Tag Archive for: Content Marketing

Lead Liaison

Creating Business Content Through Segmentation

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Creating Business Content Through SegmentationAs you’re reading this, small businesses are out there creating business content. Many of them are harvesting content that’s been contracted to external sources. Some are repurposing content that’s been written before, or using automation services to reimagine content from another business. Some are developing a careful content strategy that uses available business resources and a calendar. Some aren’t worried about their content strategy at all.

Upon first glance, the businesses that are leveraging zero to minimum new content in their businesses are the ones that appear the least competitive. However, the effort it takes to create business content does not always guarantee success. If you’re not segmenting you content to match the buying cycle of your users, your content could be deleted, passed over or generally disregarded each time you get a site visit or send a newsletter. And as most business owners out there know, wasted effort is wasted money.

Creating Business Content that Works

According to Social Media B2B, only 30% of companies generally categorize the content they have to offer based on their customer’s average buying cycle. This means that regardless of what buying stage customers are in, they’re getting the same content as everyone else.

Ask yourself this – does someone who’s already purchased need to be convinced to become a first-time customer? Wouldn’t it be better for customers who’ve made a purchase to get new offers or ‘returning customer’ specials? What about referrals?

If you haven’t segmented these different ways of looking at how your customers buy and what content they’d like to see, now is a great time to start.

The Benefits of Segmentation

Creating the right business content based on your customer buying cycle is about first understanding your cycle, then knowing how to segment your audience. If you don’t understand your cycle, marketing automation is a great way to get acquainted with how people are finding you and how to address each audience’s different needs.

Once you have that base set up, take a look at how you can break your customers into different audiences based on how and when they buy. Do you find that customers choose to go with you 8-10 days after you begin advertising? Then you should start sending customized emails to a deciding client segment within a week of initial contact. What about email marketing? If new clients don’t ever seem to open emails, segment your email list into a ‘returning’ or ‘current client’ list that gets special offers and information about your business.

If you don’t know how to begin the buying cycle definition or segmentation process, marketing automation services can help you. At Lead Liaison, we strive to help you understand your buying cycle with advanced tools and marketing data. Talk to us today about how we can help get your business to the next step!

Lead Liaison

How to Make Video Marketing Work For You

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How to Make Video Marketing Work For YouVideo marketing can be a useful tool for promoting interaction in your business – but if your company isn’t using Youtube, Vimeo and other networks correctly, you could be hurting your stats more than you’re helping.

First things first – when considering your video marketing plan, the images aren’t the only thing you should focus on. Your video marketing script or verbiage must engage your audience and compel them to subscribe to your channel, find out more about your site and state explicitly what you’re about and can offer.

Additionally, your videos should contain keywords that explain your products and services. It’s also a good idea to speak the name of your business or URL during your video. Believe it or not, Google indexes speech in Youtube videos as well as the text you type in for your title and description. If your voiceover is clear and your keywords are relevant to your business, this could contribute to your site indexing over time.

The Power of Video Marketing

According to Social Media B2B, 73% of B2B marketing agencies or contractors believe Youtube is an efficient way to manage and transmit content to a selected audience. In addition to the ability to showcase content in a multimedia way, Youtube videos are shareable and you can set coding parameters to match the look of your site. If you’d like to place video marketing assets like Youtube videos in a blog sidebar, there are WordPress plugins that can do this. You can also change the dimensions of videos and embed code anywhere on your site.

Because the share factor is there and the dimensions are customizable, using Youtube to share content on your site is a great way to communicate your message without taking up extra bandwidth on your own server.

Never Set Your Videos to Auto-Start

Strictly B2B speaking, auto-start can be your worst enemy and get an immediate bounce on your pages. It’s important to make sure you have a grip on your audience before you start video marketing. If you’re trying to sell your products to other businesses and visiting your website means watching a video without any way to disable the audio, you could lose potential clients quickly.

Think of it this way – many B2B employees, whether decision-makers or regular staff, are working in an open office environment during the day. Some are in meetings or working in office spaces with open doors. If your video auto-starts and an employee’s phone or laptop isn’t muted, your website’s video could be the cause of embarrassment or interruption. This isn’t a great way to sell your product. It may seem like getting your message out there immediately is a good thing, but giving your users the opportunity to decide whether or not to play your video is good video marketing. Putting the control in the hands of your audience helps build trust.

If you’re looking for video marketing tools that can take your B2B to the next level, consider Lead Liaison. We have a suite of video marketing tools you’ll have to see to believe – and we’d love to set up a consult to discuss your B2B needs.

