Content Marketing Strategies: A Tale of 3 Brands

If the maxim “Content is King” is still true (it is), there’s one obvious reason: Strategic content marketing works. When a business uses a well-calculated strategy to create, coordinate, place, and maintain superb digital content, good things can happen.

In this article, we’ll look at three well-done content marketing campaigns, or strategies. They include both short-term and long-haul tactics that have performed successfully to bring these companies’ offerings to the attention of the people who want them.

The three have something else in common: They all use their content to promote care for the environment and the welfare of humans.

Their resulting growth tells the rest of the story.

Patagonia: Content Marketing Tips from the Trail Less Traveled

Patagonia creates and sells outdoor clothing and gear for what it calls “the silent sports:” climbing, surfing, skiing, snowboarding, fly fishing, and trail running.

The company’s name is inseparable from its environmental efforts and reputation for top-notch treatment of the people who produce its products.

Yvon Chouinard started Patagonia in 1973. Prompted by travels in South America’s Patagonia region, he debuted a wilderness-evoking logo for the brand—an image of the region’s iconic Mount Fitz Roy.

Patagonia Logo – Patagonia.com

Atypically, founder Yvon Chouinard’s goals for the company have nothing to do with endless growth. He’s been quoted as saying the basis for Patagonia’s success is “quality in whatever we do.”  To understand what that means, you must know that his concept of quality reaches beyond offering quality products.

Product quality is, of course, very important to Patagonia. So, its content marketing platforms consistently promote:

  • A lifetime warranty on everything sold.
  • The company’s use of technology to develop increasingly environmentally friendly products.
  • Lessons about concepts like layering for cold and wearing nylon to resist water.
  • Reuse—the website features a “Worn Ware” page where customers can, in effect, recycle their Patagonia gear by trading it in for credit, allowing other shoppers to buy it.

Then there are the environmental and human aspects of quality that also define the brand and are displayed across various channels:

  • On its main platform—its website—Patagonia encourages customers to “Escape Responsibly,” and then offers 10% off for signing up to receive email, texts, and newsletters. Besides product news, stories, and videos, these messages contain “Enviro Action Alerts.”
  • A “Stories” page on the site includes first-hand accounts from participants in a panoply of sports, plus stories of adventure and environmental efforts.
  • Patagonia is a founding member of the Conservation Alliance, which uses its power to protect outdoor spaces.
  • Over a decade ago, Chouinard started the 1% for the Planet program, encouraging other businesses globally to become members and give 1% of yearly sales to help the environment. Patagonia’s own donations have exceeded $74 million.
  • A well-followed Facebook page features environmentally conscious reels, sales notices, and a used gear marketplace.
  • Patagonia launched the Footprint Chronicles system in 2007 to let customers follow the products they buy from the raw materials stage through retail, bringing to light human trafficking in the supply chain.
  • The brand has built a reputation for treating its employees exceptionally well—providing on-site childcare, organic cafeteria meals, and more.
  • Patagonia reviews its partners on the quality of their working conditions and works only with facilities that allow visits for inspections.

These factors, as more than just elements of strategic content marketing, have helped build a loyal following of like-minded customers who appreciate all the aspects of quality the brand represents.

They know the company is doing good for its customers, employees, and the planet, and they post fervently in large numbers on the brand’s Instagram and Pinterest pages.

Tip: Content marketing can use the surprise factor.

Outstanding among marketing efforts,Patagonia’s anti-intuitive “Don’t Buy This Jacket” campaignfamously made a bold statement about company values by encouraging customers to think about environmental impact and overbuying before purchasing something new.

Patagonia placed the intriguing ad in The New York Times on Black Friday, 2011, using an image of its iconic fleece jacket, made with recycled bottles.

Patagonia also used the line “Don’t Buy This Shirt” in a catalog write-up and got what it characterized as “strong response.”

Books as Examples of Content Marketing

Several books written by Chouinard have contributed to Patagonia’s branding. They include “Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman,” explaining his philosophy about treating employees well and how that relates to business success.

Chouinard’s other books are an instructional volume titled “Simple Flyfishing” and “Family Business: Innovative On-Site Childcare Since 1983.”

While Patagonia has always focused on treating both the earth and humans with respect rather than maximizing profits, that approach has proven, almost coincidentally, to be profitable.

While paying its employees well, Patagonia generates over $1 billion annually. Total profit is currently calculated to be about $100 million per year. The company has continued to add stores and runs 70 locations worldwide as of this writing.

A recent prominent poll ranked Patagonia as the most respected brand in the United States.

Avalon Waterways: Strategic Content Marketing Out of the Mainstream

Although its parent company, Globus, has been in the travel biz since 1928, Avalon Waterways was started in 2004 to specialize in river cruises.

As a newcomer to the fiercely competitive river cruising space, Avalon considered how to do strategic content marketing to set the brand apart. The need to build trust pointed to the need to get creative through a multi-faceted plan.

Initially, Avalon contacted top travel agents using a 3-step direct mail initiative that inspired them to take “ownership” and provided incentives to sell Avalon trips.

Marketing collateral sent to agents featured messages such as, “Our newest ship just became Europe’s latest attraction.”

The campaign’s images and text emphasized the ships rather than the scenery to tell the story of why the new cruise line should be entrusted with precious vacation time.

Agents could become Avalon specialists, giving them access to brochures, virtual ship tours, reviews and testimonials, planning tools, deals, and more.

Since that first approach to agents, the company’s cross-channel content has told the story of the ways Avalon Waterways has reimagined cruising:

  • The website tells of “smaller ships, bigger experiences.”  In other words, completely different, more personal experiences than a huge-ship ocean cruise.
  • Details on each ship reveal that each averages only 150 passengers aboard. The site highlights a 3/1 passenger/crew ratio. (The Avalon Saigon carries only 36 guests on the Mekong River.)
  • Value and freedom of choice for passengers is emphasized.  
  • Guests are offered lots of options to “Stray the Course”—customize their trip—both on board and in ports, by choosing from many “Active,” “Discovery,” and “Classic” pastimes.
  • Ship-centric virtual tours are a valuable piece of online strategy. The tours show details large and small, bow to stern, in public and private spaces. Lots of them have been placed on YouTube and the website.
  • An active Facebook page features an array of tantalizing videos shared by the company and guests.
  • Avalon Pinterest postings feature everything from crew to food, from stunning scenery to a few words a traveler might want to know before embarking.
  • An active Instagram account provides lots of snaps and reels to put followers on the ships and at destinations.
  • A webpage features many glowing reviews from previous guests.
  • The website doesn’t just tell but shows what a difference Avalon’s attention to premium features makes—from spirits to coffee to towels to tantalizing food.
  • A plethora of detail about each ship’s dimensions and amenities are also displayed with a couple of clicks.

Avalon currently operates cruises on the rivers of Europe, South America, Asia, and Africa. The company began launching what it calls “panorama” ships in 2011.

“The Widest View in the Whole Wide World”

By clicking that statement on the website, cruise shoppers get transported from their computer screens right into a stateroom of an Avalon Suite Ship for a “3D virtual experience.” The “experience” shows that, in the 80% of Suite Ships’ rooms that are Panorama Suites, passengers can literally see more via floor-to-ceiling windows.

The rooms are designed to view scenery either from the bed or a table that forms an open-air balcony when sliding doors are pulled aside.

Sizes and dimensions of Avalon suites’ staterooms are compared to those of “average” river cruise lines. Features such as the comfort of beds are flaunted, as are additional sound insulation and larger-than-usual, luxurious bathrooms.

Avalon Waterways participates in and promotes Globus’ Lighthouse Project, a green initiative begun in 2021.  The project gets guests involved in ecology through “Trees4Travel,” planting a tree for each guest who travels on one of the ships, to lower CO2 levels.

Guests and potential guests learn about the program on the “Avalon Cares” page of the line’s website, which also lists other conservation efforts supported by Globus to keep the ocean clean, honor rangers, and protect wildlife. The page says that only “responsible viewing of wild animals” is offered as opposed to captive animal shows.

https://www.avalonwaterways.com/why-avalon/cares/

Avalon Waterways has earned high ratings across a multitude of review sites on the web. It has also won awards—from Cruisecritic, Conde Nast Traveler, and USA Today. Displayed on Avalon’s website, they serve as further proof of success in cruising excellence.

If more proof is needed, it can be found in Avalon’s growth. First-quarter bookings were the largest in the company’s history in 2023, and new voyages have been added to cruising schedules for 2023 and 2024.

Lengthier (two-week) “Magnificent Europe and Grand France” trips are becoming popular. Even off-season travel is expanding, and new “Christmas Markets” cruises on the Danube and wine-focused cruises on the Rhone are being added.

In 2023, the company’s annual revenue was estimated at $11.4 million.

Island Brands: Content Marketing Campaign Tactics Build a Fanbase

On a 2016 sailing trip to Cuba, Scott Hansen and Brandon Perry were longing for a better beer. Back home in the States, they found an open niche for a superior quality beer targeted to a full-of-life clientele that wants to give back to the environment.

Instead of joining the glutted craft beer market, the two business partners aimed for the premium/import market where the big competitors play. They found their place in that sector through strategic content marketing, shrewd branding, and a little help from a lot of new friends.

Using the motto “Find Your Island” for their American-made, super-premium brews, Island Brands began with Coastal Lager and Island Active, a lighter beer.

Their content marketing tipped off environmentally aware consumers to the crushability of Island Brands’ cans, and to the beers’ all-natural, GMO- and filler-free ingredients.

In an unorthodox move, the founders decided to use crowdfunding to raise capital.

