You’ve probably read about how important I think having a blog, and linking it up with social media is for ANY business. It doesn’t stop there though – there’s more to getting seen these days than blogging once a month. The buzzword is content marketing, it’s done across different ‘channels – and so I guess the next question is; what ARE content marketing channels?
‘Content marketing channels’ is just a term that’s used by clever people in media agencies to describe all the places that you can place content, get seen or get your marketing messages across. It’s where you think your customers are likely to be.
Each channel is different and appeals to a different type of customer, so before you dive in there and start doing the social media equivalent of over sharing, just sit and think about who you want to work with or sell to. Imagine you make gorgeous aromatherapy candles and your target market is women with a lot of disposable income and a nice home. Is your target customer likely to want to watch a ten minute tutorial about how to make a scented candle or more likely to prefer a pretty picture and a blog post about the best scents for different moods? Or even a relaxing podcast she can use while burning the candle?
You don’t have to do it all, despite what some marketers like to tell you. I believe that if you’re strapped for time or inspiration, focussng on the most influential content marketing channels is the best thing to do. Web content, blogs and Facebook are pretty essential for most businesses.
Content marketing is growing and developing all the time, so if you feel like trying something new for 2017, why not pick a new platform and get creative with your content marketing?
Show off on YouTube
Once you get over the stage fright of showing off to a camera, it’s really easy to make a video that you can use all over the place. Videos are huge – the big brands already have channels so join them with tutorials, reviews or just a behind the scenes look at what you’re up to!
Get to know Instagram
If it’s not on YouTube it’s on Instagram, but at least with Instagram it’s easier to take pictures of pretty inanimate objects you’d like to sell and not have to make it all about you! Most successful Instagrammers do share a look at their lives as well as products and memes though.
Podcasts and apps
Get your loyal customers even more engaged with a podcast they can listen to when they are on the go (this one is great for coaches and holistic businesses).
Apps are trickier and you might need some help to design one, although if you feel really clever you could try something like ibuildapp which is available for Android and iPhone. I had a quick look at it and picked out a FREE app for small businesses which could work really well. I might even have a go at it myself; it would be great to be able to book clients in via an app.
Targeted email campaigns
You can use your email list to send absolutely anything. Offers and competitions, news, and links to new content on your blog are all possible, and with some mail providers like Mailchimp you can even embed a video link (you see how all this works together, with one content marketing channel supporting and growing the others?)
Be my guest – guest blogs
A great way of networking –it involves producing content for other people’s blogs. We all benefit from well-organised guest blogging, it’s like a virtual pat on the back for both businesses and Google loves it.
Community publishing
You can publish your own content to LinkedIn, Facebook now has Instant Article you can add you content to, and if you get yourself onto Huffington Post you’ll be able to take advantage of their influence to get your message across. To blog for HuffPo UK you can contact them here.
How many of these have you thought about getting into in 2017? By this time next year, there are bound to be even more content marketing channels to choose from, and I think it’s inevitable that some will stick around while others fall out of favour.
Are you going to try something different with your content marketing channels now?