Lead Liaison

How to Continuously Create Compelling Content

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How to Continuously Create Compelling ContentI came across this clever infographic on 22 ways to create content when you don’t have a clue and I started contemplating the most successful ways to continuously write high-quality marketing content. Lead Liaison’s marketing automation services are based on constantly generating new content for a variety of businesses and industries, but occasionally even I get stuck when I am trying to come up with new ideas.

The never ending demand for content makes it hard for anyone to keep up. Most digital marketing and SEO strategies revolve around the need to constantly create fresh and relevant content that informs and connects with potential consumers. Content is a business’ best chance to demonstrate their industry knowledge and educate consumers about what there business has to offer.

Every article, newsletter, and webpage must be original, informative, and interesting to your target audience. This can be incredibly challenging for businesses that don’t have the time to constantly create compelling new content.

Here are a few helpful hints on how to continuously create compelling content:

1.      Research Your Competitors

Every online business is regularly posting new content, including your competitors. You can’t copy their articles word-for-word, but you can use the content they post to generate new ideas for your own company’s content. Try to focus on any vital information that is missing from your competitor’s articles or things that your company does differently.

2.      Research Offline Articles

Your daily newspaper, local magazines, and television can all be great sources of new ideas. Every time you come across something relevant to your target audience, brainstorm ways to convert the concept into new content for your blog or social media networks.

3.      Hire Professional Content Writers

Content marketing specialists and marketing automation gurus have built their careers on continuously creating compelling content for a variety of difference businesses. They know how to tap into your target market, create the right reaction, and maintain a reader’s interest. If it is too difficult to constantly create new articles, hire a freelancer or a professional marketing automation business to handle the content creation on behalf of your business.

4.      Ask Your Followers

Not everything you post on your blog or social media site has to be an article. It is important to request feedback from your followers to see what questions or concerns they have about your industry, products, or services. Every time you get stuck, send a tweet or update your company’s Facebook status asking your followers what they really want to know.

5.      Rewrite Past Articles

There are some industries where it will be impossible to constantly come up with new ideas for content, especially if your business or industry hasn’t changed much over the years. You may need to repeat previous topics that haven’t recently been addressed. Make sure to come up with some new information that will enhance the existing information and to change it enough that it will pass as original copy.

Continuously creating new content is not easy, but it is possible. If you are struggling to keep up with the massive demand for new content, try hiring a professional content writer. It may be more cost-effective when you consider the time you spend brainstorming and writing new content, plus you will know the content is worthy of your online audience.

Lead Liaison

How to Use Content to Enhance Your Digital Marketing Strategy

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How to Use Content to Enhance Your Digital Marketing StrategyContent is the backbone of every digital marketing strategy. It is used to attract new followers, prove your expertise, and build relationships with potential consumers. Content can come in many different forms and needs to be regularly promoted to increase brand awareness and improve your search engine ranking.

Here are a five effective ways to use content to enhance your digital marketing strategy:

1.       Make it Newsworthy

Create content that keeps your followers updated on the latest developments in your industry or recent changes to your business. Newsworthy content is more likely to be read and shared by people who are actively interested in your products or services.

2.      Make it Visually Appealing

Most people think of content as only the words on the page. Content is everything you use to make your webpages, blogs, and social media profiles more valuable and interesting to your visitors. Content creation also refers to videos, infographics, and slideshows that inform readers using pictures instead of text. Visually appealing images and videos will attract more attention and enhance your digital marketing strategy. If you are focusing strictly on written content, you can add an eye-catching image or two to the text to make it stand out. Just make sure the image is relevant to the content.

3.      Make Sure it is Relevant

Consistency is critical to your digital marketing strategy. Every piece of content should be relevant to your industry and pertinent to your target consumer. Trying to cover too many topics or posting content that doesn’t suit your brand will drastic from your core message. Always keep in mind what truly matters to your potential consumers every time you create new content.

4.      Make it Socially Acceptable

Content should be regularly promoted on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ to attract new followers. Although businesses use these sites for marketing, it is still a social platform. Social media followers expect the content on these sites to be easy to read and simple to understand. Don’t try to impress them with fancy words and complex concepts. Create content that sounds more like a conversation than a boring business brief.

5.      Make Sure it is Unbiased

Content that is filled with obvious sales pitches and boastful statements will not enhance your digital marketing strategy. Today’s savvy consumers will recognize the insincerity behind it and lose trust in your brand. Focus on the buyer’s need and cover all possible remedies, not just your own. You can make your product or service sound like the best solution, as long as it is not the only solution you offer.

