Paul MorrisSome of the core ‘wisdom’ being disseminated through the content marketing community is misleading, or downright wrong. The central idea that blogs are a great way of encouraging inbound leads is sound, but the ways in which we’re told to go about it aren’t always fully formed. At Superb Digital, we form our ideas through hard-earned experience and solid results rather than assumptions. Here is an overview of some of the maxims we’ve come to question, and tips for a more effective approach.
1. “Always aim for a wide readership”
It might seem counter intuitive, but a large readership for a blog shouldn’t be the ultimate goal of a professional marketer, and could actually be hampering content marketing efforts. Wide readerships are great for individual bloggers that rely solely on advertising revenue, as each visitor reflects a tiny amount of income. But this drive for a gigantic audience has become muddled with the core aim of what internet marketing should be.
Blogs in this instance are about generating leads, commanding the SERP, and converting users into customers – not gaining ad money. To really see a return on investment with your SEO and content marketing, it’s much more important to engage a small number of people who are ready to buy, and to gather leads through subscribers and regular visitors. Aiming for a wide, indistinct readership without fostering the kind of targeted relationship that builds a subscriber base, means that the blog ultimately isn’t performing the role that it should.
2. “Push yourself to create new content”
There are lots of options beyond regular written blogs when it comes to encouraging leads through online content. People use video blogs with targeted gateways to gain subscribers, or produce podcasts to answer evergreen queries and cultivate consumer relationships. While this can be very effective for some companies, it’s not a panacea when it comes to lead generation. Different media works for different companies, and it can be dependent on the business representative involved feeling comfortable using video or voice recording.
Basically, not everyone is comfortable having their voice recorded or speaking in front of a camera, and not every brand culture is primed for video and audio blogging either. It’s a case of being discerning in what you put out. This is something I even found out myself in our recent promotional video…if you’re going to comment please be gentle, this was my first time in-front of the camera!
3. “More blogging is always better”
This is perhaps the most difficult concept to challenge. While it does take a dedicated effort to see returns with a blog, that doesn’t mean that more is better. A large, unwieldy blog makes it hard to form a clear idea of who you’re targeting, and can lead to a drop in quality, either through the need for excessive outsourcing, or a general lack of topics.
It’s better to build up efforts rather than being forced to wind down, so managing a sustainable rate of quality blogging is much more important than simply littering the internet with your content.
These are just a few of the ways that questioning content marketing assumptions can achieve results. At Superb Digital, we know that real marketing strategy requires thought and effort, so while it’s tempting for some people to rely on quick SEO tips for inbound lead generation, there’s really no substitute for experience.
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