Category: Blog GVC Marketing

If there’s one golden rule of starting a business, it’s that you need a blog to grow. Your blog is the reason consumers come back long after they’ve purchased something from your online store. It’s also the reason that new users find your brand when they are searching on Google. Lastly, your blog is the deciding factor for many consumers when they commit to your company.

You’ll hear all kinds of tips designed to help you create a winning content marketing strategy, but do you know if you’re making any mistakes that are costing you traffic and sales? If not, we are going to cover four of the biggest content marketing mistakes you didn’t know you were making, and then we are going to tell you how to fix those problems once and for all.

Let’s dive in!

1. Failing to Capture Email Addresses

One of the most prominent mistakes marketers make when posting content on their blog is they don’t ask readers to join their email list. This mistake could cost you thousands of customers and tens of thousands of dollars. When you publish content on your blog, remember to put a call-to-action (CTA) in a prominent spot on your website. If a reader likes your content, they will subscribe to your list.

Countless benefits come with building an email list. For starters, you’ll have a direct line to talk to your target audience. Communication is vital if you want to build rapport with consumers and show them why your business is worth their time and money.

You’ll also have the ability to nurture your subscribers and help them uncover pain points, all while showing off your latest products and services. Couple this information with the fact that email marketing has a 4,400 percent return on investment, and it’s clear that successful businesses need an email list to thrive.

2. Not Optimizing for Voice Search

When you think of Search Engine Optimization (SEO), you probably think of optimizing your content with keywords or phrases a consumer might type into a search engine. But are you currently optimized for voice search?

Devices like Amazon’s Echo and Apple’s Siri allow consumers to quickly and easily search Google, shop for products, and much more, with their voices. It’s estimated that by 2020, half of all searches will happen with a voice-activated device.

The best way to optimize your website for voice search is by analyzing your existing keywords and thinking about how someone might make the same request but by speaking instead of typing. For instance, instead of “seafood restaurants near me,” a consumer using voice search might say, “Where can I find a lobster dinner in Los Angeles?” Optimizing for voice search helps make your content more accessible, which translates to more traffic and sales.3. Putting Promotion over Value

Another huge issue we see content marketers make is they put their promotions over the value of their content. When your goal is to grow your following with educational and entertaining blog posts, you should put the quality of your articles over the offer at the end.

If someone comes to your website and you have a promo at the end that features a 20 dollars off coupon, they will never see your offer because they couldn’t get through the content. When you want to promote a new product, make sure you include references naturally and keep the integrity of your core piece of content.

4. Forgetting to Gather User Feedback

Finally, don’t forget to use your content marketing strategy as a way to gather feedback from your audience. Knowing what consumers think of your design, product, and industry can provide you with a wealth of information about their habits and pain points.

At the end of your post, ask an open-ended question, and encourage the audience to engage with you in the comment section. Before long, your readers will start talking to each other, and you’ll see your community blossom.

You can also gather feedback with your social media and email marketing campaigns. All of this information will help you craft content that resonates with your audience, which will make your content marketing strategy more effective. Plus, platforms like Facebook have a staggering 2.45 billion active users, making it perfect for finding plenty of people interested in your industry and brand.Conclusion

All great businesses have a high-quality blog with an engaged audience. You’ll likely make mistakes along the way, but there are ways to overcome these issues and grow your brand. As your following grows, your content marketing strategy should evolve to match the needs of your target audience.

If you’re willing to take the time to engage with consumers, optimize your site for voice search, grow your email list, and create well-written content, you’ll have no problem mastering content marketing in 2020.

With more than one billion monthly active users, Instagram ranks third after Facebook (with just over two billion active users) and YouTube (with 1.9 billion) in terms of the most popular social media network. While Facebook still has more total users, it is no secret that Instagram has a reach that shouldn’t be ignored by business users.

According to the latest data compiled by UK-based service platform Superviral, Instagram could be a crucial part of a social media marketing strategy. The Facebook-owned service now ranks second as the most downloaded free app in the Apple App Store, and is the 10th most searched query on Google.

The service has seen serious growth in 2019, which could continue next year.

“With a 20% increase in users from June 18 to April 19, I believe Instagram’s growth isn’t slowing down any time soon,” said Rabban Faruqui of Superviral.Co.Uk. “From a biological perspective, we can see why visual-based social media companies like Instagram and Snapchat will continue thriving as visuals are processed 60,000x faster than text in the brain, meaning consumers simply prefer images/videos over text.”

Reaching Millennials And Generation Z

Instagram also has appeal to younger adults, far more than Facebook these days. According to data from SproutSocial, 64% of Instagram users are 18-29 years old – but more importantly nearly two out of every three adults in this age group use the service.

The service is also expected to account for nearly a quarter of all Facebook’s ad revenue by the end of this year!

The users of the service also have a reasonable amount of “disposable income” noted by Superviral’s data: 31% of Instagram users make more than $35,000 a year, while 32% of users make between $50,000 and $74,000, and 32% make between $30,000 and $49,000 a year.

