These days, content marketing is a commonly used tactic for marketers in different industries and verticals. One thing that is still missing from many content strategies is deliberate and consistent focus on conversions.
While content creation is something that every company should be doing in some form or fashion, the companies who win the most favor and business from consumers and prospects are those who consistently produce valuable, conversion-driven content to target audiences.
Regardless of the product or service that you are marketing, here are three types of content that have been found effective for driving qualified conversions for marketers like you.
1. ‘How To’ Videos – Top Of Funnel Conversions
Although it may seem counterproductive, ‘how to’ videos are one of the best ways to attract and retain your audiences’ attention. Companies like Geek Squad who got their start by solely relying on this type of content have grown into multi-million dollar enterprises without any worry about “giving away the secret recipe.”
By offering a certain level of transparency into the services or products you offer by being helpful to your target audiences, you not only gain their trust, but also their business when they inevitably are out of their depths with larger issues that require someone with your expertise.
The way to really capitalize on these opportunities is to offer exclusive tips to users who sign up for your email newsletter or subscribe to updates on a different channel. It’s a low friction way to gain subscribers at the top of the funnel without pushing branded messaging or sales offers on users who are not ready to commit.
2. Competitive Reviews – Mid-funnel Conversions
The internet has given audiences the power of the review – and they use it whenever possible as a research tool during the buying journey. As prospects and consumers research products and services like yours online, why not strive to be the source they use when doing recon on your competitors?
These types of content can be as simple as a ‘Company A’ vs. ‘Company B’ infographic, or as detailed as a buying guide for a core product that you and your top 5 competitors provide to the marketplace. If you go the route of a buying guide and make it valuable – with as much useful information and as little sales specific messaging as you can get away with – people will have no problem filling out a few fields on a form to get access to something with valuable information.
You also don’t have to always go the competitor route. If you are a SaaS company that offers technology solutions, you can provide reviews on related tech platforms and run co-promotion strategies with the brands you choose to highlight in a report or blog post.
3. Product Or Service Videos – Bottom Funnel Conversions
As buyers move through the journey and begin researching products or services that your company offers, it is always a good idea to have videos ready to go that will help inform their decision. It’s always better to control the conversation when it comes to what you do best than to leave it up to the Great and Powerful Google to dig up something that you haven’t put your stamp of approval on.
If you want to maximize the impact of these videos, be sure to optimize each video with top searched phrases and questions. That way, they will show up quickly for qualified audiences and lead them directly to one of your owned channels.
Key Takeaways
Of course, these are just a few of the many different types of gated content that drive marketing qualified leads and conversions. The most important thing to takeaway from this post is to always keep in mind what kind of conversion-driven content offers you can make to target audiences as touch points along the path to purchase. That’s the best way to see the highest return from your content marketing efforts.
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