In order for an organization to gain a lasting presence on the Internet, and hence visitors (or users) to its website and/or application, it must have a clear strategy regarding the content it will publish or share. This is called content marketing.
But as Copywriters like to joke, content creation isn't rocket science, but it is a science.
And quite often, organizations make mistakes in their content marketing. Mistakes that cost them money, time, and a lot of missed benefits.
In this article, we decided to present some of the vicious practices that we often encounter in our practice.
They do not use data when creating their content
In our work, we have often heard the statement "But my posts are in a higher (or first) position when searched for in the search engine and/or social networks. How is it possible that my site/profile is not visited as much?"
Companies sometimes create content based on what they believe will spark interest.
Let's say you're a small company that creates local area networks – for residential or business subscribers. It's natural that a post or video that covers the most common problems when installing a specific router model would get fewer visits/views than content that talks about installing routers in general.
For content creation to be successful, it is necessary to more accurately predict what arouses interest in the visitor.
They don't define the potential visitor
Besides having content that is targeted to the visitor (imagine heat-seeking weapons that hit a specific target, not a mass bombing like in the Vietnam War), companies often don't ask themselves an important question - who is this content aimed at?
The volume of text, the vocabulary used, how long the paragraphs are – everything should be geared towards holding the reader's attention.
Who is he/she?
Without defining the visitor, the content may often be useless to him.
They don't put a purpose behind every piece of published content.
Content cannot be created because it simply has to exist.
Besides the fact that it is unproductive to create something without research, in the hope that what is written/filmed/recorded will “stick to the wall,” it is also unproductive for what is written to be created “just like that.” Yes, there is.
What do you expect from what you have published?
To generate interest in your brand? To get feedback?
Every piece of information should have a set goal. Let's say: a publication would be successful if it gets five hundred page views per month.
They don't take into account what reviews a given content has.
Once a piece of content is published, it doesn't mean it's over. On the contrary, its "life" is just beginning.
After publication, it is very important to track how the creation is received - how much time visitors spend on it, what percentage of them are directed to other pages on the site (or leave it altogether), what are the comments, shares, likes/dislikes, etc.
The audience is the greatest and truest judge.
A given content marketing strategy may not be inherently wrong, but it needs to be changed simply because visitors demand it.
They are not patient.
Most forms of traffic, such as search engine traffic or email marketing, take time. Over a calendar year, during which time new competitors may have emerged. Or we may have major changes in some aspect of the traffic source. (Search engines are constantly changing. Other methods may also change.)
Many business owners despair because they don't see immediate results.
A new site and/or application requires time to establish itself on the web.
A well-thought-out content marketing strategy can speed up this process. But things aren't instant. It's harder to get a hundred visitors to your new site than it is to grow its traffic from a hundred to a hundred and fifty.
They don't use different content formats
The king of horror , Stephen King, has a very good idea: those writers who publish too often can cause a feeling of boredom ("like being stuffed with beans") in the reader.
Content marketing is also a mix strategy that combines different forms of content. An electronics website would be successful if it had more than just nice descriptions of the uploaded products . It also needs articles, social media posts, videos, etc. – whether your own or written/distributed from elsewhere.
They try to “sell” too much with the content
Many have probably watched the brilliant film about the difficulty of sales (and dishonest practices in them) “Glengarry Glen Ross”. There, Alec Baldwin’s character repeats a motto – “ Always be closing ”, which cannot be translated exactly into Bulgarian. It means that you must constantly look for new clients to whom to offer a product. And there must be a successful sale.
The oriental style of "calling" and encouraging the buyer to make a purchase does not always lead to success.
Good content marketing is balanced, at least when it comes to the desire to sell too much.
They don't rely on external experts
We know it may sound dubious, but all too often we come across the fact that many people think they can handle content marketing on their own. And they don't hire an outside expert.
And this is counterproductive.
For a small business, this is the equivalent of not hiring an accounting expert, because anyone can, in theory, create the necessary accounting documentation.
Content creation requires access to expensive keyword research software, requires experience in creation, as well as working relationships with media/key influencers in the field in which it is required to reach customers. And that is the minimum.
It is much cheaper to hire an outside expert than to hire someone to do this full or part time.
By outsourcing, even a small amount of content, you give yourself a greater chance of getting results faster. And hence – having a greater return on your investment.
Final thoughts
Quite a few companies approach content marketing incorrectly.
They don't do proper research; they don't think about who the content should be created for; they don't set goals behind it. the content created; they don't see what feedback this content generates from the users who have visited it; they create uniform content; they are not patient. And they rely on them to cope on their own, when everything shows that they are more likely not to.