Exceeding their goal, the fledgling company went on to develop a nationwide network of investors who are enthused about the brand and about promoting it.

Here are some of Island’s content marketing platforms and emphases:

  • A sea-infused, fun, and informative website transmits the message of the Island lifestyle and mission. The website’s About page, for example, offers customers the “clean choice” to drink “clean beer” and contribute to a “clean planet.”
  • One of the ways the company carries out its mission is through membership in 1% for the Planet, ensuring a minimum of 1% of sales each year go to environmental charities.
  • The investor/fan group, called the Islander Community, helps promote not only Island’s beverages, but also partner businesses that serve the same target audience.
  • The company has put a heavy emphasis on building its social media presence and other online resources to connect with its audience. One key to success is plenty of interaction with fans who respond to the brand’s lifestyle message on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram.
  • The company sends out emails to subscribers to keep them up to date on what’s new with the brand.
  • Island gets many backlinks from Brewbound.com, Beveragemaster.com, and similar industry sites and publications.
  • American-made is a big marketing point across all content marketing platforms.

Strategic marketing content comes on cans, too.

From the beginning, Island focused on getting Island Coastal Lager and Island Active into stores so customers would become familiar with the brand. The efforts paid off when big chains such as Publix, Walmart, Kroger, Harris Teeter, and Food Lion bought in.

Marketing efforts also got the Island brand served aboard all Carnival Cruise ships, exposing it to over 12 million passengers each year.

Cruise-goers ask for it back home where they shop and dine, and a sentimental connection between the brand and the sea gets reinforced.

Island Brands has succeeded to a degree that makes it a company whose strategic content marketing methods deserve to be studied.

In 2021, sales figures in seven Southeastern states soared to 160,000 cases. In 2022, growth of Island Active in Georgia and North Carolina spiked by 157% and 120%, respectively, earning the brand the distinction of being the quickest-growing super premium in those states.

In 2023, Island Brand’s availability ballooned beyond its original Southeast distribution area. Via a partnership with BevMax, the brand can be purchased online from New York to California, in states between, and locations overseas.

Island Brands’ product lines have expanded along with its territory. The company now makes fruited lagers, spirits, cocktails, spiked tea, lemonade, and variety packs.

Sales have skyrocketed Island onto the Inc. 5000 list of quickest-growing private companies.

In Summary

As you can see from the three examples above, marketing campaigns that are strategic, well-thought out, and utilize both short-term and long-haul tactics will not only capture the attention of consumers, but will turn them into loyal, long-term customers.

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Elevate Your Content: How To Use Canva for Eye-Catching Visuals

In the competitive landscape of content creation, capturing your audience’s attention can be a challenge. While compelling information is key, incorporating visually appealing graphics can take your content to the next level.

With the popular design tool Canva, you can effortlessly create stunning visuals to complement your written content and engage your readers.

In this guide, we’ll explore how you can leverage Canva to enhance your blogs and make them stand out in the digital realm.

What exactly is Canva?

Canva is a versatile graphic design platform that can be used to design a wide range of visual/graphic content. Some common uses of Canva in content creation include:

  1. Social media graphics. Canva offers templates for creating visually appealing graphics for various social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
  2. Presentations. Users can design professional-looking presentations for business meetings, school projects, or other purposes using Canva’s presentation templates.
  3. Posters and flyers. Canva provides templates for designing posters, flyers, brochures, and other promotional materials.
  4. Infographics. Canva offers tools for creating visually engaging infographics to present data and information in a clear and attractive manner.
  5. Logos and branding materials. Canva provides tools for creating logos, brand kits, and other branding materials for individuals and businesses.
  6. Website and blog graphics. Users can design graphics for websites, including banners, headers, icons, and other web graphics. Canva is also very helpful for creating visuals to enhance blogs.

These are just a few examples. As you can see, though, Canva’s versatility allows users to design virtually any type of visual content they may need for their marketing efforts.

How to Create Visuals Using Canva

Before we dive into how to use Canva to enhance your content, let’s take a look at how to create graphics through Canva.

Getting Started

First things first, you’ll need to create an account on Canva.

Signing up is quick and easy, requiring just an email address or a social media account. Once logged in, you’re greeted with a user-friendly interface that makes navigation a breeze.

It is important to note that Canva offers both free and paid accounts. While the paid account does allow users access to a much larger selection of templates and graphics, the free account is more than enough to get you started.

Exploring Templates

One of Canva’s standout features is its vast library of templates. Whether you’re designing a flyer, a business card, or an Instagram post, there’s a template for virtually every occasion.

Simply browse through the categories or use the search bar to find the perfect template for your project.

Screenshot from Canva.com

Customization

Once you’ve selected a template, it’s time to make it your own!

Canva offers a large variety of customization options, allowing you to change colors, fonts, images, and more with just a few clicks. Experiment with different combinations until you achieve the desired look for your blog.

Adding Elements

To take your design to the next level, incorporate elements such as icons, illustrations, and shapes.

Canva boasts an extensive library of these elements, giving you endless possibilities for enhancing your creations. Simply drag and drop them onto your canvas and resize or reposition as needed.

Screenshot from Canva.com

Uploading Your Own Assets

Want to personalize your design even further?

Canva allows you to upload your own photos, logos, and other assets directly into your project.

This feature is particularly useful for branding purposes or adding a personal touch to your designs.

Exporting and Sharing

Once you’re satisfied with your design, it’s time to share it with the world. Canva offers various export options, including downloading your design as a JPEG, PNG, or PDF file.

Through Canva, you can also share your design directly to social media or email it to colleagues or clients.

6 Ways Canva Can be Used for Your Content

As we’ve established, Canva really is an incredibly versatile platform. And one of the best ways to utilize Canva is to create stunning visuals to enhance your content, making it more interesting and appealing to readers.

Here are six of the best ways Canva can be utilized for your content.

1. Create eye-catching featured images.

A captivating, featured image can entice readers to click on your article. With Canva, you can design eye-catching visuals that reflect the essence of your content.

Choose from a variety of templates or start from scratch by selecting the perfect dimensions for your featured image. Incorporate relevant images, compelling text, and vibrant colors to grab attention and pique curiosity.

Image created through Canva

2. Design informative infographics.

Infographics are powerful visual tools for presenting complex information in a digestible format. Whether you’re sharing statistics, how-to guides, or step-by-step processes, Canva offers a range of infographic templates to suit your needs.

Customize the layout, add icons and illustrations, and use graphs or charts to visualize data. Infographics not only enhance the readability of your content but also increase shareability across social media platforms.

Infographic created through Canva

3. Craft engaging social media graphics.

Promoting your content on social media is essential for reaching a wider audience.

Canva simplifies the process of creating social media graphics by providing templates optimized for various platforms such as Instagram, X, and Facebook.

Design attention-grabbing visuals that include snippets of your content, quotes, or intriguing questions to encourage readers to click through to your page. Just don’t forget to add your website’s URL to drive traffic directly to your company.

4. Design branded templates.

Consistency is key to building a recognizable brand identity. With Canva, you can design branded templates for your graphics, including featured images, headers, and social media posts.

Incorporate your logo, brand colors, and typography to maintain a cohesive look across all your visual content.

By establishing a consistent visual style, you reinforce your brand presence and create a memorable experience for your audience.

5. Incorporate visuals within blog content.

Enhance the visual appeal of your content by incorporating images, illustrations, and custom graphics created with Canva. Break up lengthy text with relevant visuals to improve readability and keep readers engaged.

Whether it’s a product showcase, a mood board, or a photo collage, Canva provides endless possibilities for creating visuals that complement your written content and convey your message effectively.

Screenshot from Canva

6. Experiment with multimedia content.

Expand your creative horizons by experimenting with multimedia content. Canva allows you to incorporate videos, GIFs, and interactive elements into your designs. Whether you’re showcasing product demos, creating animated graphics, or embedding interactive polls, multimedia content adds depth and interactivity to your articles, enriching the reader experience.

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Conclusion

Incorporating visually compelling graphics into your content can significantly enhance its impact and engagement.

With Canva’s intuitive design platform, you have the tools to create professional-looking visuals that captivate your audience and bring your content to life.

These Tools Are Your Key to the Content Campaign Kingdom

If content is king, then we’re all out here living in its worldwide kingdom—and some of us want a taste of that royal life. But the king’s moat is deep, and every day it overflows with the latest content. So how does your content get past the moat and join the king’s court?

No, you don’t need chainmail or a sword. But you do have the right idea: using tools to help make your content more enticing and stand out from the rest of the content in the moat. And we know just the tools that will get your content across the drawbridge and draw in more readers.

Visual Content Tools

Have you ever opened up a book that you’re interested in reading and seen a bunch of long paragraphs in tiny print? Yeah, text like that makes us grimace, too—and can even have us put the book right back on the shelf without a second thought.

The same goes for online content. Say, you’re presented with two blogs that have the exact same textual content.

One presents a huge wall of text, almost like an essay or report. The other breaks up the text with aesthetically appealing visual elements.

Which one are you drawn to? (No pun intended. Well, maybe a little intended.)

Graphic Design

Canva

Even if you have no previous design experience, you can easily create your own graphic designs with Canva. From icons, charts, photo enhancements, and collages, to text to image generation with AI, Canva can help you create eye-catching designs that will capture users’ attention.

Canva offers three different plans, including a free one! But if you find yourself really getting into this tool, Canva offers a Pro plan for $119.99 annually. You can learn more about their pricing options here.

Piktochart

Piktochart is similar to Canva, although Piktochart targets more professional, formal use cases. Thus, Piktochart is a great option for writers creating more business-centered or educational content campaigns.

