As marketers, we all know the mantra, “content is king.” Yet, not all content is created equal. While it’s relatively easy to brainstorm lots of ideas for new blog posts, it’s much harder to actually write pieces that perform to expectations. To be effective at driving traffic, content must be strategically created with the audience and desired outcomes in mind.
We’ve worked with many companies who were frustrated by the results of their content creation and wonder if it is truly worth their team’s time and effort. We’ve helped those same marketers take a long-neglected corporate blog and turn it into an indispensable channel for attracting qualified leads. Here’s a quick look at how:
How to build a powerhouse blog
A successful blog is built, bit by bit, with regular, high-quality posts. And a high-quality blog post begins with an idea and a target reader. But, before you dive into writing, both should be validated with in-depth keyword and competitive research. This will help you refine your initial ideas to match real-world opportunities for keyword rankings and capture the ensuing traffic.
When you create new content with this type of strategy in mind, you leverage one of the most powerful tools in a digital marketer’s toolbox. You can use your blog posts strategically, to hone your overall message with long-tail keyword phrases that stem from topics you’ve already covered or to broaden your reach with new concepts that are related to your products or services. Either way, you will increase your potential to rank for more keywords and gain exposure with your audience.
Strategic blogging in action
We worked with 3D-printing technology reseller, Fisher Unitech, to develop and implement a content strategy that significantly boosted traffic and subscribership to their blog. The process began with competitive and keyword research to identify content gaps on their blog. We then collaborated closely with Fisher Unitech’s in-house marketing team to plan out a detailed editorial calendar and write in-depth, high-value content that would meet the target audience’s needs and rank well in search. Within one year, Fisher Unitech was able to boost blog traffic by 195% and tripled the number of subscribers. Three years after our engagement began, organic traffic to the site, as a whole, had increased by almost 900%.
Drive qualified traffic with an SEO content strategy
Blogging is one of the most effective ways to increase your reach online. When done well, a blog can drive as much qualified traffic as paid search! If you’re looking to brush up on the basics, we offer free workshops on blogging and other digital marketing topics at our Ann Arbor office. We also provide all levels of content-creation services as part of our SEO Upgrade plans—contact us to learn more.