Although content marketing is ever-changing, it remains king. After all, it’s what many people want and need. They are usually intimidated before making a purchase, but with engaging and informative content, they can get a better grasp of their problems and gain a sense of empowerment when they are ready to take action.
In this era of personalisation, the trends are quickly shifting to a new direction – delivering unique customer experiences. It’s no longer enough to sell. Businesses need a clever content marketing strategy to meet the expectations of their customers and relate to them on an individual level.
As you refine your tactics, take note of the following content marketing trends in 2019 that will help maintain your competitive edge:
Long-form content
Search engines are rewarding lengthier posts with high rankings in the search results to serve users with credible sources. Contrary to what some marketers believe, readers prefer meatier articles because these give them comprehensive answers to the questions they have in mind. Typically, a long-form content consists of about 1,200 to 2,000 words on average.
Take note that the purpose of long-form content isn’t to just meet the ideal word count, but to offer valuable information that can be used as a quality resource. Not only readers and search engines will love your article, but you’ll also prove that you’re an expert on the subject.
Customer success at the forefront of your strategy
Content starts with marketing, but it doesn’t stop there. Sales use content to bolster their pitch and nurture their leads. Recruiters publish content about their company to attract top talents. Executives leverage content for establishing their authority. Content has been opening vast opportunities for many departments. Now, it has a new focus – customer success.
The customer success department takes a proactive sales approach to help customers get the most value from a product or service. They take advantage of content to ensure that buyers make informed decisions and stay satisfied enough to earn their loyalty. This, in turn, can foster meaningful relationships and encourage word-of-mouth marketing. With the right content marketing strategy in place, businesses can devote more time and effort on building their brand than resolving complaints.
Content distribution remains key to success
As the online and offline world becomes increasingly congested, businesses need to find creative ways to put their content in front of their target audience. It’s not enough to publish articles on your website and make them SEO-friendly. You need to build an effective content distribution strategy.
While there are several ways to get more eyes on your content, you need to determine which channels make the most sense for distribution. For starters, take full advantage of social media to promote your blog posts and get the word out with email newsletters. If you want to amplify your efforts, you can opt for paid promotional campaigns. This gives you more targeting capabilities. Most probably, you already know your ideal audience, from where they live and work to what their interests are, so use that knowledge to reach the right people.
Content marketing isn’t just about crafting informative, relevant posts; it’s also about how they resonate with your audience. It’s a fundamental step in reaching your business goals, and having a cohesive and documented strategy will pave the way to long-term success.
Before anything else, make sure your marketing plan is headed in the right direction. DigitalMaas offers content audit services to identify the strengths and weaknesses of your existing content. This way, you can align your tactics with your objectives. Get your free site audit now by signing up to our platform.