Piktochart also offers a free plan! But if you want to bump up your subscription, you can get the Pro plan for an annual fee of $168. You can find more information about Piktochart’s pricing here.

Video Creation

Animoto

Animoto is a popular, easy-to-use platform for making high-quality videos with considerable customizable features. You can add your own watermark to videos, resize your videos, add music, and even upload your own fonts.

Animoto offers a free plan that allows users to create an unlimited amount of videos! You can get more features with their Basic plan for $180 a year. You can find out which plan best fits your needs by reviewing their pricing page.

Lumen5

Lumen5 is also a popular video tool, but it differs from Animoto in one key area: Not only can you create and edit videos, but Lumen5 also uses AI to transform text into video using relevant stock footage.

Although Lumen5 does offer a free plan, the features are significantly limited. The Basic plan costs $228 a year. You can review their plans here.

Free Images

Who doesn’t love free stuff? Using free images is an easy way to break up your content without too much effort.

Forget those goofy stock images. Tools like Unsplash and Pexels offer a massive range of beautiful photos that won’t cost you a penny. Just make sure that the images you use truly are copyright free.

Interactive Content Add-Ins

Just like kids who like to touch everything, we adults like to click on everything—especially interactive features. And since users love to interact, using these tools is a solid tactic for enticing and engaging with your readers.

Typeform

Typeform specializes in what you might expect: interactive forms.

You can use Typeform to create and add a quiz, survey, or even an order form right within your content. (And let’s be real, it’s hard to pass up an online quiz! Looking at you, Buzzfeed.)

Typeform offers a limited free plan, but you might find that the Basic plan for $300 per year suits you better.

You can learn more about their plans and pricing here.

Dot.vu

Dot.vu is similar to Typeform, but this platform offers a broader range of interactive add-ins. You can make interactive calculators, flipbooks, virtual tours, lookbooks, contests, and even games.

Dot.vu offers a free plan as well as four additional plan tiers. However, three of these tiers also include further subscription levels. We suggest reading more about the pricing options here due to the extensive array of plan options.

Storytelling, Writing, and Content Enhancement

All of the tools for writers we’ve mentioned thus far share a common goal: They offer different ways you can break up your content.

And while these tools can help you draw readers in with graphics, photos, videos, and interactive features, it’s your content itself that makes readers stay on the page—and, you know, read.

Witty

Have you ever stopped reading something because the language felt biased or non-inclusive? Writing like that gives us the ick, but sometimes we don’t even realize we’re using problematic language.

Witty is like the Grammarly of inclusive writing, highlighting biased language while offering an explanation and inclusive alternatives.

Although you’ll have limited functionality, Witty’s free plan is a great deal for writers. You can also upgrade your subscription with Witty’s Teams plan, which will cost you $178.80 a year. Find out more about Witty’s plans here.

Cliché Finder

A simple tool, Cliché Finder does exactly what its name implies: It finds cliches and overused language in your text.

In other words, Cliché Finder doesn’t offer alternatives.

It only highlights what you could improve or replace.

However, this tool does encourage you to think outside the box and use more creative language.

You know what they say, the best things in life are free—and Cliché Finder is completely free!

Easy-Peasy AI

If content is king, then AI is the court jester. Meaning, AI can definitely, you know, do stuff, but we don’t always get it. Fellow writers, there’s no need to fret that AI is going to usurp the king. Instead, you might as well try to use this jester for your enjoyment.

Metaphors aside, we aren’t suggesting you use AI to write your content entirely. But we aren’t saying you shouldn’t use AI, either.

We like using Easy-Peasy AI to enhance our content campaigns. Play around with features like the Content Idea Generator, Clickbait Title Generator, Brainstorming Tool, and Catchy Tagline to get inspired and the ideas flowing.

Easy-Peasy.AI offers four different plans, and the first one is free! If the free plan is too limited, you can get more functionality for $59.88 a year with the Basic plan. You can explore the pricing options more here.

Join the Royal Content Court With The Writers For Hire

Are you ready to jazz up your content with some courtly flair and entice more readers? These tools for writers can help you set your content campaigns apart from the rest and might just be your key to the king’s castle.

But if you’re nervously looking around for a knight in shining armor to help you get across the teeming moat of content and earn a seat in the king’s court, look no further. Our team at The Writers For Hire are all certified in moat-crossing!

GET YOUR CONTENT WRITTEN TODAY

Okay, okay, we’re not certified sworders or moat-crossers, but we are an experienced team of professional writers. And we’re here to help you create content that will draw in your readers, drive traffic, and help boost your rankings.

Strategic Content Marketing: Distribution Methods for Maximum Reach

The United States might not run under a monarchy, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have a king.

No, it’s not Bezos or Musk (don’t let them hear you say that, though). It’s content! In fact, with so much of our lives taking place online, we’re bombarded with more content in just one given day than if we spent a whole week perusing the stacks at the biggest library in the world: the Library of Congress.

Okay, okay, that may be a bit of an exaggeration. But, hey, think about how much time most of us spend online swiping through content. It certainly sounds like it could be true, right?

Even though we regularly consume copious amounts of content, it can be easy to mentally rebuff all of the efforts that went into getting the content material in front of users. Creating the content is only half the battle of strategic content marketing! The other half lies in effectively disseminating that content out into the world.

The question is: How do you go about disseminating your content?

This blog is your handy cheat sheet to some of the most prominent content distribution methods, including via websites and blogs, social media, email, paid advertising, and guest post spotlights.

But you know what they say: Time is money. So don’t bookmark this for later and don’t wait, because it’s time to learn how to disseminate! (Don’t worry, Dr. Seuss is now exiting the building.)

Methods for Content Distribution

Dissemination is all about strategically spreading your content across multiple channels to reach your target audience. But with so many options available, how do you know which ones to prioritize? The following are some of the most relevant and popular distribution methods and channels.

Image by C.B. in Canva

Website and Blog

If you’re like us, this is where your brain went first. That’s because your website is like your home base! Accordingly, we strongly encourage you to always post your content on your website and blog first.

In addition, it’s best practice to format your website so it’s easy for users to navigate, share, and subscribe to your posts.

Social Media Channels

Social media offers especially advantageous opportunities for content dissemination, as you can strategically tailor your content to various platforms and target audiences. To make it even easier for you, you can utilize a content marketing platform to streamline the posting process. Posting your content on popular platforms like Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, Instagram, and Threads provides avenues for your content to reach as many users as possible.

Emails

While this method might seem a little old-school (although not nearly as old-school as snail mail), there’s a reason it’s on the list: People still use their email accounts every day!

That being said, you just can’t underestimate the power of a well-crafted email. Who hasn’t been lured in by a compelling subject line?

Who hasn’t made an impulse purchase because of a coupon that showed up in their inbox?

It’s no surprise that email remains a powerful tool for content dissemination, and we encourage you to take advantage of it!

Start building an email list of interested subscribers and send out regularly scheduled newsletters that feature your latest content.

Paid Advertising

Although paid advertising requires a financial investment, there’s no denying its benefits.

For one thing, you can use paid ads to promote your content through various channels like Google Ads, social media ads, or even sponsored content placements. But perhaps an even more noteworthy benefit is that paid ads can target specific audience demographics.

Ultimately, paid advertising presents a great method to quickly gain traction for your content.

Guest Posts

At the outset, it’s important to recognize that this example of content marketing and distribution will most likely be the most challenging one on the list.

Securing a guest post requires focused, persistent effort from start to finish. You’ll need to seek out other blogs and content creators that align with or complement your own content, and then determine, subsequently, if your prospects are open to collaborating with you and what’s required to do so.

Admittedly, this method can take some time—there are many different factors at play that you need to keep in mind.

That being said, securing a guest post is worth celebrating! Not only will this help increase your content’s reach with new users, but it will also help your content’s authority. Furthermore, if your post includes a backlink to your website, it will help drive more traffic and raise your search engine ranking.

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Content Dissemination: It’s Like Watering a Garden

Every content creator dreams of their work being discovered and going viral, right? So which content dissemination method holds the magic key?

Unfortunately, there is no ultimate distribution method that rises well above all the others. It’s true that some methods might be a stronger choice than others, but this will undoubtedly vary from one content campaign to another.

The best option largely depends on factors like your target audience, campaign objectives, budget limitations, content type, and so forth.

Nevertheless, the best content dissemination strategies involve a multi-channel approach.

Think about it: The chances of your content going viral aren’t very high if you only use one method to distribute it.

That’s why we like to think of disseminating content like watering a garden. Would you water just the flowers in your garden and leave the veggies? Of course not! You would spread the water around the whole garden to promote growth and a bountiful harvest.

The same goes for content dissemination. You can boost the visibility of your content considerably by distributing it far and wide.

Distribute your content like a pro.

With these content marketing tips in hand, it’s clear that the road of content dissemination doesn’t lead down a one-way street. Rather, it’s a path that branches and leads to several different destinations.

But getting to all those destinations takes dedicated time and effort, two things many businesses don’t have extra to spare. Fortunately, a reputable content writing agency can take on tasks like these so you can focus on other parts of your business.

An experienced writing team will help you identify the best distribution methods for your content campaign and make sure your content is posted everywhere it should be. With their help, your content will land in front of as many users as possible.

The Abilities and Limitations of AI in Content Creation

Artificial intelligence (AI) has garnered a significant amount of public attention in recent times. Believe it or not, though, it’s not exactly a new thing. AI has been around for some time, although its use has only recently started catching on in mainstream, public applications.

Before tools such as ChatGPT emerged on the horizon, AI had been limited to specific uses within computing, data science, or programming. Nowadays, it seems there is nothing that AI cannot tackle.

