Read Me: 4 Ways To Get Your Stories Told Again & Again
You've finally realized that it's time to start creating some original content for your business's website. It's great that you're taking the time to write blogs, share videos and create other content to help spread the word, however, you'll need to go a bit higher than just writing a few blog entries. With today's fast-paced, online world, the time you invest in content creation needs to be creative and unique, which will get your stories shared over and over again. Here are a few tips to help you get started with more creative content.
Effective tagging
When you write your blog posts, you'll usually have a place to enter keywords and tags. These spots may seem useless and you might be tempted to skip them. Do not be tempted however, as effective keyword planning can go a long way to getting your search rankings higher. Check out the Google Keyword Planner to see trends of certain keywords over time, relevant similar queries and other helpful information. Then, use those keywords and tags when you write your blogs.
Creative social media
There are a couple of simple rules when it comes to social media — respond often and create consistent content. However, there is so much more you can do than just a few random posts about your favorite products or services. Start by researching your customer base. Look for recurring themes and trends in those people, and create content that speaks to them directly. Respond to every relevant post you can, offering words of help, a thank you or a fix if there was an issue.
More than an FAQ
If you've spent any time online, you've already seen plenty of boring FAQ pages on websites. A simple list of the most frequently asked questions and answers can be a useful tool when it comes to content creation and customer service, however, if you're wanting to up the creativity of your content, try starting with your FAQ page. You already know your business and your customers better than anyone, so start by creating videos or other creative ways to answer those frequently asked questions. Be sure to update the questions often and even offer short blog posts or demonstrations to respond to new inquiries. You'll be amazed at how far a really well done FAQ page will take you.
Blogs and more
From personal blogs to big industry blogs to sites like Reddit, there are lots of other places that people are getting their content. If you can identify an industry forum, be sure to join it. Spend time getting to know the other decision makers and influencers in your industry, and be willing to take the time to be active in the forum. This isn't about self promotion, but about finding and sharing information about your product or service. You can even use your own blog posts to share in industry forums to help spread word of your company.
This article was written by Deborah Flomberg of Examiner.com for CBS Small Business Pulse.