Ditching The Likes

Earlier this year Instagram made a bold move in dropping its “likes” feature, but that has been seen as a largely positive move.

“From my understanding, Instagram’s recent leap into hiding their likes will cultivate a non-judgmental environment for its users that will increase the number of posts being submitted to the platform,” explained Faruqui. “The recent move is a competitive move with Snapchat. This will only capture Snapchat’s user base as only the user can see how much engagement their post has received.”

Business On Instagram

What sets Instagram apart from other social media services is in the fact that 80% of accounts actually follow at least one business or brand, and 200 million “Instagrammers” actively visit business profiles daily. Moreover, 70% of users turn to Instagram to look up a brand, while 60% of users learn about new products via the social media service.

Only about 11% of active users are in the United States, but the 2020 estimates are that it will still account for some 112.5 million American users. By contrast 70 million users are in Brazil, 69 million in India and 40 million in Russia.

Interestingly, males account for 51% of total users on Instagram.

Time To Post

Those looking to make a splash on Instagram need to consider carefully when to post. SproutSocial’s research found that weekdays between 10am and 3pm were the most ideal times.

Superviral offered even more specific data, and broke it down by key times. Travel posts are best on Fridays from 9am until 1pm, while entertainment-specific posts should be made on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12pm noon until 3pm. Food at 12 noon on Fridays, and retail on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, also at noon.

Non-profits do better on Tuesdays at 4pm or 10am, while e-commerce related posts should be made on Thursdays at 9pm or 4pm, and Healthcare on Wednesdays or Sundays at 9am. Personal care is best posted on Thursdays or Fridays at 1pm, 2pm or 3pm. Technology related topics should be posted on Mondays or Tuesdays at 2pm, and education on Thursdays at 4pm or 5pm.

But as all social media experts noted there is no really bad time – and given different time zones and international markets it is about the message and image as much as anything.

Picture Perfect

SproutSocial reported that 100 million photos are posted daily! If a picture tells a thousand words that means there are literally an encyclopedia worth of stories posted each and every day. Brands need to consider the photos they post.

Superviral suggested that images with a single dominant color17% more interest than images with multiple dominant colors, while images with texture had higher engagement rates with 79% more interest than those with low texture. Users also apparently like some space in photos – as those with more background (negative or white space) get 29% more likes than those without.

And users certainly aren’t colorblind. Those images that have blue as the dominant color generation 24% more interest than those with red as the dominant color.

#Love Is All Around

Finally, when it comes to hashtags, #love remains the most popular on Instagram. However, marketing experts agree if your content isn’t actually about love, don’t use that hashtag.

There are other options – and Instagram does allow up to 30 hashtags per post. If you’re looking for some suggestions, Oberlo published a list of the 100 best Instagram hashtags for likes in 2019.

Rounding out the top 10 include: #Instagood, #photooftheday, #fashion, #beautiful, #happy, #cute, #tbt, #like4like, #followme.

In the constantly-evolving world of social media, companies need to be smart in how they use their marketing dollars. Trends change quickly, so you’ll want to make sure you’re optimizing your strategies to get the most eyes on your social media ads as possible.

The members of Ad Age Collective are familiar with the ins and outs of social media marketing. That’s why we asked them to each share one way a business can get the most out of their social media advertising budget. Read on for their best responses.

1. Use demand signals like intent keywords.

Too often, we guess what prospects care about and then start writing, tweeting and posting away. What if you could flip the script and actually know what they care about? The reality is, you can. By updating your strategy to always start with intent keywords, you know what your ideal customer profile (ICP) really cares about so all of your content, social and ads are driven by these insights. – Latane Conant, 6sense

2. Target your audience carefully.

Social media advertising offers one of the best means to target a core audience. By focusing your strategy, you can reach the right people at the right time and the right place for a budget that feels right. Taking advantage of the services for some of the big ad channels allows even small brands to find their audience quickly and effectively. – Maggie O’Neill, Peppercomm

3. Promote your earned media on social media.

One of the biggest problems with social media ads is that people don’t trust them. One of the biggest problems with positive PR coverage is that not enough people see it. On the other hand, you can control your social media with great precision, and people trust editorial content way more than ads. Combine the persuasion of earned media with the precision of social media for a big win. – Dan Beltramo, Onclusive (formerly AirPR)

4. Produce customized content for very specific clients.

Too often, businesses try to speak to everyone with their ads, but this leads to them speaking to “no one” and spending an exorbitant amount on ads with limited ROI. Instead, hone in your content on very specific target clients (exactly down to an individual person is best). Not only will your content convert better, but you will also spend less per ad as you aren’t trying to go after the entire country. – Patrick Ward, Rootstrap

5. Publish less content and participate more.

Limit the amount of content you produce. We call that “participate and not publish.” Only say something when you have something of value to say. You can solve specific problems and then make sure you’re super efficient with your spend by targeting the content to audiences at their moment of need. The end goal is to create real value by producing content that has meaning, resonance and relevance. – Marc Landsberg, SOCIALDEVIANT

