Content Marketing Strategy - Top Floor

A Marketer’s Guide to a

ContentMarketing Strategy

www.topfloortech.com

Index03 Content Marketing 04 Key Performance Indicator05 Creating A Strategy07 Goals08 Content Calendar Planning09 Content Types11 Exposing Yourself To Your Customers13 Documented Strategy

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What is Content Marketing?Content marketing is a form of marketing that acquires an audience through the use of relevant information. It is a strategized trade- offering your potential customer knowledge, in exchange for a chance to grab their attention, and then their business.The key to success in content marketing is producing high quality, meaningful information that connects with a reader, so much so that they want to learn more about the author, you!

Content Marketing taps into people’s innate feelings of obligation to repay acts of goodness to others. If you have done something good for another person, they are more likely to exchange the favor-meaning a willingness to try your product or service.


Brands need to create content

that is both authentic and

honest.

Key Performance IndicatorsBefore you even start to craft your Content Marketing Strategy you have to figure out what KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) are important to your business.

How effective is your content marketing initiative?The KPIs you track will directly correlate with the business goals you want to accomplish within your strategy. Some examples of KPIs you can track (depending on your business goals) include website traffic, social shares, CTR (Click Through Rate), conversions, etc.

The more defined your strategy is, the easier and more effective it will be to identify and track qualifying KPIs.


If you can’t measure it, youcan’t improve it

Strategy Goals & Content Are Created by YOUWhile marketing agencies can guide the strategy discussion, ultimately you will need to create a clear definition of what you want to accomplish and what your business goals are. From there, a marketing agency can coordinate the necessary pieces to put an effective strategy into play.

Creating A StrategyCreating a content marketing strategy should center on the SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely) goals you want to achieve with your content marketing strategy.

Examples of company SMART goals could be:• Increase organic traffic to my website by 20% in 6 months• Increase leads by 5% in 4 months through qualified contact form submissions sent via my website in order to hit 15% growth goal for the year.

Once you have your company’s SMART goals documented, you’re ready to map out the execution strategy.


60% Of Marketers Create At Least

OnePiece of Content

Each Day

“

How Will You Achieve Your Goals?In order to achieve the SMART goals you have documented, you’ll need to create actionable plans for each, which may include multiple moving pieces.

After defining the execution plan behind each goal, you’ll need to map out your content marketing calendar to determine which pieces of content need to be created, published and promoted. You’ll also need to identify when and where each piece will be published and promoted.


88% of B2B marketers

use contentmarketing

in their strategies

Let’s use the two goals outlined before as examplesGoal: Increase organic traffic to my website by 12% in 6 monthsStrategy: Create SEO-rich content based on user searches

Goal: Increase leads by 5% in 4 months through qualified contact form submissions sent via my websiteStrategy: Optimize user flow and conversion points on website to guide visitors to the action we want them to take.

Content Calendar PlanningYour content marketing calendar should be scheduled based on seasonality and event happenings (your own and 3rd party happenings). It will be your job and the job of your employees to map out your company’s content marketing calendar, as only you will know what events you are attending or putting on, as well as the seasonality trends that impact your business.

Now, keep in mind – depending on certain factors (the size of your business, the type of business you operate, etc.), you will NOT need to fill out every single day on your content calendar. Perhaps it makes sense for your business to produce content 1x per week or 2x per month. That’s fine – just make sure the topics are clearly mapped out on the calendar ahead of time.

As you’re creating your content marketing calendar, make sure you’re including what each piece is designed to accomplish for your company. For example, a piece about a new product release might have a goal of generating more conversions on the website. You also want to make sure you’re identifying an audience for each piece of content as a first step. If you determine the audience prior to writing copy or creating design, your content will feel more personal and resonate with the right people.


Content Creation from INDUSTRY ExpertsThe content you produce must come from your team members. There are no “ifs”, “ands” or “buts” about this one. YOU are the experts; YOU talk to your customers; and YOU know your industry.

It doesn’t matter how remarkable your marketing agency is or how much research they do, nobody can flip a switch and become the expert in YOUR industry. Only YOU can communicate, answer and advise your customers at an expert level.

Remember to always keep your customers at the forefront of your content’s purpose. After all, you’re writing for your customers, not for your company.

Content is More Than Words on a Page. Oftentimes, when we hear “content” we typically think of blogs. While blogs are great, they aren‘t always the best medium for your audience or for the topic. Also, content marketing doesn’t have to be all about words. Content marketing can also be a lot of other powerful things.


Content Type Samples:


Case Studies

White Papers

Guides / Checklists

E-books

VideosQuizzes

InfographicsWebinars

Exposing Yourself to Your CustomersI know what you’re thinking, “Expose myself?!” But when I say “expose yourself”, what I mean is to use your content to showcase what your company is all about. Expose your personality, your values, your unrelenting customer commitment, your incessant drive to be the industry leader -you get the point.

Content marketing is a phenomenal way to show what your company is all about. But when it comes to exposing yourself, you have to figure out where you’re going to do that.

• Are you using Facebook?• Sending emails to customers?• Commenting on an industry forum?

Content marketing is more than taking a piece of content and mindlessly sharing it on every channel you can think of. Exposing yourself should include thoughtful consideration.


Exposing Yourself toYour CustomersRemember, all channels are used differently. You go to Pinterest to find ideas on decorating your bedroom; You go to Facebook to keep up with friends and family; You go to LinkedIn to interact with people in your career field; You go to a forum for advice on a technical/niche topic. Think about your audience and the intended purpose of a particular channel before you determine if that’s the right way to expose yourself.

Whatever channel(s) you decide on, remember that your messaging will also need to vary. The way you communicate on Facebook isn’t how you would communicate on LinkedIn.

Aside from creating a message for the right people on the right channel, you also have to consider that each channel usually has their own rules and etiquette. A great example of this is Twitter – where you only get a certain amount of characters to expose yourself and get people to pay attention.

When it comes to impactful content marketing, most companies utilize on multiple channels – of course, refining their message for the intended audience and channel.


Getting On-Board with aDefined, Documented StrategyOnce a defined strategy is documented (and it MUST be documented to be successful), and a content marketing calendar is finalized, you’ll need to schedule a mandatory, company-wide meeting. This meeting is critical. It will go over the documented strategy, explain to everyone why it’s important, the company goals you are aiming to achieve, and what their individual roles will be. For your strategy to be successful, it is essential to have everyone onboard with the company’s goals and strategy, so that every individual understands their new role expectations and deliverables.

See You at the TopNow that you have learned some key tools for success in content marketing strategizing, don’t forget to share what you’ve learned. As you look to take your first step, Top Floor would love to talk with you to help you succeed.



Elevating Results is what we do.Top Floor is an experienced, award-winning team of marketing professionals. We employ a rigorous process of continuous improvement to create and execute strategic integrated marketing plans that support our clients’ long-term business goals. We value the spirit of partnership with our clients, and believe in open and honest dialogue throughout the working process. Top Floor is committed to providing our clients the highest quality deliverables within their approved budgets, while promoting an atmosphere of collaborative idea generation.

Digital Marketing StrategyTop Floor specializes in helping organizations succeed through elevating their digital marketing results, and is excited about the opportunity to partner with you to maximize your success. The reality is that we can build and monitor effective projects within a range of timelines and budgets. Whether we are working together on branding & positioning, web design & development, search marketing, and/or content marketing, we are committed to open and honest dialogue to elevate your results..

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