Content marketing is the process by which your regular addition of fresh content to website, blog and Social profiles builds awareness, promotes your image and establishes your credibility as an expert in the contracting field. Yet, the writing itself is more than just fascinating topics tackled by stellar wordsmithing.
Choose your words well. The crafting of content should also incorporate the keywords that need to fit within the flow. Otherwise, too many keywords at the top sounds like weirdly clunky and stiff writing, plus it also can get you penalized by the search engines for keyword stuffing.
See if you notice a problem in this gobbledygook: “Air conditioning and heating systems require quality energy-efficient reputable air condition and furnace technicians for proper HVAC installation and reliable home comfort.” Hint: It’s meaningless content stuffed with possible search terms. The content has an ulterior motive – and it’s not one involving educating and building trust with the prospect, but is hoping for search results. Google doesn’t like stuff like that, and neither does anyone who reads it.
Create a schedule. Content marketing is made more effective with a content calendar (where you plan your content creation around seasons/promotions). And it also takes into account the use of “evergreen” content that can show up in search results a couple of years down the line – and still provide value for the reader. A schedule also helps you stay consistent instead of sporadic.
Go for depth. Content can and should be longer. Don’t pop off a short piece just to get it done. Instead, develop and expound on your subject. By doing so, you open up opportunities to answer questions and objections and go deeper into your topics while adding more keywords, including longer keyword phrases. Google ranks content higher when it’s deemed to be more valuable. And the expertise on display builds trust with your reader.
Go short on headlines, however. Get to the point and encourage clicks through short headlines that use keywords. Long-winded headlines are often a sign of clickbait – and get avoided. That to-be-avoided style looks something like so: “This plumber couldn’t believe what he saw when he opened the homeowner’s kitchen cabinet. What happened next made a believer out of them all.”
Repurpose your content. Blog content can be turned into a video and vice versa. Case studies can be turned into blogs. A bunch of blogs on key topics can be turned into an eBook, offered free on your site to gain email addresses.
Use images and video. These get attention in Social news feeds filled with other posts. Plus, images convey a large part of your message and make an emotional connection.
Amplify Social posts with advertising. You can boost a Facebook post for a fairly small amount of money and get in front of a lot more eyeballs than your organic reach to your followers.
And think negative. Sort of. Did you know that there is such a thing as negative keywords, and search engines let you use them to discourage results you don’t want? It’s part of paid strategies to complement organic search. With negative keywords, you identify phrases you don’t want that are similar to the ones you want – and it’s basically to avoid search traffic that is literally irrelevant to what you sell and service. For example, if you provide residential air conditioning, “automobile air conditioning” is not relevant. To see if this technique would be of value to you, you can analyze the search terms that bring people to your site and exclude what isn’t relevant.
Not sure where to start? We can help. Call 1-800-489-9099 or email [email protected] to get started on a digital marketing strategy for your business.