The importance of content creation (+ expert advice)

Since the birth of the Internet, the amount of content that we can access with the click of a mouse or a screen has increased at a rapid rate.

We can access insane videos via TikTok, unlimited Facebook posts from our weird parents, and awesome images via Instagram. Content can be created by anyone, anywhere, anytime.

But if you’re looking to leverage content marketing for your business, then it’ll take a little more than slap a few words and call it a day.

If you haven’t implemented content creation into your marketing strategy, you are wrong.

If the producer is twelve and creates a Snapchat story, that’s content creation. If the producer is forty-five and broadcasts his midlife crisis live on YouTube, it’s content creation. If the producer is a twenty-three-year-old marketer writing an article for a company, that’s content creation too.

What makes the marketer different?

A plan of attack.

Creating Snapchat stories only takes a second. Documenting a midlife crisis on YouTube takes a few days. But creating content for a business means planning, executing, and tracking its performance.

Is this something that you are ready to take on?

Why is content creation important?

There are two types of marketing that businesses can undertake: outbound marketing and inbound marketing. Outbound marketing involves cold calls, spam emails, and any other marketing tactic that we have been trained to ultimately ignore.

On the other hand, inbound marketing practices like content creation aim to offer an audience something of value in order to attract them: e-books, podcasts, articles, infographics and more.

In doing so, inbound marketers increase brand awareness as well as brand preference, while businesses that market themselves get meaningful leads that end up turning into customers.

While outbound marketing is like casting a line with no bait, inbound marketing gives the fish in the pond something to hold on to.

The content creation process

We understand what content creation is and its importance in the world of marketing. And after?

If you are looking for a low ROI, you are unlikely to be successful without a process.

Customer profile

Your audience should come first – do you know who they are? Who do you want to read your blog posts, listen to your podcasts, and share your data visualizations?

A The customer profile represents the ideal customer for your business: their budget, their profession, their hobbies, their location, their values, their behaviors and their demographics. By creating a profile, you will feel better prepared to understand your reader, their habits and potential interests in order to better engage them.

Idea subjects

It might seem like the easiest part of the process, but it can often turn out to be the hardest part. Since ideas for content can come from anywhere and from anywhere, it can be difficult to narrow down those ideas and identify the goals and angles from which you are going to embrace the idea.

To help you feel a little more organized about the endless sources of ideas, we’ve put together a list of where the best can come from.

Use your colleagues for their own ideas. Whether you’re the only creative person on your team or one of many, it’s important to reach out to other departments for their ideas. After all, departments like sales, customer service, and even IT work closely with current customers and prospects and may know a little (or a lot) more about what your audience is looking for. Some of the ideas they present to you might never have crossed your mind if you hadn’t asked for help.

Keyword research can help you and your team learn more about what people are actually looking for online. What words does your audience use to describe your topics, products, or business? Keyword research can not only help you frame and rephrase the ideas you originally had, but it can also reveal new ideas that you might not have thought about initially. SEO software can help you with things like keyword analysis and trend analysis to identify the best strategies for improving a website’s relevance.

New data can be an opportunity to prove to your audience the kind of value your business brings. Incorporating these facts into your content can lead to new ideas that your audience didn’t even know they needed to hear.

Take a look at your competition to stay on top (and ahead) of the game. What topics have they written on? Socialize to find out what their customers are sharing online and what’s going on Google. Don’t just watch how they approach the subject – how can your brand do it better?

Use your audience. This doesn’t have to be a guessing game – the answer might lie in the reviews they leave for your product. Is there any confusion regarding the use of your product? Are people asking for a new feature? Answer their questions with your content.

Identify the “how”

You’ve found a huge list of keywords and answers that your customers are asking for. How are you going to deliver?

Content can take many forms, but it’s important to remember that the forms you provide are valuable to your customer profile.

While a 3 hour The instructional video can be incredibly informative, will your audience really take the time out of their day to consume this?

Keep your execution simple and useful. Remember, your audience, like you, is looking for answers. There are several content formats that marketers can create in order to provide these answers:

Make sure that the format you choose for your content is not only attractive, but also appropriate. Does it make more sense to provide a podcast on your data, or would it be better communicated through an infographic design?

Keep in mind the resources you have and the resources you not to have at hand; will you need a budget for a freelance graphic designer or podcast producer? Do you have all the necessary equipment to shoot a video? What about the expertise to modify it?

Put all of your ducks in a row before you start creating.

Create: advice from the experts

It’s time to run. There’s not just one way to do it, but these experts have a few tips for getting it right:

Authenticity matters

“The biggest success factor of [content creation] makes sure to maintain a unique and authentic voice in any field.

Tephra Miriam, Founder and Chief Creative Consultant of Tephra Miriam Communications

“The content must be vulnerable, sincere and genuine. Instead of selling products and telling people why and how a product works, start engaging with your followers. Let them know they are heard and understood.

Daisy Jing, CEO and Founder of Banish

Write what you would read

“One of our business mantras is to write content that you want to read, and I think it can be easy for some marketers and content creators to overlook this crucial tip. I often see marketers prioritizing keyword research, planning content around SEO, and trying to keep up with the latest trends, but none of these strategies focus on what really matters: what people do. want to read.”

Kristine Cameron, screenwriter and editor for Cucumber content

“It’s important to create content that your readers actually want to read. Think about what problem they would like to solve, what knowledge gaps they might have, and how you can add value to them.

Mark Pratt, Mmarketing manager at Click on Send

Add variety

“Another important feature for content is multimedia content. Your content should use different media to tell better stories, including infographics, images, graphics, videos, and GIFs.

Caio Bersot, Senior Content and Social Media Specialist at tariffenergie.ca

Do not be shy

“Set aside judgment and free ideas with your team. With the “no idea is a bad idea” mindset, the possibilities are endless which can give you a leg up. Go with the most original and original ideas. You could start the next marketing trend! “

Paul Farmer, Vice President of Marketing at Woodtex

Create creatively

Creating content is easy, of course. But if you want your hard work to pay off, you have to put in what you expect. It’s not easy, but with a solid process and an open mind, you and your business are bound to see results that will change your business for the better.

Do you think you are ready for the challenge? Become a guest contributor for us.