6. Be engaging and authentic.

Having a social media campaign that engages consumers or influencers and entices them to share and repost across all their platforms is the best way to stretch the budget. This is the most authentic as it is something that people truly want to share with their personal audiences because they found it valuable themselves. – Jessica Hawthorne-Castro, Hawthorne Advertising

7. Follow the data.

Social media advertising should follow the same rules as other advertising or marketing campaigns: It should be data-driven. If you leverage your organization’s existing data (from a CRM platform, for example) and combine with a platform’s recommended audience, you will be more successful getting your message in front of your most valuable customer. Also, it does not require any additional budget! – Brad Wensel, Healthgrades

Attempting to get noticed online is like looking for a needle in a haystack. The vastness of the internet can quickly make things disappear, which is why marketing is an essential tool for any business. Marketing can be quite expensive and time-consuming, and because of this, it can be quite challenging to put yourself in front of the desired audience, especially for smaller businesses with tighter budgets.

According to Statista, it’s projected that around $680 billion will be spent on advertising in 2019. Quite a high figure to digest.

However, even without a massive wallet, there are different ways that companies can thrive online.

One of the primary factors to consider when marketing is to determine who your audience is.

Brands like Coca-Cola invest in ads placed directly in front of their audience up on the screens in Piccadilly Circus and 5th avenue, right in front of their audience. Luckily for them, their target audience is pretty much everyone who walks by the massive billboard on 5th avenue.

Advertising through these traditional mediums is healthy for their brand as it is sufficient for their operational profit.

For others, identifying and targeting an audience could come about slightly more complicated. First, you need to determine how will your audience use the product or service you’re offering?

Once you have identified the behaviour of your audience, you can better understand their needs and wants. An inexpensive way of doing this is through the use of content marketing and social media.

It’s about time brands begin to realise the importance and power of content marketing and the influence their social media can have on the audience. We already know that social media is an influential medium which has given birth to YouTube stars and Instagram influencers. With a healthy number of followers, brands are eager for these popular individuals to endorse their products. This provides us with enough leverage to understand how beneficial social media and its content can be and how it can positively affect your audience to buy into your product or services.

If we look at the basics, what is content marketing? Well, content marketing is the process of developing information for your audience which is valuable, relevant and engaging to them.

The goal of content marketing is to acquire new customers and grow your business by informing and educating your potential customers. Successful content marketing with high-quality content can improve your brand’s positioning by making you the go-to place for information in your particular niche. The more your audience interacts with your content, the wider your reach becomes, which, in turn, attracts more people to your brand. Content is also used to improve your brand’s organic positioning in search engines, drive traffic and increase the quality and quantity of leads.

In order to use both content marketing and social media together, it is worthwhile understanding how each works, their similarities and main differences. There are four elements that apply to both.

First and foremost, you will need to be able to align the objectives of both mediums into one main strategy. Content and social media have similar functions when looking at your overall marketing strategy, and so they should serve some of the same purposes such as helping your audience understand the subject matter and message that your brand is trying to convey.

Your objective should be aimed at educating your audience while simultaneously entertaining them. The end goal of any strategy is to get your audience convinced in investing in your brand, be it a product or service.

It’s also vital that your content and social strategies don’t just coordinate with each other, they should also align with your overall business objective by aiding to build brand equity, retain and create new customers.

Once you have figured out the objectives, it is time to begin putting together the content for your marketing. Regardless of if you are writing it by yourself or if you are paying someone to produce the content for you, it has to be of value to your audience.

Content is excellent because the cost associated with it is very low. After your content is created, you will need to be able to identify how to market it. There are a number of strategies to promote your content.

However, promoting content and driving people to the website is only a part of the job. Making sure that visitors stick around and do not bounce back is no less important than actually persuading them to visit the website in the first place. Ensure that your website is fully functional, mobile-friendly and well optimised for performance.

Website load time plays an integral role. For instance, 53% of mobile visitors exit the website if it takes more than 3 seconds to load. Walmart saw an uplift of 2% in conversions when their website speed dropped by only 1 second.

When looking at social media content, anything that is posted on social media can help with marketing and current projects, goals and objectives in the business. You can use social media along with other content marketing strategies simultaneously, and you can create strategies which are specifically designed to undergo only on social media channels. Content marketing without social media may not be as effective as you would like it to be.

Depending on your niche and audience, it should be your main objective to determine which social media channel is worth pursuing for your business.

Although it may seem like an effective strategy to jump onto the most popular channel like Facebook, you may find it ineffective for your specific niche.

If your audience is a group of professionals looking to switch a job, LinkedIn could be the most appropriate channel, despite the fact of being 1/7 of the size of Facebook.

To sum up, content marketing mixed with social media marketing can be highly effective when implemented properly. It allows valuable information to reach your target audience either through organic search and social media – bringing consistency to whatever your business is trying to achieve.  Author: Dmytro Spilka