Proliferation

Mar 24
0

The 4 R’s of Good Content Management

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In content marketing, both how much content you produce and what kinds of content are equally important for consumer engagement, sales and ultimately return on investment. Effective content management is an essential component of any content marketing campaign, for businesses in Utah and across the globe. For great content marketing strategy, follow the four R’s of content management.

Recycle

Unless you’re part of the world’s largest content marketing agency, chances are you don’t have the budget to produce only 100-percent-unique content every single day. Get the most out of your marketing content by recycling content and applying it to different mediums, tweaking things as appropriate. Change things up enough to develop a slightly different message for each format.

Reinvigorate

When you pull out old content to recycle it, make sure that all the information is still relevant in the present day. Update your information with all the latest statistics, latest website URLs, branding, etc. There’s nothing worse than recycling an old piece of work only to realize that one company in Utah or that particular website you reference no longer exists. And besides, content that’s no longer relevant is not content that drives conversions.

Retire

On the flip side of recycling content, know when to give up and retire old content that is simply no longer useful. Technology becomes outdated, trends change and people move on from one thing to another. Don’t risk letting your business get left in the dust, and get rid of old content in a timely fashion. Nothing’s worse than giving off the vibe of an outdated, out-of-touch business.

Replace

When you finally retire old content for good, it’s essential for content marketers to replace old content with something new and exciting. Keep things fresh and up-to-date with a mix of new and cutting-edge content and older staple pieces. You can even just spice up older pieces in order to maintain those original links and SEO value.

From businesses in Utah to the East Coast, content marketing is all about bringing in consumers organically. Stay on top of the game by following the four R’s of content management.

Mar 23
0

Content Marketing in the Pre-Internet Era

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Content marketing is the new big thing in online marketing — from billboards to in-your-face pop-up advertising, content marketing is like a breath of fresh air that brings consumers to your business the natural way.

Yet while content marketing is a buzzword currently trendy among businesses from the East Coast to Utah, content marketing has been around longer than you’d think. Let’s take a look at some examples.

John Deere

Back in 1895, agricultural manufacturer John Deere launched its own consumer magazine, known as “The Furrow.” Originally published quarterly in Clarinda, Iowa, “The Furrow” is now available in 12 different languages and 40 different countries around the world, with a consumer reach of 1.5 million people.

Michelin

A mere five years after John Deere’s “The Furrow,” in 1900 tire manufacturer Michelin came out with it’s “The Michelin Guides,” a series of comprehensive guides to automobile maintenance, travel and local restaurants and hotels. Originally distributed for free in France, “The Michelin Guides” expanded into annual releases that covered various different countries.

Jell-O

The next big foray into content marketing in the 20th century came from American gelatin company Jell-O in 1904. Facing low sales, the Jell-O company began door-to-door distribution of free copies of its Jell-O recipe book, featuring creative uses for the gelatin dessert. The recipe book was a smash hit throughout the Midwest and Utah, reaching $1 million in sales by 1906.

Procter & Gamble Co.

Without the Procter & Gamble Co. (P&G) approach to content marketing in the 1930s, we wouldn’t have today’s classic soap operas such as “Days of Our Lives” and “The Young and the Restless.” The P & G company, purveyor of all things household goods, needed a new way to appeal to stay-at-home housewives in Utah and elsewhere. Through the creation of dramatic storylines full of mystery and intrigue, the classic soap opera was born.

Hasbro & Marvel

In 1982, comic book legend Marvel and toy company Hasbro teamed up to create the iconic G.I. Joe comic book. Through cross-channel promotion via both comic books and a television series, G.I. Joe became a household name — and sold an unprecedented amount of merchandise.

While content marketing has come a long way since the turn of the century, the core concepts remain the same. Tailor your branded content in a way that is both relevant for consumers and beneficial for your brand, and people from the East Coast to Utah will be clamoring for your products. For a strategy that has stood the test of time, content marketing is it.

Mar 22
0

Make the Most of Obscure Holidays With Content Marketing

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From National Pancake Day to Froot Loop Day and Arbor Day, the world is full of random and obscure holidays. While some holidays are more reputable than others — Pi Day, for instance, is totally a real holiday — even the craziest of self-proclaimed holidays can be a great resource for content marketers.

In content marketing, even the best campaigns can sometimes get a little stale. Capitalizing on random holidays throughout the year can add a little spice to your everyday content marketing strategy and increase engagement.

Just make sure to pick holidays that are relevant to your business; a company that sells Jell-O in Utah, for instance, would certainly benefit from National Jell-O Week, which takes place the second week of February — and has been officially recognized by the Utah state legislature since 2001.

