Creating Quality Content for Your Lead Nurturing Efforts
Both content marketing and advertising are excellent methods for attracting new customers and creating positive brand associations. However, only content marketing guides your leads through the sales process and creates long-term brand followers.
Did you know that most Americans see somewhere between 4,000 and 10,000 advertisements in a single day? Whether they're watching television, scrolling through social media, or taking a trip to the store, people are always being bombarded with ads. Because of this, many people have learned how to tune out the ads they don't want to see. Now, marketers who are attempting to nurture prospective customers through ads struggle to achieve the high levels of engagement they are looking for.
In contrast, high-quality content will grab the consumer's attention and keep it too. The best content educates your target audience, creates an appreciation for your brand's expertise, creates a positive brand-consumer association, and conveys real value to the consumer. When marketers create a nurture funnel based on quality content, they can increase the effectiveness of their campaigns and build a base of brand advocates.
What is High-Quality Content?
Businesses that continually create low-quality content just for the sake of having content rarely convert leads into customers. If you want to create great content, you need to have a target audience in mind. For example, if you're a bridal shop, you may want to create an infographic about choosing the right wedding dress, or the process brides-to-be go through when shopping for wedding dresses. Don't let your efforts go to waste by creating content that doesn't add value to your target audience.
However, even if your content is being made for the right audience, it can still fall through if it is delivered at the wrong time during the consumer's purchasing journey. Prospective customers visiting your website for the first time will probably want to know more about what your product or service is. Leads who are close to purchasing may be more interested in information that explores the uses and benefits of your product or service.
So, develop content that fits every stage of the customer journey, then create CTAs that fit with each group. For example, if you are nurturing leads, your content should build brand awareness and demonstrate your brand's credibility. Marketers can accomplish this through social proof or through insights that prospects won't be able to find anywhere else.
Creating Effective High-Quality Content
While it might seem hard to consistently create unique, high-quality content, it doesn't have to be! If you start by creating a replicable process, you can follow just a few steps every time to create unique and exciting content that nurtures leads from beginning to end.
1: Turn Stories into Marketing Material
First, decide which part of the purchasing journey your content will be targeted towards. Then build the content with the goal of resonating with the selected audience.
You can do this by talking to your in-house experts and current customers to gather information and stories that can help you sell or promote your product or service. When you get these stories, you can make them into marketing collateral. Develop content for each type of audience in each stage of the purchasing journey with a human narrative that resonates with your customers.
2: Determine the "Why?"
Now you need to figure out the why. Why would prospects want to read your report or watch your video? Is the reason immediately clear?
Figure out the answer to these questions to determine the importance of each piece of content. When you design content that is useful to your audience, it ensures they will want to consume it. You can use catchy key-phrases and beautiful, attention-grabbing graphics to further your reach and increase attraction. Once your audience has established expectations of your brand, it's time to deliver on them by creating copy that builds upon the visuals and provides depth.
3: Do You Need an Expert?
It's crucial to avoid making generic content. This kind of content can dilute your brand's message and produce a lower ROI (return on investment).
You have the option of hiring full-time, experienced marketers or even using third-party vendors to ensure the content you're creating is the best possible quality. These people can help you determine how, when, and where each piece of content needs to be spread.
At AnoLogix, we have a team of digital marketers that can help bring the spotlight to your small business. We know that internet marketing isn't easy for everyone. In fact, it takes a lot of research, writing, and patience. However, connecting with your audience and getting them to join your networks is crucial.
4: Keep on Testing and Adapting Your Strategy
Once you've initiated your process, and implemented your content strategy, take the time to test the different pieces on different channels. What works well for one industry or channel may not work well for another. If you find that one CTA (call-to-action) achieves high engagement, you can replicate that success using similar CTAs in other content aimed toward that same target audience. However, you should always make sure you're refining your approach as your audiences and markets change over time. What is successful for you now may not always be as successful in the future.
If you want long sales cycles, you need an excellent nurture process, and the best one keeps sales coming by administering great content. By using customer stories and figuring out the importance of your content, you can target the right audience with the right content at the right time.
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