Content Creation Services

Content Marketing Process

Now you know exactly what content marketing is, I’ll let you know the basic process used to ensure everything is done in the most effective way. This is the plan I use for every one of my content marketing clients, ranging from international businesses, through to small local businesses near me in Essex, UK.

Content Audit

Before anything can be done, a thorough audit must be performed. This audit is a lengthy process, and it needs to be. Without fully understanding the content you already have and how well it’s performing, it’s impossible to determine where to go next with your strategy.

A look through your content will answer some key questions, such as which pieces of content have connected with readers, and which pieces of content have overstayed their welcome and need deleting or updating.

I’ll also look at other metrics too, including social shares, content length and visitor behaviour. Once I’m finished, I’ll have a completely clear understanding of your current content.

Understanding your content isn’t enough though. Any good content marketing audit will also look at your competitors. What are they doing successfully? What have they missed? What are the opportunities that could be exploited to boost your business?

Only once I fully audit your site and those of your competitors, will I move onto the next stage of the process: content strategy.

Content Strategy

It’s still not time to start writing, as the next part of the process is content strategy. To formulate this, I’ll need to understand a number of key points, including:

• What your overall goals are
• What the unique selling points of your business are
• Who your audience is
• What solutions content could bring to that audience
• The type of content that works best for your audience
• Where content will be published
• How the content will eventually be marketed

This is a vital step in the process. Without sound strategy, you’ll effectively be stumbling through the content creation process, with no idea of what your goals are, why you’re writing and who is being targeted. The goal is laser-focused content, specifically aimed at your target audience.

Content Creation

Now comes the fun bit – the creation of the content. I’ll get to work alongside a writer and come up with something your readers simply have to see, whether this is a blog post, press release or any of the many other forms of content out there.

Every piece of content will be perfectly thought out and then meticulously created. After all, what’s the point in creating content if it’s not going to be the best around? The little things will also be included, like required images and meta titles and descriptions.

There’s not a huge amount more to say about content creation, however please be assured that it’s the most important part of the process. The goal is content your readers will love, and we won’t stop writing until we achieve that goal.

UX and Design

Next, we come to an often-overlooked part of the process. While you might have the perfect piece of content, its value is significantly diminished if it isn’t presented in the right way.

When I publish any piece of content, I always ensure that the user experience – often simply referred to as UX – is as intuitive as possible.

When it comes to content, there are a number of ways to use design to boost UX. For example, I’ll create many breaks in the page, to make the entire piece less intimidating to a reader.

I’ll also add other forms of content too, if required, such as images, graphs and other graphics. Essentially, I’ll be doing everything I possibly can to give readers the easiest possible experience.

Publication

Next comes the publication of the content. This could be anywhere, however the majority of content is going to go directly on your own website. After all, don’t you want to keep the best content around for yourself?

It can also be the case that content is published on other platforms too though. For example, it could be used as a guest post on an industry leading website.

We’ll talk through publication options during the strategy stage, however it’s flexible, so can be changed if needed.

Content Promotion

Now we come to the final part of the process: content promotion. This is the bit where I shout loudly about your content and get people to sit up and take notice. There are many different ways to effectively promote content, including:

• Social media campaigns
• Emails
• Reaching out to industry heavyweights and influencers
• Contacting other websites related to your field
• Repurposing for other mediums, such as an infographic

Content promotion isn’t just a quick process. Instead, I’ll spend a considerable amount of time getting your content out there.

This will, in turn, cause your brand to be more recognisable and drive more visitors to your website. More visitors should equal more sales, and the process will then have been worth it for your business.