Top 10 Content Marketing Mistakes
Low Quality Content, Quantity Over Quality
The Most Common Content Marketing Mistakes
When it comes to content marketing for professionals it is crucial for these service providers to concentrate on marketing efforts that help them grow their audience and increase interest in their brands. Today’s customers are increasingly shunning traditional marketing approaches. Techniques like television commercials, printed advertisements, and direct mailers are no longer having the same sort of impact as they had in the past. Instead, today’s customers are searching for information online and the content they encounter helps to solidify their decisions regarding the service providers they want to do business with. Unfortunately, many professional services are missing the mark when it comes to content marketing. Here are the top 10 content marketing mistakes that professional services should avoid. More importantly, here are also a few helpful suggestions on what companies can do instead.
Promote Your Brand With Quality Content
#1 Poor Quality Content
Poorly written content will hurt any business. It will not matter how great the products or services are because if the content that describes them is subpar, and the public cannot understand the message being communicated, such messages will be lost in translation. When it comes to writing content, each item shared with potential customers should be high-quality and representative of the company’s brand. This means content has been checked for grammatical inconsistencies, it is free of errors, and redundancies have been removed. When customers encounter content that has not been perfected they will not think highly of the company. This is bad news for service-based businesses that are seeking increased growth opportunities. Companies simply cannot grow if they cannot attract interest from those who may need their products and services the most. Fortunately, putting quality content together is not that difficult. While it will require time and effort, including considering ways in which to improve upon the content being shared, this investment will be well worth it when it comes to long-term returns.
#2 Irrelevant Content
The best content is relevant and solution-based. This is because when people conduct research online they are looking for specific answers to their most pressing problems. Take for instance someone who performs a Google search because they need a new contractor for a home improvement project. After they type in search terms that are relevant to them, only content that is related to their search will show up in the search results. This is why it is so important for companies to put themselves in the shoes of their customers. Consider what the customer needs and what problems they have that may need solving. Unfortunately, if a customer cannot find the information they are looking for on a company’s website, they will search elsewhere for the answers they require. Therefore, pay close attention to customer needs and focus on meeting them for the best return on investment. Carefully consider how this information relates to the core audience and never share baseless content just for the purpose of posting something. Irrelevant content may be viewed by the customer as a waste of time, and it will certainly be a waste of the company’s scarce resources.
#3 Poor Planning
Keep in mind that content marketing is a strategy just like traditional marketing. Therefore, careful planning will be required for the best outcomes. Planning includes deciding upon which content to share, how often to share it, and through which delivery platforms. For instance, content marketing may include blogs, articles, videos, graphics, infographics, e-books, social media posts, newsletters, and other e-mailed content. Each of these items can be shared in various manners such as directly on the website, on social media networks like Facebook or Twitter, or even on standalone landing pages that offer free downloadable content like white papers to satisfy the informational needs of prospective customers. Again, making these decisions will require precise planning. A content strategy should also include goals and metrics for the content. For instance, companies can measure how many likes a particular post received on social media. They can also keep track of the number of downloads on an offer received from a landing page. So, prior to publishing content, sit down and think goals and objectives over. Figure out what should be achieved through this content and how reaching these goals will help the company grow. Proper planning is the key to ensuring the content’s long-term viability.
#4 Too Much Focus on Quantity
One of the best ways to approach content marketing for professionals is to post consistent content. Unfortunately, many of these businesses make the costly mistake of posting way too much content, just for the sake of having something to post. This is a counterintuitive strategy that does not position the company well online. Simply posting a blog or social media post for the sake of posting anything is not advisable. Consider this: each bit of content that is posted online should be carefully planned and well-thought out. It should have a purpose and it should also have metrics attached to it. While there may be mounting pressure to implement a digital content strategy to remain competitive, true competitiveness cannot be achieved if content is haphazardly published. When it comes to content marketing, more is not necessarily better. While customers will certainly appreciate content that is posted on a regular basis, they will not appreciate content that is irrelevant, falling short on creativity, or that is just being shared to fill up space on a website or on a social media page.
#5 Too Sales-Oriented
As a good rule of thumb, always remember that the purpose of content marketing is to fill a prospective customer’s need—it is not about the company’s desires. As such, never write with selfish intentions. Overtly sales-oriented content should be avoided as it can quickly turn off customers who need help. Customers do not want to be bombarded with repetitive messages about buying the products or services being offered by the company. Yes, the ultimate goal of sharing content is to generate leads; however, these leads may never convert to paying customers if they feel pressured into a sale. Instead, focus on writing content that encourages two-way conversations. The company has a message and the customer has a need. Shared content should be so engaging that it encourages the customer to consult with the company regarding their needs. This is the power of top-notch content marketing—it is authentic, it is helpful, and it ditches the sales pitch.
#6 Setting It and Forgetting It
Another mistake that many companies make is simply posting content online and then forgetting all about it. In doing so many companies are leaving valuable opportunities on the table. Keep a close eye on content and monitor any interaction from the public it has attracted. For instance, pay attention to blog and social media post comments and questions. Companies that can answer these questions and concerns will be providing great customer service to its followers who will certainly appreciate the company’s timeliness and attention to care. Also pay attention to the number of shares and downloads content is receiving. These are all opportunities for the company to learn even more about prospects who may be interested in hearing more about what the company has to offer.
#7 Too Broad of an Audience
Another mistake that many companies make when it comes to content marketing for professionals is in trying to make content for everyone. A company should never do this. Instead, they should write content that is catered to their core audience. A core audience consists of those who are most likely to become a customer of the company. They could consist of a certain demographic or a specific market segment. For example, a core audience of a cosmetic physician could be mothers between the ages of 25-35 who are searching for non-invasive procedures to improve their physical appearance. For contractors, a core audience could consist of homeowners who purchased older properties that require upgrades. No matter the audience, remember that good content will focus narrowly on their needs. Companies cannot be successful by trying to be everything to everybody.
#8 Ignoring the Need for SEO
Another important aspect of content marketing is search engine optimization (SEO). SEO is the process of optimizing a website or a content platform so that it is more likely to rank well in search results. SEO consists of content optimization, link building and other strategies discussed above. When you optimize your content for SEO you will greatly improve the possibility that your content will be seen by prospective customers and will have the desired results. The first step in optimizing content for SEO is to have high quality, unique, relevant content. The next step is to individually promote each piece of content that you create on social media and on other websites/platforms that you may already own. If you have a mailing list you may want to promote your content there, if you do not yet have a mailing list or any other social media platforms it may be worth your time to create these.
#9 Ignoring the Need for Evergreen Content
There are topics that will always be relevant to a core audience and then there is content that changes with trends—evergreen content consists of the former. Keep in mind that what seems important today might be irrelevant a few years down the line. When content does not age well and becomes outdated, customers will no longer be impressed by it. Take for instance a tech company that publishes an article warning against the dangers of the Y2K bug in 2017. Chances are that customers would not take this company very seriously. Therefore, do not forget to write about things that are going to stay relevant for a long time, if not forever. The simplest way to do this is to write on known topics that customers are interested in. For instance, medical providers could write about common health conditions or how to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Contractors could writer about ways to decorate certain rooms in a home. Other service providers like lawyers, could write about common legal matters and processes. There are no limits when it comes to evergreen content. These are incontrovertible topics that people can and will read for many years to come.
#10 Forgetting to Repurpose Content
Lastly, many service providers do not realize the immense flexibility that comes with content marketing. Once a company realizes which types of content they want to provide, they may spin their wheels unnecessarily trying to create all of this material from scratch. This does not have to be the case! In fact, already written content can be recycled and repurposed into other useable formats. For instance, catchy lines from blog posts can be used for social media content or an entire year’s worth of blogs could be turned into an e-book. The same holds true for website content, videos, and infographics. This content can easily be transformed into something fresh and new for customers who will appreciate such creativity.
Unfortunately, when it comes to content marketing, mistakes do happen. However how well the company recognizes these mistakes and bounces back from them is the force that can determine how successful they will be in the online business world. Learn from these top 10 mistakes and keep moving forward with a solid content marketing strategy to help the business reach all of its objectives. Content marketing for professionals can be quite rewarding for those businesses who are ready to get in touch with a team of content marketing specialists today. An experienced team of professionals who understand the ins and outs of content marketing may be the key to the company’s online content success.