If your content is still not effectively enhancing your company’s digital marketing strategy, you can always hire a professional content creation team. Lead liaison’s marketing automation services include high-quality content creation. Our experts specialize in creating original, relevant, and appealing content designed specifically to enhance your digital marketing strategy.

Lead Liaison

How Often Should I Blog for My Business?

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Blogging for your BusinessWhen people ask questions like, “How often should I blog?” or “Should I blog for my business?” they’re typically expecting a concrete answer. Truly, the amount of blogging you do for your business is based on two critical areas. The first is time constraint – as in, how much you’re able to produce for your company site and on what schedule. The second is a question of metrics. If you aren’t able to examine your website and social media data to determine what people want to see from you, this is the first problem you must fix in order to get your site rankings up. Don’t worry about how much you blog if you don’t have the tools to analyze your traffic.

Analyzing the Metrics

If you’re asking yourself “how often should I blog” without any real indicators of what your audience wants to see, you could be wasting your time. You’ll also want to know what keywords people are typing in to find your website so you can evaluable specific opportunities to move up in the Google rankings for those keywords.

For instance, if you run a data analysis business, your website could be popping up for keywords like “risk data analysis” or “web company data analysis.” If you’re ignoring how people get to your site, you could be glossing over information that will tell you more about your core audience. In this case, not only would be losing a valuable opportunity to determine what your content should be about, you’re also losing the opportunity to market on keywords that reach niche demographics.

For this reason, the first step is figuring out whether or not your audience is niched in a way you might not realize – and analyzing your data is the only way to do that.

How Often Should I Blog?

The next factor is time. You have to be realistic here – if you only have two hours of free time a week and you’d rather spend that time drinking coffee and looking out your office window than blogging, you should ask yourself if you’re realistically going to want to devote that time to blogging.

Is blogging important for your business? Absolutely. It gives you something to share on social media, it gives your audience content to relate to, helping you establish trust. It also gives your site an SEO boost if you’re using your keywords properly.

We all have good intentions when it comes to blogging, but if you’re just not going to get 1-2 blogs a week finished – or even a month –it might be time to bring in some reinforcements. Once your site analysis starts to produce some additional data, take a look at what pages or current blog posts your audience is spending the most time on or sharing the most. You can find all this info in your Lead Liaison metrics dashboard.

If you don’t have any content to track yet, create some random content based on your business offerings and track your site visits, social shares and whatever data feedback you can get. If you already know what direction you’d like to go in and can’t fathom creating at least a weekly blog for your business, it might be time to look into some assistance options.

Lead Liaison developed a sophisticated, streamlined approach to content assistance you won’t find elsewhere. Take a look at our content creation services and stop asking, “How often should I blog?” … we’ll take care of it all for you!

Lead Liaison

Article Spinning: Your Content Dinosaur

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Article SpinningRemember those days when you could create an article, run it through an automated article spinning tool or have a writer change up some phrasing, then post that article on your site or the net as an original work? Those were the days before Google’s Panda and Penguin updates, when quantity was often valued over quality. Those days are over, and the right content strategy these days should include original work that is engaging, informative and useful.

Google’s algorithm changes over the past few years have gone into a direction that requires writers to keep engagement in mind. Throwing out piece after piece with the same core messaging just isn’t going to work anymore. It’s better for businesses to approach content creation with more spaced-out, relevant, strategically planned pieces than to throw as much content out there as possible.

Is Article Spinning Google Friendly?

These days, hiring an overseas writer can have its benefits – cost, quantity – but unless a seasoned content writer with English as a native language is creating your content, or your content is heavily edited, you can be assured you’ll eventually face some article monotony and potential Google flags. The days of hiring cheap staff writers to crank out tons of content are over.

Likewise, automated tools that do the article spinning for you are antiquated. It’s suspected that Google’s present algorithms have advanced query strings in mind, so it’s much easier to pick up on spun content.

A Changing Methodology 

Search engine marketers used to say “content is king” – and while this could still be true, we need to elaborate on the expression a bit. Content is king, but useful content that results in user promotion and engagement are truly where it’s at. Hiring a cheap team or grabbing the latest software to use for article spinning just won’t work anymore. A well-rounded content strategy with metrics for tracking engagement and a solid use of your keywords should produce 1-3 blogs a week, rather than multiple articles going all over the internet in the course of a few days.

If you find you can’t meet that content frequency, it makes more sense to produce quality articles over time rather than to crank out the same content over and over again. Part of your content strategy should include targeting. You can post on your own blog or website, but you should also be seeking out social media, guest posting and other content writing opportunities to get a backlink for your site and spread your knowledge.

