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The Content Marketing Arsenal: 6 Content Marketing Tips For Small Businesses

When we say “content marketing”, usually we mean blogging but it can come in many forms. Not everyone is a gifted wordsmith and, content production tends consumes a lot of time that many small business owners think they can’t afford to waste. Therefore, content marketing is discarded as all pain and no gain, but that is a grave mistake.

When we say “content marketing”, usually we mean blogging. Not everyone is a gifted wordsmith, and content production consumes a lot of time that many small business owners think they can’t afford to waste. Content is discarded as all pain and no gain, but that is a grave mistake.

Content marketing is an arsenal of activities that can help create relationships with potential customers while nurturing your existing following. Think of blogging as your classic revolver pistol, or razor sharp dagger; a reliable tried and tested strategy to promote your business. It should be part of any marketing strategy, but small businesses have many more mediums they can play with, which are all arrows in the same quiver. Videos, podcasts, infographics and even social posts require different skills and talents, which go beyond the traditional long-form blog.

I’m Tessa Clout, a digital marketer who is passionate about content creation, particularly blogging and video. What makes my story different from others in the industry is that I’m on the upward climb. You usually hear from agency or corporate veterans who have lost touch with what it’s like to learn on the job. I’m like you, and while I’m still learning, I have a wealth of experience to share and help small businesses.

So, here I present to you – Your content marketing arsenal: six tips for small businesses to help get you writing, recording, filming and more.

Why is content marketing important for small businesses?

Content marketing is one of the most effective ways for you to find an audience and turn them into customers or advocates. Not every customer begins their journey by viewing your product or service range, and that’s why content marketing is so powerful. Content captures audiences at each stage of their journey, from discovery to purchase and beyond. 

Without a solid content marketing strategy, you aren’t nurturing relationships with existing audiences, and are limited in your capability to acquire new ones. That’s about to change.

Content marketing is one of the most effective ways for you to find an audience and turn them into customers or advocates. Not every customer begins their journey by viewing your product or service range, and that’s why content marketing is so powerful. Content captures audiences at each stage of their journey, from discovery to purchase and beyond. 

Without a solid content marketing strategy, you aren’t nurturing relationships with existing audiences, and are limited in your capability to acquire new ones. That’s about to change.

1. Create a blog and start writing

Adding a blog to your website is one of the easiest and most effective ways to start producing content. A blog is an individual web page where you can easily publish individual posts on a range of different topics.

Blogs are a great way to provide value to your audience in terms of education, inspiration or entertainment. They are also of high strategic value for SEO, as blog posts can easily rank in search engines for a variety of topical keywords. 

(Don’t know what SEO is? That’s cool, my coworker, Joel, explains it here.)

It is important to update your blog as regularly as possible. Don’t be concerned if writing isn’t a strong point of yours.  An easy way to break into blogging is to get started with listicles (like this one), opinion pieces, FAQs or simply start by writing about your products or services. Anything that you think your people would engage with and is relevant to your brand is good to go.

2. Start a YouTube channel 

YouTube is a great medium that can set your company apart from others, as people love the face to face and personal interaction they get from video content.

YouTube cannot be missed as a small business content marketing opportunity. We get that not everyone is comfortable on camera, and it may take some time to warm up to the idea, but the best thing to do is just start filming! You will only improve from there!

Some ideas to get your video reel moving include:

  • Showcase your product or get someone to review it on camera 
  • Interview someone from your team 
  • Film yourself answering FAQs that are relevant to your industry

3. Set a schedule and create content regularly 

One of the most common mistakes people make when starting out with content marketing is that they do not create regularly enough. They may have a spike where they post a lot at once, and then forget about it for a few months. 

The best way to maximise your content is to set a schedule and stick to it! Both Google and your audience loves up to date content that is relevant and timely. By staggering your content, you are ensuring your output is high-quality and relevant, as you can respond to real time issues as they occur in your industry. 

I recommend creating a content calendar. Planning ahead for between 3 to 6 months is a great start. Depending on the size of your business and your resources to produce the content, the amount you produce per month will vary monthly but try to post as often as possible. 

For social media like Instagram, Later.com is our favourite for content scheduling. You can throw all of your images, gifs, and video in here with the option to categorise the content so when it comes time to schedule then you can easily pick from each of the different kinds of content you have for a great range.

4. Create your own podcast or collaborate with another creator

If you have the resources to create your own podcast, this is a great medium to educate, inspire or entertain your audience. You can start a podcast that is relevant to your industry and engage people who would be interested in your product or services. 

If you do not have the resources or time to create your own podcast, you could look to feature in and contribute to another podcast as an alternative strategy. There are so many different podcasts around that cover a range of different topics and many are looking for collaborations or contributions. You could try reaching out to creators whose work you find interesting or relevant and ask them if they are open to collaborating.

And luckily for all the members of Work inc, there’s a great in-house podcasting studio to book at your liberty!

5. Get savvy and use analytics to understand the performance of your content 

Understanding the performance of your content is one of the best ways to ensure your strategy is working. Analytics tools will help you determine which topics and mediums are performing well.  For websites and blogs, Google Analytics is great to assess performance, while engagement metrics such as views, watch time and likes/comments are great for YouTube. And, the amount of listeners you have is great for podcasts. 

Once you can evaluate which medium is performing well for you and which topics users engage with the most, you should then look at producing more of these. These high performing pieces of content are the types you should try and emulate to improve your overall content marketing strategy. 

Don’t totally ignore the types of content that aren’t performing well, you should evaluate these and see why they are lacking in performance. Rather than ditching them, try to improve or modify these pieces for better performance. 

6. Don’t compromise quality for quantity

While I mentioned creating a content schedule or calendar, I don’t mean packing it to the extent that you compromise on quality. Consumers will only get value out of high quality content that is well researched and accurate.

Authenticity is also key. As a small business owner, you are obviously passionate about your product or service and the value that you provide to your customers. When creating your content, leverage this passion to produce an authentic voice or style. If you are struggling, perhaps you could freelance out some of your content to an experienced creator in your field but make sure they stay true to your brand.

Just get started and create content

No matter what forms of content you produce, just get started! The benefits you can reap from content marketing are astronomical and just like anything in life, you will learn as you go. 

If this is a completely new concept to you, don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and try something different. I promise you, you won’t regret it. 

And lastly, don’t forget to have fun with it!

I’ve picked out a couple of brands I turn to for engaging content inspiration, I urge you to develop your own list but you can get started with these ones:

Tessa Clout is a Content and SEO Specialist at Reef Digital, a Sydney-based digital marketing agency.

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