How Does Content Marketing Work?
Content marketing works differently than traditional link building methods because you are trading on value, not simply looking for a link exchange. With new Google updates such as Panda and Penguin, the linkbuilding process has had to evolve to avoid penalties. Creating links in content marketing is driven by creating content that is timely and useful. Links, simply put, equal lead generation by bringing more visitors to your site. Some specific examples of these items might include:
- Rate Calculators
- Product Comparisons
- Both high and low level FAQ’s
- Product reviews
- Data summaries, including infographics or executive recaps
- Checklists
By creating content like these items, you are basically offering a service to others, and a reason to visit your site. Content marketing is at the forefront of SEO, because it using value links like these, not simply links in a popularity contest style aggregation. Consumers are also more likely to click through on links if given a reason like “find out how much a roof replacement will cost” or “learn five simple ways to self tune-up your car”.
Internal Use Marketing
By internal content, think of content that is created for on-website promotion, not as internal company memos and policies. Content created for in house placement can include any of the above examples. Additional ideas could be blog content or white papers. Make sure to include onsite SEO work like web pages, page titles, and meta descriptions as part of your overall marketing and SEO plan, and integrate this material with your page copy. Native content is a concept that describes content so well integrated into a page, that is doesn’t stand out as specific sales copy and fits into the entire scheme.
To gain leads from your external content, you will need to create natural seeming content that is creative, humorous, or informative to give outside groups a reason to link to you. An example would be the difference between posting a “FAQ on the most common construction slab concerns” as opposed to “Why slabmasters offers the cheapest prices on construction”. While both pieces of content have value, only the first one is likely to be appealing for an outside source to link to – the explanation on prices is too much of an advertisement to appeal to outside sources, yet it still has it’s value in the overall funnel.
Guest Posting and External Placement
Any content you create can be placed externally with the right outreach. Externally placement generates leads by putting your brand into another sphere of consumers. Some of the placement will require payment while others are based on building relationships and offering value. The most common form of off site placement is the guest post or guest blog. Guest posting on other sites is a great way to get search engine recognition. An extra bonus occurs if you can have these posts liked to your Google authorship, allowing for a profile boost and brand recognition in your field. Unfortunately, guest posting often gets a bad name due to poor and spammy content. Make sure the content you prepare for offsite placement is topical, quality writing. Don’t fall victim to the automation process that is common when creating large amounts of content.
Social Media
Social media is a great way to reach external channels, and can also boost your internally marketed content. While each different social media channel requires a slightly different format, you can easily automate your posting process with programs such as Hootsuite to streamline the content process. Getting “Likes” and “Retweets” is a great way to get recognition. By teasing larger content items on these channels you can help generate leads that will follow the link back to your website. In addition to custom content and teasers naturally placed on these channels, you can also capitalize on paid advertisements and boosted posts, like these examples on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Whether your content placement is intended for internal or external placement, content marketing is a great way to generate leads by creating interest based and useful backlinks to your website. Creative content will increase your brand awareness beyond old fashioned SEO, providing subtle answers to consumer questions about your B2B opportunities.