Interested in content creation without the article spinning? Check out Lead Liaison’s content creation services and receive content creation dashboarding without the hefty cost or fuss today!

Lead Liaison

Why B2B Marketers Need to Use Content Marketing

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Why B2B Marketers Need to Use Content MarketingContent is the most important tool a business has to communicate with B2B buyers. Buyers for big businesses know they can hop on the internet and research anything they want to know about a product or service from the comfort of their home or office. They would rather read a helpful article that suggests a variety of solutions to their most recent purchasing needs than listen to a lengthy sales pitch from an eager vendor. That is why B2B marketers need to use content marketing.

Content Marketing Provides Answers

B2B marketers must answer potential consumer questions and offer viable solutions to their concerns on their website pages and various social media platforms. These are usually the only places B2B buyers are looking for information. In fact, a recent CMI and Marketing Profs study proved that 93% of B2B marketers use content marketing.

Content marketing is focused on providing followers with a free and helpful online resource using a variety of different marketing channels. Content creation that includes specific questions and answers will have a better chance of appearing at the top of their search results. Content that is effectively marketed using social media, blogs, and lead nurturing campaigns will also make it easier for B2B buyers to find the answers your company wants them read.

Content Marketing Creates Trust

B2B buyers are too smart to be fooled by online scams and untrustworthy business facades. They will do the necessary research to make sure a company is a legitimate resource. Creating insightful and informative content and then promoting it on relevant blogs and social media sites will strengthen your online reputation. A strong online presence and credible content will build trust with potential clients.

Content Marketing Attracts Followers

Powerful and compelling content will be shared and re-tweeted outside of your business’ current community. B2B marketers should use catchy headline and social media networks to expand your upon your existing audience. Experienced content marketers will ensure every article gets a positive and worthwhile reaction.

Content Marketing Prequalifies Leads

One of the greatest benefits to B2B marketers is the fact that content marketing naturally prequalifies leads. The articles that are posted and promoted will be relevant to your business’ services and products. Leads that show sincere interest in the content are more likely to follow through and make a purchase.

Successful Content Marketing Strategies

Creating informative and relevant information is critical, but it also must be effectively marketed. Successful content marketing strategies must include regular updates on blogs, social media networks, and the use of marketing automation software for lead nurturing campaigns.

Marketing automation software is also necessary for lead generation. It will capture and retain every lead that crosses paths with your website. Once they are captured, compelling and informative content will strengthen the relationship and improve the chances of conversion. That is why B2B marketers need to use content marketing.

Lead Liaison

Six Simple Steps for Creating a Content Marketing Strategy

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Six Simple Steps for Creating a Content Marketing StrategyEvery company needs an effective content marketing strategy to stay competitive. The popularity of search engines and social media networking has completely changed the way consumers research their buying decisions. Over 90% of American adults now use the internet to find information and research their purchases.

Since most consumers are searching online for solutions to their problems, businesses must provide them with useful answers to their inquiries. Relevant and informative content is now an essential component for every online marketing strategy. A company must establish themselves as a credible expert in their field to encourage followers and build relationships.

Here are six simple steps for creating a content marketing strategy:

 

1.       Research Target Audience

The first step in any content marketing strategy should be extensive research. Marketing automation software will allow you to track and profile your existing customers and potential leads. This information is necessary for both content development and content marketing.

2.       Find Your Editorial Voice

Online followers will expect an unbiased and articulate editorial voice that offers them real value and consistency. If you are not a talented content writer, it is best to outsource it to one particular person. Try to find someone who has experience writing in your field whenever possible, although most skilled freelance writers can adapt their talent to any industry.

3.       Answer Leads Questions

Use the content as an opportunity to answer the questions that your leads would typically ask. For example, if you sell an herbal weight loss supplement, write several different articles addressing a variety of ways to losing weight. You can mention your herbal supplement as one of the suggested weight loss solutions. Target the message towards solving the lead’s need, not necessarily your particular solution to their problem.

4.       Create a Content Distribution Strategy

There are countless different websites and social networks where you can promote and post your content for free. It is essential that you know which sites your specific target audience is visiting and which content strategies will work best on those sites. A specific article may attract attention on Google+, but it could be completed ignored on Facebook. If you are not social media savvy, you can either research and learn from successful competitor’s social media sites or consult a social media expert for guidance.

