The Content Marketing Institute created an impressive infographic detailing the history of content marketing starting in 4200 B.C., when one of the first signs of "custom publishing" was found in cave paintings. The Content Marketing Institute loosely translated it to "6 Ways a Spear Can Save You From Wild Boar." But it was the late 1900s when
Content marketing has changed dramatically since 4200 B.C., but the end result is still focused on the same thing: informing and engaging an audience. That audience also expects more than ever from content and will no longer stick around for bland blog posts that do nothing but stuff in keywords and flashy calls to action. But even with the most engaging and valuable content you can create, how do you actually promote it and attract the right audience? Get started with these 10 lesser-known content marketing tactics to try in 2016.
1. Hack Your Headlines
According to Copyblogger, “On average, 8 out of 10 people will read headline copy, but only 2 out of 10 will read the rest.” That’s huge. That means that you’ve only got a few seconds to capture a prospective reader’s attention - and your headline is the place to do it.
The problem? Most of us “think” we know what our customers want, but our instincts are often wrong. To ensure you’re getting maximum value out of this critical blog post feature, follow Upworthy’s lead and create at least 25 headline variations for every piece of content you create. Run the possibilities through a tool like AppSumo’s Headlines to determine which option is likely to perform best with your readers.
2. Add Content on Unexpected Pages
Your content marketing strategy doesn’t have to revolve around expensive infographics, novel-length white papers, or a year-long blogging strategy. Instead, you can start with your own website and digital assets. Take a look at your analytics and see where customers are frequenting your pages the most.
FAQ, Contact, About Us, and Case Studies pages are all ideal places to strategically insert links or cross-promote your content. Your FAQ on how to troubleshoot your software can include links to blog posts on relevant content, commonly asked questions, and a case study on how your company resolved an issue with your software. The more you can sneak in valuable content, the higher your chances are of engaging customers and snagging repeat sales.
3. Revitalize Unused Content
Sometimes the best content is already lying around your office just waiting to be used. It can take weeks, or even months, to create a worthwhile email course from scratch on how to land more clients for your consulting website. Instead, go straight to your latest presentation decks and excel spreadsheets to check your numbers and see how you landed your latest sales. Create a series of short videos, audio clips, and screenshots based on the materials you already have.
4. Offer Content Upgrades
It’s become the norm to offer epic blog posts with infographics, screenshots, thousands of words of content, and meaty quotes from influencers. All of those techniques are effective and time consuming ways to step up your content marketing game. But don’t leave low-hanging fruit lying on the table. Take it a step further and offer a content upgrade within every article, video, and infographic you produce.
Start with a round-up of resources or blueprint of the process you laid out in the post. Even a simple content upgrade with a list of links from your article can spark someone to sign up for your list or pass it on to their own audience.
5. Refine Your Call-to-Action
A few years back, it was enough to offer free “goodies” like a one page list of your favorite marketing tools to entice customer interaction and email sign-ups. Today, those efforts fall into the category of content fatigue and are treated like ads no one wants to see.
Ramp up your efforts and refine your call to action into something more compelling. It could be a five-step email course to show how you took your business to six figures in the first year. Or it could be a request to tweet out your free offer to unlock a bonus like the rest of a 5,000 word article that gives away all your best consultant secrets. Whatever your call to action, make it highly specific to your audience and address a potential problem they’re facing.
6. Create a Separate Content Site
Think beyond blogging and embrace the idea of a content-rich site instead. BrightInfo reported that 76 percent of B2B companies are blogging, but some brands like Adobe are developing independent content-rich sites complete with free articles. For example, Adobe's site, CMO.com, houses news, interviews, slideshows, and events, and turns their site into a well-executed, go-to resource center for marketing executives. CMO is more than just a handful of helpful articles from Adobe; it’s an entire powerhouse of content that could exist on its own as a digital magazine.
7. Slash Your Content Frequency
It may seem counterintuitive to slow down on your posting schedule and take a step back to reflect, but it can actually attract a stronger audience base. Short, pithy blog posts that really didn’t say much unless they served your keyword strategy were once an effective way to market your business. Today, longer, quality-focused content is the expectation. But your audience needs a chance to find it, read it, digest it, share it, and come back for more content. That requires a longer lifespan for fresh content, with the ability to spend more time promoting it.
8. Focus on Value Over Quality
Quality isn’t a revolutionary concept in content marketing, but it doesn’t exactly meet the demand of modern consumers. What customers really want is value above all else. It’s one thing to design a fancy infographic on why content marketing is rapidly evolving. It’s another to draw out the pain points of your customers when strategizing their content marketing, identifying solutions and walking them through a step-by-step process on how to pull it all together.
9. Re-Engage on Social Media
Social media isn’t falling to the wayside in content marketing, it’s just evolving. Turning to social media to look for reviews, insights, and help is now a fluid, breathing stream of content marketing that fits into your sales funnel.
Start by using your social media platforms as an opportunity to share your voice as a thought leader instead of promoting an endless stream of content. Approach your tweets,
10. Fully Embrace Mobile
Mobile is no longer an afterthought or secondary layer in content marketing. Google made waves when it started penalizing websites that aren’t optimized for mobile and swiftly knocked down their rankings. But there’s more to it than a good rank or using your mobile device to search and shop online.
New developments in mobile are poised to revolutionize what “content” really means. For instance, imagine if your customers could take a snapshot of a piece of jewelry and see how it looks while virtually wearing it. Explore how your current and future content marketing efforts can fold into emerging technologies. Not sure they’re the right fit for your brand? Take those thoughts to your audience and let their voices be part of your next step in your content marketing journey.
What’s one of your favorite lesser known content marketing tactics? Let me know by leaving a comment below:
