We all have been in a situation that we got something completely different from what we expected. It could be related to online shopping, Advertisements for food, or even an outdoor event. This can create disappointment and demotivation. Unfortunately, the same can happen with content marketing too. Marketers usually get disappointed with their marketing strategies not working because either their expectations are too high, the style of marketing does not work for them or they underestimate the power of SEO. So, to clear up the misunderstandings about content marketing, it is important to set realistic expectations and understand the eventual reality.
Let’s discuss the common content marketing misunderstanding and understand how avoiding these basic content marketing mistakes can help you grow your business online.
Table of Content
Create Amazing Content
Expectation: Writing blog posts and articles are easy and I can utilize the same template every time.
Reality: Your website should not be like a factory that creates mass- products. Using the same content template will hurt your business reach, growth, and long-term and short-term marketing goals. This can make your website feel monotonous and your audience will eventually lose interest in reading your blog posts and articles.
Solution: No matter what type of content you use, it is important to do research and to focus on relevant keywords. Try to write as unique content as possible, adding different images, infographics, videos, etc. This will increase the chances of your website ranking higher on Google. Evaluating the results by using tools like Google Analytics will help you understand the weak and strong points of your content. Accordingly, create content that works best with your audience’s interests and likings.
Quality content is the key to success but remember consistency is also equally vital. Posting regularly will help your website to build up an excellent content library and will make readers come back for more. The two main goals of content marketing should be to build brand authenticity and a good customer experience.
Everyone is going to Share my Content
Expectation: I only have to create a funny video and add a few images and it will be instantly shared on other websites or social media platforms. My content will be viral in no time!
Reality: It takes careful and strategic planning for a blog post or an article to get shared on other platforms.
Solution: Softwares like Sprout Social and Hootsuite makes it easier for business online to manage and monitor all of their social media platforms. This software allows you to view metrics, organize responses, and schedule your posts weeks and months before. Even though with this freehand software, you still need to tailor your posts according to each social media platform. Some of the content might work wonders on Facebook but it does not necessarily mean the same type of content will work on Twitter. Always follow what is trending and study every social media platform so that you understand the advantages and the disadvantage. The content you write should always complement your social media strategy. You can learn about it more here.
Our Customers are going to Love our Content
Expectations: I have added a few punch lines and metaphors in my blog posts which will make readers love my content.
Reality: Every reader will react to your content differently with thoughts or phrases like:
- “Yeh! Whatever!”
- “I have read this somewhere before”
- “This is very interesting”
- “I love this blog”
- “I hate every bit of this blog”
Solution: Your focus should be more on getting a response from your audience than making them love it. Your content might sometimes be educational, meaningful, helpful which will make people share and comment. Similarly, your other content could be provoking and might trigger anger that people might start writing negative comments. You can write high-quality content and still start a full-scale debate in the comment section. You need to realize, not everyone is going to love your content and that is OK. The key here is to understand the audience’s reaction, respond to them. And try to turn them to a positive outlook.
Post the Best Content on Site to get the most Traffic Benefit
Expectations: I will post good content and on my website with the best digital exposure and I will get more traffic overnight.
Reality: Content marketing requires lots of patience and hard work. If you have the mindset of getting conversions overnight, you will eventually lose patience and give up before the real results.
Solution: It is a good idea to post and publish your most popular content on your website, but the result will not necessarily give you higher traffic. There are a lot of other factors involved with good content such as, backlinking, social media promotions, and adding interactive content. SEO plays a huge role in generating traffic.
Learn different steps of content marketing strategies that will help your business grow online here. Nevertheless, have patience. It takes time to understand and build a concrete solid network. Everything depends on trial and error. For that keep analyzing your results and change and edit accordingly.
Conclusion
Content writing and content marketing are some of the best strategies to practice for your business to reach a peak online. But it will only work if you set realistic expectations and your own goals. The competition analysis and industry trends are also important parts of content marketing, however, study your website too, see how your audience is reacting and predict the outcome to deliver the best results.