But for all of its uses, AI also has its share of limitations. That is why understanding AI’s abilities and limitations, specifically within content creation, is a must.

The Use of Artificial Intelligence in Content Creation

The use of AI for creating content has been a topic of great discussion and debate.

On the one hand, supporters encourage the possibility of automated tools in content creation and generation, particularly marketing copy. This situation has led numerous companies to offer automated tools that can generate marketing text, product descriptions, or advertisements in mere seconds. These tools can reduce the time needed to generate marketing materials, saving cost and effort along the way.

However, detractors of AI content creation feel that utilizing automated tools to create content marketing pushes the boundaries of ethical practices. Critics state that AI content creation is misleading and often deceptive. In the best of cases, AI created content does not offer the best possible user experience that comes with great content marketing as created and generated by humans.

This debate is complex, making it difficult to adjudicate a winner.

The fact is that AI created content has its pros and cons.

Therefore, taking sides requires a deeper examination of the upside and downside of AI content creation in order to determine whether implementing AI in content marketing is worthwhile.

It should be noted that content writers may find AI quite useful in some circumstances.

Nevertheless, content writers and writing agencies must be aware that AI has considerable limitations.

Understanding these conditions can help content creators and writing agencies harness the power of AI without compromising the quality of their work and the user experience it generates.

The Abilities of Artificial Intelligence in Content Creation

When looking at what AI can accomplish, the following points underscore the power that AI can unleash within a content marketing context. This power can become a powerful means of saving time, effort, and cost, especially for smaller writing agencies or individual content creators.

Large-Scale AI Content Creation

The biggest issue surrounding the AI debate is AI created content.

Indeed, AI can produce large volumes of text in seconds or minutes. This feature is highly encouraging since it can save content writers significant amounts of time, allowing for faster turnaround times.

Consequently, content writers and writing agencies cannot ignore this remarkable upside. Reductions in production times mean that brands can get their products out to consumers faster, allowing them to recuperate costs and investments sooner.

Content Editing and Proofreading

AI provides powerful tools to aid content writers in content editing and proofreading.

AI-powered editing tools can scour large amounts of text to uncover mistakes, styling issues, and other language matters quickly and effectively. This feature allows content creators to whittle down the time needed to churn out highly polished content marketing materials.

Content Personalization

AI tools facilitate content personalization. For instance, AI algorithms can detect popular keywords and phrases that content writers can then incorporate into great content marketing.

This function allows writing agencies to produce material that’s relevant to a certain customer segment, giving brands an opportunity to reach their target market more effectively.

Data Analytics and Audience Insights

One of AI’s key features is data on audience insights and analytics. These data allow content writers to monitor the effectiveness of their marketing content.

As a result, content writers and writing agencies can tailor their content to suit specific customer needs and expectations.

Automated Social Media Posting

Social media marketing demands a consistent presence. This constant presence can become burdensome to human content writers as posting frequent content requires considerable time and attention.

Additionally, brands must invest in hiring multiple social media content creators.

AI can reduce many of these limitations by automating social media posting.

Human content writers can set up parameters so that AI tackles frequent content marketing posts.

Image and Video Optimization

AI has proven to become an ally in optimizing image and video materials by automating their metadata, tagging, and categorization.

In fact, AI has shown to be quite adept at inserting relevant keywords, leading to improved organization and discoverability of visual content.

SEO Optimization

The lifeline of great content marketing is Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

AI provides robust SEO capabilities through the identification of relevant keywords, allowing content writers and writing agencies to review, edit, and optimize content to boost its searchability and search engine rankings.

Localization Services

A key feature of great content marketing is localization. Localization involves gearing content to specific geographical regions. In this regard, translation becomes a common barrier content writers must overcome.

AI has been shown to be quite effective in translating large volumes of text in minutes, helping writing agencies break through obstacles in localized content creation.

Predictive Analytics

Great content marketing strives to be one step ahead of the curve. Thus, utilizing AI predictive tools in content marketing allows content creators to visualize what trends may affect their target audience.

Predictive analysis helps writing agencies with their editorial calendars, focusing on topics and areas their target audience wants to see. In turn, predictive analysis can also become a potent force in adjusting branding strategies amid shifting customer needs and wants.

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Content Monetization Strategies

One of the key goals of great content marketing is monetization. Monetization can occur when content such as blogs generates income: ads running within it or as sponsored posts, for example.

However, content monetization goes beyond merely getting paid for clicks. Content monetization strategies enable content writers to craft influential material based on audience behavior and opportunity identification, leading to sales and subscriptions, among other types of income generation.

On the whole, AI tools offer a number of key benefits that are hard to overlook. Content writers and writing agencies cannot pass up the chance to harness AI’s robust functions, especially when it comes to saving time, effort, and cost.

But like anything in life, AI has a downside. Therefore, understanding this downside requires deeper examination.

The Limitations of Artificial Intelligence in Content Creation

As great as AI can be in assisting writers in creating content, the reality is that it does have its limitations. As such, content writers and writing agencies must be aware of what AI cannot do, in spite of the remarkable things it can produce.

Here are 10 of the top thing things that AI cannot do (but humans can!):

1. Generate Original Content

The most evident limitation of AI is original creative content. At this stage in its development, AI cannot produce original content marketing materials.

AI is trained on algorithms and models that mimic existing content. As a result, AI created content tends to be generic, lacking the key features that make human-generated content unique.

2. Understand Cultural Context

AI-based language models lack the knowledge that comes with cultural understanding and sensitivity.

This lack of context may alienate certain users, leading content to miss reaching its intended audience.

This reason explains why AI content creation requires human intervention to ensure it meets the criteria needed to reach its intended audiences while avoiding cultural insensitivity.

3. Make Complex Editorial Decisions

AI is incapable of decision-making. For instance, AI tools cannot decide the right time for materials to be published or which content marketing pieces are most suitable based on literary merit, subjective criteria, or social relevance.

While AI may provide useful insights to aid decision-making processes, AI cannot replace human decision-making capabilities.

4. Tell Stories Intuitively

Given the fact that AI created content tends to be generic, its narratives lack the depth and connection that come from a compelling narrative that captures the essence of human experience and emotion.

This lack of depth may turn off users, given its blandness. And connecting with users is crucial in great content marketing, as users seek to find genuine emotions that go beyond mere lists of product features or information dumps.

5. Replace Investigative Journalism

At its core, AI does what it is told. This situation means that AI lacks the inquisitive nature of the human mind. Thus, AI cannot replace the nuanced investigative skills of human journalists and content writers as it cannot research data, conduct interviews, and manage ethical considerations in content generation.

While AI can produce vast amounts of content, it cannot discern what is relevant and what is not. It is still up to humans to determine if AI created content is relevant and useful for their specific purposes.

Unfortunately, AI content creation tends to be useless and irrelevant for investigative endeavors.

6. Understand Satire and Irony

AI can attempt to replicate unique human traits like irony and satire. However, it cannot intuitively incorporate such nuanced features of human communication.

Any sort of writing that relies upon interpreting cultural context and human experience is currently beyond AI’s scope.

While AI can reproduce existing content implementing this sort of tone and style, it cannot produce unique material interpreting the various contextual clues involved in the conversation.

Try as it might, AI is seemingly a long way away from being able to take inputs and use experience and interpretation to mold its responses.

7. Engage Emotionally

Like satire and irony, AI cannot incorporate emotional elements into its text. The explanation for this situation is simple: AI is not human and, therefore, does not have emotions.

AI also lacks the human experience that is essential in producing gripping works loaded with the emotional overtones needed to connect with readers at a personal level.

Think of an autobiography that captures the author’s thoughts and feelings throughout the most difficult parts of their lives. This effect is something that AI cannot replicate despite the most sophisticated language models.

8. Imitate Human Judgement in Ethical Dilemmas

Another core human characteristic is judgment. Human beings develop judgment skills as they hone their understanding of the world around them.

While AI can receive inputs feeding decision-making algorithms, the fact is that AI cannot hope to imitate human judgment, particularly in ethical dilemmas.

This situation means that AI is unable to explore ethical or moral issues with any sort of depth that a human being could.

9. Build Relationships

Great authors build relationships with their readers. Authors connect with readers to the point where readers see themselves as authors and vice-versa.

The question then becomes: Does AI have the sensitivity to build these relationships with readers?

Frankly, no.

AI does not have the sense to understand what might be going through a reader’s mind in order to produce material that resonates with them at a deeper level.

Perhaps sentient AI may one day be able to pull off something like that, but it's not quite there.

10. Produce Subjective Criticism

AI lacks any sort of subjective criticism as it is unable to formulate its own opinions on any topic.

AI models and algorithms are fed inputs and produce outcomes based on such inputs. This formulaic approach is efficient, but it cannot discern anything based on its own opinion.

Even when AI may be capable of processing millions of data points, it only produces an opinion based on an algorithm, not an informed opinion. When AI produces an “opinion,” it is nothing more than a reflection of the viewpoints expressed by AI’s programmers and builders.

A Final Thought

AI is one of the most powerful tools humankind has ever created. It can save a great deal of time and effort, especially in processing large volumes of data. As such, AI can help content writers and writing agencies reduce turnaround times, particularly with tasks such as proofreading and editing.

But when it comes to AI’s generative functions, AI is still light years away from mimicking anything close to human intuition and sensitivity.

While AI may be able to spit out voluminous information dumps, the writing style, content, and prose typically sound dry and generic.

Consequently, AI cannot replace the skills brought to the table by a competent human writer. Perhaps a sentient version of AI may be able to resemble human intuition. Nevertheless, this notion is nothing more than science fiction at this point.

Great content marketing continues to be the exclusive domain of human content writers.

