Did you know that, according to eMarketer, web shoppers are set to drop $1.5 trillion on online goods and services by the end of the year? Quite clearly, eCommerce has grown out of its infancy, becoming an economic force that every business, big or small, needs to consider to succeed in the Information Age.
One of the best things you can do as a small business owner to help your company ride the new wave of eCommerce is putting smart content marketing strategies into play. Content marketing, a type of inbound marketing that relies on blog posts, videos, and other online content to draw customers in, has been shown to be the most effective digital marketing strategy there is. In fact, according to Inbound Writer, consumers are 61% more likely to make a purchase from a business that keeps a high quality blog than one that doesn’t. How can you improve your content marketing playbook enough to start bringing more of these digital dollars to your company? Read on to find out.
How to Strengthen Your Small Business’s Content Marketing Playbook
- Take the Time to Make a Publication Calendar
- Hop Aboard the News Train
- Use Social Media to Spread Your Content
For Business 2 Community, the very first thing you should do is make a publication calendar. A content calendar enables you to plan and produce content ahead of time, ensuring you can make a commitment to your consumers for regular content. The great thing about publication calendars is that they only take an hour or so at the beginning of each month to create.
Great content is no longer about evergreen blog articles that are stuffed to the gills with smart keywords. Instead, writes Search Engine Watch, the best content is produced by businesses that keep their fingers on the pulse of international news. Say, for example, you run a video game shop in Orlando, Florida. Will the same old content about how to choose a console or how to choose a new game be as attractive to web surfers as fresh, newsy content written about the latest gaming trends? You know the answer here. Follow and report on the news in your industry to make yourself an invaluable source for your customers, both current and potential.
According to the most recently available statistics from Pew Internet, 74% of all adults who use the internet use a social media platform, like Twitter and Facebook. That’s why it’s so important for your business to have a presence on these platforms. Sharing the links to your content and reaching out to this wealth of consumers will drive traffic to your content and increase your chances of making a sale online.
What have you done to revivify your content marketing playbook? Let us know in the comment section below.