Guide to Content Marketing: What It Is, Why You Need It, and How to Do It

What is Content Marketing?

Do you know what content marketing is?

If you don’t, you’re not alone. Many people still don’t know what content marketing is and why they need it.

But trust me, you need it.

Why?

Because content marketing is the best way to grow your business in the digital age.

Let me explain.

Marketing is the process of promoting and selling products or services to potential customers. Marketing is essential for any business that wants to grow and succeed in the competitive market.

But marketing has changed a lot over the years. The old way of marketing, such as placing ads in papers, billboards, or sending flyers in the mail, is no longer effective.

People are bombarded with so many ads every day that they tune them out or ignore them.

People are also more skeptical and distrustful of ads that interrupt their experience or try to manipulate them.

That’s why you need a new way of marketing. A way that is customer-centric, value-driven, and long-term.

A way that is content marketing.

Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach that focuses on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and engage a clearly defined target audience.

This is a key point.

If you do it well, the people who consume your content will get to know, like, and eventually trust you or your business.

And it’s that trust that will motivate these people to become customers and loyal supporters of your products or services, ultimately driving profitability for the business.

One of the best examples of content marketing is the HubSpot blog.

HubSpot is a software company that offers tools for marketing, sales, and customer service. HubSpot’s blog is one of the most popular and successful blogs in the marketing industry, with over 7 million monthly visitors.

HubSpot’s blog provides valuable, relevant, and consistent content that educates, entertains, and solves problems for its audience. HubSpot’s blog helps the company increase its brand awareness, SEO ranking, lead generation, and customer loyalty.

Content marketing is a powerful way to grow your business.

It can help you attract, engage, and convert your audience into customers and advocates.

It can help you establish your authority, credibility, and trust in your industry.

Content Marketing Ingredients

“Let content marketing cook”

That’s a popular term in social media these days.

But before you cook something, you need ingredients.

So here are the ingredients for content marketing:

• Provide value and empower your audience

You can’t just create content that is self-serving or irrelevant to your audience’s needs.

You have to create content that adds value to their lives, whether it’s by educating them, entertaining them, or solving their problems.

Your content should empower them to take action, make decisions, or achieve their goals.

• Make connections

Content should not be a one-way communication. You want your content to be a conversation starter, a relationship builder, a community maker.

You want your audience to look forward to learning and growing with your content that leads to increased customer retention and advocacy.

• Display brand authority

You don’t want your content to be generic or mediocre. I get it.

So the content you made should be unique and remarkable by showcasing your expertise and knowledge. 

The content needs to be tailored to your brand message and objectives, because we want your content to position your brand as a leader and a trusted source in your industry.

These are the ingredients that will make your content marketing delicious and irresistible.

Types of Content Marketing

There are multiple forms of content marketing.

And that’s a good thing.

Because different types of content can serve different purposes, reach different audiences, and generate different results.

You don’t want to limit yourself to one type of content. You want to diversify your content portfolio and experiment with different formats and platforms.

Here are some of the common forms of content marketing:

• Blogs

Blogs let you share your knowledge, perspective, and advice on various topics related to your niche. They are a great way to attract visitors to your website, boost your SEO ranking, and build your authority and credibility.

• Videos

Videos allow you to show your personality, demonstrate your products or services, and connect with your audience emotionally. Videos are a powerful way to raise your brand awareness, enhance your social media presence, and generate more leads and conversions.

• Podcasts

Podcasts enable you to share your voice, opinions, interviews, and stories on various topics related to your niche. They are a convenient and intimate way to create a loyal and engaged audience, increase your brand loyalty, and foster a sense of community.

• Ebooks

Ebooks provide comprehensive and in-depth information, guidance, and solutions on various topics related to your niche. Ebooks are a valuable and authoritative way to generate leads, grow your email list, and position yourself as an expert and a thought leader.

• Infographics

Infographics present complex data, facts, and statistics in a simple and attractive way. They are a visual and informative way to increase your brand recognition, improve your credibility, and attract more shares and links.

• Social media posts

Social media posts offer updates, news, promotions, and content on various platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. They are a versatile and interactive way to reach a wider and more diverse audience, increase your engagement, and drive more traffic to your website.

Based on the list above, we can categorize the types of content marketing by the stage of the buyer’s journey they target:

• Top of the funnel (TOFU)

These are the types of content that aim to attract and educate potential customers who are not yet aware of their problem or your solution. They include blogs, videos, podcasts, and infographics.

• Middle of the funnel (MOFU)

These are the types of content that aim to nurture and persuade potential customers who are aware of their problem and your solution, but are not yet ready to buy. They include ebooks, webinars, case studies, and testimonials.

• Bottom of the funnel (BOFU)

These are the types of content that aim to convert and retain potential customers who are ready to buy or have already bought from you. They include product demos, free trials, coupons, and email newsletters.

By creating different types of content for different stages of the funnel, you can guide your audience through the buyer’s journey and move them closer to the sale.

Implementation of Content Marketing

Content marketing is not a one-time thing.

It’s a long-term strategy that requires planning, execution, and measurement.

You can’t just create content and hope for the best.

You have to create content that aligns with your goals, your audience, and your brand.

How do you create a content marketing strategy?

It’s not as hard as you think.

You just need to follow these steps:

• Know your audience

Who are you creating content for?

What are their needs, wants, challenges, and motivations?

Create a buyer persona that represents your ideal customer. A buyer persona is a fictional profile that helps you empathize with your audience and create content that resonates with them.

• Set your goals

What do you want to achieve with your content marketing?

Make sure your goals are SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

For instance, you might want to increase your website traffic by 20% in the next 6 months, or generate 100 leads per month from your ebook.

• Choose your content type and format

What kind of content and format will best suit your goals and your audience?

Pick the content type that will provide the most value and engagement for your audience, and the format that will showcase your content in the best way possible.

For example, you might want to create a blog post that includes an infographic, or a video that includes a transcript.

• Pick your content channels

Where will you distribute and promote your content?

Pick the content channels that will reach your audience and drive the most traffic, engagement, and conversions.

This time you might want to publish your content on your website, share it on social media, and email it to your subscribers.

• Create and publish your content

How will you create and publish your content?

Follow the best practices for creating high-quality, relevant, and consistent content.

Use the appropriate tools and platforms for creating and publishing your content.

For example, you might want to use a content management system (CMS) such as WordPress, a video editing software such as Adobe Premiere Pro, or a podcast hosting service such as Anchor.

• Measure your results

How will you measure your content marketing results?

Track and analyze the key performance indicators (KPIs) that reflect your goals.

For example, you might want to use Google Analytics, Google Search Console, or Ahrefs to measure your website traffic, SEO ranking, and lead generation.

That’s it. That’s how you create a content marketing strategy.

By following these steps, you can implement a content marketing strategy that will help you achieve your business objectives.

Start Your Content Marketing

Content marketing is a powerful way to grow your business.

It can help you attract, engage, and convert your audience into customers and advocates.

But content marketing is not easy.

It requires a lot of time, effort, and resources.

It requires a lot of creativity, strategy, and analysis.

It requires a lot of trial and error, feedback, and improvement.

That’s why you need a solid foundation to start your content marketing.

You need a clear understanding of what content marketing is and why you need it.

You need a clear vision of your ideal customer and your SMART goals.

You need a clear plan of your content type, format, channel, and measurement.

And you need a clear commitment to creating and publishing valuable, relevant, and consistent content.

That’s how you can start your content marketing and succeed.

So, are you ready to start your content marketing?