5 Basic Principles of Content Marketing

Web users are accustomed to online advertising.

People have changed their browsing patterns to avoid banners, buttons and pop ups and businesses have discovered the power of great content.

In terms of creating effective content that works for readers and provides a return on investment, there are 5 key principles that we stick to at Urban Element.

1) Know your audience

The most important aspect of content marketing is knowing who your audience is, so you can direct content in a way that will resonate with them and drive them to convert.

There are loads of ways to find out who your audience is, but one thing we do at Urban Element is create audience personas. By collating facts about an audience we can establish the traits and behaviours of those we want to start conversation with.

Without personas and an accurate idea of your true audience, you’ll end up creating content for yourself and your business, rather than your intended audience.

2) Find the right channel

Once you know your audience, you need to find the best way to reach them to get your content out there.

• Are they on social media?
• Are they going directly to your site?
• Is the best way to reach them through print?

Establishing the right channel will let you interact with your audience better and save you time by avoiding the wrong platforms. There are different ways to interact and different ways to create content for each channel, so bear this in mind when you’re writing. Don’t limit yourself to one channel though, a multi channel marketing approach can yield great results when managed properly.

3) Be relevant

Relevance is key in content marketing. If content isn’t relevant to your audience they’re going to assume it’s spam. By meeting the needs of your audience and sticking to relevant information – your users are going to be more likely to visit your site again. A good way to ensure your content stays relevant to your audience is to create user personas.

4) Create and maintain the right voice and tone

Every brand has an identity and their own unique voice. These voices become synonymous with brands and when it comes to marketing activities they create consistency across the board. The goal is become recognisable through content alone. When we write content at Urban Element, we ensure the voice and tone of the content we create accurately reflects your brand and resonates with your audience.

5) Make sure there’s value in the content

When you have considered all the above options you should focus on whether the content is valuable to the user. People that are reading your content are usually looking for something, so you should concentrate on helping them reach their end goal. Providing value through your content is going to make you respected by your audience and encourage them to return again for valuable information.

Additionally, it’s worth remembering that after you create great content it’s important to measure its success. For further information, read our article  5 metrics to help you benchmark your blogging performance.

Effective content needs to be considered in all your marketing activities. Anything that’s put in front of your audience and has your branding on needs to have factored in all the above points, including any SEO, PPC or social media activity. If you’re looking for a content marketing agency to help you connect with your target audience, please get in touch today.

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