5 Things NOT To Do in Content Marketing

Content marketing is incredibly important for any business of any size. After all, it can be the make or break of your success. Therefore, it is incredibly important that you take a careful approach with your content marketing plans.

To help you on your way, I have put together the top 5 things that you should never do when putting together your content strategy.

1. Putting together below standard content

Some people seem to think that any copy is better than no copy. But this isn’t strictly true. In fact, a poor copy could be harmful and perceived negatively by your target market. Posting a blog post that has no value, would not move a needle in building your online reputation and authority.

If you are lucky, then Google will simply hide that shameful content away. But if it does sneak through on the rankings then you could end up being thought poorly of by those who you wanted to add to your client base.

Be aware of grammar, spelling and how the piece is put together. If you simply do not have time to give the content your full attention, then find someone who can.

2. You are not teaching them anything

Presumably, the main goal of your content is selling your service or product – it should never seem like that. In the most part, your customers will be reading the post as a way to gain information or knowledge. So, failing to do this within the content could really harm your success rates.

Recognize the issue that your customers may be having and then use your content to present a variety of solutions (with you included). Better yet, if you have an industry secret or perhaps something that you can share, this can also make a great foundation for a blog post.

Remember, web users have built an immunity against self-promotions, and it takes them less than a second to identify one. Hence, be prepared to provide your potential readers with a quality piece that solves their problems.

3. Not doing the groundwork

No-one enjoys spending their time laying the foundations of content, especially since you may be short on time and resources.

Look at who you are trying to appeal to, what they may need and how you can help them. By making sure that you know more about these basics will ensure that you are able to put together some high-quality content that will truly reward your business.

Ensure that the topic is well-researched before proceeding with publishing, and plan how you’re going to promote it beforehand.

4. You forget your call to action

This is a big mistake that people make when putting content together. If your final goal is to sell, ensure to add a clear call to action.

A call to action provides those who have read through your content with an opportunity to move onto the next step. Whether that is simply just a contact form or a telephone number, any method to communicate with you is going to mean that they know where to go if they need you.

5. Failing to communicate

Whilst you can create an amazing content strategy for your business, if you don’t spend time communicating with your customers, then you won’t see them returning. Take the time to comment, respond and engage with your readers, and you will see your reputation grow tremendously.

Also, take negativity with a grain of salt. Some people may not appreciate your work or may have different opinions, but this isn’t something you should take personally. Instead, take it is an experience.

So, there you have it, the top 5 mistakes that those putting together their content strategy make. Obviously, there are many more mistakes to avoid, but, by avoiding these 5 pitfalls, you will be able to provide your users with the content that is helpful, relevant and engaging.

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