Content marketing can be a powerful tool for achieving various business objectives, such as increasing brand recognition, retaining customers, and driving sales. However, the process of planning, creating, and promoting content can be time-consuming and challenging.
Thankfully, this week, experts had plenty to say on the subject. From how to conduct proper content marketing research to content creation with the help of AI, this week‘s round-up is packed with insights to help you better navigate your strategies as the year rolls on.
So, let‘s dive in and see what was top of everyone‘s mind this week.
- “The Ultimate 2023 Content Marketing Strategy: 10 Steps to Success” by Karan Virdi
First up this week was freelance copywriter Karan Virdi, who created the ultimate guide for building a modern and effective content marketing strategy this year.
Virdi‘s guide is composed of 10 steps, with the first step being to define your goals. He notes this as a crucial first step as it ensures that you have a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish with your content marketing efforts, such as creating brand awareness or boosting sales.
Additionally, Virdi‘s guide covers a range of other essential content marketing must-dos, including knowing your target audience, optimizing content for search engines, and analyzing your results. For those seeking a comprehensive guide to assist with their content marketing strategy this year, Virdi‘s article is an excellent resource to start with. Be sure to check it out!
Conducting thorough research is one of the major contributing factors to any successful content marketing strategy. And according to content marketer and blogger Himanshu Gupta, without it, you risk wasting valuable resources on ineffective campaigns. Luckily his guide on how to effectively conduct content research is sure to help you get on the right path.
In the article, Gupta shares nine actionable research tips to help master the strategizing phase and improve the success of your content marketing plans. This includes surveying customers, successfully utilizing digital tools such as Google Trends, and maintaining organizational systems. He also stresses the importance of being consistent with research to avoid being left behind and your content becoming irrelevant.
If you‘re in need of help with the research phase of your content marketing strategy, be sure to check out this article that‘s full of practical tips and advice to help you out with this essential phase.
- “Your Great Taste Is Less Fulfilling When It Comes to Visual Design” by Robert Rose
Sticking to the subject of research was Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of The Content Advisory, Robert Rose, who, in his article this week, highlighted the often-overlooked importance of visual research in content marketing.
According to Rose, marketers more often than not rely on their personal taste to make visual decisions, instead of researching what it is that their target audience truly wants to see. He then offers some tips when it comes to producing valuable content including integrating a consistent color scheme, incorporating infographics to illustrate data, and using images and videos to break up long blocks of text.
Visual design is a critical component of your content research that is well worth investing time and resources into. To find out more about how to best conduct visual research for your content strategy, check out this article on the Content Marketing Institute.
- “103 Ways to Find New Content Ideas” by Neil Patel
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Creating high-quality content is vital to the success of your content marketing strategy, but it‘s not an easy task. Luckily, this week, digital marketing expert Neil Patel provided a solution to this problem, with 103 ways to find new content ideas when you‘re short of inspiration.
Patel organizes the guide into several categories, such as blog posts, videos, infographics, and social media, to help you brainstorm content ideas according to content type. Within each category, he offers a plethora of content marketing examples and ideas to inspire creativity, such as sharing industry news and trends, creating how-to guides, and much more.
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With Patel‘s guide, you‘re sure to find inspiration to steer your strategies in the right direction. If you‘re struggling to come up with new content ideas, be sure to check out this article.
- “Instagram To Introduce New Channels Feature For Sharing Content Directly With Followers” by Kavya Pillai
Instagram recently made an exciting announcement about a potential game-changing feature called ‘Channels‘, which has many marketers buzzing with anticipation. Covering everything you need to know about this update this week on Entrepreneur was journalist Kavya Pillai.
In a nutshell, this feature allows users, influencers, or businesses to create a channel for a specific group of people and share content exclusively with them. However, before you get too excited, the feature is currently in its trial phase in India. But according to Pillai, it is planned to be rolled out in other countries soon.
This new innovation from Instagram is likely to take off when fully launched, due to community building being so important to brands today. So, if you‘re interested in learning more about this expected update and being ahead of the game, be sure to read Pillai‘s article for a complete overview of what Channels has to offer.
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TikTok also announced a new update this week that has caught the eye of content creators and marketers. Reporter and writer Matt G. Southern broke down all the essential details for you this week in his article on Search Engine Journal.