How to Use AI to Power Up Your Marketing Communication Strategy

In today’s ever-evolving digital landscape, executing an effective marketing communication strategy calls for more than crafting catchy messages and choosing the right platforms.

Luckily, with the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI), businesses have access to a remarkable tool that can take their communication game to the next level.

Read on as we explore how AI can help you execute a flawless communication strategy with the use of a few very effective programs using this technology.

Why You Need an Effective Communication Strategy

A communication strategy is an integral part of any marketing plan. “Without a communication strategy, you’re shooting from the hip and hoping for the best,” says Chrisna Basson-Wessels, a Brand and Communication Strategist with more than a decade’s experience in the field. “An effective communication strategy links to the business strategy and clearly articulates the different paths from objectives to channels to key messages and KIPs.”

It all boils down to better results, as a robust communication strategy can help you build stronger brand awareness, better engagement with your audience, and customer loyalty. What’s not to like about that?

A Quick Recap: What Is AI again?

It is rather unlikely that you haven’t heard about AI, but just in case, let’s take a quick look at what it is and what it offers us.

AI has been around for some time, but it was with the launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT that it became a household topic.

Basson-Wessels notes: “If you look beyond the hype to a more realistic view, AI can be very useful and pragmatic.” Using Natural Language Processing (NLP), ChatGPT and programs like it can be more effectively utilized by simply inputting a prompt.

However, getting the right response takes some finesse and requires a bit of know-how and experience.

How To Use AI in Your Content Marketing

Programs such as ChatGPT are extremely powerful, and their usefulness extends beyond solving white-page syndrome or simply answering questions.

AI can take tedious content marketing tasks and complete them in record time through what is known as Intelligent Automation (IA). It is through IA that most of the usefulness of AI for marketers can be unlocked.

A marketing communication strategy is an essential part of content marketing and comprises four essential things: Key Messaging, Audience, Dissemination, and Schedule.

Let’s take a closer look at how AI (and IA by default) can be of service to developing each.

1.    Key Messaging

Basson-Wessels states:

“A ‘key message’ is the crux of what you need to relay to your audience. It helps to link a specific message to a specific objective in the communication strategy process. For example, for your brand-building objective, you should have a key message pushing your unique selling proposition (USP), and for your sales-driving objective, you should have a key message pushing your special offer. But importantly, you must not push all key messages at every point of contact.”

In other words, knowing what information to give your customer during each phase of their journey is crucial to obtaining the desired behaviors and outcomes.

For marketers, AI is especially useful for analyzing customer sentiment, personalizing content, optimizing headlines, and checking that your company message and brand voice are consistent across platforms and throughout content.

Using AI, users can input the company’s Brand Voice and have the program check whether existing content aligns with it. These are only a few of the possible uses of AI-powered programs.

2.    Audience

Knowing your audience is as essential to your company’s success as having a clear vision and strong leadership.

Who are the people that are buying your product or using your service? What do they like? Where do they hang out? What other products or services do they use?

Using AI, marketers can answer all these questions by analyzing vast amounts of data to create a clear audience profile.

A worthwhile feature of AI that marketers can use is the ability to listen in on the language their audience is using so that they can adapt their message to their audience’s interests. This is just another way AI can build a better picture of the people you might be trying to reach.

3.    Dissemination

There are a seemingly unlimited number of online platforms with which users engage and through which they consume content. However, knowing who your audience is makes it easier to understand where to publish content to attract their attention.

Basson-Wessels notes: “As our channel ecosystems expand, it’s an opportunity to engage with audiences in multiple ways. It adds layers to your brand identity and ultimately brand perception when you show up in different ways leveraging different channel formats.”

She warns, however, that “audiences have a very specific relationship with each channel, so it’s crucial not to simply replicate the content of one channel onto another.” Again, this is where AI can be of use. By analyzing user data and past trends and behaviors, AI algorithms can suggest the best type of content and which platforms and channels would get the best results.

In addition, when users engage with your brand through your website or social media, AI can curate content based on their preferences and past behaviors.

Another possibility is an AI-powered chatbot integrated into your site to answer questions, provide recommendations, and guide users to relevant content.

4.    Schedule

The right timing is crucial when it comes to publishing content and hitting your marketing goals.

For Basson-Wessels, creating a schedule “ensures that you have a holistic approach to your content, with different pillars or themes linked to different objectives, going live at the right time.”

AI algorithms can identify the optimal times at which content needs to be published to specific channels to be best perceived by your audience.

Then, IA adds to the effectiveness of your campaign by allowing you to schedule the automatic publication of certain posts or have specific content delivered to audiences when triggered by a particular behavior.

The result is content that gets delivered at the right time and in the right place.

A Few Useful AI-Powered Programs

Search for “AI Marketing Programs” online, and you are sure to find a dozen. But deciding which are worthy of your time and effort can feel like an unnecessarily difficult task. That’s why we’ve rounded up a few popular programs that are sure to have something of use.

SemRush

SemRush is a robust software program that gives marketers massive opportunities to improve a brand’s online visibility. It helps with everything from making content to overseeing and evaluating it across various channels. It helps you increase your SEO with on-page analysis, keyword search, and much more. The platform is robust and has a free trial to get you started.

Useful for: Key Messaging

Grammarly

We’ve written about Grammarly before, and that’s because it is just such a handy tool to have. At the bare minimum, it’s a spell-checker that can be installed to check your writing across your social channels, making sure no mistakes slip through. But at its most useful, it is a tool that uses AI and NLP to create written content for you or offer suggestions on improving your work while considering your brand voice and aims.

Useful for: Key Messaging

Google Analytics

Having a website means there is no reason not to have Google Analytics. The program gives you vast amounts of data and insights into how users use your website and whether you are achieving your goals. What’s great is that you get insights into who uses your site at the click of a button— checking out where they were before coming to your site and how long they stayed on it. Google Analytics uses AI to generate these insights; the best part is that it is free!

Useful for: Audience

SalesForce

At its core, SalesForce is a technology that helps connect companies with their customers. Like most other programs mentioned here, it is pretty powerful, and even knowing where to begin using it can feel intimidating as there are so many possibilities. SalesForce uses predictive and generative AI across the platform to allow its users to create personalized sales emails, customer service experiences, and even product descriptions, among others.

Useful for: Audience

Hootsuite

Having a brand presence across a wide array of social media channels can feel overwhelming, especially as you need to keep track of what’s happening on each one. Enter: Hootsuite. The program lets you import all your profiles into one inbox and reply to comments and messages across platforms. Not only that, but you can be alerted when someone mentions your brand or there are conversations happening about it. And, of course, its AI writer is there to help write first drafts, come up with content ideas, write captions, and choose the best hashtags for your posts—all in one place.

Useful for: Dissemination and Schedules

Buffer

Buffer is a handy program that allows you to distribute content across various channels with scheduled publishing at recommended times for optimum engagement and awareness. Moreover, the Buffer AI Assistant can generate content ideas for you and repurpose existing content repeatedly. At the same time, its IA counterpart creates automated reports to showcase your work and identify your success.

Useful for: Dissemination and Schedules

Conclusion

Harnessing the power of AI is not merely a trend but a necessity for modern marketing communication strategies. As we’ve explored, the power of AI is easily accessible through many tools and programs that can significantly enhance every aspect of your communication strategy.

The Impact of AI-Generated Content on SEO Rankings

Artificial intelligence (AI) has become an increasingly significant tool in content marketing due to the speed and ease with which it enables content creators to generate content.

However, a crucial concern among content marketing agencies and brand managers is the impact of AI-generated content on search engine optimization (SEO). 

On the whole, search engines such as Google value content quality above other criteria. Therefore, it makes sense for a content writing company to question the validity of AI-created content within the framework of a content marketing campaign.

So, the question becomes: “How can companies utilize AI-created content while ensuring that it does not negatively impact SEO rankings?”

Read on as we answer this question and explore ways in which AI-generated materials can become part of your best practices in content marketing.

Effects of AI-Generated Content on SEO

The aim of SEO is to rank a website as high as possible among search results to boost a brand’s visibility among target users.

Brands frequently must fight to distinguish themselves from competitors, particularly in crowded industries and markets.

As such, brands have a legitimate concern regarding the potential impact that AI content may have on their website’s SEO rankings.

This concern warrants further discussion, honing in on these five points:

1. Algorithm Updates

Google—along with other search engines such as Bing—regularly updates its search algorithms to improve the quality of search results. These updates often integrate AI and machine learning components to better understand user intent, context, and content relevance.

For instance, Google’s RankBrain, a machine learning algorithm, helps process search queries to deliver more accurate results, especially for ambiguous or novel queries.

Thus, a content writing company must consider the latest available information before contemplating using AI content within a content marketing campaign. These guidelines ensure that the content used meets quality criteria, boosting its SEO ranking.

2. Content Quality and Relevance

AI-powered algorithms assess web content quality and relevance based on factors such as keyword relevance, user engagement metrics (like click-through rates and dwell time), content freshness, and backlink profiles. Content that aligns well with user intent and provides valuable information is more likely to rank higher in search results.

When crafting a content SEO strategy, brands must ensure the content produced meets high-quality standards, particularly avoiding non-sensical text or phrasing and maintaining content free of duplicate information.

It is worth pointing out that search engines heavily punish duplicate content. This reason underscores the need for fresh and original material at all times.

3. Natural Language Processing (NLP)

Search engines such as Google employ NLP techniques to understand and interpret the semantics of search queries and web content. This function enables the search engine to match queries with relevant content, even if the wording is not an exact match.

NLP also helps search engines better understand user intent behind long-tail keywords and conversational search queries.

