Now that content marketing accounts for about a quarter of all marketing budgets, it’s safe to say that marketers are recognizing its value. However, for all of the hype surrounding the importance of content marketing and its potential to grow a business, some question its true effectiveness. In fact, according to one survey, despite increased budgets, fewer than half of the respondents actually believe content marketing is effective.
via flickr
One of the primary reasons for disappointment is the fact that it just doesn’t appear, in many cases, that content marketing is facilitating sales. Sure, you might be getting more traffic to your site, likes on your Facebook page, and downloads of the resources you’re creating, but unless those activities bring in more revenue, it’s hard to quantify ROI. Compounding the problem is the sheer volume of content that’s being created. Simply put, there is so much to sort through that users are choosing only the content that is most relevant to them at that moment, and ignoring the rest. And if customers are ignoring your content, producing more of the same isn’t going to get their attention, and may even drive them away.
But how do you improve the relevancy of your content? How do you give your users what they need, when they need it, so they will be compelled to make a purchase?
You need to go on a journey.
A New Twist on an Old Concept
For decades, marketers have used the idea of a buyer’s journey to influence their tactics and help customers make a decision. The typical buyer’s journey progresses in three phases: discovery, consideration, and decision. In the first phase, the customer realizes that he or she has a problem and commits to doing something to solve it. During the second phase, the customer investigates the options for solving the problem and seeks justification for a specific solution. Finally, the buyer makes and evaluates that decision.
While the concept of a “buyer’s journey” isn’t a new one, the realities of the journey have changed considerably in recent years. What was once a linear path from perceived need to purchase has become a more fluid pathway that is influenced by more factors, thanks in large part to digital marketing. Thanks to the large amount of information available from digital channels, the buyer’s journey now shifts between phases haphazardly, and the decision making process takes longer than ever.
Compounding the problem is that many companies don’t consider the buyer’s journey when developing content. They develop content based on what they think customers need or want, or focus on one phase of the journey to the detriment of the others. Often, this means creating content geared to those in the consideration stage. That’s important, but by doing so, you’re ignoring those who are just realizing that they need a solution, or who are looking for justification for the solution they’ve chosen.
Changing Your Content Strategy
The key, then, to improving your content marketing is to align your branded content with different stages of the buyer’s journey. The idea is to create different content that’s relevant at different points, not content that only resonates when a buyer is still assessing the need for change or has made a decision.
Aligning content with the buyer’s journey requires having a strategy. You want to create content that will not only facilitate a buyer’s decision to purchase from you, but keep them engaged and feeling supported after the purchase. However, by connecting your content with a point along the path, you’ll see greater results. To do so, remember a few important principles at each path:
- Discovery: Content should show customers that they have a problem and that it needs to be fixed. This doesn’t mean admonishing them for everything they are doing wrong, but instead identifying common pain points and creating the desire to alleviate them.
- Consideration: Case studies, testimonials, white papers, and solution-oriented content resonate with buyers in this stage. This is where you answer questions, and spark interest in learning more about your product. The average buyer is more than halfway through the sales process before he or she contacts your company, so your content should give them information that will spark them to make that call.
- Decision: Content for people in this state needs to reinforce the buyers’ decisions. Show them that they made the right choice. Cost analysis, testimonials, and benefit comparisons — all of these help prevent buyer’s remorse and built your customers’ confidence.
Again, because the typical buyer’s journey is no longer linear, and there are so many competing sources of information and input, it takes longer for many buyers to make a decision. However, if you’re patient and take care to develop relevant content at every stage, you’ll begin to see greater return on your content marketing investment.
from Darlene Milligan http://ift.tt/1Hw2iJ6 via transformational marketing
from Tumblr http://ift.tt/1DwmAYm
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