribes you get Bad email addresses you could have in your list All these factors are in direct connection with the quality of your email list. Unfortunately, every organization or marketer will acquire some bad email addresses over time. Some of the most damaging yet prevalent ones include: Fake email addresses: for a number of reasons, people sometimes provide fake email addresses. Sometimes they just want to take advantage of a freebie and have no intention of being a subscriber. Abuse emails: some people are malicious and others just careless. Abuse email owners have a habit of marking emails as spam, even those they signed up for. You don’t want these people on your list because they will hurt your sender reputation. Temporary email addresses: would you believe there are websites that exist for the sole purpose of generating temporary emails? These email addresses are sometimes called disposable because the person uses them for a day or two and never again. Then, they only cause your bounce rate to go up. On top of these, we can’t forget there’s always natural decay of the list. People simply change email addresses. Some people use their school or work email and they graduate or quit. You must get those email addresses off of your list. Use an email verifier to keep your database clean Thankfully, there is a healthy way to grow and maintain your list. The first thing is to never buy or trade email addresses to add to your list. First of all, it’s illegal to email people without their consent. Furthermore, a purchased list isn’t likely to result in anything positive and most likely the people you add will mark you as spam. The simplest way to keep your list healthy is to: The first clean it in bulk using an email verifier then, install an email verification API on your sign-up forms. Clean your list in bulk If you already have a substantial number of contacts in your list, but are not sure about their validity, run your list through a bulk email verifier. The process is simple and doesn’t take much time: you upload your list into the system and get it back clean within hours or even minutes. Install an email verification API This simple piece of software checks every new email address in real-time. It grants permission to good emailers and keeps out any of the problematic accounts mentioned above. Once your list is clean, consider adding the API to all your sign-up forms to ensure it stays in good shape. The sky’s the limit You would be surprised what a difference email marketing makes. It’s the most personal way to reach people and is an incredible tool to communicate the story of your brand and service. Using careful planning, creativity and email verification tools you are on the right path to growing your email list and getting good results. Read Also: How to Integrate Email Marketing With SEO Why Email Marketing is the BEST Digital Marketing Outreach in Singapore

READ MOREDetails
marketing presence

Third-Parties And Supporting Marketing Presence

There always seem to be more things to do than there is time to do them. And the list just keeps getting longer. If this sounds familiar, the answer could lie in working with third-party sources. Your marketing presence is not only bringing you wealth. Your selections of the service-providing companies are also becoming more reliable. More companies like to work with you. Unlike hiring additional staff, outsourcing enables you to bring on extra help as needed. In addition to saving money on staffing, you also get the benefit of paying only for the services you need when you need them.  In the context of a marketing department, this can be a real benefit. Many small or medium-sized businesses with a marketing team tend to run fairly lean, with staff required to wear several hats. While this works most of the time, it can create gaps in skills or quality.  5 Tips To Reaching Out The Third-Party Service Providers- By reaching out to third-party service providers, you can fill those gaps. Say, for instance, you’ve identified a need for more quality content. This is, typically, a somewhat time-consuming activity that requires a certain level of advanced knowledge and skill to do well. In this case, it would make perfect sense to outsource writing services to boost your blog effectiveness.  Here are the five tips for increasing marketing presence. 1.Enhanced Search Engine Rankings: Well-written blog articles will incorporate SEO practices, such as keywords for items your customers are searching for, as well as other tactics. These methods will help people looking for information to find your website and increase your chances of capturing that coveted first page of search results.  When working to improve search engine results, consistency is key. By having writers regularly create content, you’ll notice that your website’s search engine ranking increases over time. 2.Create More Content: When taking on multiple duties, there’s only so much content a small marketing department can create. However, third-party content writing firms have access to various writers and can produce a far larger amount of content than your business could produce in-house.  This can be especially valuable if you need to populate a new blog with content. If you’ve done a site audit and identified gaps in your content or opportunities to educate your customer base, the faster you can produce the required content, the quicker you’ll notice results. A third-party resource is often better equipped to do this than your in-house talent.  3.Improved Engagement: As opposed to marketing department staff who writes sometimes, professional writers are experts in crafting a message that gets results. They’re also experts at creating engaging content. That combination is ideal when looking to increase brand engagement. Whether it’s social, email, or blogs, crafting engaging content is the bread and butter of content writing agencies.  Starting with social media engagement is the most convenient path to start. To build up the marketing presence. Your brand recognition and social media engagements both are playing an important role. From the social media platforms, you will get the connections of a hundred followers. The interested followers are going to visit your website, and they are interested in your activity. Your engaging post will attract viewers, and when you have a good number of followers, then approaching the third party is becoming easier. 4.Quality Content: When writing content is the sole service offering, producing high-quality work is good for business. This demand to always produce high-quality work ends up being a de facto guarantee that you’ll get the best writing you can buy when outsourcing to a content writing company. Content is the most valuable part of keeping your website and social media page interesting. For the marketing presence, your interesting and quality informative content is like a booster.  Every year Google is upgrading its search engine algorithm, and every year, you will need a good source of content. And how you can supply this amount of content. When you take professional help for the content writing, every content will qualify the parameter. 5.SEO And Page Traffic: Every third-party company loves to work with successful and popular companies or influencers. Your Google page SEO and page traffic are quite an essential factor in building up the marketing presence. Your page traffic and the social media followers list is denoting how your engagement is. When you achieve a higher ranking position in the google search engine, the viewer’s visit ratio will also increase. When you want to increase your website page traffic, you have to fulfill the SEO terms in each of your content postings. And when you are taking the help of a professional, every content will be SEO optimized. Wrapping It Up: A company specializing in article and blog writing would be an ideal choice, as they will have a stable of writers to ensure you get someone with the experience to write knowledgeably about your niche. Several benefits are associated with increased marketing presence. Do not forget to share your comments with us in the comment section. Read Also: Top Ways Video Marketing Will Help Your Business Grow The Challenges of E-Commerce SEO Key Components for Your Marketing Stack

READ MOREDetails