This point is crucial as AI-generated content does not always contain relevant material. Therefore, one of the best practices in content marketing is to ensure that the material contains relevant information, ensuring it is free of unrelated text.

4. Personalization

AI algorithms personalize search results based on users’ search history, location, device type, and other contextual factors. This personalization tailors search results to individual preferences, improving user experience but also making it challenging to predict exactly how a specific webpage will rank for different users.

Consequently, savvy brands employ content writing companies with the know-how needed to rank web pages high on search engines. This knowledge is not something that AI is trained to do. While AI may generate reasonably coherent text, it is far from guaranteed that such text will have any sort of SEO relevance.

5. User Experience Signals

When ranking search results, AI algorithms consider user experience signals like mobile-friendliness, page loading speed, and overall website usability. Websites that provide a better user experience are more likely to rank higher, as Google aims to prioritize sites that offer a seamless experience across devices and platforms.

It is worth mentioning that great examples of content marketing value user experience over all other aspects. For instance, search engines rank websites with fast loading times and relevant content much higher than those that utilize unethical practices such as keyword stuffing.

Therefore, experienced content marketing agencies know that emphasizing quality over quantity delivers the best SEO impact.

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SEO Content Impacts on SEO Ranking

Predicting what sort of impact AI content has on SEO rankings largely depends on the material itself. It’s worth remembering that search engines value quality above everything else. Their focus is primarily based on the relevance of content with regard to the semantics of queries. This point highlights why keywords play such a significant role in SEO ranking.

That being said, AI generated content does not necessarily influence SEO ranking one way or another. It is content quality that does.

This situation brings up a crucial point: Content—AI-generated or not—must respond to relevance, quality, and originality.

So, does AI-generated material hit the mark on all three points? The answer is a simple no. While broadly applicable, AI material does not automatically produce content capable of meeting expectations or quality guidelines.

So, the question begs: “Why use AI-produced content in the first place?”

If a brand genuinely seeks to position itself above competitors, AI content comes up painfully short.

The added expense in time and effort needed to rectify AI content does not justify its utilization.

A solid content SEO strategy must adhere to known best practices in content marketing.

These practices involve implementing a content SEO strategy focused on delivering the content audiences seek without cutting corners. As such, deploying AI content may become counterproductive, mainly if there is little to no human verification.

Given the amount of inaccurate information and incoherent gibberish produced by AI language models, relying on AI to produce audience-facing materials makes no sense.

However, one might ask: “Is there a place for AI-generated content?” The short answer is yes. There is room for AI-based content. However, this content must be taken with a grain of salt. Its overall quality and usefulness are debatable.

However, an argument could be made in favor of deploying AI content if human intervention ensures the content is up to par. If AI content is part of a content SEO strategy, content marketing agencies must ensure this content meets or exceeds the standards set for human-generated content. If AI content fails to meet the bar, it might be best to forego utilizing this content type altogether.

Spotting AI Search Results

With the prevalence of AI-generated content, users worry about differentiating between human and AI-produced content. As such, a typical question pertains to spotting the use of AI content in search results.

The fact of the matter is that search engine results, such as the results Google produces, do not explicitly state whether they are AI-generated or not. Therefore, it is relatively complex to determine if a website contains AI material.

With that in mind, there are some key considerations when it comes to AI content in search results:

  • Featured Snippets. These are concise answers displayed at the top of the search results page. They are often generated algorithmically and can be considered AI-driven.
  • Knowledge Graph. Google’s Knowledge Graph provides information directly in the search results, often in a panel on the right side of the page. This information is gathered from various sources and is algorithmically organized and presented.
  • Autocomplete Suggestions. When you start typing a search query, Google may provide autocomplete suggestions. These suggestions are based on common searches and are influenced by AI algorithms.
  • Semantic Understanding. Google’s algorithms have become increasingly sophisticated in understanding the context and intent behind search queries. This situation allows Google to provide more relevant results, even if the exact search terms are not present on a webpage.
  • Personalization. Google personalizes search results based on factors such as your search history, location, and previous interactions with search results. AI algorithms drive this personalization.

The previous points highlight the presence of AI-based tools in search results. While these tools technically produce AI material, they are not comparable to websites posting information made solely by AI. Therefore, it is up to users to rely on trusted sources to get credible information.

Differentiating AI-Based Content from Human-Produced Materials

Differentiating between AI-generated and human-generated content can sometimes be significantly challenging as AI technology advances. However, there are several key factors to consider when trying to tell the difference:

  • Quality and Coherence. Human-generated content often exhibits a higher level of coherence, logical flow, and overall quality compared to AI-generated content. Human writers can inject nuances, emotions, and personal experiences into their writing, resulting in more engaging and authentic content.
  • Creativity and Originality. While AI can produce content based on existing patterns and data, it often lacks the ability to generate truly original ideas or creatively solve problems in the same way humans can. Human-generated content tends to be more innovative, imaginative, and unique.
  • Contextual Understanding. Humans possess a deeper understanding of context, cultural nuances, and social dynamics, which they can incorporate into their content-creation process. AI may struggle to grasp the subtleties of context and produce content that feels out of place or irrelevant in certain situations.
  • Emotional Intelligence. Humans can infuse their writing with emotions, empathy, and sensitivity, which resonates with readers on a deeper level. AI-generated content may lack this emotional intelligence, resulting in sterile or impersonal writing.
  • Errors and Inconsistencies. While both humans and AI can make mistakes, AI-generated content may exhibit specific systematic errors or inconsistencies that betray its non-human origin. These errors can range from grammatical mistakes to factual inaccuracies or logical inconsistencies.
  • Purpose and Intent. Understanding the underlying purpose and intent behind the content can also provide clues about its origin. Human-generated content often reflects personal perspectives, opinions, and biases. In contrast, AI-generated content may prioritize optimization metrics or follow predefined algorithms.
  • Complexity and Depth. Human-generated content tends to demonstrate higher complexity, depth, and critical thinking than AI-generated content. Humans can engage in abstract reasoning, explore nuanced arguments, and tackle multifaceted topics in ways that AI currently struggles to replicate.

Ultimately, implementing human-generated materials within a content SEO strategy is crucial to its effectiveness. Content marketing agencies employing human-powered content remain more relevant than ever. After all, users crave authenticity that only the human brain can deliver.

A Final Thought

When thinking about great examples of content marketing, emotional connections come to mind.

These connections emerge as human content producers inject their feelings, thoughts, and experiences into the material they produce.

These singular insights go beyond the best AI language models.

While someday AI may be able to replicate some human subtleties, it seems unlikely that AI could ever replace the magnificence of the human experience.

Thus, savvy brands and content producers understand the value of human-powered content even as AI-powered tools gain a consistent foothold.

Top Tools for Harnessing AI for Your Content

With all the hype surrounding artificial intelligence (AI), it is only natural that AI would make its way into the content creation domain. Indeed, writers, editors, and publishers have embraced AI. The singular capabilities that AI offers allow content creators to streamline their processes.

But let’s be clear about something: AI is not intended to replace human intervention. Far from it! Instead, AI aims to augment human capacities, allowing content creators to save time, improve content, and enhance creativity.

The question then becomes: “How can we leverage AI’s capabilities?”

AI Writing Tools

AI writing tools are software applications that leverage AI algorithms to assist writers in various aspects of the writing process. These tools are designed to enhance the quality, efficiency, and creativity of written content by offering a range of features and functionalities.

So, what do these tools have to offer? Let’s take a look.

Grammar and Spelling Correction

AI writing tools can detect and correct grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors in written text.

Additionally, they can often provide real-time suggestions to help writers improve the accuracy and clarity of their writing.

Style and Tone Analysis

Some AI writing tools analyze the style and tone of written content, providing feedback on factors such as formality, readability, and voice consistency. This capability helps writers maintain a consistent tone throughout their text and adapt their style to suit their audience.

Language Enhancement

AI writing tools may offer suggestions for enhancing the language and vocabulary used in written content. They can recommend synonyms, antonyms, and alternative phrases to improve the richness and clarity of the text.

Readability Improvement

AI writing tools assess the readability of written content and offer suggestions for improving sentence structure, paragraph organization, and overall coherence. They can identify complex sentences, passive voice constructions, and other factors that may hinder comprehension.

Content Generation

Some advanced AI writing tools are capable of generating written content autonomously based on user input. They can create articles, blog posts, product descriptions, and other types of content using natural language generation (NLG) algorithms.

Plagiarism Detection

Many AI writing tools include plagiarism detection features to help writers ensure the originality of their content. These tools compare written text against a database of existing content to identify any instances of plagiarism or unoriginal material.

SEO Optimization

Some AI writing tools provide recommendations for optimizing written content for search engines (SEO). They can suggest relevant keywords, metadata, and formatting techniques to improve the visibility and ranking of online content.

Writing Analytics

AI writing tools such as word count, readability scores, and engagement metrics may offer insights and analytics on writing performance.

This data can help writers track their progress and identify areas for improvement.

The elephant in the room is generative AI tools.

In particular, the debate on utilizing generative AI to produce content has led to a clear polarization. Some view AI-generated content as legitimate as long as it's coherent. Others believe that AI-based content crosses a number of ethical lines.

So, who is right? The fact of the matter is that generative AI can be a helpful tool in assisting writers throughout the creative process.

However, using generative AI responsibly is crucial in ensuring that the content created meets or exceeds quality standards.

