What does your website say about you and your business? Are your products and services outlined clearly? Does your branding and message make sense? I would be willing to bet that these were probably the biggest points you focused on when you rolled out your website, but they certainly are not the only important things to think about if your goal is engaging customers and keeping them involved online. Content marketing is as much an art as it is a measurable science, and is one of the biggest factors in how your site retains readers and ranks in search engine results. Even something as simple as a weekly blog, covering topics that are relevant to your site’s audience, can make a big impact on traffic and search visibility.
So you have a successful business and a solid website, but you can’t seem to break through onto the first page of Google. Your site analytics show that most of your visits are from direct traffic (someone typed in your URL or clicked a bookmark), which means that you’re missing out on all of the people that could be finding your site through a search engine or seeing your blog posts featured somewhere else on the internet. Consider this: when you log a new page on your site through blogging or creating other content, it gives Google another page to index. Choosing topics that are relevant to your readers or customers and taking the time to write content that speaks to their interests will help you rank higher when those people are typing in search phrases into Google.
Social Butterfly
Everybody has a Facebook page. Even the much-maligned movie Waterworld has a fan page on Facebook, if that tells you anything about the variety of communities there. This means that your posts on social media will need to be engaging and interesting to have even a slight chance of breaking through and being seen. Having a presence on social media that simply mirrors the same information that is on your website is not going to cut it, especially if your primary reason to post on Facebook is to try directly selling something to your viewers. Cross-posting content from your website’s blog to social media accounts will give your readers a reason to click and a reason to stay on your pages to read what you’ve written. If you’re posting content that is aligned with the products or services that you sell, you will have a much better chance of attracting potential customers to your pages.
Field of… Readers?
If you build it, they will come. Really. Of course, none of this means that you need to become a professional writer and social media expert in order to have a successful online presence. The most realistic (and ultimately sustainable) plan will involve a commitment to regularly creating a blog or newsletter that represents an actual attempt to deliver interesting thoughts and insights. People are so sensitive to the sales pitch these days that you are more likely to repel visitors by talking about your product than you are to attract buyers. Positioning yourself and your business as a thought leader and an expert in your field will put more eyeballs on your website, and (eventually) more revenue to your bottom line.
Teague Content and Marketing 