Content marketing is arguably the most widely-used online marketing practice. With 91% of B2B brands regularly publishing resources for their audience, the content marketing sphere is now more competitive than ever. When done correctly, content marketing can work wonders for your brand by giving it the reach and visibility it deserves.
But without a clear and well-thought-out strategy, it can be a black hole that constantly drains your time and money. If you’re still struggling to generate more leads for your business, you might be committing mistakes you’re unaware of.
61% of consumers are more likely to transact with companies that deliver unique and personalized content. This statistic shows you how productive content marketing can be when it comes to driving your business forward. To help keep you from harm, here are 5 common content marketing mistakes and how you can avoid them.
1. Prioritizing Quantity over Quality
In virtually any situation, you can sacrifice the quantity but never the quality, right? Apply the same principle to the content you’re creating.
It’s better to produce fewer blogs with unique value than to produce more with useless, regurgitated information. Think about it this way, would you rather post fluff-filled blogs daily or would you rather post data-driven resources weekly? Since, you’re dealing with hungry readers who want useful, informative, and humorous content, there’s no room for any “quantity over quality” strategy. Believe me when I say that one great article will have more value than 10 mediocre ones.
Your aim should be to encourage people to share your content and engage them with something that will keep them interested for a long time. Consistently providing value won’t only prevent your readers from seeking out competitors, it will even encourage them to be advocates of your brand.
How to avoid this: Know your threshold. If you have the manpower and resources to produce a lot of content without sacrificing quality, go for it. But your best bet is still to produce high-quality content at a lower publishing frequency.
2. Using an Inconsistent Tone or Voice
As a content marketer, you need to be the brand you’re handling. Instead of being some mystery person who changes their writing tone in every post, you need to think of your brand’s personality and incorporate it every single time you write.
Put yourself in your brand’s shoes and act like you’re talking as this specific person. If you’re consistently able to do this, it will make it easier for people to recall you whenever they plan to make a purchase. Now that this top-of-mind, how do you want to be perceived and what kind of relationship do you want with your readers?
Do you want to be a storyteller? Do you want to be a voice of authority? Maybe you want to be a fun and approachable figure. The tone you’ve chosen will give your audience an idea of what your business is all about. Just take a look at how Wendy’s was able to win everyone over by being playful on social media.
How to avoid this: Brand the company, product, and content that you have. Make it easier for readers to remember your website with specific terms that uniquely describe you!
3. Fear to Interact with Readers
If you’re afraid to engage, then I guess you don’t believe strongly in the business.
Your audience isn’t only interested in your products and services; they want to learn more about you as well. Content marketing is all about interacting with your readers, so don’t limit them from knowing about you, your clients, or what’s happening behind the scenes. A little sharing makes your brand more relatable and won’t cost you much time, so don’t hesitate to open up.
How to avoid this: Whether it’s a video, a slide-show, or a simple blog post, make it a point to share your story. Telling them more about you is a simple way to earn the trust of a visitor.
4. No Follow-Ups
Whenever you post content, you need to be ready to interact with your readers or followers. It may be a bit overwhelming to answer loads of inquiries but a flooded inbox or comments section is always a good sign. This means that people have genuinely read your post and want to interact further.
Always remember that 94% of customers will recommend a company whose service they rate as “very good.” Follow up on their inquiries and talk to them on their level. They aren’t writers like you and may not be familiar with certain terms, so keep things simple and straightforward. Don’t leave these comments unanswered cause you may lose an eventual conversion opportunity.
Again, content marketing is all about building a relationship with your readers. Know about their opinions and give them relevant insights. Addressing their comments and inquiries regularly can even give you data-backed ideas on how you can improve your business.
How to avoid this: NEVER ignore any comment, especially direct inquiries. Always check emails that notify you about people who left comments on your posts.
5. It’s All About You!
Promoting your site or business is fine, especially when you launch a new product or have exciting announcements lined up. However, you should stay mindful and avoid being too self-serving. Unless they’re already interested in your product, they won’t even bother to check it out.
Offer your audience something more engaging and entertaining. Content marketing isn’t about selling a product. Rather, it’s about selling the idea of it. Know your audience by heart and diversify your resources to suit different stages of the buyer’s journey.
How to avoid this: Limit yourself from writing too much about yourself, if it doesn’t add value for your target readers. Instead, answer the questions and write stories that will resonate with them.
6. Not Setting Goals & Objectives
If you’re creating content simply for the sake of creating content, you’re doing it all wrong. Every time you build a content asset, you should always have an overall goal or objective in mind.
- Are you trying to build awareness and increase your brand’s online exposure?
- Are you trying to focus on the SEO value of your content to drive more organic traffic?
- Are you trying to use content to generate and convert B2B leads?
Goal-setting in content marketing is incredibly important because it helps track the productivity of your content strategy. Recognizing these goals helps you identify the right metrics to support those objectives, which in turn helps you optimize your content towards achieving them.
How to avoid this: Before you create any piece of content, make sure you’ve identified a meaningful goal for it that supports your brand’s objectives (like generating traffic). Then, determine what metrics drive that goal (like pageviews, referral views, organic views, etc).
Is Your Brand Guilty?
If you’re one of the businesses that managed not to commit any of these mistakes, good for you! If yes, it’s clearly time to get help from experts who will make sure that your efforts make a difference to your bottom line.
Do you know any other pitfalls of content marketing? Share them in the comment section!