Obscure holidays are great for times of the year that fall though the cracks between more-established holidays such as Independence Day or Labor Day. Research obscure holidays in advance, and plan your content marketing campaigns accordingly.

Run a local bakery? Consider running a sale for Cupcake Lover’s Day, or simply write a blog post or social media shout-out to get people interested. And don’t forget about National Donut Day. Work for a diner? Maybe Tater Tot Day is more your thing. The point is to get consumers thinking about your brand, in a more fun and genuinely interesting way. Plus, strange holidays are great for social.

No matter how strange the holiday, there’s almost always a way to work it in to your content marketing strategy. Whether you’re running a small business in Utah or a larger corporation based in the Big Apple, one thing’s for sure: People really, really love random holidays. Take the opportunity to celebrate, and connect with your audience in a way they’ll surely remember come next year.

Mar 21
0

4 Obsolete Content Marketing Strategies You Should Probably Stop Using

By | content marketing, Mobile marketing | No Comments

Much like the rest of the Internet, content marketing is an ever-changing field. As Google search guidelines and consumer online behaviors evolve, content marketers from the Midwest to Utah need to stay on their toes in order to keep consumers engaged.

You’d think any content marketer worth her salt would understand this. Nonetheless, we’re always surprised by how many marketers are still holding on to old strategies — strategies that have long been obsolete.

Focusing Only on Short-Form Content

While short-form content makes it easy to crank out a large quantity of pieces, Google search criteria no longer value short-form pieces as well as longer ones. Long-form pieces tend to rank higher than short-form ones — and there’s simply no substitute for comprehensive, detailed content that both informs and educates your users.

Keyword Stuffing

Back in the day, content marketing was all about the keywords. Companies from the East Coast to Utah could stuff their content full of keywords and expect it to rank highly — no matter the quality of the content.

Nowadays, Google and most other search engines actively penalize websites for this; instead of just focusing on the keywords, put more effort into crafting a quality piece, and use keywords where it makes sense to do so.

Using Meta Descriptions

Meta descriptions used to be a great place to stuff in some more keywords and boost your search rankings. Now, however, meta descriptions have no impact whatsoever on SEO. It doesn’t matter if you use keywords or not; just don’t bother with meta descriptions.

Writing for Anyone & Everyone

We understand that companies generally want their content to resonate with as many viewers as possible, however that approach may actually be hurting your content marketing strategy instead of helping. Determine who your target audience is, then write your content explicitly for that audience. No matter how good you think your content is, it will be of little use if your target audience does not agree.

Bonus: Don’t Forget About Video!

While you can’t go wrong with written content, video is truly the next big thing. For content marketers in Utah and around the world, video brings in unprecedented levels of engagement — so get behind that camera and start filming.

Mar 17
0

Content Marketing for Any Budget

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In 2016, we can safely say that most people in the marketing world know by now that content marketing is kind of a big deal. Eighty-eight percent of B2B marketers in Utah and across the country currently use content marketing techniques, and even more are considering implementing content marketing in the near future.

As any good marketer knows, advertising can get pricey. Content marketing is no exception — however, even Utah-area businesses on the tightest of budgets can reap the benefits of content marketing.

For the Smallest Budgets

For businesses looking to get into content marketing but don’t yet have the funds to do so, we recommend getting a head start by repurposing the content you may already have.

Do you have some consumer reviews lying around, or do you keep getting the same questions in your inbox? Turn customer reviews into a social media campaign, and reoccurring questions into an F.A.Q. master post. Any video produced should be used for blog posts, and pen lists of various facts & stats about your company.

For a Mid-Sized Budget

Once you’ve gotten your content marketing strategy off the ground — and finagled something for a budget — it’s time to diversify your content. Don’t just focus on blog posts and social: move on to infographics, slideshows, podcasts, animations, etc.

Above all, marketers on medium-sized budgets should start to allocate more resources into video. In the age of the iPhone, shooting video has never been easier; and by 2017, video content is expected to account for 69 percent of all consumer Internet traffic.

For the Fortune 500 Companies

If you’re a fortune 500 company in Utah or the Big Apple, chances are your budget for content marketing is insane. At this level, you’re talking the most diverse pool of content — everything from your average articles to calculated social media campaigns and tailored content for every minor holiday you’ve never even heard of (national pancake day, anyone?).

Companies at this level can afford to splurge for the best of the best. Not only is content marketing about quantity, it’s also about quality. The best content marketers are master of storytelling, forming meaningful relationships between a brand and its consumers. Adept at incorporating user-generated content, top-tier content marketers can bring consumers in from any angle.