5.       Build Relationships in Your Field

It is important to connect and build relationships with as many online authorities in your industry as possible. You can cross-promote each other’s content, which will help both your SEO and content marketing strategies.

6.       Mix Up Content with Images & Videos

Your content marketing strategy should contain more than just informative articles and compelling statuses. It needs something to make people stop in their tracks. A powerful image or an entertaining video are both great ways to get noticed.

All it takes is these six simple steps to success and you can create a content marketing strategy that is guaranteed to generate results. If you are unsure how to get the most from these strategies, please ask the experts at Lead Liaison for help. They will create a comprehensive, customized online marketing strategy geared towards optimal exposure and superior results.

Lead Liaison

5 Tips for More Effective Content Marketing

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5 Tips for More Effective Content MarketingBillions of people use the internet daily to research new products and services. They enter their need or question into a search engine and scan through the top few results to see which one interests them the most. A company’s online content has the ability to boost your website to the top of the rankings and entice new users to click on your link. Effectively marketing that content is critical to your success.

Here are five tips for more effective content marketing:

1.       Create a Content Marketing Strategy

Randomly posting statuses and tweets is not a content marketing strategy. An effective content marketing strategy begins with understanding your leads’ needs, developing content that is catered specifically to their needs, and then the creation of an editorial schedule based on when their target audience is most likely to be listening. Make sure to outline a plan of action and adjust it as you learn more about your potential leads.

2.       Know Your Target Audience

Content is more powerful when it is created specifically towards your average consumer’s needs and interest. There are a lot of different factors to consider when you are creating a content marketing strategy, which is when marketing automation and content marketing software are so necessary for success. Marketing automation specialist will help by streamlining the lead profiling, lead nurturing, and content marketing process. It uses website visitor tracking technology to show you exactly what your lead is doing online.

3.       Promote Content on Social Media Sites

Once you have a comprehensive content marketing strategy, the next step is enticing readers using a strategic variety of social media sites. Social network channels like Facebook and Twitter are great for developing a sincere fan base. Make sure to also include YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn in your content marketing strategy, since these are quickly gaining in popularity.

4.       Cross-Promote Related Content

Businesses can help promote each other’s content by referencing and linking helpful articles that are related to your own business. Look for other companies in your field (not direct competitors) that already have a strong following. Repost their content on your site and then see if they are interested in promoting your content.

5.       Use Software to Monitor Success

It is important to evaluate the success of each content marketing campaign. Content marketing software allows you to track your content’s online responses and conversion rates. Content marketing software is 100% necessary, since there are too many elements to track without it.

Effective content marketing involves creating a strategy, understanding your audience, promoting content on social media sites, cross-promoting related content, and using software to monitor your success. These five tips will ensure your valuable content is being read. If you want to learn more about content marketing, please check out Forbes article on The Top 7 Content Marketing Trends that will Dominate 2014.

Lead Liaison

Can You Get Content Creation and Marketing Automation Together? Yes!

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Get Content Creation and Marketing Automation TogetherIt has long been the cry of B2B marketers (well, “long” is relative in the digital age): “We’ve automated our marketing – but we need CONTENT!” We’ve got your content creation and marketing automation together in one!

Recent statistics support the need for third-party content creation:

  • 71% of Marketers use content marketing for lead generation
  • 82% of B2B Marketers are increasing content production in the next 12 months
  • 93% of B2B Marketers create content from scratch
  • 56% of B2B content is created by corporate marketing
  • 47% of B2B content is created by product marketing
  • 55% of B2B Marketers say their biggest challenge is having the time or bandwidth to create content

Now, consider this:

  • 37% of B2B Marketers use marketing automation for lead generation
  • 36% of B2B Marketers use marketing automation for lead nurturing
  • 39% of B2B Marketers don’t use marketing automation at all

Do those numbers look like there might be a need for marketing automation and content creation combined? Content and automation both drive traffic, conversions, and sales. When combined, they form a potent marketing strategy. Until now there has been no integrated answer for combining content with marketing automation.

We’ve got the answer.

With a few clicks you can order audience-centric content such as blog posts, white papers, press releases, website pages, social posts, and more. Once approved, content can be entered into your automated campaigns easily.

Once you have combined marketing automation and content creation, your corporate and product marketers will have bandwidth to devote to campaign development and execution, among other tasks. Learn more about our groundbreaking new feature.

A disturbing fact: Only 25% of B2B Marketers use content marketing for customer retention. This is unfortunate as it distinguishes a customer from a prospect. Keep in mind: a customer was once a prospect. In today’s multimedia environment, can a company afford to withdraw a customer from its content stream?