Pros and Cons of AI in the Writing Process

Utilizing artificial intelligence throughout the writing process comes with a set of advantages and drawbacks. As such, authors and content creators must consider these elements to avoid needless issues:

  • Efficiency. AI tools can help writers streamline their workflow by automating tasks such as grammar checking, proofreading, and generating suggestions for improving writing quality. This feature saves time and allows writers to focus more on creativity and content development.
  • Enhanced creativity. AI can generate prompts, suggest ideas, and even help writers overcome creative blocks by providing alternative perspectives or developing new concepts. This situation can lead to more innovative and engaging content.
  • Assistance with research. AI-powered tools can assist writers in conducting research by quickly gathering relevant information from various sources, summarizing key points, and providing insights to support their writing.
  • Language enhancement. AI can assist writers in improving their language skills by providing real-time feedback on grammar, style, tone, and vocabulary usage. This capability can help writers enhance the clarity and effectiveness of their writing.
  • Personalization. AI-driven writing tools can adapt to individual writing styles and preferences, providing personalized suggestions and recommendations tailored to each writer’s needs.
  • Dependence on technology. Relying too heavily on AI tools may lead to a decrease in critical thinking and writing skills. Writers may become overly dependent on automated suggestions and lose the ability to think creatively or critically evaluate their own work.
  • Quality concerns. While AI can help improve writing quality, it may not always produce the same level of quality as human writers. Automated tools may miss nuances, context, or cultural sensitivities that human writers can capture, leading to potentially subpar content.
  • Privacy and security risks. AI writing tools may require access to sensitive data such as personal writing samples or browsing history to provide personalized recommendations. Writers need to consider the privacy and security implications of sharing this information with AI systems.
  • Over-reliance on templates. Some AI writing tools may rely on predefined templates or formulas, leading to generic or formulaic writing that lacks originality and creativity. This situation can result in homogenized content that fails to stand out or resonate with audiences.
  • Ethical concerns. AI-generated content raises ethical questions about attribution, plagiarism, and intellectual property rights. Writers must ensure that they properly attribute AI-generated content and adhere to ethical guidelines when using AI tools in the writing process.

In particular, ethical concerns must be at the forefront. Issues like plagiarism, copyright infringement, and inappropriate attribution can all cast doubt on the legitimacy of content. Plus, concerns regarding quality and creativity may prove reason enough for authors and content creators to sidestep the use of generative AI, opting to deploy AI in less prominent roles such as spelling or plagiarism checking.

Powerful AI Tools for Writing

When deployed appropriately, artificial intelligence can provide several highly valuable tools. These tools can range from automating the revision process to generating text.

The following tools offer helpful applications, allowing authors and content creators to harness their creative powers without infringing upon others’ intellectual property.

However, care must be taken to ensure that any generative tools follow strict ethical considerations.

Here is a closer look.

Grammarly

Grammarly is a widely-used AI writing assistant offering more than basic grammar and spell-checking. It provides advanced features such as tone detection, clarity suggestions, and vocabulary enhancement. Grammarly can help writers maintain consistency in tone and style throughout their documents, making it a valuable tool for both casual and professional writing.

ProWritingAid

ProWritingAid goes beyond simple grammar checking by offering in-depth analysis and suggestions for improving various aspects of writing, including style, structure, readability, and pacing. It provides detailed reports on areas such as overused words, sentence length variation, and readability scores, empowering writers to refine their writing to a higher standard.

Hemingway Editor

Hemingway Editor focuses on simplicity and clarity in writing. It highlights complex sentences, passive voice constructions, and instances of adverb overuse, helping writers craft more concise and impactful prose. Hemingway Editor encourages writers to adopt a straightforward writing style that resonates with readers.

Wordtune

Wordtune uses AI to offer rewrite suggestions for sentences, helping writers express their ideas more effectively. It provides alternative phrasings, word choices, and sentence structures to improve clarity, coherence, and style. Wordtune can be particularly useful for writers seeking to refine their language and make their writing more engaging.

AI Content Generators

AI content generators, such as Writesonic or copy.ai, assist writers by generating content based on specific prompts or input.

These tools use machine learning algorithms to produce human-like text.

These texts can range from anything, including blog post outlines to marketing copy.

While they can help generate ideas or overcome writer's block, writers should carefully review and customize the output to ensure relevance and accuracy.

ChatGPT

ChatGPT, as an AI language model, can engage in conversations with writers, answer questions, and provide suggestions on various writing-related topics. It can be used to brainstorm ideas, simulate interview scenarios, or receive feedback on writing samples. ChatGPT’s versatility and natural language understanding make it a valuable resource for writers seeking inspiration or assistance.

Scapple

Scapple is a mind-mapping tool that helps writers organize their thoughts and brainstorm ideas visually. It uses AI algorithms to facilitate the creation of interconnected concepts, allowing writers to explore relationships between ideas and develop cohesive narratives. Scapple’s intuitive interface and flexible layout make it an effective tool for planning and outlining writing projects of any size.

ClicheFinder

Cliche Finder assists writers in identifying and eliminating cliches from their writing. By scanning text for overused phrases and suggesting alternatives, it encourages writers to cultivate originality and creativity in their writing. Cliche Finder can be a valuable tool for writers striving to produce fresh and engaging content that resonates with readers.

ZenWriter

ZenWriter creates a distraction-free writing environment using AI-driven features such as customizable backgrounds and ambient sounds. It helps writers minimize distractions and maintain focus, fostering a conducive atmosphere for creativity and productivity. ZenWriter’s minimalist design and calming aesthetics make it an ideal writing tool for writers seeking a focused writing experience.

Atomic Reach

Atomic Reach analyzes written content using AI to optimize its readability, engagement, and search engine visibility. By providing data-driven insights and recommendations, it helps writers enhance the effectiveness of their content marketing efforts. Atomic Reach empowers writers to create content that not only resonates with their audience but also ranks well in search engine results.

The hype surrounding tools such as ChatGPT warrants further discussion into the moral issues related to their use. Until there is a definitive stance on their generative capabilities, authors and content creators can utilize their power to brainstorm ideas, facilitate outlines, or assist in removing painful obstacles such as writer’s block.

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A Final Thought

Like any other technological advancement, artificial intelligence should not be feared. While AI has a definite downside, authors and content creators could look beyond its potential downside to focus on what AI has to offer.

AI is not here to replace the power of human creativity. AI is here to assist human brainpower and streamline many processes, allowing human cognition to unleash its creative force.

Authors and content creators would do well to explore what artificial intelligence tools have to offer. There is nothing to lose with experimentation. This approach can help authors and content creators determine which tools best suit their specific purposes.

Moreover, authors and content creators must capitalize on AI’s development as this technology moves forward. Like those writers who opted to use a computer instead of a typewriter, authors who embrace AI may find advantages to boost their productivity.

5 Ways to Make Your Content Marketing Campaign About Your Customers, Not You

Communication is a two-way street, where information flows in one direction and back in the other. When communication works well, all parties get their message across effectively.

However, in order for messages to get across, every interlocutor must listen more than they speak.

Unfortunately, many brands fail to understand the concept of two-way communication. Some brands believe in talking down to their customers. They hold an erroneous belief that they know what is good for their customers.

The message falls flat when content marketing is about the brand and not the customer.

Instead, brands must strive to communicate with their customers by showing their genuine understanding of their pain points. Moreover, brands must be empathetic to their customers’ needs.

The question is: How can a content marketing campaign be about customers?

Using a Content Campaign to Communicate With Customers

A content campaign provides a wonderful opportunity to communicate with customers. Brands can use this two-way communication to foster a meaningful relationship.

How so?

Customers base their relationships with brands on trust. When customers trust a brand, they are loyal. When customers lose trust, they seek other brands or alternative products.

Indeed, building trust between brands and customers is the main goal of content marketing. Communication is the vehicle that enhances communication.

When brands fail to communicate, they have difficulty building trust in their customers.

The brand may sell, but customers may not remain loyal.

Moreover, customers may find excuses (usually price) to switch over to another brand.

Please remember that content campaigns should always be centered around customers. There are three things that content campaigns must always address:

  • Focusing on customer pain points
  • Showing empathy with customers
  • Communicating how the brand can solve or alleviate pain points

These three elements enable brands to communicate with customers effectively. After all, customers may see that brands “get them.”

Nevertheless, the question begs, “How can you learn what customers want to hear?”

Building a Customer-centered Content Campaign

Building a customer-centered content campaign is not an esoteric proposition. Customer-centered content campaigns are the result of listening more than talking.

This point is where most brands get it wrong.

Many brands fail to listen to their customers. Some brands neglect to listen to what their customers have to say. Microsoft founder Bill Gates once said, “Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.”

Point taken.

The fact is that most companies would much rather listen to all the good things customers have to say. However, no one ever wants to listen to the bad things customers have in mind.

How so?

It all boils down to fear. There is a fear of hearing what no one wants to hear. But it is facing that fear that allows brands to grow. The brands that fail to listen are the ones that ultimately fail. Walmart founder Sam Walton encapsulates this point with the following statement: “If you don’t listen to your customers, someone else will.”

Who is that “someone else?” The competition!

When companies fail to listen to their customers, competitors have a golden opportunity to swoop in.

Building a customer-centered campaign begins with listening to customers. Successful brands take the time to listen and pay close attention. These brands are far more interested in talking to unhappy customers than satisfied ones.

Why?

Successful brands understand the value of listening to dissatisfied folks. When brands truly pay attention, they build trust by showing customers they care. Please remember that empathy is a valuable asset. Empathy starts with careful listening.

5 Ways to Make a Content Campaign About Customers

There are five significant ways brands can build a customer-centered campaign when building a content campaign.

1. Forget about the brand.

The first step is to forget about the brand. In other words, building a successful content campaign is not about touting the brand. It is about focusing on the customers’ needs. The last thing a successful content campaign does is hype the brand.

Think about it.