From the smallest company in Utah to the biggest players, content marketing matters. No matter your level, incorporate content marketing into the mix and stay one step ahead of the game.

Mar 15
0

How to Grow Your Small SEO Agency to the National Level

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For agencies specializing in search engine optimization (SEO), life is all about getting the client’s website to the top of a search engine’s results pages (SERPs). Yet while the goal of any small SEO agency in Utah or elsewhere is to bring to the client Internet fame and fortune, what about the SEO agency itself?

Most SEO agencies start out small; they may employ only a handful of professionals. Yet even the smallest of SEO agencies has the potential to grow into a regional, national or even multi-national force. Here’s how.

Start with Referrals

For the infant SEO startup, the best way to get those first few influential clients is through referrals. In the beginning, referral clients may not be your biggest clients, but they are without a doubt the most important. Gain both clients and a professional reputation going forward by treating your first clients really, really well.

Use Content Marketing

In the current era of the Internet, content marketing and SEO go hand in hand. Today’s search engines only care about keywords and backlinks so much; the real driver of search engine results is high-quality content. And lots of it.

Not only should a good SEO agency provide content marketing for its clients, it should also use content marketing to promote the agency itself.

Blog Well, and Blog Often

The quintessential aspect of content marketing is blogging. You should blog about everything from SEO to content marketing (meta, I know) and social media marketing. By blogging well and often, you aim to establish your agency as a thought leader in the industry.

Get Out There

Once you’ve established your agency as an industry leader of sorts, the conference invitations will come rolling in. Go to conferences everywhere, from Utah to the East Coast. Speaking at conferences only serves to further solidify your place as a leader in the SEO industry — so put yourself out there.

Get Specific

Once your agency is really beginning to thrive in the SEO community, you can start making bigger moves. The best way to bring your agency up to the national level is to specialize in one very specific industry in particular.

Don’t just do SEO in general, do SEO for rodeo services or office suppliers in Utah, for instance. Pick a niche market, and then dominate it. By going niche, you become the sole resource for that market — and that’s truly powerful.

Capture the Niche Market — and then Go from There

Once you’ve captured your niche market, the only way to go is up. From being the lead SEO agency for one particular market in Utah to the go-to agency for that market at the national level, the best way to get there is to go niche.

So what are you waiting for? Get started on your SEO empire today.

Mar 14
0

Negative SEO Might Just Be Black Hat Tactics, But We’re Not Fooled

By | content marketing, SEO | No Comments

Black hat SEO is slowly (and thankfully) becoming a thing of the past; however, its replacement is just as threatening. A new, more cunning type of search engine optimization has emerged in the shoes of black hat tactics: negative SEO. As with all things search engine-related, it doesn’t matter if you’re geo-targeting specific keywords in Utah or running a full-fledged campaign across the Midwest — negative SEO can affect the rankings of any business or retailer.

Negative SEO Is Black Hat SEO 2.0
Negative search engine optimization is basically just an updated version of black hat SEO; in a nutshell, it’s a series of unethical tactics that can be used by almost anyone (with the appropriate skill set) to successfully sabotage a competitor’s search rankings. Negative search engine optimization can be aimed at local competitors from Utah to the East Coast — it makes no difference to negative SEO.

Some of the tactics employed during a negative search engine optimization attack can include website hacking, the generation of a large quantity of inbound spam links to a website, content duplication and distribution and the creation of false social media profiles with the intention of destroying a company’s online reputation. A business on the West Coast can use any of the above tactics to target a competitor across the nation — whether they’re located in Utah or on the East Coast — to negatively affect their rankings and online reputation.

How to Treat Negative SEO Bullying
All of the above-listed tactics sound like an intense dosage of SEO-bullying; however, how successful are these tactics? Are they tangible enough to be considered an actual threat? Absolutely. And to make matters worse, negative SEO is cheap — it can cost as little as five bucks for someone to initiate a series of negative search engine optimization tactics. Your best bet? Invest in the necessary tools to prevent an attack from happening in the first place.

Mar 11
0

The Facebook Emojis We Wish We Had

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Ever since the introduction of the “like” back in February 2009, Facebook users have been clamoring for a new way to react to friends’ posts, photos and status updates. For seven years, the Facebook “like” was the only way to react to someone’s post (without actually writing a comment), which left many users conflicted over the ethics of “liking” that status about grandma’s death or little Timmy’s broken arm.

