Source: Zest London
Best practices and how to effectively implement them
Navigating the different ways businesses can reach out to its target audience is tricky — even more so in the digital age, where being connected 24/7 means you face an information overload.
Having a content strategy can go a long way in establishing a relationship between consumers and your business. Fiona, a content creator at local boutique agency, White Label PR, generates content for Singapore-based home décor label, Stylodeco. She stresses that creating a brand story and sharing your brand values help your consumers connect with your business.
So, how can you devise an approach to create the most effective content?
Understand your goals
Before you begin the planning process, you need to first understand what role content strategies play in your business.
In layman’s terms, content strategies refer to the planning and development process that goes on behind content creation. The long-term goal behind a successful content strategy is making sure your audience can identify with your message — which makes it easier for you to achieve your other objectives, such as sales and publicity. That means pinpointing their needs and habits to understand what they want.
Tinker with different formats
Adapting your content to suit your audience’s different needs is important too, says Faith.
One way Faith tracks her audience’s reaction to content is through A/B testing, or split testing. Essentially, you are pitting two different versions of your content against each other to see which is more popular with your target audience, so be flexible here!
Variables can range from time of posting (12pm versus 6pm), number of words (text-heavy or visuals-heavy), type of content (data-driven and factual versus a ‘softer’ approach), and more.
Sometimes, the statistics might surprise you, but that comes with the territory when you run your own business.
Set measurable objectives
If you’re going to devise a content strategy, you shouldn’t leave out evaluation from the equation. Ever heard of ROI?
That applies to content strategies, too! Depending on what medium you use to connect your content with its intended audience, measuring the success of your strategy can take on different forms.
Fiona measures the effectiveness of blog content by looking at post engagement using Google analytics. Blog traffic — such as unique page views, click throughs, search engine traffic, and new/returning visitors — is a measurable indicator for businesses who use blogs to interact with their audience.
On the other hand, businesses aiming for a conversion to sales can also look at corresponding increases or decreases in sales figures when fresh content is rolled out. Did your content manage to drive more potential traffic to your site and physical stores that was eventually converted to sales?
Plan ahead
“Planning your content schedule 2 – 4 weeks ahead saves you time and undue stress,” says Shali, Content & Social Media Executive of LHN Group. “The easiest way is to simultaneously use Google Sheets and Google Calendar – the former to list out what kind of content you’re scheduling, when you’re scheduling it and who is responsible for its execution.”
“Sometimes, it may be hard to keep up with the volume of content you’re scheduling, especially if you use a linear Google Sheet. Consequently, Google Calendar can remind you when a certain campaign is due to start/end, making content management that much easier.”
Change the game
One sure-fire way to make your strategy stand out is to think out of the box, offers Marilyn, Assistant Editor at Strategic Public Relations Group. Don’t just go with the flow; what helps you stand out from your competitors is how unique and memorable your content is.
“There is a drive towards creative differentiation, as data driven content tends to be similar after a while. More and more, we need to learn how to marry data analytics with experience, intuition, and creativity.”