Using a content campaign to hype a brand is like going on a date to spend the entire time talking about oneself. The other party would most likely get bored quite quickly.

The same goes for content campaigns. Customers tune out quickly when the message focuses on tooting the brand’s own horn.

Brands must get to know their customers in order to build effective content campaigns. The most effective way to know one’s customers is to talk to them.

Savvy brands incentivize customers to fill out questionnaires and surveys with special rewards. For example, offering a special discount code to anyone who fills out a questionnaire can become a highly useful tactic.

Also, some brands use focus groups and segmented demographics to figure out how customers feel. From there, brands can determine where their target customers lie.

It is incredible how much customers are willing to speak when given the opportunity. So, listen up!

2. It’s all about pain points.

The next step in an effective content campaign is to focus on customer pain points. These pain points may be problems, needs, or wants customers face. A typical approach is to focus on a problem customers face. However, effective content campaigns do not tout the brand. Instead, they offer valuable information that customers can use to alleviate their pain points.

Consider this situation:

A fitness brand plans to launch a new line of weight loss supplements. Instead of telling customers how wonderful the supplements are, its content campaign focuses on addressing weight loss issues. The content campaign provides free health advice sponsored by the brand. The customers see the brand, but they do not get a sales pitch. Rather, customers get helpful advice on how to build healthy habits.

Please keep in mind that successful content campaigns always talk about customers and their needs. The brand sits in the background, waiting for an opportunity to emerge as part of the solution.

3. Show empathy.

Some brands fail to show empathy with their customers. These brands sell their products by telling customers what to do. For instance, a pharmaceutical brand tells customers that their painkillers are the best on the market. Their content is focused on extolling the product’s qualities while completely neglecting what customers truly want.

How can brands show empathy?

First, brands must address pain points. In our previous example, the pharma brand recognizes that customers must live with pain. They discuss the causes of pain and what habits or diseases may cause pain.

Then, the brand strives to show empathy. They tell customers that everyone must deal with pain. They are not alone. When brands “get it,” they run ads that show people suffering from pain. They highlight the types of activities that may cause pain and the types of people it affects.

The brand strives to communicate its message by saying, “We’ve been there, too.” Nevertheless, the brand does not push any products on customers. At least, not yet.

4. Offer a solution.

Great content campaigns provide useful information customers can utilize to solve their pain points. The information itself, however, may be insufficient to solve the issue fully. This point is where brands can present their solution to the problem.

Think about the last example. The main customer pain point is living with pain. The brand uses a fantastic campaign to offer tips on diet, exercise, and healthy habits customers can use to relieve pain. However, these valuable bits of information may be insufficient to get rid of pain once and for all.

Now is the time for the solution.

The brand introduces its new pain medication as the definitive solution. However, the brand does not tout the product.

Instead, the brand focuses on how the product relieves pain by explaining how its formulation works to reduce discomfort.

Thus, the message is not, “Take this product because it is the best pain reliever.” Instead, the message is, “The formula in this product, along with all the other information provided, will help you eliminate pain. We know it works because we have tried it, too.”

In this example, the message is effective because it flips the narrative. The narrative is no longer about how wonderful the product is. The narrative focuses on how the product is a great tool to solve a significant pain point.

5. Show the outcomes.

Successful content campaigns end their marketing interventions with satisfied customers. Clever brands showcase how customers solve their pain points by consuming the brand. In the previous example, the brand could use customer testimonials to show how effective the product truly is.

Why does this approach work?

It works because it is about empathy!

Once unhappy people tried the product, and it worked. Now, they want to share their happiness with others just like them.

Showing the outcomes with real people is the most effective way to get a message across. Forget about fancy lights and cool people. Instead, focus on real people, real problems, and real solutions.

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How can a writing agency help produce a killer content campaign?

Regarding pain points, some brands might feel that building an effective content campaign may be beyond their scope.

How so?

Creating a customer-centered campaign requires specialized knowledge and technical expertise. Furthermore, the research and effort that goes into building a successful content campaign demand time and effort.

Often, time and effort are limited resources for most brands.

Hiring a writing agency can become the best solution to this significant pain point.

Here is a look at how hiring a writing agency can help brands build effective customer-centered campaigns:

  • A writing agency can produce the documentation needed for market research. For example, questionnaires, surveys, data processing, and report writing all fall within a writing agency’s area of expertise.
  • A writing agency can assist in producing a content campaign. A professional writing agency typically has a diverse writing team. This team is capable of producing top-quality copy, scripts, marketing materials, product brochures, and user manuals.
  • A writing agency saves time and effort. An experienced writing agency can tackle the nitty gritty of a successful content campaign. They know how to manage the ins and outs of a content campaign project.
  • A writing agency becomes a trusted partner. Over time, a professional writing agency can become a trusted partner for any brand. The relationship between brands and writing agencies is predicated on trust. After all, brands trust that their chosen writing agency will always deliver.

The partnership between brands and writing agencies can become a force multiplier. Brands know their customers. Writing agencies know what it takes to produce effective content campaigns. When joining both forces, superb content reaches information-hungry customers.

A Final Thought About Content Campaigns

There are those who might say that hiring a writing agency is expensive. Moreover, some might say that it is an unnecessary cost.

Those who feel this way have never seen a writing agency in action.

Hiring a writing agency is an investment. The cost of hiring a writing agency is offset by the gains brands make.

Brands gain customers, boost revenue, and improve profitability with effective content campaigns.

Shrewd brands know that getting the right writing team on board can boost their content campaigns’ effectiveness exponentially.

Here is a final thought:

“The key is to set realistic customer expectations and then not just meet them but exceed them—preferably in unexpected and helpful ways.”

This quote by Virgin founder Richard Branson sums up this discussion. Fantastic content campaigns can help solve customer pain points in unexpected and helpful ways. It is all a matter of listening more than talking.

Networking: Building Your Network with Content Marketing Best Practices

Okay, first of all, let’s establish a few things.

  • Creators are artists. (Yes? We all agree? Okay, great.)
  • Therefore, content creators are artists. (Stick with me, here.)
  • And artists always create for themselves, not for an audience. (Right?)

(Uh, no. Not right.) (Well, okay, some do.)

Look, as much as we might like to dress in all black and moodily declare that we make content for ourselves, we always have a shimmery idea of how public audiences might respond in the back of our minds.

But the key to getting that response is actually having an audience and network for your content. And although it might feel like an intimidating task, it really is an achievable goal. The trick is leveraging your content itself to help you build up your content’s audience and network.

Ready to get started?

Tell your interviewees when your piece is published.

At the outset, we want to stress that alerting interviewees to your piece’s publication is just good professional practice. That being said, it also yields considerable benefits, like solidifying your network connection.

Think about it: If you were interviewed for an article, wouldn’t you want to know when it was published? And once you knew it was published, wouldn’t you go read it? Maybe even share it with your friends?

You get the idea. This is an easy tactic that will help drive traffic to your content and increase your number of readers and views.

Communication Tips

Here are some basic guidelines on how to communicate with people you’ve interviewed and encourage them to share your published content:

Image by C Bechteler with Canva

Notify people you mention in your blog and encourage them to share It.

For all you skimmers out there, this is indeed a different suggestion than the one above.

Say, you write a piece that mentions someone—someone that you didn’t interview or quote. When your piece is published, we encourage you to alert them just as you would someone you had interviewed. Not only is this a gesture of professional courtesy, it also opens the door to building new relationships and expanding your network.

Communication Tips

Here are some basic guidelines for communicating with entities mentioned in your content and encouraging them to share your published piece:

Image by C. Bechteler with Canva

Encourage people on social media to like and subscribe.

We have a joke for you:

Okay, that joke wasn’t great. But if you want to hear a better one, be sure to like and subscribe! (Wink.)

Jokes aside, asking social media users to like and subscribe (or follow) your content is a simple but effective tactic for building up your network and audience. It might seem cheesy or overused, but there’s a reason why it’s used so often: It yields results!

Communication Tips

The following are some tips for engaging with users on social media and encouraging them to follow and share your content:

Image by C. Bechteler with Canva

Uncover “links to me.”

Just like you might link to someone in your content, someone might link to you in theirs. Uncovering backlinks to your content, or your “links to me,” is a strong content marketing strategy, as it’s a great way to find out more about your audience as well as identify opportunities for networking.

Although you could pay for a tool to find all your backlinks for you, you can find most of them yourself with a little time and effort. Check out the tips below:

Image by C. Bechteler with Canva

Communication Tips

Here are some tips for interacting with and fostering relationships with those who mention or link to your content:

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Monitoring and Setting Up Google Alerts

Building off the last section, we suggest setting up Google Alerts for mentions of you and your content. Not only will this help save you time uncovering your backlinks, it will also help you stay on top of potential networking opportunities and provide insight into your audience.

You can start setting up Google Alerts here:  

  1. In the box, enter the text you want notifications for, such as:
    1. Your name or pen name
    1. Your blog’s name
    1. Your website’s name
  2. Select Show Options to optimize your alert settings, such as:
    1. Notification frequency
    1. The geographical area you want alerts from
  3. Select Create Alert to get alerts for matching search results

If you need to edit your alerts, you can learn how to do so here.

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Build your network with our network.

We know that handling all of the aspects of content creation is a lot like juggling—there are a lot of different moving parts to keep track of! There’s research, interviews, planning, writing, editing, uploading, formatting, publishing—it goes on and on.

The point is, content creation often involves a whole team of professionals. That’s why our team is here to help you apply the best practices in content marketing and make your vision a reality. Whether you need help crafting compelling content that will attract readers or help building up your content’s audience, The Writers For Hire is ready to get to (net)work. (Wink.)