That all changed on Feb. 24, 2016 when Facebook rolled out with a slew of new emoji digital reactions. The five new emojis — “love,” “haha,” “wow,” “sad” and “angry” — give Facebook users and digital marketing companies alike something to celebrate; in addition to giving users more freedom of expression, the emojis give Facebook & affiliates rather detailed information about user likes and dislikes.

Not everyone is happy about Facebook’s new emojis, however. The very day the update went live, comic artist Matthew Inman — better known for his page The Oatmeal — had already come up with a list of satirical new emojis for the social network, with reactions ranging from “meh” to “I just threw up in my mouth” and “I read this while pooping.”

In an interesting turn of events — or clever marketing ploy — anonymous programmers have come up with browser extensions intended to change the innocuous emojis into Pokémon or various images of spray-tanned American tycoon Donald Trump.

These so-called Reaction Packs open the lid to a Pandora’s box full of possibilities: from Studio Ghibli’s Soot Sprite reactions (which are already available) to Disney characters or SpongeBob reactions, the opportunities are endless.

This is good news for both digital marketing companies and trademarked character enthusiasts alike; not only can marketing companies gather data from the use of Facebook’s existing emojis, they may be able to incorporate brand-specific Facebook emojis to accompany a movie or product campaign, a la Twitter’s current hashtag emoji options.

Facebook’s new emoji reactions have only been live for a couple of weeks, and their future is as of yet uncertain. One thing’s for sure, though: there will never, ever be a Facebook “dislike” button. Sorry guys.

Mar 11
0

Choosing the Right KPIs for Your Content Marketing Strategy

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For content marketing professionals from Utah to New England, being able to accurately measure your marketing performance is absolutely essential. Many marketers have a tendency to focus too much on buzzworthy keywords and conversion rate optimization (CRO) and could potentially miss out on other key performance indicators, or KPIs.

According to a survey from the 2016 Content Marketing Benchmark Study, only 30 percent of marketers find their content marketing programs effective, down from 38 percent last year. While organizations from the East Coast to Utah are spending more on content marketing than ever, they aren’t finding the campaigns as effective.

Content marketers’ campaigns may seem less effective because they’re using the wrong KPIs to rate performance. Typical effective KPIs include return on investment (ROI), profit margin, sales figures, website visitors, conversions and customer complaints.

Content marketing professionals are in a unique position to track some of these key metrics — in particular website visitors, engagement and conversions — merely by nature of the industry. Social media makes tracking consumer engagement easy, and Google Analytics can tell you everything you need to know about traffic to your website.

For content marketers, though, it’s important not to miss the forest for the trees. Just because you can measure everything doesn’t mean you should. For example, if a lot of people visit your website but not very many are converting, you should focus less on the Web traffic and more on how visitors are actually interacting with the website.

Big data is high for content marketing, but marketers should be sure to use both quantitative and qualitative KPIs. While quantitative KPIs can tell you how prevalent something is, quantitative KPIs can tell you why.

For content marketers and other business owners alike, KPIs should accurately represent the overall goals of the company. Whether your business is located in the Big Apple or in sunny Utah, you should pick an attainable, measurable goal and focus on the indicators that will lead you directly to that goal.

Mar 09
0

There’s More to Content Than Just Text

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In the world of content marketing, the saying goes, “content is king.” However, there are many different kinds of content, and a number of different ways to produce it. Marketers from the Midwest to Utah employ writers and aspiring journalists alike to pen everything from blogs and whitepapers, but while written works can be powerful tools, don’t forget about video and visual content.

Visual Content

While the average person retains only 20 percent of what they read, consumers retain nearly 80 percent of what they see. In addition, 40 percent of people respond better to visual content than plain text alone — and that goes for consumers from the East Coast to Utah.

Not only is visual content more likely to make an impression on consumers, visual media is more likely to be shared on social media channels. According to Social Media Today, social media users are 40 percent more likely to share visual content than written works.

Video Content

For content marketing companies in Utah and elsewhere, video productions can be a great way to boost engagement and help get your search results to the top of the first page. Videos are 50 times easier to get to the front page of search results than other kinds of content. Video work doesn’t have to be 100 percent original — you can use video to recycle old content and put a fresh spin on things.

By 2014, half of all Internet content existed in video form; by the end of the decade that number of expected to top 90 percent. Content marketing specialists who have yet to jump on the video bandwagon are potentially missing out on some serious marketing opportunities.

What Medium Fits the Audience Best?

In the end, content marketing professionals should pick the medium that fits the target audience the best. Whether it’s written works, static visual mediums or video, content that resonates best with viewers is content that drives conversions.