According to Southern, TikTok is currently testing a new monetization tool named the ‘Creativity Program Beta,’ which aims to help brands boost their ad campaigns with the help of content creators. Essentially what this means is that the program will allow advertisers to better collaborate with popular TikTok creators to produce engaging content that promotes their brand.
For brands already partnering with influencers and content creators on TikTok, this announcement is definitely one to watch. To learn more about it and how it could change your social media marketing strategy too, check out Southern‘s full run-down.
- “Artificial Intelligence Content: Marketing Friend Or Foe? Three Ways to Use AI Content Tools” by Whitney Cornuke
AI technology has taken the world by storm, and within the world of marketing, there is no exception. Covering several insights on how AI-powered content tools can be leveraged to your advantage was SVP of Marketing at TalentLaunch, Whitney Cornuke.
The first method Cornuke proposes is to create personalized content that resonates with individual consumers using AI. By analyzing consumer data, AI can help identify patterns and preferences that can be used to tailor content to your target audience. Next, Cornuke suggests using AI to optimize content for search engines, followed by utilizing it to improve the efficiency of content creation and distribution.
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While AI can be a powerful tool for content marketers, Cornuke cautions against relying on it too heavily. For a comprehensive guide on how to use AI effectively in your content strategy, check out Cornuke‘s article this week.
- “Is AI content helping or hurting your website?” by Sam Alderson
Also covering the subject on AI content this week was Head of Marketing at Yoast, Sam Alderson – however, they share a more cautious approach.
While AI content is becoming increasingly popular among marketers, Alderson stresses the ‘generic‘ and ‘biased‘ nature of such content that could instead prove harmful to brands, especially when it comes to elements such as SEO. To counter this, she then suggests that marketers view AI not as a replacement for human creativity, but rather a tool to aid in the process.
Overall, the article offers valuable insights for marketers looking to incorporate AI into their content strategies, while ensuring they stay aware of its downsides. If you‘re starting to dabble with AI content, this article is a must-read.
For many marketers, the hype around video content is old news. But according to content marketing queen Julia McCoy, not all brands have jumped on the bandwagon despite all the evidence pointing to just how effective the content type is. If you‘re in that category, this one‘s for you.
In the article, McCoy breaks down her case for video content into several sections, including covering its different formats and types, its importance for audience engagement and SEO, and then finally some best practices to help guide your strategies.
If your video content could benefit from a remix, or you‘re in need of tips for getting started, be sure to give McCoy‘s article a good read.
- “Top Strategies to Promote Your Blog Online in 2023” by Dave Brown
While blogging is a popular content marketing tactic, the effort put into producing content can easily be wasted if no one sees it. Luckily, content marketing strategist Dave Brown is here to help this week with his article providing practical advice on how to increase your blog posts‘ visibility and attract more readers.
In the article, Brown suggests several strategies to boost the visibility of your blog, such as optimizing your content for search engines, promoting your blog post on social media platforms, and leveraging email marketing. However, he also emphasizes the importance of creating high-quality content which is key to gaining further traction and visibility.
Many of Brown‘s tips can also be applied as a general rule of thumb to many tactics in your content marketing strategy. So, be sure to check it out.
The Next Step: It‘s Time to Update Your Content Strategy
Content marketing is constantly evolving as new digital trends and changes online occur – such as the big AI revolution. Therefore, with that also comes the opportunity to refresh and revamp your content strategy, which can be easily done by leveraging the insights and tips offered by this week‘s experts.
Here‘s how you can get started:
Step One: Review your analytics to identify which content has been performing well and which content requires improvement.
Step Two: Analyze the types of content your competitors are producing and adjust their strategies to fit your own business needs.
Step Three: Create content that aligns with the latest trends highlighted by this week‘s experts and your target audience, while recycling previously successful content.
Pro Tip: Haven‘t tried creating content with AI yet? Now‘s your chance. When you‘re at step three, have a play around with drafting initial content captions with AI tools such as ChatSonic or ChatGPT. However, as this week‘s experts warned, don‘t take their responses as the final product. Instead use these tools to help you get started, and then make alterations and edits to especially suit your target audience.
If you could use some help updating your content marketing plan to better drive results, be sure to reach out today for your free 20-minute consultation.
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